Western society faces a paradox—an increasing spirituality and a decreasing involvement in organized religion. Given the assaults on religion's credibil ity over the past 150 years, anyone could have predicted the public's abandon ment of religious organizations. How ever, Leech does not find the current situation completely negative. People have worshiped many gods over the cen turies, and we need to lay some of them to rest. Leech states, "To hold to a false and inadequate view of God is more seri ous an obstacle to faith than atheism, and so the abandonment of false views is a necessary purifying element."
The author, an Anglican priest, has written two previous books on spiritual ity. In Experiencing God he attempts to help the layperson discern pathways that lead to the true God. He writes specifi cally for people who hunger for a Godcentered spirituality yet have little knowledge of how others experience Di vinity. By targeting this audience, the author has produced a readable and mov ing introduction to the God who longs to be known by us. The reader will crave a relationship with this kind of God. Leech presents God in such alluring terms in this book that while reading it I often felt my spirit soar to reach Him.
Leech's inspirational and nontechni cal writing style gives us much to digest. Occasionally the reading becomes te dious because of detail and references to what others have written. One senses this is because of the author's desire not to overlook anything that might make the message clearer.
Conservative Christians will not agree with all Leech writes in this volume. Some will differ with ideas found in the chapters on the eucharistic God, God of the abyss, and God the mother. Others will question some of Leech's resources. But these few differences should not detract from the integrity of the book's message and the author's ability to speak to both the intellect and the heart.
The postscript includes 13 summary statements that bring the material to gether and provide the final focus for a renewed spirituality. The last statement concludes with this vision of spirituality: "In the struggles for a more human world, a renewed spirituality will come to dis cern the face of God, the holy and just One, and to share in the peace of God which passes all understanding." Leach succeeds in stimulating a desire for spiri tual renewal.
