Body & Soul: Stories for Skeptics and Seekers is a spiritual journey through experiences that can be liberating but also awkward and sometimes even dangerous, because women are so often excluded from conversations about spirituality. Liberation comes with breaking that age-old code of silence to talk about the messiness of faith, practice, religion and ceremony, to confess our sublimely unconventional modes of spiritual yearning. The writers in this volume, including Sharon Bala, Carleigh Baker, Eufemia Fantetti, Sue Goyette, K.D. Miller, Zarqa Nawaz, Alison Pick, Sigal Samuel, Ayelet Tsabari, Betsy Warland and others, many from marginalized or misunderstood communities, are speaking out so that others will speak up. Enough of fear. Enough of hiding out, tongue-tied. It's time for joy, humanity and frankness. It's time to step up and lead--not by running after answers, but by asking caring, daring questions. It's time for body and soul.

Susan Scott is a freelance writer who worked for many years at the Calgary Herald. She is the author of No Fixed Address: Tales from the Street (Calgary Drop-in Centre).

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"Body & Soul takes its strength from the individuality of its authors. It considers perspectives that aren’t often given space. The essays themselves are both powerful explorations of faith and beautifully written examinations of self. Even for readers who do not align with any particular religion or faith and who are not, as the authors often find themselves, on the outskirts of their communities, there is a commonality to be found in the works. Everything is not black and white—and in the greyness, the reader will find equality and perhaps even something familiar and healing."

—The Ormsby Review

"... a unique approach to writing about one’s spiritual journey. The contributors share personal stories of their unravelling and re-evaluating, often followed by a revisioning of what is right for them. [...] Like a good meal, these stories stay with the reader long after they are finished."

—Herizons

"Lit with honesty and insight, these essays show us how our spirit and intellect are intricately connected--and that they are allies, not adversaries. This book is a revelation.''

--Sarah Selecky, author of Radiant Shimmering Light