Bonus Content
FAQs
Where did your inspiration for this book come from?Diebold: The idea for the book grew out of Wayne’s interest in people’s beliefs around death, and how their faith determined what they believed happened after we die. We did several roundtable community discussions on the topic, and discovered that faith – including what people believed about death – was much more expansive than we could have imagined, and that we really needed to explore it in a more wholistic way. This led us to developing a series of questions about people’s faith and how it has directed their lives – both the joyous and tragic aspects of it. The interviews were fascinating, and we soon realized that the stories should be widely available to the public for a number of reasons. We began to compile them into story formats, which then into a book.
Mumford: Most importantly, it was the result of asking for guidance from God as to the next appropriate project for The Mumford Institute. That’s a metaphysical answer; a more material answer is it was based upon the comments I received during many years of conducting Real Estate closings with people moving in from other areas, particularly the North East and the Mid-West. Most seemed to be of the opinion that there are only essentially two religions in this area, to-wit, Baptists and a few Catholics when, in fact, I knew the opposite to be true.
How long did it take to complete? First interview to final edits?Diebold: The first interview was done in November 2013, and the final editing done in January 2016, so just over two years.
Mumford: From the beginning to the conclusion the entire book project required about two and a half years.
What was your favorite part of writing this book?Diebold: I loved reading the stories of each individual person, and felt honored to be able to weave their faith into the stories of lives well lived. As I wrote, I could always feel the passion and dedication of each person, and was often impressed by their depth of understanding of what it meant to be a member of that faith. I was also thrilled to do the research required of a book like this, and to learn about each faith path and discover just how similar the basis of each one was to the others. Love and compassion run through all of the stories, and offered yet another reason for us to publish these remarkable stories.
Mumford: My favorite part of the book project was meeting with the interviewees, some of whom I already knew, and discussing the role their faith has played in their personal lives through the years. The stories were utterly fascinating and certainly renewed my faith in humanity.
Where there any religions that surprised you with their answers?Diebold: More than anything, I was surprised by the similarities. No matter the beginnings of the religion, be it Jesus or Mohammad or Krishna, or someone else, the teachings are all based on loving God and one another, and on becoming one’s best self.
Mumford: It wasn’t so much the various religious practices that surprised me as the diversity, particularly in the area of death and tithing
Were there any religions who wouldn’t speak with you?Diebold: There were a few that were hesitant, and we attributed this to members’ experiences with being misunderstood in the past. When we explained that our objective was to record their own stories, and in their own voices, most people were happy to participate. Even the few that were tentative at first came around in the end. Wayne did the face-to-face interviewing – and Wayne is quite charming!
Mumford: Only one, although a great deal of coordination and numerous phone calls were required in order to obtain many of the interviews. Once the interviews began I believe the participants felt comfortable with the interview.
Explain the meaning behind the title of the book?Diebold: In our interviews, we found that the love of God was a unifying concept, uniting people no matter their belief systems. The beads represent each person, each one different and beautiful in their own unique way, and the string represents that love that unites them all – and all of us – into a single rich and exquisite strand of humanity.
Mumford: One String of Beads is representative of our belief that the string represents God and the beads represent different expressions of people’s form of worship of God. The “stories” referred to each interviewee’s story. The “Divine Love” is the theme in all the stories. “Hope” is what each interviewee has. The “Diversity” is representative of the different views of life and death issues.
Besides reading for pleasure, what are other ways you hope this book will be used?Diebold: Our society – and our world – has a tendency to disparage or fear those ideas that are not well understood, no matter their content or merit. It is our hope that this book will stimulate dialogue, and that it will help people to understand that each faith path, no matter how different it may be, actually has much in common with all of the others. We hope to see it used in church classes, and for both public school children and students in higher education for the same reasons.
Mumford: It is our hope that this book will not only be informative and a blessing to all who read it but will be used in Bible study classes and also in religion, sociology, philosophy and perhaps psychology classes in universities and colleges and by any groups involved in discussing books that provoke insightful commentary.
Who is your favorite author? And what is your favorite book?Diebold: I laugh when I hear this question, and liken it to “what is your favorite ice cream flavor?” Well, what do you have? That’s my favorite at this moment! I read a lot, and read everything; fiction and non-fiction, classics and modern, even magazines and manuals. I can say that The Four Agreements by Don Miguel Ruiz is one book that literally changed my life and the way I think, and was very instrumental in my own spiritual growth. I have probably read it fifty times, and it is one that I insist every patient I see read.
Mumford: I don’t believe that I could pick just one author or one book to deem my favorites.
Have you ever written a book before?Diebold: Yes, a children’s book called “Where’s Kevin?” Past that, I have written many, many articles on health, wellness, and alternative medicine. The next book in the “String of Beads” series, which is a sort of ‘how to’ for relationships, is entitled “Many Beads on One String” and should be out in 2017.
Mumford: Yes: Unlock the Secrets to Success; Laws That Make the World Go Round and A Companion Guide To Unlock the Secrets To Success.
Does religion have a big influence in your life? More so after this book?Diebold: I am spiritual, but not religious. Spirituality has had a huge influence in my life, and continues to play a fundamental role in how I approach the world and other people. While I have always ‘believed’ in God, it wasn’t until I began to intensely study embryology in medical school that I realized a genuine knowing of God. Living in a world of chaos, it seems impossible that two single cells, with no autonomy whatsoever, can turn into a fully formed and functioning human nearly every single time without much error. There was a moment that it simply became crystal clear that God – or whatever each of us want to call that intelligence – was certainly guiding biology, and so more than likely everything else.
I have investigated many religious paths over the course of my life, which may make me uniquely qualified to write this particular book – a book that taught me even more about each one. I tend to incorporate the pieces of each path that make sense to me as I kind of ‘do my own thing.’ Has this book changed my outlook or influence? Yes, though probably because I am a scientist and look to the experience of others to expand my own thinking. This book certainly offered a wider perspective!
Mumford: Religion and spiritual matters have always been of great interest to me. I have always felt as if I was a pilgrim. This book project has again renewed my faith in humanity.