Through Dust and Darkness: A Motorcycle Journey of Fear and Faith in the Middle East

Accepting Kroeker's invitation to ride with him on his mechanically fragile companion, the Oscillator, over the back roads and highways in the Middle East is not only tempting but also rewarding. Whether travelling through a sandstorm, overnighting on a hotel rooftop in a thunderstorm, or smoking the narghile, Kroeker relates his adventures vividly and with candor. A Christian-educated Mennonite, Kroeker is on a personal journey of spiritual re-discovery. Don't expect many details about the antiquities in the places he visits%E2%80%94Palmyra, Istanbul, Aleppo, Damascus, and Mashhad. Their presence seems incidental to the encounters Kroeker has with locals, authorities, and the land, sea and sky, that precipitate opportunities to contemplate his relationship with God. After journeying though Turkey, Syria, and Lebanon on his motorcycle, Kroeker flies to Iran, where he visits Iran's holiest site, the Holy Shrine of Imam Reza in Mashhad, twice. There, amidst the Shrine's architectural splendors, as devout Muslims express their reverence, devotion, and love for their God, Kroeker is moved to pray to his God, for the first time in many years. Later, a frightening experience pushes him to examine his own anxiety-ridden relationship with God. And his journey continues. (Oct.)