Everything Is Spiritual: Who We Are and What We’re Doing Here

Pastor Bell (What Is the Bible?) attempts to cover a lot in this semiautobiographical look at the meaning of life—and that’s part of the problem. Written in Bell’s signature poetic style, the work is at its best when examining his family of origin and its history of unacknowledged grief, which has had far-reaching generational effects. Bell’s subsequent storytelling about his career arc, including his ministerial rise and fall, lacks the intensity of the early part of the book and proves less engaging. Perhaps this is because Bell expounds on the theory of quantum physics to explain his conclusion that there is an all-encompassing, ever-evolving spiritual relationship that binds our universe. While this theory has been expressed by many thinkers (particularly those of the New Age movement) and Bell’s focus on the power of and necessity for love is reassuring, the abstract quality of the prose might lose some readers. Bell’s use of line breaks for emphasis when making his points can also grow tedious.