Product Description

A spiritual companion or gift for family and friends, this book highlights the common threads of hope, love, and peace that have woven humanity together for thousands of years. It begins with the author's view of the World Trade Towers collapsing and caring for some of the wounded, followed by 100 uplifting quotes taken from all the great religious traditions of the world, organized into chapters such as "Love One Another" and "Love Your Enemy." This edition was specially prepared for the holiday season.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #226814 in Books
• Published on: 2007-11-01
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Hardcover
• 143 pages

Review
Dr. Swift's work manages to show not only that there is wisdom in all the world's great faith traditions, but also the remarkable similarity of religious message. In this era when we are told that our differences should divide us, Dr. Swift's work shows so clearly that our differences can be blessings. --Rev. William Sinkford, President of the Unitarian Universalist Association

In a situation fraught with shock, suffering, fear, and grief, Patrick Swift discovered the power of religious wisdom to calm, comfort, heal, and inspire. Now, Dr. Swift thoughtfully and beautifully shares with us a collection of some of the wise words from diverse spiritual traditions that can do for us what they did for him--evoke an appreciation for diversity, provide counsel that creates a longing for unity, instill peace within us personally, and inspire us to work for peace globally. --Rev. Dr. C. Welton Gaddy, President of The Interfaith Alliance

One Mountain, Many Paths can touch the spirit of a sixteen-year-old as well as my sixty-six-year-old spirit. Each of the passages included in this book has been a path to peace for many people down through the ages. --Fr. John Stack, Dallas, TX

In a situation fraught with shock, suffering, fear, and grief, Patrick Swift discovered the power of religious wisdom to calm, comfort, heal, and inspire. Now, Dr. Swift thoughtfully and beautifully shares with us a collection of some of the wise words from diverse spiritual traditions that can do for us what they did for him--evoke an appreciation for diversity, provide counsel that creates a longing for unity, instill peace within us personally, and inspire us to work for peace globally. --Rev. Dr. C. Welton Gaddy, President of The Interfaith Alliance

One Mountain, Many Paths can touch the spirit of a sixteen-year-old as well as my sixty-six-year-old spirit. Each of the passages included in this book has been a path to peace for many people down through the ages. --Fr. John Stack, Dallas, TX

About the Author
Prior to his career in healthcare, Dr. Patrick Swift studied to become a Jesuit priest and completed the Ignatian 30-day silent retreat. He has studied eastern philosophy and meditation as well as completed a pilgrimage to India on a 75-day trip around the world. He currently lives in the New York City area with his family where he works as psychologist.

Customer Reviews

A Gem of a Book

When I was an undergrad at Yale, I majored in Comparative Religions. I probably would have majored in Psychology, but I didn't like enough of the course offerings. Everyone told me Psych would be better, and from a career point of view, that was probably true.

In life however, Comparative Religions has served me well. It has helped me understand that good-hearted people in many religions believe many of the same things even though they say them in different ways. And that helped me be more accepting of people different from myself.

Patrick Swift's book reinforces this acceptance of others. It helps us see the commonality, rather than the differences, between believers in various religions.

I like how the book is organized. In the "Love Your Enemy" section, the title quote is taken from Christianity, but there are quotations from a half a dozen other religions that express the same sentiment in other ways. One of the things I like about this is that seeing other ways of expressing similar thoughts helps us better understand the one -- like "Love Your Enemy" for example -- that we may have heard for years.

But the real beauty of this little book is that it is inspirational. Whether you're in the executive suite or a cubicle, you might want to have a copy at work to remind you that God exists in the workplace as well as in the place of worship. Whatever your religion, it's in this book. And whoever stops by your desk, their religion is in the book too.

And if they don't have a religion? Well, themes like love, peace, and forgiveness are kind of attractive in their own right, don't you think? The book is full of brief, easy-to-read segments on these and other inspirational themes.

I recommend this little gem of a book for your own inspiration or for a gift to someone you care about.

Beautiful collection
What a wonderful collection of verse from many different religions showing that we are more similar than different. We need to focus on the similarities and celebrate them.

Back on the Path
This treasure has removed the fear associated with our differences, opened doors to different forms of religious expression, and helped me get back on my path. A book you'll talk about for weeks, and think about for the rest of your life.