Agnostic

A widely admired writer on religion celebrates agnosticism as the most vibrant, engaging—and ultimately the most honest—stance toward the mysteries of existence.

One in four Americans reject any affiliation with organized religion, and nearly half of those under thirty describe themselves as “spiritual but not religious.” But as the airwaves resound with the haranguing of preachers and pundits, who speaks for the millions who find no joy in whittling the wonder of existence to a simple yes/no choice?

Lesley Hazleton does. In this provocative, brilliant book, she gives voice to the case for agnosticism, breaks it free of its stereotypes as watered-down atheism or amorphous “seeking,” and celebrates it as a reasoned, revealing, and sustaining stance toward life. Stepping over the lines imposed by rigid conviction, she draws on philosophy, theology, psychology, science, and more to explore, with curiosity and passion, the vital role of mystery in a deceptively information-rich world; to ask what we mean by the search for meaning; to invoke the humbling yet elating perspective of infinity; to challenge received ideas about death; and to reconsider what “the soul” might be. Inspired and inspiring, Agnostic recasts the question of belief not as a problem to be solved but as an invitation to an ongoing, open-ended adventure of the mind.

Un scriitor larg admirat despre religie celebreaza agnosticismul ca fiind cea mai vibranta, mai captivanta - si in cele din urma cea mai cinstita - pozitie fata de misterele existentei. Unul din patru americani respinge orice afiliere la religia organizata si aproape jumatate dintre cei sub treizeci de ani se descriu ca „spirituali, dar nu religiosi”. Dar, pe masura ce undele radio rasuna cu aranjarea predicatorilor si a expertilor, cine vorbeste pentru milioane care nu gasesc nici o bucurie in reducerea minunii existentei la o alegere simpla da / nu?