Is God In Each of Us?
Do you believe in God? A recent Gallup Poll said that 96% of Americans think that he exists. With that in mind, chances are good that a new book will find a huge readership.
Why God Won’t Go Away: Brain Science & The Biology of Belief (Ballentine Books, $24.95) says our belief in a higher power comes from the biology of the brain. In other words, we are programmed to believe.
The book is will force many readers to employ one of those markers to underline pertinent information. I started with a orange marker, but found myself marking something on nearly every page, which doesn’t allow for explaining the book to friends. My advice to readers is simple: if you are interested in religion and why it thrives in one form or another around the world, there are many books in the average library which may be helpful. Besides, a few days after my marking session, I discovered that the sentences I had highlighted somehow didn’t possess the simplicity I was searching for.
That said, here’s a pertinent quote from the book, which was written by Dr. Andrew Newberg and his friend, the late Dr. Eugene D’Aquill, along with freelance writer Vince Rause. “After years of scientific study, and careful consideration of our results, Gene and I further believe that we saw evidence of a neurological process that has evolved to allow us humans to transcend material existence and acknowledge and connect with a deeper, more spiritual part of ourselves perceived of as an absolute, universal reality that connects us to all that is.
People who are non-believers cannot read this book without having some of their reasons for not believing challenged. To the overwhelming number of us who acknowledge the presence of a real God, this book offers brain food to chew on.
Giles Novel Finally Published
Janice Holt Giles was a popular author who commanded a large and devoted following. A native of Kentucky, Giles (1905-1979) dipped into controversy in the ’50s when she wrote Act of Contrition, a novel that took on the Catholic Church by depicting situations that simply weren’t written about in the 1950s. Her longtime publisher, Houghton Mifflin, rejected the book twice.
The novel dealt with matters considered risque and offensive. Oh, how the times have changed! Act of Contrition (University Press of Kentucky, $25) has just been published after Giles’ daughter found the manuscript. For those who enjoyed Giles’ work in the past, this novel will come as a major surprise, well worth reading..
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