Scouting the UAF bookstore Friday, between classes, a shiney black bound book caught my eye. Drawing my attention were the first three words in its title, “The Ecumenical Cruise.” Sometimes my mind does that, I’ll be flipping through the pages of a book, and a single word will stand out as if bold, and separated from the page; It will drive me mad, and I’ll scurry through the pages searching for the word. These words did exactly that; maybe its because I’ve scoured through the UAF course catalogue and know that they have very .. I mean, very few religious courses.
I don’t know anything about Walter Benesch, other than the great recommendations two of his colleagues gave, but the cover of this book has a rooster standing on the railing of a ship a with Muslim, Christian, Buddhist and Jewish flags behind him. standing on the deck below him are the backs of religious leaders from these four religions, and the rooster is yelling at them through a loud-speaker. Clearly Benesch feels he has something to say to the religious community as a whole.
I don’t know anything about Walter Benesch, other than the great recommendations two of his colleagues gave, but the cover of this book has a rooster standing on the railing of a ship a with Muslim, Christian, Buddhist and Jewish flags behind him. standing on the deck below him are the backs of religious leaders from these four religions, and the rooster is yelling at them through a loud-speaker. Clearly Benesch feels he has something to say to the religious community as a whole.Walter Benesch is a retired Professor of Philosophy at UAF, where he taught courses in comparative philosophy, eastern thought, and comparative religion. His first book Comparative Philosophy – a Travel Guide to Philosophical Space, is a comparative philosophy textbook. The book I stumbled upon, his second, The Ecumenical Cruise and Other Three-Legged Chicken Philosophy Tales, is a comparative study of religious philosophy that uses clever narrative to flesh out the ideas presented in various religious texts. Benesch’s reference to a three-legged chicken in his title is really more of an explanation of this method in this book. Apparently in an old Chinese proverb, chickens have three legs; two for standing, and one mental leg that tells you what you are looking at. A deeper meaning that gives sense to it.
Although this book is comparative and addresses religion as a whole, I will attempt to interact with his treatment of Christianity through the stories presented. If you have comments, questions or are familiar with his work, please jump in.
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