"There shall come forth a Rod from the stem of Jesse,

And a Branch shall grow out of his roots.

The Spirit of the LORD shall rest upon Him,

The Spirit of wisdom and understanding,

The Spirit of counsel and might,

The Spirit of knowledge and of the fear of the LORD." -- Isaiah 11:1-2 (NKJV)

I well remember taking a writing class where the teacher also taught a course in spiritual autobiographies. I was totally stumped. I could not imagine what would be in a spiritual autobiography. I could easily imagine what would go into a Christian testimony, into an autobiography, and into a narrow autobiography (such as a writing focusing on the personal experience in mastering that craft). Then, at one of our classes, a nun told a moving story about the joy she felt in making a pall for a friend who had been called home. I finally got it!

Many people have spiritual experiences and beliefs without fully embracing a specific faith or theology. They can convey what has happened to them and how they were affected in their spirits. It makes for interesting reading because you come to know more about your own relationship with God in the process.

In this case, ten scientists share their spiritually autobiographical essays. I'm sure they will fascinate many people who would like to better understand how scientists straddle the widely assumed "divide" between "science" and "belief." In that regard, I particularly commend "Cosmic Rays and Water Spiders" again Christians will be disappointed not to find such an essay here. That doesn't make the essays any less interesting and helpful to the reader. It just means that there's a limited range of spiritual experience represented here. But that's to be expected with ten essays.