Of Men in Red Sox and Black Dresses

It has been a good night. I went to a lecture by Dr. Yvonne Seng about her book Men in Black Dresses, which discusses her interviews with holy men in the Middle East, and I got home in time to see Keith Foulke battle through the 9th inning to preserve an 8-5 victory for the Red Sox over the Yankees. The teams have played six games so far, and the season series stands at 3-3. What a great rivalry. It almost makes me forget that the NHL playoffs should be going on right now.

The lecture was fantastic, and I am excited about reading the book. From the back cover, here is a description of her book:

If we pause long enough, we can hear, above the din of our planet's rapid globalization and technological advancement, the quiet voices of spiritual leaders from ancient faiths. Middle East historian Yvonne Seng asks, What can these modern Desert Fathers with their long history of survival advise us on the future of our planet? Her intellectual quest rapidly becomes a personal journey that turns her Western training and perceptions on their head.

Men In Black Dresses takes the reader behind the walls of desert monasteries, Sufi enclaves, ancient cathedrals and mosques -- where the author knocks, uninvited, and waits for the wise men to allow her in. Once inside, they discuss the universal concerns of the environment and the Internet, the building of a global community, and the education of coming generations, as well as the state of the human spirit.

I will be writing posts about this book.