Evening Thoughts: Reflections on Earth as Sacred Community

San Francisco: Sierra Club Books, 2006. First edition. Hardcover. Fine/Fine. Second printing. Signed and dated in a shaky hand on the half-title page: "Thomas Berry, 04-03-09." Uncommon or scarce signed, as are books by Berry generally. Edited by Mary Evelyn Tucker. Thomas Berry (see his New York Times obit) was a widely respected Catholic priest and cultural historian who was dedicated to environmental thinking and theology, eventually coming to call himself a "geologian." Environmental writer Richard Louv argues that "Thomas Berry was the earliest and most important voice to describe the profound importance of the disconnection between humans and the natural world, and what that could mean for the future of our species." Berry died in 2009, the year of this inscription, and Evening Thoughts was his penultimate book published during his lifetime. From the jacket: "This new collection of essays, from various years and occasions, expands and deepens ideas articulated in his earlier writings and also breaks new ground. Berry opens our eyes to the full dimensions of the ecological crisis, framing it as a crisis of spiritual vision. Applying his formidable erudition in cultural history, science, and comparative religions, he forges a compelling narrative of creation and communion that reconciles modern evolutionary thinking and traditional religious insights concerning our integral role in Earth's society." Mustard paper boards and cloth spine. Fine in a fine jacket.