Athanasius Kircher's Connections Between Eastern & Western Religion

June 2, 2018 10:52 AM

I'd like to know more about Athanasius Kircher's work connecting eastern and western religions. But Kircher's extraordinary breadth makes it hard to zero in on any one aspect.

From an Amazon review of a book about Athanasius Kircher:

"He searched diligently for connections that showed that ancient or oriental religions were really something like proto-Christianities."


This interests me more than Kircher's crackpot stuff, volcano theories, etc.. How can I learn more, preferably all in one place (so I don't need to gather fragments of thought from multiple books)? Even better if I can read free on the Internet, even better!

I realize that the book being reviewed is likely the best place to start out, but I'm hoping to be pointed to a motherlode....

posted by Quisp Lover to Religion & Philosophy (1 answer total)

The Museum of Jurassic Technology in LA has a small exhibit on Kirchner. Their online gift shop lists two books on him: the book you linked to and a collection of essays about him and his work, so you could try checking out those essays. The museum itself is really weird/fascinating/awesome, and I suspect there's a decent chance that if you emailed them with your question they could point you in the direction of some additional resources.
posted by bassooner at 2:44 PM on June 2, 2018 [1 favorite]