Stepping Stones to a Higher Vision

Stepping Stones to a Higher Vision examines the development of religious consciousness from religion to spirituality to mysticism. This developmental path imaginatively described as "stepping stones" in the title of the book and as "elevators of religion" in chapter one, has its rewards but also its dangers and pitfalls. Intended for the non-specialist lay person interested in religion, as well as the scholar, the book focuses on Jewish tradition and its sources (Hebrew Bible, Talmud-Midrash, and Kabbalah), but in a broad cross-cultural interdisciplinary context. Ritual, prayer, including meditation and contemplation, ethics and morality, religious leadership, and the afterlife are analyzed in the context of sociology, science, and the history of religion.

Joseph Schultz (PhD) served as Rabbi in several congregations. He founded the Jewish Studies Program at Boston University, where he was Assistant Professor of Religion, and at the University of Missouri-Kansas City, where he was the Oppenstein Brothers Distinguished Professor of Judaic Studies. He helped establish the Center for Religious Studies, a consortium of six colleges, theological schools, and the University of Missouri-Kansas City and was its first Director.