Bibliography

This page will be changing frequently! If you have book recommendations – please feel free to post a comment here or elsewhere.

What I’m reading right now

E.P. Sanders, Jesus and Judaism

Wendy Mogel, Blessing of a Skinned Knee

John Shelby Spong, Living in Sin

Some of the Books I’ve read

Sumbul Ali-Karamli, The Muslim Next Door

Anonymous, The Way of the Pilgrim – about a Russian peasant in the 19th century who devotes his life to reciting the Jesus prayer (Lord Jesus Christ have mercy on me) and living as a wandering pilgrim. Seems to me like a brilliant case of pre-Internet viral marketing for the Eastern Orthodox book The Philokalia which is constantly referenced. On a more serious note, it is an interesting example of Eastern Orthodox spirituality – and it seems to me to have features in common with traditions of Eastern meditation.

Karen Armstrong, A History of God*

Karen Armstrong, The Battle for God*

Karen Armstrong, The Case for God*

Reza Aslan, No god but God: The Origins, Evolution and Future of Islam*

Courtney Bender, Heaven’s Kitchen: Living Religion at God’s Love We Deliver* A fascinating exploration of the role of faith and spirituality among volunteers at God’s Love We Deliver -the non-profit organization that serves meals to homebound victims of AIDS. The author is professor of the Sociology of Religion at Columbia University.

Peter Berger, The Desecularization of the World: Resurgent Religion and World Politics*

A Testament to Freedom, The Essential Writings of Dietrich Bonhoeffer (edited by G.B. Kelly and F.B Nelson)

Marcus Borg, Meeting Jesus Again for the First Time*

Marcus Borg, The Heart of Christianity*

Cynthia Bourgeault, Centering Prayer and Inner Awakening

Frederick Buechner, The Alphabet of Grace*

Francis Collins, The Language of God

Grace Davie, The Sociology of Religion*

Richard Dawkins, The God Delusion* I disagree with many of the points in this book (as I will explain in posts) but of the ‘new atheist’ books I’ve read I think this one is my favorite. He is clear, coherent, and I give him extra points for his excellent sense of humor. He makes a worthy opponent, as opposed to some others.

Daniel Dennett, Breaking the Spell

Dennis Dutton, The Art Instinct

John Esposito & Dalia Mogahed, Who Speaks for Islam?: What a Billion Muslims Really Think

Jonathan Haidt, The Happiness Hypothesis

Sam Harris, The End of Faith – the only part of this book that is marginally worth reading is the last chapter where Harris talks about Eastern Spirituality. Otherwise, you can either read this or Hitchens – both of them focus on the same critiques of religion based on the evils that have been done in the name of religion in the past. They are both pretty poorly structured rants and in some ways I find Harris’ even more problematic because of his no holds barred attack on Muslims. If Al Qaeda needed any further ammunition to prove how the West is out to get all of Islam, they have got all they need in this book.

Sam Harris, The Moral Landscape

Sam Harris, Free Will

John Haught, God and the New Atheism

Stephen Hawking and Leonard Mlodinow, The Grand Design

John H. Hayes and Carl R. Holladay, Biblical Exegesis: A Beginner’s Handbook

Christopher Hitchens, God is NOT Great In contrast to Richard Dawkins’ The God Delusion stands Christopher Hitchen’s rambling diatribe against all the horrors he has seen in his years as a journalist. I believe he has seen terrible things committed in the name of religion. I do not believe he can write a coherent book. I particularly take issue with this book because most people who study these sorts of conflicts recognize that religion is simply an excuse used by those in power to justify violence that is pursued to achieve economic or political objectives. Religion certainly helps stoke the flames, but absent religion other sources of ignition would, and have been, found.  The lack of depth in his analysis of these conflicts leaves me underwhelmed.

Dennis P. Hollinger, The Meaning of Sex: Christian Ethics and the Moral Life

Michael Horton, God of Promise

William James, The Varieties of Religious Experience

Malcom Jeeves & Warren S. Brown, Neuroscience, Psychology and Religion

Timothy Keller, The Reason for God: Belief in an Age of Skepticism*

Soren Kierkegaard, The Sickness unto Death

Bernard Lewis & Buntzie Ellis Churchill, Islam: The Religion and the People

C.S. Lewis, Mere Christianity

Dr. Armand Nicholi, The Question of God* This book is a comparative biography of C.S. Lewis and Sigmund Freud, written by a professor of psychiatry at the Harvard School of Medicine. This book was one of the books that started me on my new spiritual path. Of particular interest are the professor’s references to the positive impact that faith has had on the psychological health of some of his students.

Derek Parfit, Reasons and Persons

Albert Schweitzer, The Quest of the Historical Jesus*

John Shelby Spong, Rescuing the Bible from Fundamentalism

Victor Stenger, The New Atheists*

Gerd Theissen and Annette Merz, The Historical Jesus: A Comprehensive Guide*

Paul Tillich, Systematic Theology

Ludwig Wittgenstein, Philosophical Investigations*

Robert Wright, The Evolution of God