The Road Less Traveled And Beyond: Spiritual Growth In An Age Of Anxiety

Introduction 11
Introduction Editor\'s Preface 15

PART I: CRUSADE AGAINST SIMPLISM

1: Thinking 23
The Point of Having a Brain • Simplism and Society • What\'s in Fashion Isn\'t Necessarily Fashionable • Assumptions, Stereotypes, and Labeling • Common Criminal Thinking • Thinking Too Little Is Your Problem • Thinking Too Much Is Somebody Else\'s Problem • The Good, the Bad, and the In-between • Thinking and Listening • Freedom and Thinking • Time and Efficiency • Paradox and Thinking with Integrity
2: Consciousness 63
The Mystery of Consciousness • Revisiting Our Frontal Lobes • Lessons from Genesis 3 • Good and Evil • Evil, Sin, and Other Distinctions • The Shadow • Consciousness and Competence • The Consciousness of Death • Traveling with God
3: Learning and Growth 95
The Role of the Soul • Passive Learning • Growth and Will • Out of Narcissism • Narcissism Versus Self-love • Narcissism, Death, and the Learning of Dying • Unlearning and Flexibility • Learning as Adventure • Values and Learning Choices • Learning from Role Models • Group Learning

PART II: WRESTLING WITH THE COMPLEXITY OF EVERYDAY LIFE

4: Personal Life Choices 139
The Path of Smart Selfishness Versus the Path of Stupid Selfishness • Choices of Responsibility • Choices of Submission • Choices of Vocation • The Choice of Gratitude • The Choice to Die Gracefully • The Choice of Emptiness
5: Organizational Life Choices 167
Civility • Systems • Ethics • Interdependence and Collaboration • Accountability and Structure • Boundaries and Vulnerability • Power • Culture • Dysfunction Versus Civility
6: Choices About Society 203
The Paradox of Good and Evil • The Paradox of Human Nature • The Paradox of Entitlement • The Paradox of Responsibility • The Paradoxes of Time and Money • A Personal Case Study

PART III: THE OTHER SIDE OF COMPLEXITY

7: The \"Science\" of God 241
Science and God • Spirituality and Religion • Stages of Spiritual Growth • Psychospiritual and Historical Baggage • Integration and Integrity • Grace and Serendipity • Revelation • The Ego and the Soul  • Kenosis • Prayer and Faith • Process Theology • Glory • Cocreation
8: The \"Poetry\" of God 287

Acknowledgments 307
Notes 309