The perspective that Edgar Mitchell gained when, in 1971, he and two other astronauts swept through space in Apollo 14 and landed on the moon, is what author Alexander Lang seeks in Restorative Beauty to instill in all of us: dubbed “the Overview Effect,” this “cognitive shift in awareness” attests to “the oneness of all things,” and inspires “the ecstasy of unity.”
In his follow-up to Restorative Faith [a Featured Book previously], Lang, in his own words, “casts a renewed vision for modern spirituality,” and also provides practical steps to enhance our “feeling of connection with the world” around us. He strives to guide his readers to moments “of transcendence, where there is no division between you and the rest of the universe.”
In The Aquila Report, Hans Fiene pictures Lang, who recently cast off his clerical collar, disparagingly as “a Christendom-scented psychologist charged with fixing his patients.” But readers of the book are enthusiastic: all four amazon.com customer reviews award it five stars out of five. One called it, “A well argued and researched discussion of the possibilities for living a spiritual and ethical life in a modern/postmodern world, drawing on science, world religious traditions, and contemporary experience.”
Restorative Beauty: Spirituality for the 21st Century Rationalist
By Alexander Lang
Self-published by Alexander Lang, 2023