The Spirituality of Age: A Seeker’s Guide to Growing Older
As we Boomers age, and start to consider what’s next in our lives, many of us take stock of what’s happened to us so far. In the process of trying to make sense of our lives, we frequently find ourselves going back to review questions we asked in our teens and 20s – What is the meaning of life? Why am I here?
Only now, as we take stock, we are asking ourselves the questions in a slightly different way: The ubiquitous “Why am I here?” now morphs into questions like:
- Have I accomplished anything meaningful?
- Has my life been successful?
- How do I want to be remembered by my children, my co-workers, the world?
- When I die, will I have left any kind of mark that will show that I was once on this earth?
- Have I lived the life I was meant to live – and if not, is there still time to get it right?
Inevitably, we talk about this with our good friends, the ones we feel especially comfortable with, during those times where we feel introspective. Before that next opportunity arrives, you might want to pick up this book and read it. Know that you will likely need to take in on in small bites, because there’s a lot here.
Essentially this book is is an in-depth look within, by two fellow Boomers, a man and a woman, who just happen to be specialists on aging. With their special knowledge and expertise, they portray our inevitable aging as a spiritual experience, and urge us to take it seriously and honestly, to recognize aging for what it is: as a time for growing into spiritual wisdom.
Thankfully the Appendix also offers 12 exercises for seekers, a lengthy recommended reading list, detailed chapter notes, a bibliography and information about the authors’ backgrounds, as well as an invitation to stay connected to the authors.
A highly recommended book for anyone who’s once again started wondering, “What’s next for me?”
Before you make a decision to read or purchase this book, here’s a bit about the authors’ backgrounds:
Robert L. Weber, Ph.D., is Assistant Professor of Psychology at Harvard Medical School and a former Jesuit. Recipient of the American Society on Aging’s 2014 Religion, Spirituality, and Aging Award, he is an advisory board member for the Massachusetts School of Professional Psychology’s Center for Psychotherapy and Spirituality. He lives with his wife in Cambridge, Massachusetts.
Carol Orsborn, Ph.D., is founder and editor-in-chief of Fierce with Age: The Digest of Boomer Wisdom, Inspiration, and Spirituality. The author of more than 20 books for and about the Boomer generation as well as popular blogs on Huffington Post, PBS’s NextAvenue.net, and BeliefNet.com, she has served on the faculties of Georgetown University, Loyola Marymount University, and Pepperdine University. She lives with her husband in Madison, Tennessee.
