Table of Contents

Links to a few
sample passages:

A folktale.
Different hells.
Moral compassion.
Postmodernism.

A related book.

Barnes'homepage

In the Presence of Mystery
    
By Michael Horace Barnes,   2003

An introduction to the human side of religion:
      The evolution of religion as part of cultural evolution
      The nature of religion as an expression of humanity

Some reviewers' comments:

"This book is a stunning achievement and is must reading.  Barnes knows his stuff--analysis of religion by sociology, psychology, anthropology, philosophy, and the history of religions.  A clear and helpful introduction for the non-technical reader."
      Donald G. Luck,  Trinity Seminary Review

This book is a tour de force, a synthesis of technical and professional scholarship, yet easily understood by any intelligent reader.  Barnes organizes his material tightly and writes clearly through, with lucid introductions to and summaries of each section."
     
Eugene C. Best,  Marist College

This is a graceful and engaging work, written with warmth and wit.  It comprehensively treats human religiousness as one phenomenon, common to our race, yet all the while deftly describing and analyzing that phenomenon . . . .  The comparison of religions, philosophical reasoning, and psychological perceptivity are neatly intertwined.  An intensely human book."
      Robert T. Fortna,  Vassar College.

 

[This page last changed July 26, 2008]