Media Notice

IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact:
Lisa Proctor/Utne Marketing Director
612-338-5040, ext. 338/lproctor@utne.com

NEW ISSUE OF UTNE MAGAZINE LOOKS AT THE FUTURE OF GOD, WIRED MONKS, THE PROMISE AND PERILS OF FAITH, BEYOND HOLY WARS, SPIRITUALITY AND THE 4TH WAVE OF FEMINISM, ONE LIBERAL'S TAKE ON WHY HEAVEN CAN'T WAIT -- AND ANOTHER WAG'S SOLOMONIC WISDOM ON HOW TO WRITE A SEX SCENE!

MINNEAPOLIS, MN, -- February 28, 2004 - At the heart of Utne magazine's March-April issue lies a compelling package of stories about God filtered through the prisms of politics, warring religious ideologies, feminism and spirituality, Jesus, compassion and faith, and the neuroscience of monks in meditation. Even one of the issue's seemingly un-Godlike piece on "How to Write a Sex Scene" hints at the power of the almighty, when its author, Steve Almond, proffers that reading the Song of Songs ("the long erotic poem that somehow got smuggled into the Old Testament") "is the single most instructive document you can read if you want to learn how to write effectively about the nature of physical love."

• Author Marc Ian Barasch, in an excerpt from his new book, Field Notes on the Compassionate Life, explores the mind-body research done recently on Buddhist monks in meditative states in "Scanning the Monk." He finds their brain waves "showed greatly increased activity in the left middle frontal gyrus, an area tied to joy and enthusiasm," plus notes that the striving toward kindness and compassion is an attainable goal, given the fact that - as the Dali Lama has noted -- "the wiring in our brain is not static, not irrevocably fixed. Our brains are adaptable."
• In "God Alert," one of the world's renowned experts on the history of God and religion, former nun, Karen Armstrong, warns about the looming religious storm as the West blindly pushes radical Islamists to using weapons of mass destruction. She notes that religious fundamentalists always and everywhere become more violent under attack ..." while the recent fundamentalist politics of America (fed by Armageddon "fantasies") dangerously reinforce their own dogma. "Whenever religion is allowed to enter political debate, positions become more rigid and absolute," she says. Then adds, that "because of their mutual insistence on seeing things in black and white, good and evil, George W. Bush and Osama Bin Laden are parodies of each other and would probably get along "pretty well if they could meet."
• Writer Pythia Peay reveals in "Feminism's Fourth Wave" how a recent new feminist-centered movement of women from all faiths are reconnecting to the sacred through global activism and spirituality that includes diplomacy, peace negotiations and the role of compassion and tolerance to address differences of all stripes.
• Utne's own self-proclaimed Christian liberal, David Schimke pens a personal view about being raised Christian but with understanding that "Jesus was a radical and it's time to start saying so," and discovers that his position has actually led to meaningful dialogs with Christians on the right, if only to broaden the political ownership of the pulpit and the public discourse about religion and governing.

Also in this issue:

• Redefining Beauty: A collection of pieces examining the different aspects of beauty, including the potential perils to health with cosmetic usage, which goes largely unregulated
• The Interrogation Room: Inside the minds of an Israeli interrogator and Palestinian prisoner
• The Permanent War: Militarism and the American way of Life
• Encyclopedia Neurotica: A glossary of the modern condition, including cyberchonodria (seeing one's symptoms on a medical Web site) and other maladies du jour -- plus much more.

About Utne

Utne is a national progressive lifestyle magazine with an audience of nearly 600,000, now celebrating more than 20 years of publication. Since 1984, Utne has been a leading voice for the alternative and independent press, bringing readers the other side of the story on issues ranging from the environment to the economy and from politics to pop culture. Utne provokes thought and inspires action by offering the best of the independent press as well as original writing, Read more at: www.utne.com

For more information, please contact Lisa Proctor at 612-338-5040, ext. 338, or online at lproctor@utne.com, or contact Martin Keller at Media Savant Communications Co., 612-729-8585/kelmart@aol.com