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Title: The Divine Center by Stephen R. Covey ISBN: 0-88494-471-9 Publisher: Bookcraft Pubs Pub. Date: June, 1982 Format: Hardcover List Price(USD): $16.95 |
Average Customer Rating: 2.8 (5 reviews)
Rating: 5
Summary: Jesus Christ as the center of life
Comment: I'll admit my bias: the reason I first read this book was because it was our wedding gift from Dr. Covey and his wife. Readers who were touched by Covey's 7 Habits of Highly Effective People will recognize portions of this predecessor work--but this unabashedly religious work will be most appreciated by those who wish to understand how to make Jesus Christ the central focus of their lives. Those who read it with a humble heart will not be disappointed
Rating: 5
Summary: Change your life, not your religion
Comment: You may be hesitant to read this book even if you have read other Covey books if you are not a Latter Day Saint. Read it. You will gain a new perspective on your own ideas about God, without having to change your religion. You will learn things that will bring you closer to Him and isn't that what we're all searching for?
Rating: 1
Summary: By a Mormon for guilt-loving Mormons.
Comment: The initial problem with this book and perhaps the major problem with it begins in the very first chapter. Covey explains that science and scientists are truest to their profession when they recognize that science does not necessarily have 'the truth' but is trying to more closely approximate what it believes to be the truth. In other words there is no real absolute. He even talks about how people have different realities. But all of this discussion of science and its ideals is thrown away once he introduces the basic idea of the book, The Divine Center. The basic notion is that the only thing that is constant in people's lives is God and/or Christ. Because that is the only constant, people should set it up as the focus of their lives and live their lives in accordance with the teachings of Christ. Of course, there is a stipulation, you must do it according to the Mormon conception of God or Christ and if you don't and are not Mormon then you're going to hell.
So, if you are Mormon, you may appreciate this book because it lends toward Mormon exclusivity and a sense of superiority. But no one else would find this book at all beneficial.
But even for Mormons, there are a lot of problems in this book, which I hope to outline below. Most of them are contradictions or instructions by Covey on how to live your life that are not specified within Mormon dogma.
The initial and major contradiction begins on page 13, "But whenever a person has a new world view or a new paradigm, he feels both exhilarated and humbled by it. He feels that the former view was not so much wrong as partial, as if he had been observing with restricted vision. He is exhilarated because in making the shift he has gained not simply more knowledge but a whole new way of knowing. He is humbled because he knows that improvements in his world view still will and must take place." This idea of changing paradigms is then followed by Covey's absolutist view on the very same page, "As we will see throughout the rest of this book, believing is seeing, Believing in the Creator of the territory [God or Christ] as one who has complete integrity, power, and love opens up to us the most accurate map of the territory, enabling us to see and understand it better." He is referring here to the 'perfect' map or Mormonism.
Four pages later he condemns intellectuality, saying, "I am persuaded that intellectual pride is more basic and serious than either social or material pride." He then continues by saying that all of the great scientists of our time were wrong because they did not have 'the Lord's map'.
On page 32 he condemns TV watching, but this would obviously not apply to General Conference and Mormon broadcasts I'm sure. And one page later offers the key to making life a success - work.
A lot of the claims that Covey makes are also based strictly on anecdotal experiences rather than scientific analysis or data. (see p. 64 for example)
There is another great line that illustrates the perspective Covey is taking, "The world generally regards this [achieving perfection] as impossible, but the world is wrong." (p. 78) Throughout you get the impression that this is what Covey really does think, that the world is wrong, that science is wrong.
On p. 88 he teaches that unconditional love exists and that it is a necessary condition to a successful marriage; I don't agree with the idea of unconditional love.
Another major problem with the book is that he repeats himself over and over again. When he talks about all of the things people should not have as the center of their life he repeats it for a couple hundred pages with numerous charts and diagrams as well. Does he really think that people need to hear it that many times to understand it?
In a sense he turns this into the 'Mormon book of everything'. He talks about just about everything Mormons should be doing, could be doing and need to be doing to be healthy, happy, and good Mormons.
On page 162 he talks about how Mormon families should put on an image for everyone else that everything is good in their home, regardless of how bad things really are.
Page 164 he encourages people to live a deluded life, focusing on how they think God would want them to be rather than on hw they should live in a social world.
But perhaps the biggest problem I had with his ideas and teachings is that he actually condones the guilt that religion causes in people's lives. He considers it a positive thing because it encourages people to behave in accordance with church teachings. What he doesn't mention is that guilt is a form of social control and that religion teaches you what you should feel guilty about and then offers a cure for that guilt. It is a horrible system of self-perpetuation employed by religions. (p. 248)
In the end, his basic idea of having a secure center seems to be a good one, assuming that there is something in life that is secure. Ironically not even the doctrines of the Mormon church are secure, so relying upon that for a sense of security seems like a poor idea just as much as relying on any of the other things Covey claims are bad things to focus on (family, friends, leadership, etc.).
The book, as I said, may be a good idea for Mormons that enjoy feeling guilty and want to participate in that form of social control, but anyone else should avoid this book. It teaches a Mormoncentric view of the world and condemns everyone else. I would consider it psychologically unhealthy.
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Title: Spiritual Roots of Human Relations by Stephen R. Covey ISBN: 0875797059 Publisher: Deseret Books Pub. Date: December, 1993 List Price(USD): $14.95 |
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Title: Seven Habits Of Highly Effective People by Stephen R. Covey ISBN: 0671708635 Publisher: Simon & Schuster Pub. Date: 15 September, 1990 List Price(USD): $15.00 |
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