The Meaning of These Days

Here is the true story of a man from India who comes to the United States to go to seminary, which he finds to be both a demanding social environment and a vigorous philosophical and theological world. After four years of seminary he gets married and completes a doctorate in philosophy. Soon he finds himself in a profound spiritual crisis teaching philosophy in an ivory tower. He hears protests in the streets for civil rights, peace, and environmental integrity. Events conspire to produce a critical turning point in his story. He finally goes into the ministry but is now forced to face the terrors of his own emotional immaturity. The lessons are hard to learn and the road is steep that leads to personal and intellectual adulthood. The energy that drives The Meaning of These Days is the quest for personal, spiritual, and philosophical integrity in a world of suffering beings, both human and nonhuman. The author identifies with the magi, in W. B. Yeats' well-known poem of 1914, who search for "the uncontrollable mystery on the bestial floor" Religious leaders of many backgrounds and all informed seekers after Truth in today's busy marketplace of ideas will welcome a book that combines philosophy and world theology with the spiritual life in such an engaging, poetic, and novel way.

Kenneth Stephens is the author of The Meaning of These Days: Memoir of a Philosophical Pastor, which is intended for all persons, regardless of ethnic or religious background, on a spiritual journey of quest. His journey has been a broadly liberating one, one that allows oneself an infinitely expanding horizon. His website themeaningofthesedays.com includes the first seven chapters of the book. Stephens is currently working on a new book-length poetic meditation.