The Search for Meaning: Americans Talk About What They Believe and Why - Hardcover

Berman, Phillip L.

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0345331710 ISBN 13: 9780345331717

Publisher: Ballantine Books, 1990

Synopsis

An oral historian interviews five hundred Americans about their religious and secular convictions and finds America embracing faiths, from fundamentalism to hedonism, from mysticism to nihilism, that are varied and fervent

About this title

About the Author:

Phillip L. Berman was educated in philosophy and religion at the University of California and at Harvard. He is the author of more than a dozen nonfiction books, among them The Courage of Conviction (nominated for the Kennedy Book Award) and, with Connie Goldman, The Ageless Spirit. He is founder and past-president of The Center for the Study of Contemporary Belief and a leading lecturer and writer on spiritual development over the course of the human life cycle. He lives in Boulder, Colorado.

From Publishers Weekly:

In this oral history, Berman ( The Courage to Grow Old ) captures the voices of a variety of Americans as they discuss the meaning of life and the paths they are taking to realize that meaning. "How we ought to live on this tiny planet in this immense and incomprehensible universe" is, in one subject's words, the concern of these people who speak of pivotal experiences in their lives. The approaches are diverse. We hear from hedonists for whom sex is dominant; from two women who make joy palpable in the Soul Sisters Cafe; from a former Jesuit seminarian whose concept of God is radically expanded from earlier catechetical teachings; from a Ku Klux Klanner; an Auschwitz survivor; a sanctuary worker--all speaking of their moral and spiritual beliefs or lack thereof. The interviews are compelling in their revelations and unpredictability. Photos not seen by PW.
Copyright 1990 Reed Business Information, Inc.

About this edition

• Publisher: Ballantine Books
• Publication date: 1990
• ISBN 10: 0345331710
• ISBN 13: 9780345331717
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 451