Claude Alan Stark

Claude Alan Stark was once a research scholar in world religions, and a Chairman of a development company in Africa. He had his under graduation at the Clark University followed by graduation in finance at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and the Babson College. He was attached to finance and government for eight years in Boston and Washington D. C. Later he took his BD degree from Harvard University and became ordained into the Christian ministry. From the Boston University he later got his doctorate in Christian missions and world religions. His most widely-read book is God of All.

Sri Ramakrishna’s approach to the dilemma of religious plurality has been documented as an exposition of his experiences of God-consciousness in different religious traditions. It is hoped that this exposition, in and of itself, represents a contribution to inter-religious understanding….

Sri Ramakrishna’s life and teachings form…an approach based on the experience of God, which is worthy of closer examination by sincere adherents of all religious traditions. One may conclude, by the details of his life, that this approach is a significant one.

The fact that Sri Ramakrishna experienced God in different religions is a matter of historical record. The fact also that God or ultimate Reality has been realized directly and immediately by many persons of diverse religious backgrounds cannot be ignored. Whole civilizations have been based on the strength of their testimony.

Sri Ramakrishna taught that any person who wishes to verify the authenticity of the experience of God may do so by raising his or her level of consciousness to a higher plane through prayer and spiritual practices. Then he or she can affirm with Sri Ramakrishna, ‘I actually see God, more clearly than I see you’, or declare with Swami Vivekananda, ‘I have touched the feet of God.’