Book Review: Religions of the Stars by Richard Abanes

Title: Religions of the Stars: What Hollywood Believes and How It Affects You
Author: Richard Abanes
Publisher: Bethany House
Copyright: 2009
Pages: 223
ISBN: 978-0-7642-0648-1

Genre: Non-fiction/religion

Religions of the Stars explains the basic beliefs of several religions made popular by celebrities, including New Age beliefs, Mormonism, Buddhism, Scientology, Kabbalah, and the wide variety of beliefs categorized as the Occult. Abanes demonstrates how, contrary to popular opinion, these religions (including Mormonism) are not the same as Christianity. He compares evangelical Christian beliefs with the core teachings of each religion.

Lest you write him off as being picky, let me assure you that he doesn't rabbit-trail into obscure doctrines. He sticks to main questions of the religions: Who is God? How do we obtain salvation? What is salvation? What is humanity's problem? Abanes explains that, despite some similarities in their morality systems, each religion answers these questions in radically different ways.

What I really appreciate about Religions of the Stars is its respectful tone. Abanes writes in his introduction, "My purpose isn't to tear down any religion or spirituality, nor is it my desire to mock, belittle, or degrade anyone's views. I have no doubt that all the celebrities I mention are as sincere about their beliefs as I am about mine" (15). And throughout its pages, Religions of the Stars upholds a respectful tone. The author points out inconsistencies and reasons to doubt the validity of certain claims, but he never attacks the celebrities or other people who hold to a given religion. He urges his readers to treat people of other faiths with respect and love, while retaining their convictions about truth.

Abanes stays on topic. He provides enough information for his readers to obtain a basic overview of each religion and understand how these religions may have hit the spotlight because of celebrity involvement. He also provides suggestions how to effectively communicate about the Christian faith with people who hold to these other religions.

While books about religious philosophy can sometimes be either dull or difficult to grasp, I found that Abanes writes with a very clear and direct approach. I followed Religions of the Stars easily and found the delivery interesting. The actual manuscript ends on page 183, the rest being notes. So the reading doesn't take as long as you would think when you first look at the book.

Abanes, once a singer and dancer on Broadway, has now authored over twenty books about pop culture and religion. He's no stuffy academic. Describing his transition out of the entertainment business, he explains, "I ended up leaving show business after God opened my eyes to the fact that there was a lot more to life than just being happy; more to life than simply entertaining people as a route to the best things this world could offer. There were issues of eternal importance with which the Lord wanted me to become deeply involved."¹

¹ Richard Abanes, "Divine Redirection," Richard Abanes's official website, http://www.abanes.com/personalmessage.html (accessed 13 July 2009).