Cultivating Gardens of God is a remarkable book. Its themes are urgent: the healing of our earthly home is a matter of justice, love, and community – and this care must be enacted in an inter-religiously aware manner that shows how we are all one family. This earthly garden of God must be cleaned and restored, the ground refreshed, seeds planted and well-watered – and then we must humbly watch and wait for God and nature to create new life and nourishment. If we respect and care for the world around us, the miracle of life occurs again and again, a divine gift that we must receive in gratitude and share with all in need. Ananta Kumar Giri is to be commended for conjuring this imaginative spiritual theme, and for gathering so diverse a community of scholars and practitioners to reflect with him on what is happening and what must be done if the earth is to flourish as God intended from the beginning. — Francis X. Clooney, SJ, Parkman Professor of Divinity, Harvard University, Boston, USA
