A Beautiful Book in an Ugly Time

To survive, we all must live in contrasts … creative, dynamic tensions:

The harder we work or the higher the stress, the more we need rest.

The more we give, the more we need to find sources of replenishment.

The more privileged and comfortable we are, the more we need to turn to those who are struggling and in need.

The uglier the politics and economics in the human sphere, the more we need the beauty of the biosphere … and beauty from our best writers, poets, and artists of all kinds.

So in these ugly and decadent times, I highly recommend this beautiful, inspiring, uplifting new book by my dear friend and colleague, Diana Butler Bass: A Beautiful Year.

Here’s how Diana describes it:

A Beautiful Year tells the story of a God opposed to empires, who stands with outsiders, and who is found with and through creation. It is the mirror-opposite spiritual and theological story to the one espoused by Christian nationalism. But my way of telling it isn’t dogmatic or doctrinal. Instead, the stories emanate from the ordinary; they are both human and humane. Yet, they are mystical and transcendent as well. And the overarching narrative is unexpected and beautiful.

I know you will be nourished by this book, and I imagine you’ll want to give some copies to some friends as well. You can get ordering information here: https://us.macmillan.com/books/9781250409881/abeautifulyear

I encourage you to buy it from a local bookshop, which you can do conveniently here: https://bookshop.org/p/books/a-beautiful-year-52-meditations-on-faith-wisdom-and-perseverance-diana-butler-bass

PS: As I wrote in my enthusiastic endorsement for the book, if you are new to Diana’s work, this book is the ideal place to start.