BRIEF FLIGHTS

About the Book

Transcendent experiences have been extensively written about, from a psychological perspective by Freud, William James, Maslow and others. However in recent years, advances in identifying a "self-transcendent" personality trait, a "God Gene" and some of the neurochemical brain activities which occur during transcendent states, have opened up a new depth of understanding about this inside dimension of transcendent phenomena. They also offer science's newest challenge to traditional religious experience and belief.

In this book transcendent experiences are described by those in a variety of arenas, including traditional religious practices, close encounters with death and other natural phenomena, creativity and the arts, competitive sports, romantic love, and other areas. Those interested in religion and science, as well many general readers, may come to recognize experiences of their own, which they may not have considered religious or transcendent. They may also find comfort from developing a stronger and deeper foundation for their religious beliefs.

About the Author

Frederic Alling, an Episcopal priest and psychiatrist, is a graduate of Princeton University, General Theological Seminary, and Columbia Medical School. He was formerly an Assistant Clinical Professor of Psychiatry at St. Luke?s Roosevelt Hospital Center and Medical Director of The Institutes of Religion and Health. He currently lives with his wife in Marblehead, MA.