Watch for the next lineup of exciting authors in the Codys@FCCB series.
Meanwhile, listen to audio files of past events at the right.
Wednesday, April 2, 2008
I Don’t Believe in Atheists
7:30 p.m. • Sanctuary
In his new book I Don’t Believe in Atheists, Chris Hedges takes on a group he calls New Atheists that includes Christopher Hitchens, Richard Dawkins, and Sam Harris. Hedges believes that these secular fundamentalists are actually as dangerous as the religious fundamentalist belief systems they attack. I Don’t Believe in Atheists argues that the Christian fundamentalists and the secular fundamentalists are two polarized and dangerous sides of the debate on faith and religion in America. Both sides use faith to promote a radical agenda that is not based on reason, and both are a threat to our society.
Hedges did not take Harris or Hitchens seriously until this year when he debated them in Los Angeles and San Francisco, and he realized that their dangerous arguments were attracting large followings. As a seminary graduate and son of a Presbyterian minister, Hedges strongly believes that religion, at its best, struggles with the transcendent forces in life and seeks to promote an ethic of compassion and justice.
Chris Hedges was a foreign correspondent for nearly two decades for The New York Times and other newspapers, and is the bestselling author of American Fascists; War Is a Force That Gives Us Meaning, a finalist for the National Book Critics Circle Award; What Every Person Should Know About War; and Losing Moses on the Freeway. Hedges graduated from seminary at Harvard Divinity School. He is now a senior fellow at the Nation Institute.
This event is being co-sponsored by The Religion, Politics and Globalization Program at UC Berkeley.
Friday, May 2, 2008
The Backdoor to Enlightenment: Shortcuts to Happiness for the Spiritually Challenged
7:30 p.m. • Sanctuary
What kind of book do you get when you combine the wisdom of a highly renowned Buddhist spiritual master with the curiosity of a spunky writer who is a graduate of “America’s number one party school”? That book is The Backdoor to Enlightenment: Eight Steps to Living Your Dreams and Changing Your World by Za Rinpoche and Ashley Nebelsieck, a thought-provoking new book that addresses the single question: “Why would the Buddha tell you that you must change who you are to become enlightened?”
This unique book blends centuries-old texts with contemporary wisdom from these two diverse and vibrant new voices. Part mystery/adventure, part wisdom teachings, part hands-on self-help, this three-in-one book offers an exciting new approach to secular Buddhist philosophy for the next generation. More than just a heartfelt story of mystery and discovery, this revolutionary work stands out as a smart, clear guide, showing step-by-step how you can use these truths to transform every aspect of your life. It will allow readers of any faith to bypass the traps and limitations of modern life and achieve lasting peace every day. There is no shortcut to enlightenment, but this book invites readers through the Backdoor.
When Za Rinpoche was sixteen, in high school and already with a girlfriend, the Dalai Lama recognized him as the sixth reincarnation of Za Choeje Rinpoche. In 1998, he led the Mystical Arts of Tibetan Cultural Tour to sixty cities across the United States, and lectured at thirty universities. He is the founder of Emaho Foundation, a Scottsdale, Arizona-based nonprofit organization dedicated to sharing Tibetan culture with the West (but sometimes he’d rather go to a movie or just hang out with friends). Having grown up in Hyannis, Massachusetts, Ashley Nebelsieck graduated from Arizona State University with a degree in art. She currently lives and writes in Scottsdale, Arizona, when she”s not traveling the world in search of sacred sites (and being totally silly). When Rinpoche first met Ashley, he thought she was just “a pretty girl asking trivial questions” about his faith. And Ashley assumed Rinpoche would be a distant monk and stern taskmaster. They both agree, they wouldn’t trade the experience of writing this book together for anything.