Spirit Unleashed
Reimagining Human-Animal Relations
- Science & Faith
- Publisher: Cascade Books (Wipf and Stock)
- Published: 2014
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Publisher's Description
In Spirit Unleashed, Anne Benvenuti uses analysis of real encounters with wild animals to take us on an intellectual tour of our thinking about animals by way of biological sciences, scientific psychology, philosophy, and theology to show that we have been wrong in our understanding of ourselves amongst other animals. The good news is that we can correct our course and make ourselves happier in the process. Drawing us into encounters with a desert rattlesnake, an offended bonobo, an injured fawn, a curious whale, a determined woodpecker, and others, she gives us a glimpse of their souls. Benvenuti strongly makes the case that to change the way we think about animals--and our way of relating to them--holds the possibility of changing all life on Earth for the better.
Endorsements (3)
“We Franciscans always believed that nature was God's first revelation, and if we did not read and respect creation, elements, and animals, we would probably not know how to read the written Bible either. . . . In this beautiful book, you now have a way through--and beyond--that will satisfy your searching intelligence and your seeking heart at the same time.”
“Benvenuti places her experiences in the grand sweep of the western intellectual traditions that have marginalized the other animals in thought, emotion, and deed. This book blends humanistic and scientific perspectives in ways that can help heal this troubled world of ours.”
“Spirit Unleashed is a most important book for showing how misleading it is to believe and to live as if there is a great divide between us and other beings. When we pay close attention to what we know about the cognitive, emotional, and moral lives of other animals and when we listen to what they want and need from us . . . it is easy to choose to live in close, respectful, and peaceful coexistence with them. Rewilding our hearts is a natural path for achieving a broad natural spirituality in which all beings will benefit from sharing our magnificent planet. Anne Benvenuti poignantly shows how true this is.”
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