cover image Encountering God CL

Encountering God CL

Diana L. Eck. Beacon Press (MA), $24 (259pp) ISBN 978-0-8070-7302-5

Eck, a leader in interfaith dialogue movements and professor of comparative religion at Harvard, here scans the current religious landscape, reshaped by recent immigrants to the U.S., and examines ``the challenge that religious diversity poses to people of faith in every religious tradition.'' Her personal Christian grounding in Methodism, begun in Bozeman, Mont., has been enhanced by Eastern spirituality, particularly her encounters with Hinduism during her studies and travels in India. ``Today these two places, Bozeman and Banaras, both convey the spiritual meaning of home to me.'' In examining the differences among religious cultures, Eck continually places the Christian believer in relationship with those who follow Hindu, Buddhist, Muslim and Native American religious practices. In a splendid exposition of non-Christian approaches to God, Eck encourages an increased religious literacy that she suggests will contribute richness and diversity to our national identity. (Aug.)