
Behind the Altar
Linda E. Olds(Author)
Pickwick Publications (Publisher)
Published on 26. February 2026
Book
Hardback
468 pages
979-8-3852-4771-4 (ISBN)
Description
In an age of increasing religious diversity and pluralism, many people resonate to spirituality beyond only one tradition. But how to find a path that has depth, discernment, and comprehensiveness, connecting to all one knows? Drawing from cross-cultural religious traditions, psychological research, and personal inquiry, Olds offers vocabulary, concepts, and maps of self and world as resources for exploring the ways psychological and spiritual development intersect and interweave, deepening understanding of one's core tradition as well. An integrative model differentiates soul (inner wholeness) and spirit (nondual awareness) as two complementary dimensions of the spiritual search that echo tendencies West and East.
In this comprehensive look at the field of psychology and religion, Indra's net or cosmic web provides a guiding metaphor for exploring facets often underrepresented, including transpersonal development of a deeper self and higher consciousness beyond ego; meditation and mysticism; symbolic, Jungian, and imaginal approaches; God-language and nondual perspectives; spiritual embodiment; gender issues; and dialogues with science.
An immanental emphasis on divine sacredness in the world is contrasted with more familiar transcendent assumptions, underscoring themes of interconnectedness in world religions, including Celtic Christianity, Hua-yen Buddhism, Taoism, and Whitehead's process thought.
More details
Language
English
Place of publication
United States
Product notice
sewn/stitched
Cloth over boards
With dust jacket
Dimensions
Height: 235 mm
Width: 157 mm
Thickness: 30 mm
Weight
823 gr
ISBN-13
979-8-3852-4771-4 (9798385247714)
Copyright in bibliographic data and cover images is held by Nielsen Book Services Limited or by the publishers or by their respective licensors: all rights reserved.
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Other editions
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E-Book
02/2026
Wipf and Stock Publishers
€48.49
Available for download
Person
Linda E. Olds is Professor Emerita at Linfield University, having taught in both the Psychology and Religious Studies departments, including interdisciplinary courses in psychology of religion and consciousness, psychology East and West, gender and spirituality, and nature and spirituality. She is the author of Fully Human, on psychological and cultural androgyny, and Metaphors of Interrelatedness, on systems theory as a unifying metaphor for psychology, science, and religion.