Cherry-picking the world's religions to find useful practices for living better lives.DeSteno, a professor of psychology at Northeastern and author of Emotional Success (2018) and other pop-psych works, addresses a largely secular audience with a call not to ignore religion but to make use of it. The author notes that throughout history, humans have used religious rituals to deal with the landmarks and changes of life and that modern society has much to learn from these examples. He advocates "religioprospecting," a practice through which scientists and others can mine world religions for whatever benefits can be found within them. DeSteno succinctly explains his thesis: "The practice of religion, as opposed to its theological underpinnings, offers an impressive, time-tested array of psychological technologies that augment our biology-to help us solve problems that biological adaptation alone hasn't. And as the nature of those problems changes through time, so do rituals and even religions themselves." The author provides a wide overview of practices used by the world's major religions in order to celebrate birth, prepare youth for adulthood, keep people healthy, take part in marriage, and look ahead to death and the afterlife, and he notes how religions "offer spiritual technologies that boost and repair our bodies and minds." By divorcing rituals from their theological and institutional roots, the author believes society has a great deal to gain-though devout readers of any one faith will disagree. "What truly matters," he explains, in relation to finding value in the Jewish grieving ritual of shiva, "isn't the exact texts of the prayers, but the togetherness, the sensitivity, and the actions inherent in the ritual." For seekers of general, broad spiritual wisdom, DeSteno's mining of the world's religions for the beneficial parts will be appealing, but readers who closely follow a specific faith tradition may be displeased with the author's excursions.An intriguing but not convincing melding of psychology and religion.

DeSteno (Emotional Success), a psychology professor at Northeastern University, delivers an exceptional and expertly researched study of the science of believing in the divine. He dissects the brain functions involved in the practice of faith and how they help individuals develop senses of morality and ethics, as well as assist in forming a foundational sense of family. DeSteno contends that -centuries before psychologists ever studied , almost every tradition had adopted it as a way to bind people together-to nudge them to support one another and to reduce the toll loneliness can take on the body and mind.- DeSteno also explains the separation between practicing religion and subscribing to a theology, suggesting the benefits of religion come in the form of everyday work more than in the proclamation of belief. He backs up his points with numerous studies and argues that the bonding benefits of religious acts-whether Japanese birthing rituals, Native American coming-of-age ceremonies, or Buddhist compassion meditations-are consistent across many different faith traditions: -The upshot here is clear. Belief soothes worry. Avoiding the impulse to assess every possible outcome-many of which we can-t control-eases stress, making us calmer and healthier.- This thorough, insightful study will convince readers that worship itself is a boon for mental and physical health. (Sept.)