Unexpected Grace: Stories of Faith, Science, and Altruism

In Unexpected Grace Bill Kramer offers a rare look into the human side of the world of scientific research. He goes behind the scenes of four scientific investigations on diverse aspects of the study of unlimited love and offers uplifting portraits of human beings struggling to understand and improve the complex issues facing them. He explores the dynamics between the researchers, the subjects they study, and the participants in the studies, and eloquently tells their personal stories. The stories touch on vastly different social and human issues, but all are connected by love. The first is the story of Courtney Cowart, who was part of a group of theologians who met at Trinity Place in lower Manhattan on September 11, 2001, not knowing her experience would become the subject of a study. The story of how the group struggled to survive and the formation of a practical, effective altruistic community is heartrending and inspiring. This is followed by a description of a University of California Santa Cruz psychology department study on the dynamics of friendship and prejudice that completely changed the perceptions of those involved. The third study, from Case Western Reserve University in Cleveland, focused on the benefits of religion on mental and physical health, which led its researcher to a greater understanding of forgiveness, humility, and grace. The final powerful story is about a physiology of love study conducted in Iowa City. Here, a functional MRI is the vehicle for measuring empathy and brings the researcher to wonder, "Is there a point at which empathy shuts down and we turn away?" Ultimately she comes to recognize that past experiences influences our ability to respond emphatically.   Each story candidly unveils the transformations the researchers and their subjects experienced in the course of their work. This illuminating book, with its unique insights, will appeal to educators, researchers, students, study participants, and everyone who wonders what goes on behind the scenes of investigative studies.  

Table of Contents:
Introduction / ix Part I: Love Stronger Than Death 1. Tuesday Morning / 3 2. The Street / 10 3. Pradakshina—Church Street / 16 4. Return to Ground Zero / 22 5. St. Paul's Chapel / 26 6. The Road North / 32 7. Pradakshina—Liberty Street / 37 8. A Team Assembles / 41 9. The Miracle Chapel / 48 10. Joe Bradley's Story / 61 11. Pradakshina—West Street / 64 12. Creating an Apostolate / 66 13. Pradakshina—Vesey Street / 70 Part II: Friendship In, Prejudice Out 14. First Session: Fast Friends / 77 15. The Challenge / 90 16. California Dreaming / 93 17. The Man from Canada / 97 18. Second Session: Jenga and a Hole in the Midwest / 100 19. When Do You Talk about Race? / 106 20. Third Session: The Nitty-gritty / 111 21. City in the Woods / 120 22. Running the Study / 123 23. Fourth Session: Watch Your Head / 128 24. Overlapping Selves / 133 25. Deception Dollars / 136 26. The Big Picture / 140 27. A Future They Can Live In / 142 Part III: Guided by the Holy Spirit 28. Talking to God / 149 29. Responding to Grace / 156 30. Tales of Unexpected Grace / 159 31. Transforming Shame / 163 32. Approaching Forgiveness / 169 33. Refining the Study / 178 34. A World of Grace / 184 Part IV: Scanning for Empathy 35. The 3T / 191 36. Video Verity / 196 37. The Teacher and the Nurse / 201 38. The Turnoff Point / 207 39. From the Heartland / 214 40. Out of the Ivory Tower / 223 41. Just Like a Woman / 229 42. An Image of Empathy / 233 Afterword / 237 Acknowledgments / 239 Notes / 240

About the Author :
Bill Kramer has written for magazines, nonprofits, corporations, theater, and film. Several of his plays have been produced, and two of his screenplays have won independent film festival awards. He has traveled extensively in America and throughout the world, including multiple trips to India. For nearly thirty years, he has practiced meditation and, as a result, is deeply interested in the way individuals attempt to integrate spiritual beliefs with the challenging circumstances of real world social agendas. Unexpected Grace, his first book, reflects this interest. Kramer lives with his wife and son in Cleveland Heights, Ohio.