5 comments about The Narrow Road : Stories of Those Who Walk This Road Together.

1. This is an heirhoom edition which includes the text of Brother Andrew's world-wide best seller, God's Smuggler, plus snatches of other stories of the Persecuted Church. Also a CD of Jars of Clay. Highly recommended.



2. The book, The Narrow Road, by Brother Andrew and Jars of Clay was inspiring. Brother Andrew tells his life story of serving God through the smuggling of Bibles and spreading the word to those who do not have access. His life story is incredible in how he put his life on the line every day just so that other would hear the Word of God. Jars of Clay also journeyed to China and Vietnam to lead services in the underground churches. The experience did not only teach the people there, but Jars of Clay themselves. What greater an experience that to witness first hand, the martyrs for Christ in China and Vietnam. The many stories throughout the book were so inspiring also. Account after account displayed the unending compassion these people had for Christ, and how they would stop at nothing to live for Him. I would highly recommend this book. The stories never get old, and the compassion of one man is jaw dropping. Page after page unravels the coming of nations to Christianity and how one man can make such a difference.



3. Brother Andrew strikes many a harmonious chord in this latest book of his. His stories of people are fascinating and how God uses the simplest people to accomplish His purpose. Wonderful reading material for anyone needing a boost to their faith in God's promises!



4. Though I have published thirty-one titles on the Biblical roots and history of the Early A.A. Christian Fellowship, my efforts have, of late, turned very specifically to the simple program developed in Akron by the pioneer A.A. Christian Fellowship. Its ingredients were abstinence, faith in the creator, obedience, growth in fellowship through Bible study and prayer, intensive work serving and helping other alcoholics to get straightened out. The more I looked at the early program--as distinguished from the one fashioned by Bill Wilson in his basic text published four years later in the Spring of 1939--the more I could see the believing and healing that were an integral part of the astonishing early A.A. cures. In despair, those wretched individuals turned away from booze and to their Creator for deliverance. They did it by accepting Christ. And they were not only cured but said so for a decade. Those observations took me to the books on believing and healing. The Narrow Road and the story of Brother Andrew's relentless efforts to serve his Creator by smuggling Bibles to foreign areas where they were far from welcome--even forbidden--this book was at the top of my reading list on trust in God. The Brother Andrew part of this title presents a cogent reason for believing that God is able and willing to do what He promises to do. And that is where Brother Andrew put his mind. Believe and receive. The story contains great language on this matter of truly believing that God can and will keep His promises. This is a belief factor that is fast vanishing from the alcoholic treatment picture today though it was immensely important and necessary to the unusual success of the A.A. pioneers between 1935 and 1938. Over and over, Brother Andrew put his trust in God and believed that God would enable Him to serve and love through Bible distributions, despite overwhelming obstacles. This is a book of commendable service and value.



5. The Narrow Road is a reprint of Brother Andrew's `God's Smuggler' that has been distractingly repackaged by the Christian alternative band, Jars of Clay. When a friend lent me tNR, I must admit that I was cautiously put off by the overt graphical `hipness' of the book design. This has apparently been conceived as the `cool' contemporary version of God's Smuggler. More distracting than the gussied-up look and feel, are the story-in-story-vignettes that have been dropped into many pages. These disjointed side-stories often feel artificial and even dubious (i.e., a Muslim boy of the Comoros Islands thinks he has a romantic interest in a certain "very beautiful" Christian girl but eventually decides that he has actually been interested in studying the Bible with her father); it seems that some of these questionable snippets have been composed and interjected essentially because the design scheme demanded them. Style dictates substance; this isn't worthy of Brother Andrew's autobiography.
   
   Sorry for the long complaint. Unfortunately, it wasn't merely a digression; the superimposed design features get in the way here. At least that is my opinion. Brother Andrew's story, printed and reprinted since the late 1960's using the title `God's Smuggler,' is a fast-paced and fascinating first person telling of Andrew's courageous work behind the Iron Curtain. The story itself won't let you go, the pages almost turn themselves, you'll probably read it in two or three sittings. Contained in The Narrow Road is a "five star" story ("God's Smuggler"); but you might want to read a different edition.

5 comments about My Life in Orange: Growing Up with the Guru.

1. The author, Tim Guest, opens his heart in this book about his childhood in the Bhagwan Shree Rajneesh cult and how destructive it was to his family. "My mother and her friends wanted to surrender us, their children, to the love and support of the commune, in order to save us from the traumatic confines of nuclear family life."--pages 92 & 93. This is not a dry tome on the nature of cults. Some reviewers have judged the author, but this novel is not a whitewash, but an honest confession of his faults and his desire for a close relationship with his parents. It was heartbreaking how the cult children had to learn to rely upon each other for comfort and intimacy that was denied them with their parents. As a woman, I grieved over his deep longing for a meaningful relationship with his mother and his desire not to always have to share her with others.
   
   This novel also shows how an articulate intelligent woman, his mother, becomes slowly enmeshed in the Rajneesh cult and how the countercultural attitudes toward family ("the nuclear family itself was at fault: an unwitting agent of capitalist consumerism..." pg. 19 and "Marriage was part of the bigger swindle; a partriarchal conspiracy to subjugate women..." pg. 20) caused her to justify unkind behavior. It's almost a warning of how intellectualism can sometimes cause us to behave inhumanely. (I'm reminded of how college students were able to justify barbaric behavior during the Cultural Revolution in China.)
   
   Tim Guest has an amazing memory. Details, such as desiring slippery wooden floors to slide across while wearing socks, helped me to identify with Tim who had common childhood experiences even within the confines of cult life. This is not a lurid expose but an insightful look into how cults operate to focus power in the hands of a few individuals at the expense of their members. I couldn't help thinking, while reading the book, about the parallels of the cult to the intelligensia of our current culture that is promoting the Socialistic mindset and denying the importance of the individual (ie. to end competition, the striving for excellence, the rewarding of mediocrity, the tearing down of high standards, and so forth).
   
   I recommend this book for a serious study of cult life. If you're looking for entertainment, this will probably not interest you. It's a quiet, but well-written, book.



2. I haven't read the book. Bhagwan himself said that is it easy to attack a man after he is dead. Guest is capitalizing on this concept. For the past several years I have been a Osho Rashneesh Sanyassi loyalist. That is until I read The God that Failed, an exclusive expose of Rashneesh by one of his closest members, bodyguard of almost a decade (?). I thought I would read about bitterness, he does have regrets and it almost cost him his sanity, but he also lived a something of a priveledged lifestyle, to include for a time, unmitigated sex and power, and he is grateful for that. Osho considers him to be his Judas.
   
   Now that I have entirely digressed, don't throw the baby out with the bathwater. Osho Rashneesh has mastered several disciplines in his lifetime, to include Buddhism, Tao, Zen, Hinduism, Sufism and the likes as demonstrated in his literature. IMO, there isn't anyone who has had such tremendous insights than Osho Rashneesh. And if you wonder about his credibility, he along with Ghandi are the only 2 sages with library rooms dedicated in their names in the Indian Parliament.
   
   On the other hand, there isn't anyone like him that took hundreds along for a ride into a mystical Hades. He had issues, to put it mildly. He was addcited to valium and nitrous oxide; and is said to urinate during his walks because of it. His 93 Rolls Royces was a complicated joke, poking his finger at Aristocracy, yet probably building some sort of legal capital/investment that couldn't be removed. Technically, I don't think the titles were in his name, just given to his estate. If it weren't for the drugs, he wouldn't have taunted the Regean administration to go after him with outrageous anti-Christian statements. He underestimated the US, Reagan and the Christian right. Reagan was done dealing with hippies and communists. Subsequentially, Osho Rasneesh's disillusioned staff commited atrocities that shattered any credibility that he may have had left. And the Muddy Ranch was bought as cheap real estate for a reason, it was a useless dry desert that became brutally hot in the summer and cold in the winter. But the building permits is what did him in, in a nutshell. The local govt. would not allow his commune to build a city, simlar to the likes of Salt Lake. The would not give any quarter. Like piranhas, the commune attacked themselves and locals.
   
   To love Osho Rashneesh is to love existentialism. He is the existentialist's existentialist. (his words) I have returned to Church, the church of my origin that I formally I would rather be dead than go back. There are comforts and challenges in living as another one of Christ's annointed. And I think Osho Rashneesh understands that, but he walked away from it under the influence of hedonistic narcotics.
   
   Unless Guest is able to testify on the brilliance of Osho Rashneesh and his contribution to the evolution of humanity, Guest's book is useless, which is probably why I haven't felt the need to read it.



3. Without reservation, I recommend MY LIFE IN ORANGE. You are in for a bumpy ride, however, on which your assumptions & judgments really need to be checked at the gate.
   This is about British disaffected Baby Boomers who first got into grassroots politics until they heard the siren song of the Raggle Taggle Gypsy, the psychic Pied Piper known as Bhagwan Rajneesh.
   MY LIFE IN ORANGE is all about a child's eye view of living in a collection of communes on three continents made up of people from disparate walks of life whose eyes are set on their quest for enlightenment, rather than on the prize of parenthood.
   I was an ex-Brit Baby Boomer who took a similar hike albeit through different terrain & my path once crossed with the Orange Cloud, as well as other guru groups. Perhaps my coming up as a "stranger" in a post-War society that set too much store in their ethnic purity, in an education system that thought their religion was the only one &, finally, behind 3 older brothers, all inoculated me against any male guru adoration. I, too, went in search of commune life, although my taste was more of the SEVEN BRIDES FOR SEVEN BROTHERS kind, which doesn't exist off the silver screen, more's the pity.
   The telling of MY LIFE IN ORANGE is a profound immersion into Tim Guest's memories of idyllic communes before being dragged off by the adults in his life to treacherous territories where children are treated, at best, like a herd of goats. There are some hindsight insights blended into this feast of memories & stories about a time when a child's life was indeed free. However, as Tim so ably describes, the lines between freedom & abandonment, instincts & politics, ecstasy & emptiness, affection & antipathy are very thin.
   MY LIFE IN ORANGE will make you think about becoming a parent, an adult, a leader & a follower. It also has something to say about how a child looks at its parents' lives.
   PS: to all the defensive ones, there's little in Tim's telling that can be construed as anti-Bhagwan. It's in the mind of the reader, if they're so inclined, especially those who've not even read the book. Duh!



4. I enjoyed reading this book but in the end was left feeling it was the work of a five star whinger. The author's descriptions of scenes from his troubled childhood are excellent. One always has the choice to see one's glass as being half-full or half-empty. It is obvious to me that somewhere down the line Tim went for the latter.Mind Bomb



5. I think that Tim Guest's work My Life in Orange: Growing Up With the Guru is an excellent look into the way the life of a cult through the eyes of a child. This book was of great interest to me as I live in Oregon, which was home to the Rajneeshpuram commune and where much of the controversy took place. I liked the way that Guest tells his own personal story while at the same time narrates what was going on with the rest of the cult, making it both a personal and chronological account of the cult. Guest has an excellent writing style. I would recommend this book to anyone interested in alternative religious groups.

2 comments about American Heretic: Theodore Parker and Transcendentalism.

1. Grodzins has written an astonishingly thorough and readable biography of an important but neglected 19th Century American. Parker is one of the most influential Americans of the mid-1800s, a brilliant scholar and powerful preacher who became a crucial figure in our religious and political history.

   The book is destined to become the standard biography of Parker for generations. Anyone interested in American political thought and the evolution of American religious doctrine will find this book invaluable. Any New Englander will find this a treasure trove of well-written stories.




2. Transcendentalism has never been easy to define, all the more so because its two most well-known adherents, Emerson and Thoreau, were highly poetic souls who had much better uses for their rhetoric than in crafting creeds or clear-cut manifestoes. It is a pleasure then to read Grodzins' biography of Theodore Parker, in whose life and work we can see more clearly the philosophical and personal dramas that played themselves out within the Unitarian Church in regard to its Transcendentalist sympathizers - in particular, the attempts of one Transcendentalist to define his views against the charges of Deism. Religion is a key concern for Transcendentalism, though in Emerson and Thoreau there is no sense that organized religion can play a key role in the individual's enlightenment. Parker remained in the Church as he struggled to know and preach Truth, and gained a large following. Our understanding of Transcendentalism is eminently richer for our appreciation of his struggle.

1 comments about Makers of Contemporary Islam.

1. At present, John Esposito and John Voll are probably the most prominent writers on things Islamic in the United States. Both pair a sound academic grounding in religious studies with the ability to provide readable and balanced accounts on current affairs and important intellectual trends in the Islamic world. In 'Makers of Contemporary Islam' they present a number of Islamic thinker-activists - some of whom are quite controversial - in an empathic manner.
   In composing this book the authors have tried to strike a balance between 'pure' intellectuals and political activists. In addition to that they have endeavored to ensure a fair geographical spread as well, by including representatives from North Africa, the Arab Middle East, Iran, the Indian Subcontinent, and Southeast Asia.
   In their introductory chapter Esposito and Voll give an account of the role of the intellectual in society. This issue is addressed from both a historical and cross-cultural perspective. The writers have also included a typology of the intellectual in Islamic society: distinguishing between traditional religious scholars (the so-called Ulama), secular thinkers, and modern Muslim activist intellectuals. While the relative influence of the first group has been on the decline ever since the arrival of modernity in the Islamic world, the second group was discredited and soon overtaken by the Islamists following the defeat of the Arabs by Israel in 1967.
   The authors have emphasized the subtleties in the thought of the Islamists treated in this volume. It is made clear that all these thinkers take a critical stand towards their own cultural heritage and share an interest in dialogue and intellectual exchange with other cultures. This way a much-needed counterweight is provided for the commonly held image of Islamists as narrow-minded radical fanatics and extremists bound on a violent-ridden collision course with the West.
   The Arab Middle East is represented by a Palestinian scholar of religion, Ismail al-Faruqi, and the Egyptian philosopher Hasan Hanafi. These two thinkers share a rigorous academic training in both Islamic studies and western philosophy. Al-Faruqi, who has spent his academic career mainly in North America, was very apt at representing Islamic thought in western philosophic jargon, which may greatly contribute to its accessibility for western thinkers. In addition to that he has written penetrating books on important Islamic concepts such as the tawhid - de absolute unity of God. Al-Faruqi has also been engaged in comparative religious studies. Hanafi is a very prolific writer who has spent time in France and the United States. His most important contributions are his treatment of the concept of 'heritage' and the introduction of the phenomenon of 'the Islamic Left': a strand of Islamism that endeavors to translate critical thought into action.
   The account on Hasan al-Turabi, a leading Sudanese Islamist, is focussed more on subject's political career than his philosophy as such. Probably this is due to the fact that the authors have based themselves predominantly on earlier research conducted for the State Department. Yet again, their account is more nuanced than the usual - overly facile - qualification of Sudanese Islamism as state-sponsored terrorism. Yet they never become apologetic and clearly point out that Turabi has indeed not shied away from associating with the country's repressive regimes in order to pursue his own agenda. Esposito and Voll point out that the real influence of Turabi has by and large been limited to the local Sudanese political experience. In the intellectual field however his writings have been - and continue to be - very influential throughout the Islamic world.
   The Tunisian Rachid Ghannoushi fits in a similar mold. Probably intellectually the least powerful, he has been instrumental in articulating the importance of dialogue between 'culture zones', in order to find ways to borrow from each other's achievements and yet retain cultural authenticity.
   Moving further east we encounter the Pakistani economist Khurshid Ahmad, who has been involved in both the development of an Islamic theory of economics and the actual application thereof during his years as a cabinet member and government adviser. Khurshid Ahmad is also a key-figure in Pakistan's Jamaat-i-Islami, whose founder Mawlana al-Mawdudi has been extremely influential for the formation of Ahmad's thought and the furthering of his political career.
   A very interesting figure is the Iranian Abdolkarim Soroush (pen name of Hossein Dabbagh). A pharmacologist-turned-philosopher of science, he has been able to remain at the core of Iran's Revolutionary establishment and yet maintain a controversial stand regarding the impact of Islam on science and politics. In this respect he takes an interesting position through his distinction between religion and 'knowledge of religion', which is very much informed by his expertise in textual studies and profound understanding of poetics. Maybe most surprising is Soroush negative attitude towards Iran's 'Mullahcracy'.
   Two of Southeast Asia's most influential islamically oriented politicians are also included in this book. Not only do they share a common cultural-geographic origin and rather similar outlook, but both have also fallen from political grace. Anwar Ibrahim, a former Malaysian Deputy Prime Minister and anointed successor of Mahathir, is serving a long-term prison sentence for alleged corruption and sexual misconduct. Abdurrahman Wahid, long-time leader of the Nahdatul Ulama (NU), was impeached as president of Indonesia and forced to resign.
   The only female in this book is Maryam Jameelah; an American woman of Jewish extraction, who decided to embrace Islam and has since then made a name as a writer on traditional Islamic values. I wonder if the authors could not have identified another female intellectual, who is more representative for women Islamists.
   In conclusion, 'Makers of Contemporary Islam' is an informed and balanced contribution to the growing body of books on the role of Islam in defining relations between cultures and in international politics.

No comments about Confessions of an Adulterous Christian Woman: Lies That Got Me There; Truths That Brought Me Back.

2 comments about Bonaventure: The Life of St. Francis (HarperCollins Spiritual Classics).

1. I purchased this book in order to keep it on my shelf as a classic Catholic treasure. I was disappointed by the forward by Donna Tartt who wasted my time backhanding Christianity while explaining that she liked Francis anyway.
   
   Most bothersome was the publisher's decision to break up certain lines and paragraphs within the text like they were quoted poetry. This licence betray's Bonaventure's writing by suggesting that some parts of this work should be read as poetry while other parts should be read as narrative or history.
   
   Also missing from this work is St. Bonaventure's account of miracles wrought after Francis' death.



2. Do not be dismayed by other reviews of this Harper Collins Spiritual Classics series edition. The most objectionable thing here is indeed the mercifully brief Foreword by someone curiously named Donna Tartt who mentions here Fundamentalist youth, of having her curiousity pricked by a line in Franny and Zooey, but whose greatest offense to the memory of the great Saint Francis of Assisi is not only adding an extra s to his hometown as so many do, but also the two dismal citations of that hollow GK Chesterton.
   
   Believe me, the Foreword is very easy to skip, because the rest is pure gold. What we have here is the great and traditional translation by the prolific Catholic Ewert Cousins last published by the fine Catholic publishing house the Paulist Press in 1978. HarperSan Francisco did us a great service a few years ago in republishing this beautiful translation, now so very favorably available here upon the amazon. We have no need to cringe at purchasing other more costly translations when we have this excellent translation here hidden with silent fanfare, until now you know. You can get Ewert Cousins here very inexpensively. Skip the admittedly bizarre and uninformative Foreword; if you wish pul out those gratefully few brief pages, and live within the fullness of the Life of Saint Francis as recorded from primary sources very shortly after his death by the great Catholic theologian, spiritual writer and follower of Saint Francis, Saint Bonaventure.
   
   You may wish to find other writings by and about Saint Bonaventure elsewhere, including Theology of History In St. Bonaventure by then Joseph Cardinal Ratzinger, or in the always excellent Classics of Western Spirituality collection at Bonaventure: The Soul's Journey into God, the Tree of Life, the Life of St. Francis (The Classics of Western Spirituality). You certainly will wish to read more of Saint Francis, including The Little Flowers of Saint Francis (Dover Thrift Editions) and The Marrow of the Gospel - A Study of the Rule of Saint Francis of Assisi By the Franciscans of Germany. You could study and live and breathe Franciscan Poverty: The Doctrine of Absolute Poverty of Christ and the Apostles in the Franciscan Order, 1210-1323 (History Series). You might exercise the The Rule of the Secular Franciscan Order: With a Catechism and Instructions or the Ritual of the Secular Franciscan Order. You may even be tempted to see some lamentable movie such as The Flowers of St Francis - Criterion Collection. But for now I can strongly recommend to your lectio divina this excellent publication of his life as originally recorded by the great Saint Bonaventure and well translated for the Paulist Press by Ewert Cousins. You may then also examine further Cousins translations, with commentary, at Bonaventure: The Soul's Journey into God, the Tree of Life, the Life of St. Francis (The Classics of Western Spirituality) in the excellent Classic of Western SPirituality series of the Paulist Press.

3 comments about Hidden Women of the Gospels.

1. A rare book of encouragement to all the silent Christian women. Funny, moving and a very good read.



2. I found this book to be wonderfully moving. It helped me to understand the women of the bible within the context of their everyday lives. And so it made me more able to then relate their lives to mine. This book is an exciting read for women (or men) who want to know the women of the bible on a more personal, emotional and every day level. It's also a great jumping off point for prayer, meditation, or bible study.



3. This is truly a must read for laity and clergy alike. The book is not only inspiring, but also thought provoking. Ms. Coffey reaches deep into the gospels and weaves ancient stories that can help each of us live in today's contemporary society. This book deserves a bravo!!!!

5 comments about God's Doorkeepers: Padre Pio, Solanus Casey And Andre Bessette.

1. Blessed Brother André Bessette (1845 - 1937), Venerable Solanus Casey (1870-1957), and St. Pio of Pietrelcina (1887-1968) are the doorkeepers of the title, so named because they spent their lives in humble service, Casey and Bessette as actual porters in their monasteries and Pio as spiritual doorkeeper at the confessional. All three were born into devout, poor families, were pious even as children, struggled with the rigors of seminary training, suffered from ill health, and lived past the age of 80.
   
   Joel Schorn fleshes out the portraits of each, first individually and later by category, such as miracles, works of mercy, prayer, humility, and grace in suffering. In addition, he highlights general characteristics and practices of these three saints that we can use as models on our own faith journey. The three "embraced lowliness rather than trying to overcome it," he writes. They were also devoted to prayer and filled with patience, humility, and trust in God.
   
   André, Solanus, and Pio always tried to draw others into relationship with faith, Schorn explains. Whatever the circumstances, they "invited people to trust in the loving care of God for themselves and their loved ones. Take this step of faith, they were saying...and God will respond to you with healing, reassurance, a resolution of your problems or a peaceful death."



2. Having an interest in both lives of Ven. Solanus Casey & Bl. Andre Bessette, my interest was piqued when I saw this book online and I decided to order it. I have never regretted this decision--it is an AWESOME book! My only complaint is that it is too short! I have read other books on Ven. Solanus Casey so it was neat to see other things that I already knew of and things that I hadn't known previously. It is very informative without being verbose, and hagiographer free! I want to know more about these men and Joel Schorn's book is a wonderful stepping stone.
   Even though I am not as interested in the life of St.Padre Pio as I am of Ven. Solanus Casey, I found the chapters dealing with him to be also informative, clean cut, clear and concise without being preachy. He simply presents the men's lives as they were, the miracles that God worked through them and their moments of humanity (Bl. Andre, for instance, could be prickly at times though he did feel badly afterward and did apologize when he was in the wrong)--I do like this very much. Having a lively & passionate interest in both History and in the lives of the Saints, I like books that present the facets of their lives bare bones as they were, warts and all--I appreciate the bare bones honesty and I can't stand hagiography. I want to know what the saints were like as people: their struggles with faith, their doubts, their moments of triumph & tragedy, life changing moments and the world they lived in. Saints were people FIRST and I want to read books that keep this fact firmly in mind.
   I highly recommend Joel Schorn's book as a stepping stone to reading more books on these saintly people who were, as we all are, flawed people first though they worked hard, prayed always, trusted in God foremost and struggled their entire lives to overcome their human weaknesses to become the saints they are.



3. This wonderful book is neither an in-depth biography or a contemplative style manual but a comparitive text on three men who have so much in common. Each belittled or persucuted or relegated to menial tasks- these men are exemplified in short chapters that are written in a comparitive manner between the three. The book shows us how similar yet far apart these men were and most importantly, provides examples that are meaningful and pertinent to our lives today. Pride, humility, obedience, acceptance of Divine will...all the major issues we struggle with are summed up and lived by example by each of these holy men. No reader will come away without some feeling of solidarity with at least one of the three venerable men.



4. I certainly enjoy reading true stories about very human people who somehow or another rise up above all that is crazy about life and become "Saints" in our midst. These are uplifting stories about Padre Pio, Solanus Casey and Andre Besette from Canada. If your faith is an anchor in your life then these types of books help you a great deal to stay focused on being good people.



5. This book was fabulous. Anyone wishing a boost of their Catholic Faith? This is a must! I was just looking for a bit more info on Padre Pio. Wow!
   This is a book you won't want to put down. Not only more info on
   Saint Pio, but two other Friars, Brother Andre' & Father Solanus. What devotion, faith, and courage. Very spiritual, insightful, and sometimes even funny. All so devoted to our Lord God! I give this book 2 thumbs up with 100 stars!
   God Bless us all!
   Geri H

5 comments about On the Road with Rabbi Steinsaltz: 25 Years of Pre-Dawn Car Trips, Mind-Blowing Encounters, and Inspiring Conversations with a Man of Wisdom.

1. Anyone who reads this book will find him or herself to be very fortunate indeed to go along for the ride. I have read numerous books, but never one so powerful. It evokes such a wide range of emotions with a turn of a page. You'll find yourself laughing out loud, with tears in your eyes, perplexed or contemplative. Once you finish, you'll want to read it again. Don't be surprised if you find yourself quoting this book to family and friends. I highly recommend it!



2. We are instructed by 'Pirke Avot' to get ourselves a Rabbi, a teacher, a spiritual guide. Arthur Kurzweil took this teaching seriously and has for many years questioned, dialogued with and learned with his own chosen teacher. In this very rich and instructive intellectual and spiritual adventure story Kurzweil tells of his meetings and talks with his revered teacher, Rabbi Adin Steinsaltz.
   Kurzweil also tells his own story of return to Judaism, and something of Rabbi Steinsaltz's story. Rabbi Steinsaltz whose father was a kibbutznik himself returned to religious Judaism at the age of seventeen. The fact that he went on to became the great 'talmid chacham',maker and presenter to the Jewish world of a remarkable new translation of the Talmud , and is today considered one of the greatest of all Jewish spiritual leaders is devotedly described in this book.
   Arthur Kurzweil in searching for a teacher volunteered to be of any kind of help he could to the Steinsaltz organization. He was given the task of meeting Rabbi Steinsaltz at the airport and chauffering him during his visits to New York. For twenty- five years Kurzweil has chauffered and gained valuable hours of discussion with Rabbi Steinsaltz.
   However even before meeting Steinsaltz , Kurzweil was on a path of returning to traditional Judaism. His genealogical researches which are pioneering and central were first undertaken before his meeting with Rabbi Steinsaltz. And this though Rabbi Steinsaltz subsequently greatly encouraged him in these researches, insisting upon the spiritual importance of each person knowing their own roots. Out of this knowledge Rabbi Steinsaltz feels there will certainly come deeper religious obligation.
   Arthur Kurzweil in this book is constant in his praise of his teacher. This focusing on his teacher in a way leads him to underplay his own great contributions to the 'Jewish world' As editor he has helped bring to the public many outstanding works of Judaica including works of extremely great spiritual value , such as Yitzhak Buxbaum's 'Jewish Spiritual Practices' Nachum Amsel's work on Jewish Morality and Ethics and Seth Kaddish's work on Jewish Prayer.
   Kurzweil describes Rabbi Steinsaltz's meetings with Jewish intellectuals and writers in New York upon the appearance in English of two volumes of his Talmud translation. In citing Steinsaltz's answers to some of these writers' questions he in a sense clarifies a good part of the meaning of the Steinsaltz enterprise. Rabbi Steinsaltz sees the Jewish people , or the greatest share of them as having lost a vital part of their body and soul. They do not know their own religious tradition. In a sense his translation of the Talmud is meant to help them restore that soul.
   In other words Steinsaltz is not simply a rabbi for individuals but for the Jewish people as a whole. Here Kurzweil too chronicles Steinsaltz's connection with Habad ( His wife comes from a Habad family) and the whole outreach effort in the Jewish world. But Kurzweil makes it clear that Steinsaltz does not put himself under the rubric of any particular Jewish group but rather works for the Jewish people as a whole.
   Kurzweil is not simply a student. He is a vivid and active admirer. He has helped publish much of Rabbi Steinsaltz's work in English. Kurzweil in searching for guidance and wisdom in raising his children also turned to Rabbi Steinsaltz and was helped. The Rabbi advised him among other things that teaching of children need not be confined to what they literally understand.
   While it is impossible to question Kurzweil's admiration and devotion to his teacher it is possible to ask whether he is not a bit too uncritical. Even Moshe Reibenu is after all seen in the Jewish tradition as having his faults. And it might even be said that there is something 'non- Jewish' in the kind of total worship various Hasidic groups have displayed towards their 'tzaddikim'.
   Yet it must be said that Kurzweil is a devoted student, a person of great intelligence who in his dialogue with Rabbi Steinsaltz also provides knowledge and insight. There may not be equality between student and teacher yet what is felt here is a great mutual respect. And my sense is that Rabbi Steinsaltz has a great appreciation of Arthur Kurzweil as more than simply chauffeur and student, but as true friend and 'mensch'.
   I loved reading this book and I think that all those who care about Jewish learning and life, will also do so.



3. This is a wonderful collection of anecdotes by Mr. Kurzweil, a wonderful teacher in his own right. However he just doesn't quite communicate what he finds so inspiring about his own teacher, Rabbi Steinsaltz. The book left me a bit frustrated and wanting more examples of those teachings.



4. Arthur Kurzweil has been a leading figure in Jewish publishing in America for more than 20 years. In this delightful book, he shares the wisdom and humanity of his spiritual teacher, Rabbi Adin Steinsaltz, with readers. The author is honest, straightforward, and enlightening in this thought-provoking book. Highly recommended.
   Edward Hoffman, Ph.D., author
   THE WAY OF SPLENDOR: JEWISH MYSTICISM AND MODERN PSYCHOLOGY



5. Rabbi Adin Steinsaltz was and still a source of inspiration to me, to my family and to my friends.
   Do not look upon him as simply a Jewish scholar, because he is much much more than that. He is a man for all seasons; a man of goodness, intelligence, knowledge, and wisdom. A philosopher, a teacher, a mentor and a pillar of our civilized world.
   
   His wisdom, and his teachings enriched our hearts and minds. This book reveals the multiple aspects and facets of this great man. It is a heart felt book rich with stories that come directly from the heart and a brilliant mind.
   
   I loved it. What a treasure!!

3 comments about Her Heart Can See: The Life and Hymns of Fanny J. Crosby (Library of Religious Biography Series).

1. People in the latter nineteenth century and early twentieth century(and those today who know of her) considered Fanny Crosby to have been one of the greatest persons who ever lived. They very well may have been right. This tiny (4'9") woman, blinded shortly after birth, wrote over 10,000 gospel hymns, many of which survive today, such as, 'Near the Cross', 'Blessed Assurance', 'To God be the Glory' and others(see the Cyber Hymnal for a partial listing). Having lived her life in poverty for the most part, she wrote her timeless hymns for the masses to enjoy. Fanny knew and conversed with the greats of her era: Presidents Lincoln, Van Buren, Polk, and Cleveland; Gen. Winfield Scott, Henry Clay, Dwight L. Moody, Ira Sankey, Eliza Edmunds Hewitt, Horace Greeley, and many others. She had a troubled marriage, where she and her legally-blind spouse were separated for many years. She was truly the servant of all, and was sought out by the high and low for counsel and prayer. Active for many years on New York City's rescue mission circuit, she was a speaker for whom crowds would line up around a city block and wait for hours to hear. An active member of the International Order of The King's Daughters and Sons, she also aided the city of Bridgeport(CT)with their missions on skid row. I would urge anyone to read this wonderful biography of a chosen soul who taught the world many lessons, chiefest among them that, no matter one's disability in life, one can truly excel. Get yourself a copy of this book and enter a more gentle, humble, and pious age where the things of God were held in major importance by persons in all stations of life.



2. I came to this book knowing very little beyond the sentimental inspirational "Story Behind the Hymns" profiles provided by the religious press. You will go away understanding her world and understand how influential she was in that world. The book places Fanny Crosby in the context of her age, when American Protestantism was at the peak of its influence on society. It explains how she fit into society, she was either related to--or knew--most of the people who held social or political power in the Northeast during the 19th century. This was before Church life had become marginalized from American Life.
   
   One would expect to discover about Crosby's hymns and the growth of Evangelicalism. But one will also learn about the education of the blind, social work, the growth of the Music Publishing industry and the development of copyright law! You will also discover that--yes she was related to Bing Crosby and had a close relative who became a Mormon!
   
   If you read this book, you will receive a great exposure to a wide scope of American life and how one women experienced it with everything but her eyes! A producer at PBS's "The American Experience" could very well use this book as a keystone to developing a wonderful documentary.



3. I purchased this book as a teaching tool for my music classes this year. So far, I'm over half way through the book, it is more of a history of New York and early America than a story of Fanny Crosby. Instead of learning about her, I'm reading about how the Irish and the catholics didn't get along and other political problems of the day. it's ok to put the person in the setting, but the setting is the focus. The writer even questions the character of Crosby by always being skeptical of her positive outlook on life. Although, she always has to come back and say that everything she wrote did point to that fact. I've been very unimpressed.