Books by Conrad Hyers

'Once-Born, Twice-Born Zen' is a fresh treatment of the two major Zen schools of Japan. Its biographical and comparative approach is both original and very readable. The use of William James' typology, along with other phenomenological categories, provides the reader with helpful handles for distinguishing the schools, as well as similar tendencies in other religious traditions. The book should make an excellent text for introductory and middle-level courses in which one is trying to get students to develop categories for understanding religious experience and behavior. Readers will see something of themselves in the range of biographical examples given, and will detect their own tendencies through the use of this method. -- Bardwell Smith

This book has been highly acclaimed both as an imaginative way of introducing the Zen tradition to Western readers, and as an important contribution to understanding the fullness of the Zen perspective and way of life.

Is comedy an inconsequential part of life, useful primarily for relaxation and escape? Conrad Hyers asserts that comedy is central to all aspects of existence. In The Comic Vision and the Christian Faith Hyers offers the first detailed study of the special significance of comic and religious themes to show that the comic tradition enriches and informs as well as entertains. Maintaining that comedy constitutes its own mythology, Hyers examines the great array of comic figures - tricksters, clowns, jesters, fools, humorists, comedians, and the like - and shows their historical significance in giving meaning to the major issues with which humankind has been concerned. Finally, Hyers shows us that when we appreciate the importance of the comic vision, we gain a keener, fresher, and more meaningful outlook.

Conrad Hyers offers a welcome respite from the counter-productive effects of extremism that surround the creation issue. Focusing on the creation texts from the book of Genesis, Hyers interprets the biblical account in light of its relationship to its culture, context, and...

Recognizing "a playful spirit" as part of our human makeup, Conrad Hyers shows how laughter and humor are integral to our serious study of the Bible. With the darker realities of the Bible--sin, suffering, and death--there exists a lighter side--laughter, humor, and playfulness. Competent biblical study, Hyers explains, requires both...