Natural Spirituality, Thomas Merton, and Christian Renewal

Download or read book Natural Spirituality, Thomas Merton, and Christian Renewal written by Kenneth Bragan and published by Strategic Book Publishing & Rights Agency. This book was released on 2017-04-12 with total page 76 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Kenneth Bragan has previously written a psychological study of the life of Thomas Merton as well as a book stressing the importance of Merton’s spirituality. In this new book, he uses neuroscience to place Merton’s spirituality in the context of natural spirituality and uses this as a way of opening a door to Christian renewal. He writes, “Neuroscience may be offering a new and revitalizing understanding of the basis of Christian faith, particularly belief in the healing power of the risen Christ. He starts the book by examining the division currently occurring between “belief-based” faith and faith that is predominantly “experience-based,” as exemplified by two recently published books. He then gives portraits of two of the great Christians of the last century – Bonhoeffer and Merton – who demonstrate how different ways of experiencing God can be equally effective. Finally, he attempts to define a New Direction.