Working on God

by Winifred Gallagher

Book Overview

Millions of Americans are finding it more and more difficult to apply the traditional demands of organized religion to their lives, and yet a complete absence of spirituality leaves them uneasy.... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0679447946
• ISBN13: 9780679447948
• Release Date: March 1999
• Publisher: Random House (NY)
• Length: 352 Pages
• Weight: 1.15 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.3" x 5.9" x 9.5"

Customer Reviews

To Seek a Newer World

I think that it was Karl Marx who wrote that religion is the opiate of the masses. Certainly we all know folks who are extremely devote and yet we all could admit that probably more wars and carnage have taken place in the name of religion than any other subject. Winifred Gallagher, in her book, is attempting to show us another side of religion, a side where religion is a process, a process of "working on God". For this is a book both about and for independent thinking people who are attempting to reconcile spiritual beliefs with their own somewhat skeptical intuitive rationales. For me, this was a book that confirmed my beliefs and yet challenged me, all at the same time. A central theme is that we are all, more or less, on a spiritual journey, and are called, if you will, to this time and this place, be it Reston, Virginia or Greenwich, Connecticut or wherever. According to Ms. Gallagher, this journey is most important because it is not made alone but with others, others of even differing faiths than our own. Her sense of spirituality is not the opiate of Marx but rather is one of being aware, awake, and living a life that is present.Many of the people that she writes about start out in life having more than enough and yet, they don't have enough. In their growth, if that's the right word, something starts to happen, something that has to do with holding on to what's important to them and letting go of what is not. Ms. Gallagher presents some heartwarming instances, such as the stranger in church who tells her that he will pray for her critically ill son or the young Hasidic mother she sits next to on a cross country flight. These people give her a different view of "other" and allow us to realize that, when it comes to things that matter, we are more alike than we all care to admit. For that reason, she would probably argue that perhaps we should center our lives on the charity of our being and not in the virtue of religion.This is the type of book that looks at both sides of the spiritual coin. Along these lines, St. Paul is attributed to have said, "In order to know thyself, prove all things to strengthen your faith". Leonardo Da Vinci once wrote that man should have faith in his own gifts and nurture them to the fullest. Ms. Gallagher would appreciate the irony here, for a scientist is saying "have faith" while a saint is saying "prove all things". Towards the end of the book, she makes an interesting statement: "Faith is the meaning of history". Teilhard de Chardin might say it is even (dare I use the word) evolutionary. So, therefore, I came away from this book feeling that I understand what Ms. Gallagher is saying about anyone's spiritual journey. The message may very well be that all that was is part of me, as I am part of what's to be. Well done, Ms. G.

From a skeptic's point of view

That's how Winifred Gallagher, self-avowed neo-agnostic, approaches her exploration of the various religious paths available today. She investigates the whole gamut of spirituality from New Age practices at Esalen to Islam, Zen Buddhism, Judaism, and Christianity in its various forms. Although by the end of her journey, she has settled into life as an Episcopalian with Judaic study habits and Zen meditation practices, she admits this is not the path for anyone. Gallagher is essentially an encourager, pushing each of us to explore the spiritual dimensions of life and find a path that resonates for us... a path we can follow with passion. Highly recommended.

This book just makes me feel better

Having been raised by atheist parents, I always felt that there was "something more" out there, yet was completely turned off by the dogma, intolerance, and narrow-mindedness I found in the churches I attended. After reading Ms. Gallagher's book, I felt so much better about things - even religion. I always wondered why I felt so peaceful just to be sitting inside the Catholic church before the service started, yet not always agree with what was being said to me in the sermon. I always wondered if maybe I wasn't "getting it" because I could not identify with those people who talked like Jesus was their best buddy and how every decision in their life was governed by Him as opposed to their own free will. I now understand that religion and spirituality is so much more, and that is it OK to reach into the toolbox of religions to use what is best for me. It doesn't matter what religion you follow, if any, because all of them point in the same direction essentially - be good to yourself, be good to others, live in the here and now, know that somehow everything will be alright in the end, and that there is indeed something more out there than just you and your physical body; you are not alone. Thanks, Winifred. I look forwarding to reading your other books.

Important essay on how intellect and religion can co-exist

A profound book, but because of its depth, objectivity, intimacy, and clarity, rather than by merely riding the coattails of what is presumed to be a profound topic. Ms. Gallagher presents an examination of the role and value of religion, particularly to those whose mindset, or schedule, keeps them from "practicing" a religion yet does not let them sever their religious impulses. This examination, delivered in consistent journalistic fashion, but with a feeling that becomes increasingly personal as the pages turn, takes the reader through discussions and illustrations of why those who disdain religion because they fancy themselves intellectuals or those who resist orthodoxy in their religious teachings or practices are only reacting superficially to perhaps the least intellectual aspects of the vital and extraordinary concepts and rewards that religion can offer the mind and the soul. Ms. Gallagher's chapters build upon each other, as she takes the reader to all manner of persons, including herself, and their descriptions of how being religious helps them in ways that nothing else quite matches. Neither a pitch for religion, nor a long rationalization to her Manhattan friends of why she is religious, Ms. Gallagher's book carries weight because it shows that working on God is a personal and universal challenge particularly well-suited to those who resist religion because they view it as a list of obligations or creeds, and thus never reach the most challenging and reward aspects of what it means to be religious. A very important book.

This book fulfills its promise, and then some

This is an intelligent, surprising inquiry into religion and spirituality from someone who is clearly as deep and clear-eyed a spiritualist as she is a perceptive journalist. A readable, useful and beautifully written journey into religion. There are lots of books about spirituality but this one takes you someplace worth going.