Socrates in the City: Conversations on “Life, God, and Other Small Topics”

By Jeremy Reynalds
Senior Correspondent for ASSIST News Service

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (ANS) -- Socrates in the City: Conversations on “Life, God, and Other Small Topics,” is a book that combines humor and reflections on a number of the most challenging questions of life debated by some of the world's most brilliant writers and thinkers.

The editor, Eric Metaxas, has been called a literary phenomenon in his own right. He is the author of over 30 award-winning children's books, two New York Times bestselling biographies, most notably Bonhoeffer which was published to widespread critical acclaim last year and spent six weeks on the list.

He has also been a cultural commentator on Fox News, CNN, NPR, and many other outlets. He speaks widely on a variety of topics at such prestigious venues as the White House, Capitol Hill, West Point, Yale, Cornell, and Princeton.

However, according to a news release, no matter where Metaxas is, or what he is writing about, there is one project with a huge message that he always comes back to.

The news release said ten years ago it struck Metaxas that in Manhattan, where he lived, people weren't taking the time or being encouraged to think deeply about great questions. They included questions about the existence of God, the nature of faith and the relationship between faith and science.

While our fast-paced culture has helped diminish the tendency for deep philosophical thought, the news release said it seemed to Metaxas that there was something specifically about the culture in New York City which worked against examining these sorts of questions. As a result, the Manhattan event series, Socrates in the City, was born.

Every other month or so Socrates in the City sponsors an event in which people can begin a dialogue on “Life, God, and other Small Topics” by hearing a notable thinker and writer. They include Dr. Francis Collins, Sir John Polkinghorne, Rabbi Sir Jonathan Sacks, N.T. Wright, Os Guinness, Peter Kreeft, or George Weigel. No question is too big-in fact, the bigger the better.

The news release stated that while answers to some of the great questions remain elusive, Metaxas’ goal is to whet the audience's appetite for further discussion and reflection. Often the questions that come in the audience question and answer session after the main talk result in the most thought-provoking, off-the-cuff comments from the speakers. 

Metaxas has written, “Over the last ten years we have asked some of the biggest, baddest questions imaginable but it has always bothered me that more couldn't be there to experience them - which is one reason we've put this book together.”

Socrates in the City is a collection of talks featuring some of today's most penetrating thinkers, scientists, theologians, philosophers, and historians, first given to standing room-only crowds in New York. As a whole, the news release said, these talks encourage each of us to examine some of the great issues of life and offer a means to explore them deeply and meaningfully.

The news release said Metaxas has chosen 11 evenings to share in the book. They range from his introductions to the speeches given by Sir John Polkinghorne, N.T. Wright, Alister McGrath, Os Guiness, Peter Kreeft, Paul Vitz, Fr. Richard John Neuhau, Jean Bethke Elshtain, Charles W. Colson, and Dr. Francis Collins, to the transcripts of the question and answer periods after.

The news release said, “The essays and dialogues flow seamlessly as if you are in the room and prompt readers to think about questions vital to both secular and Christian thinking like: 

How do we make sense out of suffering and tragedy? How do we believe in God in an age of science? Why do we hear so much about motherhood and not fatherhood? What about evil? What does spirituality actually mean and how does it fit in with organized religion?”

It continued, “In this day and age, we can all do with a bit more self-examination. Socrates in the City is the perfect way to invite this time into our lives.”

For more information go to www.socratesinthecity.com

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Jeremy Reynalds is Senior Correspondent for the ASSIST News Service, a freelance writer and also the founder and CEO of Joy Junction, New Mexico's largest emergency homeless shelter, http://www.joyjunction.org He has a master's degree in communication from the University of New Mexico, and a Ph.D. in intercultural education from Biola University in Los Angeles. His newest book is "Homeless in the City." Additional details on "Homeless in the City" are available athttp://www.homelessinthecity.com. Reynalds lives in Albuquerque, New Mexico. For more information contact: Jeremy Reynalds at jeremyreynalds@comcast.net.

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