Castles in the Sand

by Carolyn A. Greene

A story about one of the most Controversial issues in the church today. When the horse-loving, day-dreaming Tessa Dawson enters a Christian college, she is introduced to the writings of 16th century Teresa of Avila by her spiritual formation professor. Soon Tessa's life is dramatically affected as she delves into "Christian mysticism." As she ventures deeper into this form of spirituality, God prepares her concerned grandfather and a mysterious young man as they set out to reach her. This "fiction with a message" takes a compelling and thought-provoking look at the true nature behind contemplative spirituality, which has impacted Christian churches, colleges, seminaries, and universities across the globe.Two lives are changed forever through spiritual practices they each encounterlectio divina . . . contemplative prayer . . . visualization . . . centering . . . sacred space . . . desert fathers . . . kundalini . . . labyrinths . . . spiritual formation . . . the silenceAuthor Bio: Castles in the Sand is Carolyn Greene's debut book. She has studied the New Age movement and the contemplative prayer movement for several years. She lives in Canada with her husband and two children. Carolyn A. Greene is the author's pen name.

Genres: Novels, Christian Fiction

224 pages, Paperback

First published May 1, 2009

Reviews

[Jennifer Thompson-Thalasinos · Rating 4 out of 5]

Excellent book about the occult and what happens when it takes over a small Bible college. Demons are real and when you play around with so-called new age spirituality you invite them in.

[Josh · Rating 3 out of 5]

The story is good. The characters are a bit two dimensional. I think the author focuses more on the topics the story presents and the characters suffer somewhat from that. I would still recommend this book to others as an eye opener to things creeping into the church. The only drawback might be using fiction to carry a warning of eastern mysticism and the occult creeping into Christian circles.

[Lisa Philippone · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was eye opening! It made me aware of mysticism going on in many churches and colleges. Fictional story written well and made me aware of terms that I frequently was hearing but wasn't aware exactly the meaning. Author gives a list of definitions in the back of the book of common terms. Surprising how long this has been seeping into the church and Christian schools. I share this book with others when the topic of false teaching in the church comes up. So important to look at scripture for everything and this book proves it!

[Christina · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent read for spiritual discernment - after being invited to a somewhat mysterious spiritual weekend and researching about it, I came across this book. I highly recommend it. Next I plan to read another book I ordered for further study on this topic. It’s not a new concept, just repackaged for the unaware.

[Bob Strickler · Rating 5 out of 5]

Starts slow - Give it time

I give this 5 stars for the story and content. Very touching story even from an an old guys prospective.

[Dru · Rating 3 out of 5]

A book about Christians who practice mysticism. Very scary thought. But in the end the heroine knows that it's bad and turns away.

[Abigail · Rating 2 out of 5]

Great topic. Mediocre book. This is the author's first book, and you can tell. It was not a well written story, and it felt scattered. Maybe it was partly due to the topic, but the book itself was vague at times. The Scriptures the author had at the beginning of each chapter didn't always make sense/sometimes were taken completely out of context. It felt like there was more "scare factor" than good biblical refutation of Christian mysticism, although there was some of the latter, especially towards the end. The first part was hard to get through, though. Then there was a teacher proposing to a student (granted, they were only five years apart, but that just didn't set well with me.) The female main character goes off with a male stranger (a friend of a friend, but the only previous contact they had had was a brief phone call) alone in a Jeep. Yeah, that's not smart, even if he is a good guy.

[Debbie · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is a must read for anyone wondering about new spiritual practices in the church. It reveals where they come from & what the Bible has to say about it.

[Yibbie · Rating 4 out of 5]

A novelized warning about the dangers of stepping away from Scripture in to metaphysics.

[Georgia Low · Rating 2 out of 5]

Just eh... I really have no feelings for this book.