Review of Daniel P. Scheid, The Cosmic Common Good. Oxford University Press, 2016. 248 pages

Jared Call

Earth was moderately cooler last year, but not by much. 2017, additionally, was a year of record-breaking disasters for the United States. These disasters included devastating California wildfires, a trio of hurricanes, hail, flooding, drought, and various tornadoes costing over $200 billion—further fanning the flame over the politically polarizing (and ‘heated’) debate on “global warming”. Despite the minute difference in temperature last year, the last four years are the hottest in recorded history—a period now spanning 138 years. Thus, the meticulous and captivating work done by Daniel Scheid in his new book, The Cosmic Common Good, could not be timelier. His cosmo-centric perspective underscores the urgent necessity for an inter religious collaboration in the development of a common ecological ethics that is mutually beneficial — not only for religious adherents across the world, but also nonhuman creatures and creations that span the cosmos.