Santa Barbara, CA -- (SBWire) -- 12/16/2014 --Dr. Curtis Pickert is no ordinary author, having worked tirelessly to better understand the real truth of God, the world's religions and wider human existence. In 1991 he sat down and put pen to paper in an attempt to both address and expose how religious falsehoods have evolved. Over two decades later, those truths and their suggested alternatives have been published as a potentially life-changing new novel.
'The Lockbox' melds fact and fiction, using story as a vehicle to unmask the adverse impact of global religion's unique ability to shape entire cultures on false pretenses. The book also serves as a wakeup for all of humanity; a beckoning call for the deception to end and the truth to prevail.
Synopsis:
"Everything is going to be just fine."
These are the final words of twelve-year-old Jonathan Daniels's dying grandfather. He had just spent the last five years telling Jonathan a story about the allegorical "Bright Forest," in an attempt to explain the true meaning of life. But the story isn't complete. The final chapter rests inside a little red lockbox hidden and waiting for Jonathan's discovery. Thus begins his lifelong quest in search of both the lockbox and the secret truths of God, religion, and human existence.
'The Lockbox' follows Jonathan's nearly seventy-year spiritual journey as he examines the world's most prevalent religions and the harm they have historically brought and still cast upon countless people and nations. The result is a provocative look at the many explanations different cultures and individuals have created in order to make sense of life, nature, and the eternally spinning cosmos.
Experience Jonathan's path to the truth as he enters seminary, becomes a Christian preacher, falls in love, and eventually finds himself telling the story to his own grandson, all the while continuing his resilient search for the little red lockbox and hoping that everything will indeed be just fine.
"There's no need to sugar-coat it; religion is directly responsible for wars, murders, guilt and deception. But, because it's all supposedly taking place under God's grand design, by many it is deemed poor taste and even offensive to question it," explains Pickert. "But that's exactly what I am doing, because mankind needs to move forward in terms of its relationship with religion. We cannot continue to turn our backs on what is obviously wrong."
Continuing, "This book is the culmination of more than two decades of work. I am devoted to the pursuit of the truth and know that all who read and truly embrace this story will turn the last page in a new frame of mind; their own life changed for the better."
Readers agree, leaving a string of positive reviews. For example, Steve Shiver comments, "Curtis Pickert has created something quite magical with his new novel The Lockbox. The story of a grandfather's efforts to share the mysteries of life with his grandson turns into a journey fraught with pitfalls and uncertainty. You will empathize with his characters and you will find yourself quickly invested in their outcome."
'The Lockbox' is available now on Amazon.com in both paperback and electronic format.
About Dr. Curtis Pickert
Dr. Curtis Pickert is a pediatric critical care physician who has devoted much of his life to understanding the real truth of God, religion, and human existence. In 1991, while typing the first words of his novel The Lockbox, Dr. Pickert embarked on a most sincere attempt to address that real truth, to point out how religion and related falsehoods may have evolved, and to offer a heartfelt alternative.
