Hi friends, I’m so pleased to announce the title — and cover art — of my forthcoming book! It will be published in 2025 by Broadleaf Books and represents my third book with Broadleaf (they also have re-published several of my older books). Even though it’s not being published until next April, you can pre-order the book now through major online retailers; you can also get an autographed copy directly from me (visit the store page here on Anamchara.com) — and if you are a member of my Patreon circle at $20/month ($216/year) or higher, I’ll send you an autographed copy as a thank you gift when it is published next spring!
The title of the book is Read the Bible Like a Mystic: Contemplative Wisdom and the Word. Here is the book’s description as found on retail websites (I didn’t write this, but the publicist who did captured the spirit of the book really well):
There is a better way to read the Bible: with the eyes of a mystic and the heart of contemplation.
Can the Bible be saved? More and more Christians are troubled by how difficult passages in the Bible can be used to promote sexism, homophobia, hostility to other faiths, and other problems–but a sterile, “academic” reading of the sacred text seems spiritually unfulfilling. Carl McColman, author of The New Big Book of Christian Mysticism, reminds us that there is an ancient “third way” of approaching the Bible: reading scripture like a mystic. This contemplative approach to the Bible understands that much of the sacred text was never meant to be taken literally, yet this approach maintains that spiritual wisdom, guidance in prayer, and encouragement for meditation are encoded throughout the sacred text.
Read the Bible Like a Mystic will help Christians find an expanded relationship with their sacred textbook, and it will also invite all people–Christian and non-Christian alike–to bring together the wisdom of the written word with the wisdom of the contemplative life and the call to foster peace, justice, and equality in our world. Whether you come to the Bible from a preexisting interest in Christianity or mysticism, this book shows how contemplative wisdom unlocks the liberating power of the Word for our time.
Sound intriguing? Preorder the book now through Amazon or Barnes & Noble, pre-order a signed copy here at www.anamchara.com, or join Patreon at the “standard” membership level to get a free signed copy as a thank you gift when it is published. You can also get it from independent bookstores; I’ll provide links to indie retailers when they become available.
