This exciting resource on desert spirituality is quite unlike any other: at once a physical journey to outstanding deserts of the planet and an odyssey of the soul. A journey of discovery takes us across five continents as we venture to places few pilgrims reach: the Gazan desert, the Sahara, the Australian outback, the Athos wilderness and the Ordos Desert of China, and the Syrian desert, among others.
Evocative descriptions by early travelers and by the author immerse us into a diversity of wilderness landscapes, stimulating the senses and the imagination. Physicality leads to spirituality as we listen to compelling voices that speak to us poignantly across space and time–including spiritual writers long-forgotten or not well-known. These unearth for us the treasure we seek: we uncover the distinctive charism of each desert, offering us different and challenging ways of looking at the world and at the spiritual life. We discover the unpredictable desert to contain unexpected, priceless treasures of transformative wisdom that speak uncannily into our own contemporary spiritual search. We see how these gems can energize and inspire our discipleship or spiritual practice. As we embark on this spiritual quest, we may never be the same again!
Circa l’autore
Andrew D. Mayes, an episcopal priest and a Franciscan, served as spirituality adviser to the Diocese of Chichester and to the Diocese of Cyprus and the Gulf. He lived several years in Jerusalem, firstly as a theological researcher and later as director of courses of St George’s College. He is the author of sixteen spirituality books, including the award-winning Learning the Language of the Soul; Beyond the Edge: Spiritual Transitions for Adventurous Souls; and, from Wipf and Stock, Gateways to the Divine: Transformative Pathways of Prayer from the Holy City of Jerusalem; Voices from the Mountains: Forgotten Wisdom for a Hurting World; Climate of the Soul: Ecological Spirituality; and Treasure in the Wilderness: Desert Spirituality for Uncertain Times.