Beyond the Biography of Jesus: The Journey of Quadratos
by Alexander J. Shaia
Fr. Paul Keenan
1946-2008
Fr. Paul died suddenly and unexpectedly on Tuesday June 10th. He was a man and a priest of great wisdom, care and humility - and a dear friend to Quadratos.
Listen to the final interview between Fr. Paul and Dr. Shaia.
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Listen to Alexander Shaia at The Forum in conversation with Alan Jones
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Beyond the Biography of Jesus: The Journey of Quadratos, Book I
PRAISE FOR BOOK I
Alan Jones
Dean of Grace Cathedral, San Francisco, CA
"In an age when the "Jesus industry" is booming with books based solely on a narrow view of history and research Alexander Shaia's work on the gospels is breathtakingly liberating. His writing represents not only the recovery of a great tradition of interpretation but also a liberation from the method of understanding which has tended to strangle the texts and stifle their inner meaning and integrity."
Joseph L. Subbiondo
President, California Institute of Integral Studies
"This work provides a perspective that will stimulate rich discussion. While there are explanations why some gospels were not chosen, this is the first work I have read that offers a rationale as to why the four gospels were chosen by the early Christians. And it offers an explanation for the order of the gospels."
Kay and Brad Bradway, Jungian Analyst and Artist
Sausalito, CA
"We are reading your book out loud and are tremendously impressed with what you say and how you say it. You just use the right words. We are passing this book to others. Congratulations, Alexander."
Frank X. Savage
Director of Catholic Education and Lifelong Formation
Diocese of Birmingham in Alabama
"The four Gospels are treasures of the Church. Dr. Shaia in his book provides an understanding of why the Gospels were written and how they how they can guide us as individuals and communities in our journey of faith. It is simple yet profound. His book touches the heart."
Sr. Francine Barber, OP
Director, Office of Lifelong Catechesis
Roman Catholic Diocese of Pueblo, Colorado
"At a time when many novels and so-called 'scientific and historical studies' are calling into question the veracity and wisdom of the Gospels, Dr. Shaia reveals the pattern of Quadratos, the 'code' that opens up the deep spiritual nourishment and roadmap that inspired the earliest Christian communities as they dealt with crisis and loss. This understanding of the content and sequence of the Gospels was of immeasurable help to me in facing the polarization and pain I find in many parishes and in our country as a whole."
Valerie Andrews
Writer/Editor/Producer
San Rafael, CA
"I am enthralled by every word of this book. I have felt a hunger for this kind of message for many years---one that outlines the basic experience of enlightenment and re-entry, followed by a new phase of enlightenment. This book takes the Christian journey back to what it was meant to be: a pilgrimage through different stages of life development. This work emphasizes wholeness and reconciliation at a time when we sorely need it. And it puts us back into development and growth, as opposed to squaring off with other systems of belief. It is a terribly important antidote to fundamentalism which always gets stuck in one stage of the journey--the 'aha!' moment of conversion and exalts that moment above the rest, and then exalts one belief above all others.
"This is more than a new Da Vinci code---for it isn't about the cult of an individual. Instead it is about a universal process that has the power to bring all religions back to their roots and to help us move beyond the notion of 'who's right' and 'who's wrong.'
"The story is told so beautifully, beginning with such personal examples, that you immediately make a strong connection with the heart. I thank you for this wonderful book and look forward to the next one. I'll tell many others. This work is going to have a wide-ranging effect."
Rev. JeanAnne Swope
Interim Presbytery Executive, Presbyterian Church (USA), retired
"This is the most refreshing look at the Gospels that I have seen since seminary over 35 years ago. My faith has been invigorated and renewed. Quadratos is a profound work and a breath of fresh air for Christianity that gives hope for the Gospels' message in this century."
Bishop David G. Mullen
Lutheran Sierra Pacific Synod, ELCA
"Quadratos gives us a map of faith that allows Christianity to move forward in new and constructive ways, yet keeps us firmly anchored in the gospels and in our history. This is exactly the clarifying and transformative message we need to hear at this moment."
Sylvia Boorstein
Meditation teacher and bestselling author - It's Easier Than You Think: The Buddhist Way to Happiness
"This lyrical, passionate book takes one of the world's great sacred scriptures and offers it as the map of the universal spiritual journey, the transformation from the isolated suffering of the separate self to the liberation of selfless, shared compassion. What a gift for us all."
Rev. George Wenzinger
Roman Catholic pastor
"Dr. Shaia has cut through all the scriptural controversies to the deep places of wisdom. He confirms what my heart has always known."
Jack Kornfield
Co-founder of Spirit Rock Meditation Center and bestselling author - A Path with Heart: A Guide through the Perils and Promises of Spiritual Life
"This is a wonderfully wise and profound vision of the Gospels, illuminating their inner meaning and our inner lives with them."
Lawrence Greenberg, M.D.
Professor Emeritus and Former Director of Child and Adolescent, Psychiatry, the School of Medicine, University of Minnesota
"As a psychiatrist, I find Dr. Shaia's work to be a comprehensive understanding of psychological development, and a useful template for psychological growth. As a Jew, this book answers many of my questions about Christianity and the gospels."
Betsy Caprio
Spiritual Director, Art Therapist and Author of many books including, Coming Home: A Manual for Spiritual Direction, and The Woman Sealed in the Tower
Spiritual archeologist, Alexander Shaia, functions as a cartographer of the soul's journey. Quadratos retrieves the ancient progression of the traditional gospels, showing us its map of human development, and the relevance of that map for a 21st Century much in need of Good News.
Cover Photo © Jack Hollingsworth/Corbis
Author Photo by JR Lancaster
