Healing the Soul of America: Reclaiming Our Voices as Spiritual Citizens: Amazon.ca: Marianne Williamson: Books

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Review

Patricia Holt San Francisco Chronicle A huge and wondrous surprise....The Healing of America somehow makes us proud to be Americans, because every hope for democracy seems newly within our grasp.

Jann Mitchell The Oregonian A long-needed breath of fresh air.

Yoga Journal This stirring departure from Williamson's usual subject matter cuts to the heart of our dilemma and brings new energy to the search for solutions.

Book Description

Healing That Reaches Beyond the Self

In this landmark work, Marianne Williamson reminds us that there is a point in everyone's spiritual journey where the search for self-awareness can turn into self-preoccupation. All of us are better off when contemplation of holy principles is at the center of our lives. But it is in applying those principles in our lives that we forge the true marriage between heaven and earth.

In the compassionate but clear-eyed prose that has won her so many avid readers, Williamson shows us that the principles which apply to our personal healing also apply to the healing of the larger world. Calling on Americans to turn the compassion in our hearts into a powerful force for social good, Williamson shows us how to transform spiritual activism into a social activism that will in turn transform America into a nation seriously invested in the hope of every child and in the potential of every adult.

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Inside This Book (Learn More)

First Sentence
ON December 17, 1998, Bill Clinton became the second President in the history of the United States to be impeached by the House of Representatives. Read the first page

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Concordance

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Customer Reviews

8 Reviews

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4.2 out of 5 stars (8 customer reviews)

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1.0 out of 5 stars Liberalism Under the Guise of Ghandi, Jan 21 2003

By A Customer

This review is from: Healing the Soul of America: Reclaiming Our Voices as Spiritual Citizens (Paperback)

I found this book rehashed a lot of her old books which I used to highly recommend to everyone. She kept using the term "democracy". We are a republic, as anyone who recites the Pledge of Allegiance knows. She is anti-gun, using the term "gun violence" and says the gun manufacturers are in it only for the money. We used guns to extricate/defend ourselves from the British, and would probably still be under their control if we had used what, bows and arrows safe enough for you? Also used guns to "win the west". The problem is not guns but the psyche of those who use them in a bad way. The countries with gun control have the highest rate of violence - England, Australia. She sheds tears for the abortion clinic worker who has to wear a bullet-proof vest but sheds none for the unborn. Yet she says we don't take good enough care of our children in America. She can't have it both ways, baby!!

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5.0 out of 5 stars Extremely intelligent, articulate, and profoundly moving!!!, Sep 4 2002

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Chicago Dreamer "chicagodreamer" (Chicago, IL United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Healing the Soul of America: Reclaiming Our Voices as Spiritual Citizens (Paperback)

This is an absolutely wonderful book!!! It is a must-read for anyone who would like to see changes made in the world, and especially in the political system. Written at the dawn of the millenium, it is even more profound and timely today. Every page has quotes worth saving, every example has meaning, every solution resonates. Ms. Williamson is a very talented writer, and she has cut to the heart with this book, in more ways than one. She outlined very articulately EVERYTHING that has been bothering me. She not only nailed all of the problems, but she also gives solutions, and provides blueprints and resources.

This book spoke to me at first sight. However, I was expecting it to be a different kind of book, so I pushed it to the side, with good intentions. It sat on the shelf patiently whispering to me, and I would whisper back -"Yes, when the time is right, I'll pick you up." Well, THE TIME IS RIGHT!!! Wow, is it ever!!! Now I've read it, I want to trumpet it to all the world. For anyone sick at heart at the state of things in this country, and an ache in their soul to see a change in the status quo -- get this book. It is insightful, intelligent, significant, profound, and unforgettable. Pick it up, read it, and then tell at least ten friends about it who have a social conscience. Let's begin - NOW!

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4.0 out of 5 stars The Time is Right to Read This, July 2 2002

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M. Nichols (San Francisco, CA United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)

This review is from: Healing the Soul of America: Reclaiming Our Voices as Spiritual Citizens (Paperback)

I bought this book (published as "The Healing of America") in 1997, and it sat on my bookshelf for five years. Picking it up recently, I felt a chill of recognition as I read its contents. America is on the verge of a renaissance or a catastrophe, she writes, and Islamic terrorists manipulate the masses with tales of our superficial values. Williamson was clearly onto something.

In spirit, this book reminds me of Michael Moore's "Downsize This!" and "Stupid White Men". Both Moore and Williamson are grass roots rabble rousers, with a tendency to over idealize the average American's civic interests. They have similar ideas about what needs to be done, and many of their ideas are good ones: increasing the minimum wage, better funding for schools, reparations for blacks and Native Americans. (I wish Williamson had delved more into one of her intriguing ideas -- a Marshall plan for America's inner cities.) Also, both have the ability to light a fire under wannabe activists. Moore's books started me on a path to voting for third party candidates, and Williamson has encouraged me to get involved in letter writing campaigns.

Their main difference -- although maybe I'm contradicting myself when I say this, since I read them both -- is that they are appealing to slightly different audiences. Moore appeals to common decency as his cause, Williamson to her belief that we are all spiritual children of the same God.

Williamson's primary focus in this book is in her belief that consciousness is the root of political action. She quotes the Dalai Lama telling her that to achieve change you must meditate AND have an action plan. She relies heavily on the ideals of Ghandi, Robert and JFK, and MLK Jr, quoting from them all regularly, before venturing into what she thinks needs to be done. First among them is a greater participation of her readers in the political process.

I would recommend this book for Book Groups, since it is thought provoking and offers concrete ideas on how to get started in the political process. Most who read it will be inspired to act -- and perhaps wish they had acted a bit sooner.

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Most recent customer reviews

4.0 out of 5 stars On a soapbox but a useful book
I read the older edition 'The Healing of America'. I agreed with what Ms. Williamson said in the book about what is good and bad about America. Read more

Published on Mar 8 2002 by Wendy Schroeder

5.0 out of 5 stars America is in need of a spiritual healing
I have not read the book, but I am familiar with Marianne's writings. I can safely assume that this book is worth a 5 bacause of preious readings and the remarks she made on the... Read more

Published on Sep 27 2001 by Essie L Love