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MINNEAPOLIS, April 21 /Christian Newswire/ -- "From the One, three; from the three, One." This opening sentence from An Essay Toward the Other (published by iUniverse) sums up the overall nature of this book. The One is God; the three are the eternal verities: the Good, the True, and the Beautiful.
A belief in God is called theism, and a basic distinction in the book is that theism is one thing, but that religion is another. Religion is the response in thought, word, and deed to the belief. Thus the arguments in the book are not in support of any religious claim, but rather in support of that which is prior to religion, that is to say, God.
As a whole, the book stands against the claims of what is often called the "new" atheism, those various voices which today confuse theism and religion and earnestly attempt to refute and dismiss them both. Such voices advocate materialism which is the view that the sum of the universe (called the 'cosmos' in the book), every atom, every star, every force, every influence, everything; is all there is, and it is all connected as in one vast machine. There is nothing more. The common term for such a view is atheism.
In opposition to atheism or materialism is the belief that there is more, that there is a source, a cause of the universe, and that cause, whether it be 'beyond' or 'outside' or 'within' is other than the material universe. Hence the name of the creator, the Other.
The book is structured on the three verities or truths of the human condition: the True, the Good, and the Beautiful. These have their source in the Other, and, in turn, by their nature, they provide arguments for the Other. Three arguments, then, each from its own realm, constitute the main focus of the book, but in making these arguments, Streed touches on a number of other issues: the question of brain and mind, the problem of free will and causation, the nature of consciousness, the organization of alleged random events, the nature and source of human happiness, the definitions of myth, legend, and history; the Golden Rule, and other matters related to one's basic understanding of life and the nature of reality.
An Essay Toward the Other is written for the "ordinary person who is genuinely interested in the issue of theism versus atheism . . . and who has the capability of being open minded" about the matter. That person will likely agree with the reviewer who called the book "funny, brilliant, and poetic."
About the Author
John Streed presently lives in a metro suburb of Minneapolis. He has published a volume of humorous poems about gardening, Garden Revisions, a study of ethics, The Other Way, and various essays and articles in English teacher publications including The English Journal.
An Essay Toward the Other
Available from: www.iUniverse.com, www.bn.com, and www.amazon.com
ISBN: 9780595467280 · 6 x 9 · Paperback · 168 pages · $15.95
