In Praise of Praise

Why do people offer praise and gain from it? Does God require,
even demand praise? In this episode of the Sheldrake-Vernon
Dialogues, Rupert and Mark discuss what can be wrongly implied by
praise and what it might mean as an immensely rich practice. Mark
confesses to having been put off the notion, as if adulation were
demanded by a divine narcissist, which Rupert responds to by
considering the etymology of praise, shared by words such as
appreciation and interpretation. The discussion develops to
consider how praise is a disclosing activity, arising from a
spontaneous perception of wholeness, beauty and existence itself.
They consider how praise is linked to attending, and the ways in
which we reach out to see the world, even as the world reaches
back to us, much as William Blake described when seeing "heaven
in a wild flower". And they address the question of why and how
God is associated with praise. Praise, it turns out, is highly
praiseworthy.


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During the discussion the Boyle Lecture 2023 by Rowan Williams is
mentioned, online here:
https://youtu.be/5u9WGaWTgU8

The book on Shakespeare by Valentin Gerlier is also referenced,
details here:
https://www.routledge.com/Shakespeare-and-the-Grace-of-Words-Language-Theology-Metaphysics/Gerlier/p/book/9781032121406


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Dr Rupert Sheldrake, PhD, is a biologist and author best known
for his hypothesis of morphic resonance. At Cambridge University
he worked in developmental biology as a Fellow of Clare College.
He was Principal Plant Physiologist at the International Crops
Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics and From 2005 to
2010 was Director of the Perrott-Warrick project,
Cambridge.

https://www.sheldrake.org

Rupert's latest book is...
The Science Delusion: 2020 Edition
https://www.sheldrake.org/books-by-rupert-sheldrake/the-science-delusion-science-set-free?svd=78


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Dr Mark Vernon is a writer and psychotherapist. He contributes to
programmes on the radio, writes and reviews for newspapers and
magazines, gives talks and podcasts. His books have covered
themes including friendship and God, ancient Greek philosophy and
wellbeing. His new book, out August 2019, is "A Secret History of
Christianity: Jesus, the Last Inkling and the Evolution of
Consciousness". He has a PhD in ancient Greek philosophy, and
other degrees in physics and in theology, and works as a
psychotherapist in private practice. He used to be an Anglican
priest.
http://www.markvernon.com

Mark's latest book is...
A Secret History of Christianity: Jesus, the Last Inkling, and
the Evolution of Consciousness
http://www.markvernon.com/books/a-secret-history-of-christianity?svd=78