Stop by the library to review some of the new books recently added to
our library collection:
The Through Line – 200 Years of the Berry Street Essay (Kate R. Walker,
ed.)
For more than two hundred years, Unitarian and then Unitarian
Universalist ministers have gathered to hear one of their own deliver an
essay of reflection and critique on their profession. The Ministerial
Conference at Berry Street, or as it’s more commonly known, the Berry
Street lecture, was started in 1820 by famed Unitarian minister William
Ellery Channing. It is believed this essay series is the longest running of
its kind in the United States.
In this powerful collection, Berry Street scribe and editor Kate R. Walker
and contributors look back over the essays on record and offer analysis
of what was said and the historical context surrounding them; selected
essays have also been included in this volume. The voices and ministry
of thundering preachers, inspiring activists, and dedicated academics
point toward a compelling future. When examined as a whole, their
threads weave a rich and complex pattern.
And yet Walker and contributors also look at what was not said and
who was not invited to speak. As Unitarian Universalism enters a new
era of ministry in our congregations and outreach to the wider world,
our commitment to being a radically inclusive faith demands these
teachings. Our survival as a liberal religious faith depends on learning
from our failures so we don’t repeat them. (from back cover)
The Engaged Spiritual Life – A Buddhist Approach to Transforming
Ourselves and the World (Donald Rothberg)
Anyone whose eyes and heart are open can see the troubles facing
humanity. We find in the news and in our communities the effects of
continuing warfare, racism, injustice, and environmental destruction; of
greed, hate, and ignorance. As people of conscience, how best can we
respond? How do we fashion a spiritual life that has both inner wisdom
and integrity, as well as compassionate care for the world around us?
The key message of The Engaged Spiritual Life is that this is possible
because inner and outer development are intimately connected…This
book is a practical new guide, a handbook that pulls together theory
and practice to join the inner meditative life and outer activism. It
presents these understandings in a systematic, inspiring, and user-friendly fashion. With the clarity of a classic, it offers a rich palette of
teachings, exercises, and understandings gained over decades to guide
the reader to integrate activism with inner maturity. (from the forward
by Jack Kornfield)
A Matter of Death and Life (Irvin D. Yalom & Marilyn Yalom)
Internationally acclaimed psychiatrist and author Irvin Yalom devoted
his career to counseling those suffering from anxiety and grief. But
never had he faced the need to counsel himself until his wife, esteemed
feminist author Marilyn Yalom, was diagnosed with cancer. In A Matter
of Death and Life, Marilyn and Irv share how they took on profound
new struggles: Marilyn to die a good death, Irv to live on without her.
In alternating accounts of their last months together and Irv’s first
months alone, they offer us a rare window into facing mortality and
coping with the loss of one’s beloved…With the wisdom of those who
have thought deeply, and the familiar warmth of teenage sweethearts
who’ve grown up together, they investigate universal questions of
intimacy, love, and grief.
Informed by two lifetimes of experience, A Matter of Death and Life is
an open-hearted offering to anyone seeking support, solace, and a
meaningful life. (from Goodreads)
When Time is Short – Finding Our Way in the Anthropocene (Timothy
Beal)
“What if it’s already too late” to prevent ecological apocalypse? Beal
(Religion and Its Monsters), a religion professor at Case Western
Reserve University, explores this question and deconstructs human
exceptionalism in this pensive treatise. The theological belief that
humanity is set apart from nature, Beal argues, has held the species
back from taking seriously the possibility that it will one day cease to
exist…Beal revisits the biblical narratives often used to justify human
exceptionalism and exhumes an alternative “biblical aboriginal” reading
that emphasizes creatureliness, subsistence, and humility.
Rather than transcendence, Beal encourages “subscendence,” an
embrace of humanity’s interdependent place within nature. The author
also urges readers to confront climate injustice and grieve ecological
loss so that they might learn to “live with necessary pain and suffering”
and find hope despite impending disaster. The novel exegesis and a
nature-first perspective make for an original Christian take on climate
change, and Beal’s reflections on mortality and extinction are powerful
and moving…Touching and sagacious, this elegiac meditation will
enlighten. (from Publisher’s Weekly)
As with all of our books, these volumes are available for loan. Please
stop by the library to explore and browse among our wonderful
collection!
If you have questions or suggestions for the library, please send an
email to: library@uuce.org
Greg Waas, UUCE Librarian
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