New Books Offer To Guide New Wave Of Spiritual Seekers

America’s spiritual yearnings sweep from shore to shore in waves and, right now, a tidal wave is cresting.

Baby boomers are turning 50 and are pondering their mortality. The Cold War is over and the rules of the global game are up for grabs.

The year 2000 is looming with its ominous triple-0s.

Publishers love it, because most spiritual quests in the ‘90s make a detour through a bookstore. Religion has fueled the biggest boom in publishing in recent years, says Publishers Weekly magazine.

And at the very top of this heap of holy writ is the category called “inspirational,” the industry bible concludes.

Evidence of this trend is everywhere.

Religion pops up regularly on the covers of Newsweek and Time. In December, even Mother Jones magazine, which boasts of its history as a “hell-raiser,” is running a warm and fuzzy cover story headlined: “Believe It or Not: Spirituality is the New Religion.”

When devotees of this new spiritual wave compare their journeys, they usually start by swapping the names of authors who have become their gurus: Joseph Girzone, M. Scott Peck, Rabbi Harold Kushner, Thomas Moore - or Deepak Chopra, who made the cover of Newsweek magazine in October.

Newsweek dubbed Chopra’s books, “Nirvana made easy.” This savvy author offers a slick blend of Hindu, Buddhist and Judeo-Christian principles, all wrapped in a seductive promise that our quest can end in material success.

However, spiritual seekers may have overlooked a host of wonderful inspirational books published this year by lesser-known writers. If you find yourself shopping for a fresh volume of enlightenment in time for the year-end holidays, consider the following gems.

This year, Jack Kornfield produced an eloquent overview of the similarities between Christianity and Buddhism, titled “Jesus and Buddha” (Ulysses Press, $19.95).

First, Kornfield explains the parallels in a brief introduction - then, for 200 pages, he simply lines up passages from the Christian gospels with similar teachings from the Buddha.

For an even broader cross-section of wisdom from the world’s major faiths, Scribner has published the first English translation of Leo Tolstoy’s “A Calendar of Wisdom” ($20). Tolstoy organized his favorite spiritual quotations into 365 themes, one for each day of the year.

Celtic traditions also are popular right now, because they are such a rich blend of Christian mysticism and an ancient, pagan respect for nature. Esther De Waal’s “The Celtic Way of Prayer” (Doubleday, $19.95) is a fascinating introduction to the subject.

For a more mainline Christian approach to faith, consider “The Lessons of St. Francis” by John Michael Talbot (Dutton, $21.95). Talbot, a Franciscan monk, explains in plain language how ordinary people can increase their sense of compassion, creativity, peace and joy.

The best volume of African-American spirituality this year is “Say Amen!” edited by the Rev. Chestina Mitchell Archibald, chaplain at Fisk University (Dutton, $24.95). Archibald has assembled more than 300 prayers for African-American families, including some she has written as well as prayers by black leaders such as Frederick Douglass and Martin Luther King Jr.

Another powerful religious tradition is the retelling of ancient stories in contemporary terms. The most enjoyable modern interpretation of a Bible story this year was Frederick Buechner’s “On the Road with the Archangel” (HarperSanFrancisco, $22.75). This delightful retelling of the book of Tobit includes a host of amazing plot twists, including a mischievous angel who disguises his appearance.

Overall, the book underlines the enduring power of love and hope.

Finally, as proof that there is something for every spiritual taste these days, there’s even a new book-length meditation on mind, body, spirit - and shopping. It’s called “Hiding” (University of Chicago, $29.95) by Mark Taylor with a foreword by “God” biographer Jack Miles. This bizarre volume is for spiritual pilgrims who are more interested in searching than in finding.

“Hiding” declares that at the end of all our yearning there are only, “Plenty of clues. No solutions.”

Happy hunting.