Denise Lardner Carmody

How should we live? What is the path to peace, wisdom, and fulfillment? Certainly, these are central questions in our lives. Who better to consult for guidance than Buddha, Confucius, Jesus, and Muhammad? By reflecting on the lives of these great teachers, In the Path of the Masters illuminates the practical and personal implications of prayer and devotion and shows how spirituality can help us lead meaningful lives. In this beautifully written book the Carmodys offer readers a gift: the chance to take another look at and learn from figures who may be so familiar we don't - or can't - see them any more. They offer a brief biography of each founder, describing the events that most shaped his life, how his personal spirituality developed, how he lived, and how he died. Without resorting to useless speculation, they also describe as much as they can what kind of person he was. What made him angry; what made him laugh, who his enemies and friends were. Finally, they briefly trace the course of each religious tradition after its founder's death. . Most helpful of all, In the Path of the Masters cuts through dogma and interpretation and goes to the heart of the matter: the lessons that each founder considered most important for a fulfilling life. Divided into the major dimensions of spiritual life - nature, society, the self, and divinity - the Carmodys provide clear and easy access to where each figure stands on enduring issues and how they compare with each other. The Buddha, for example, did not believe in a solid, substantial self although he did hand down a basic ethical code to his followers. Confucius focused on the Way, or traditional wisdom, as the guiding force behind personal development; Jesus looked to God, his father, as a way of understanding himself; Muhammad believed that the first relationship the self had to establish correctly was with Allah. . As we face the difficulties of the twenty-first century, regardless of religious upbringing, the Carmodys show what the spiritual lives and lessons of these masters offer us. Evenhanded in approach, but passionate in the conviction that spirituality enriches modern life, In the Path of the Masters is a thought-provoking and enlightening guide to inner fulfillment.

"Surveys the understanding and practice of prayer in Hinduism, Islam, Buddhism, Judaism, African and Native American faiths. The authors provide a succinct yet comprehensive treatment of prayer in these religious traditions. The Carmodys' introduction examines the relevance of prayer to current interfaith understanding, dialogue, and spiritual life. In separate chapters, the authors provide an historical context and then describe typical rituals, stories, and prayers for each tradition. They offer in each case an appreciation of these traditions from a Christian perspective, and discuss the uniqueness and significance of prayer within them"--Back cover.

Examines the origins, assumptions, and consequences of three major concepts in American religious history: the Puritan judgement of human nature, the Enlightenment disestablishment of religion, and the definition of truth of American Pragmatism. The lives and beliefs of Jonathan Edwards, Thomas Jefferson, and William James fully characterize these three mainstream religious principIes. ln unique counterpoint, the Carmodys bring into the discussion the many religious and secular groups that were not, and still are not, part of the primarily white, Protestant, male historical tradition: Catholics, Jews, Muslims, Buddhists, women, African-Americans, and others. The Republic of Many Mansions concludes that the future of American religious culture lies in a collective and ongoing dialogue among the many voices active in the American religious landscape.