by Craig C. Malbon ‧ RELEASE DATE: Jan. 4, 2013
A comprehensive look into a much-discussed topic, offering an intriguing perspective to a somewhat limited readership.
In this theological study of abortion, Malbon tackles issues of religion, ethics and morality to “forge a ‘new path’ toward productive discussion” on one of the nation’s most divisive topics.
Malbon is a scientist, bioethics professor, theologian and Protestant who studied at Union Theology Seminary in New York. Here he details the history of abortion practices, linking the current polarized politics to the mid-19th century. He provides a comprehensive section about available abortion methods, offers a look at major world religions and their sentiments on the topic, and dissects the theological perspectives of Christian writers Dietrich Bonhoeffer, Beverly Wildung Harrison and Reinhold Niebuhr, among others. Malbon says that he doesn’t seek to change anyone’s mind, but only to offer both sides of the debate. “If we have ears but cannot hear the suffering embedded within the other’s arguments,” he writes, “we cannot hope to achieve a dialogue.” He does land pretty firmly on one side, however: After he deconstructs Bonhoeffer’s idea of Sanctorum Communio, or Communion of Saints, a religious theory that favors community over self-interest in order to achieve a godly life, Malbon argues that we must support women’s reproductive rights as a community in order to live truly moral lives. Without choice, he posits, morality cannot exist. It makes some sense to tackle the issue of abortion through concepts of religion and “morality,” in that the controversy itself is so often rooted in such ideas. For a complicated subject that is typically discussed through political rhetoric and emotional outrage, Malbon’s perspective does offer some much-needed intellectual discourse on the root of the opposition. That said, the text is murky and repetitive at times, and the religious focus is likely to appeal only to certain audiences. The real problem, of course, is that for many readers, the controversy surrounding abortion may not be one based in intellect, but in emotion. The author’s treatise certainly invites thoughtful discourse, but whether such a strategy will have an effect remains to be seen.
A comprehensive look into a much-discussed topic, offering an intriguing perspective to a somewhat limited readership.Pub Date: Jan. 4, 2013
ISBN: 978-1479125111
Page Count: 277
Publisher: CreateSpace
Review Posted Online: Feb. 20, 2013
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
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by Stephen Batchelor ‧ RELEASE DATE: Feb. 18, 2020
A very welcome instance of philosophy that can help readers live a good life.
A teacher and scholar of Buddhism offers a formally varied account of the available rewards of solitude.
“As Mother Ayahuasca takes me in her arms, I realize that last night I vomited up my attachment to Buddhism. In passing out, I died. In coming to, I was, so to speak, reborn. I no longer have to fight these battles, I repeat to myself. I am no longer a combatant in the dharma wars. It feels as if the course of my life has shifted onto another vector, like a train shunted off its familiar track onto a new trajectory.” Readers of Batchelor’s previous books (Secular Buddhism: Imagining the Dharma in an Uncertain World, 2017, etc.) will recognize in this passage the culmination of his decadeslong shift away from the religious commitments of Buddhism toward an ecumenical and homegrown philosophy of life. Writing in a variety of modes—memoir, history, collage, essay, biography, and meditation instruction—the author doesn’t argue for his approach to solitude as much as offer it for contemplation. Essentially, Batchelor implies that if you read what Buddha said here and what Montaigne said there, and if you consider something the author has noticed, and if you reflect on your own experience, you have the possibility to improve the quality of your life. For introspective readers, it’s easy to hear in this approach a direct response to Pascal’s claim that “all of humanity's problems stem from man's inability to sit quietly in a room alone.” Batchelor wants to relieve us of this inability by offering his example of how to do just that. “Solitude is an art. Mental training is needed to refine and stabilize it,” he writes. “When you practice solitude, you dedicate yourself to the care of the soul.” Whatever a soul is, the author goes a long way toward soothing it.
A very welcome instance of philosophy that can help readers live a good life.Pub Date: Feb. 18, 2020
ISBN: 978-0-300-25093-0
Page Count: 200
Publisher: Yale Univ.
Review Posted Online: Nov. 24, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 15, 2019
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by Kerry Egan ‧ RELEASE DATE: Oct. 25, 2016
A moving, heartfelt account of a hospice veteran.
Lessons about life from those preparing to die.
A longtime hospice chaplain, Egan (Fumbling: A Pilgrimage Tale of Love, Grief, and Spiritual Renewal on the Camino de Santiago, 2004) shares what she has learned through the stories of those nearing death. She notices that for every life, there are shared stories of heartbreak, pain, guilt, fear, and regret. “Every one of us will go through things that destroy our inner compass and pull meaning out from under us,” she writes. “Everyone who does not die young will go through some sort of spiritual crisis.” The author is also straightforward in noting that through her experiences with the brokenness of others, and in trying to assist in that brokenness, she has found healing for herself. Several years ago, during a C-section, Egan suffered a bad reaction to the anesthesia, leading to months of psychotic disorders and years of recovery. The experience left her with tremendous emotional pain and latent feelings of shame, regret, and anger. However, with each patient she helped, the author found herself better understanding her own past. Despite her role as a chaplain, Egan notes that she rarely discussed God or religious subjects with her patients. Mainly, when people could talk at all, they discussed their families, “because that is how we talk about God. That is how we talk about the meaning of our lives.” It is through families, Egan began to realize, that “we find meaning, and this is where our purpose becomes clear.” The author’s anecdotes are often thought-provoking combinations of sublime humor and tragic pathos. She is not afraid to point out times where she made mistakes, even downright failures, in the course of her work. However, the nature of her work means “living in the gray,” where right and wrong answers are often hard to identify.
A moving, heartfelt account of a hospice veteran.Pub Date: Oct. 25, 2016
ISBN: 978-1-59463-481-9
Page Count: 224
Publisher: Riverhead
Review Posted Online: Aug. 2, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 2016
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