Novak would probably say that I'm simply in denial about the so-called "binary soul doctrine" because it's scary, which indeed it is. Seems to me, though, that he is trying to preempt criticism by branding challengers as self-serving cowards before they have a chance to question his analysis. Many of his assertions are pretty far fetched, particularly in regards to passages from the Gnostic gospels and other well-known ancient texts. I have done a fair bit of reading in this area and certainly resist the idea that things are quite as black and white as Novak appears to believe. And his interpretations of the modern seers like Edgar Cacye also leave me wondering how closely he has actually studied Cacye's readings, as opposed to merely scanning them for potential evidence to back up his theory.
One thing I like about Novak's approach is his outright caution to readers early in the book to beware of New Age charlatans, of which I've learned there are a gracious plenty. He is right to encourage readers to think for themselves and not merely accept the conventional interpretations of scripture and related texts just because someone with a post-graduate degree has proffered them. In that spirit, I encourage people to read Novak's books and decide for themselves whether or not his theories are convincing. As for me, I've given his ideas a fair reading and doubt that I'll be saving this book as part of my permanent collection.
I advise those who are interested in reading more credible books on the after-death experience to try Michael Newton's Journey of Souls and Robert Grant's A Place We Call Home. Both of these are well researched, well written and, in my view, more believeable.
Through his comprehensive research, lasting over a decade, Peter Novak has shown that the current major World Religions have all been partially correct in their after-life beliefs about what transpires after we leave this three-dimensional existence, but none has had the whole picture. The simple, yet profound, very early Christian belief of the Binary Soul Doctrine, which was effectively squelched over time by a variety of means, has been almost single-handedly resurrected by Peter Novak. And now, with the advent of the Internet, the ideas discussed in this book, may have a real chance to elevate our global consciousness and unity. Passages from the Bible, whose meaning had heretofore eluded comprehension by most of us, now re-looked at through the Binary Soul filter, make a lot more sense!
While his book is brilliant, Peter would be the first to admit that his attempt to resurrect the ancient binary soul beliefs is a work-in-progress. Peter continues fleshing out the nuances of the ideas proposed in his book, via his web site and discussion groups. I think a third book may eventually result from his continued research and I'll be one of the first in line to purchase and read it! For those who haven't read his first book, "The Division of Consciousness: The Secret Afterlife of the Human Psyche" - I highly recommend it also!