To Thrive Beyond Belief

To Thrive Beyond Belief

David Cortesi
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Table of Contents

To Thrive Beyond Belief

  • Introduction
    • What’s ahead in these chapters
  • Chapter 1: What Are the Benefits of a Religious Practice?
    • What’s the cost?
    • Existential validity
    • Community
    • Contemplation and tranquility
    • Ritual and pageantry
    • Self-transcendence
    • Ethical structure
    • Comfort facing death and loss
    • Summary
  • Chapter 2: Finding Validity
    • The basic choice: contingent, or not?
    • Consequences of a predetermined nature
    • Surviving Absurdity
    • On being a mere accident
    • Filling the Abyss with light
    • Revelation without end
    • Bestriding the world
    • The price of knowledge
    • Being more than a spear-carrier
    • Summary
  • Chapter 3: Finding Community
    • What the research shows
    • Opportunities for community
    • Obstacles to community
    • Confession good for the body
    • Summary
  • Chapter 4: Contemplation and Tranquility
    • The many practices of tranquility
    • Contemplative practices
    • Cultivating a limitless heart
    • The efficacy of prayer
    • Summary
  • Chapter 5: Using Ritual
    • Doing lucky science
    • Rituals are everywhere
    • Uses of ritual
    • Elements of ritual
    • Unmaking rituals
    • Making rituals
    • Summary
  • Chapter 6: The Usefulness of Heroes
    • Self-definition and Heros
    • Are there heroes any more?
    • Recognizing excellence
    • Finding heroes
    • Summary
  • Chapter 7: Articulating Your Ethics
    • Uses of an ethical code
    • What a code is not
    • Your Ethical Touchstone
    • Candidate guidelines
    • Your own guidelines
    • Summary
  • Chapter 8: Death and Dying
    • Ten billion to die
    • Fighting the fear
    • Using death to motivate virtue
    • Grief
    • Living with the dying
    • Arranging your own affairs
    • Summary
  • Chapter 9: Being Happier
    • Positive Psychology
    • The Happiness Set-Point
    • The weakness of circumstance
    • Building toward happiness
    • Summary
  • Chapter 10: Contentment and Resilience
    • Freedom from debt
    • Having nothing to hide
    • Detachment
    • Forgiveness
    • Learning Optimism
    • Summary
  • Chapter 11: A Partner in Infinity’s Dance
  • Appendix A: Lubben Social Network Scale
  • All the References
    • Recommended Books
  • Notes
To Thrive Beyond Belief/overview

To Thrive Beyond Belief

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A survey of secular resources to support the well-lived life.

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To Thrive Beyond Belief15 chapters

Begin ›
  1. Introduction

  2. Chapter 1: What Are the Benefits of a Religious Practice?

  3. Chapter 2: Finding Validity

  4. Chapter 3: Finding Community

  5. Chapter 4: Contemplation and Tranquility

  6. Chapter 5: Using Ritual

  7. Chapter 6: The Usefulness of Heroes

  8. Chapter 7: Articulating Your Ethics

  9. Chapter 8: Death and Dying

  10. Chapter 9: Being Happier

  11. Chapter 10: Contentment and Resilience

  12. Chapter 11: A Partner in Infinity’s Dance

  13. Appendix A: Lubben Social Network Scale

  14. All the References

  15. Notes