Andrew Newberg

Andrew B. Newberg, M.D. is currently the Research Director at the Marcus Institute of Integrative Health at Thomas Jefferson University and Hospital in Philadelphia. He is a Professor in the Department of Integrative Medicine and Nutritional Sciences, with a secondary appointment in the Department of Radiology at Thomas Jefferson University. He is Board Certified in Internal Medicine and Nuclear Medicine. He has actively pursued a number of neuroimaging research projects which have included the study of aging and dementia, epilepsy, and other neurological and psychiatric disorders. Dr. Newberg has been particularly involved in the study of mystical and religious experiences, a field referred to as “neurotheology”. He has also studied the more general mind/body relationship in both the clinical and research aspects of his career including understanding the physiological correlates of acupuncture therapy, meditation, and other types of alternative therapies. He has been involved in public and private research grants totaling approximately $40 million. He has taught medical students, undergraduate and graduate students, as well as medical residents about stress management, spirituality and health, and the neurophysiology of religious experience. He was given the Teacher of the Year Award twice as part of the faculty of the Biological Basis of Behavior Program at the University of Pennsylvania. He has published over 300 peer reviewed articles and chapters on brain function, brain imaging, and the study of religious and mystical experiences. He has published 15 books which have been translated into 20 different languages. He was listed as one of the 30 Most Influential Neuroscientists Alive Today by the Online Psychology Degree Guide.

He is the co-author of the new book entitled, “Sex, God, and the Brain” (Turner Press) as well as “Catholic Neurotheology” (Vernon Press). He is the co-author of the national best-selling books, “How God Changes Your Brain” (Ballantine) and, “Why God Won’t Go Away: Brain Science and the Biology of Belief” (Ballantine). He is also a co-author of “The Varieties of Spiritual Experience: 21st Century Research and Perspectives” (Oxford University Press), “Brain Weaver: Creating the Fabric for a Healthy Mind Through Integrative Medicine” (Kales), “The Rabbi's Brain: Mystics, Moderns, and the Science of Jewish Thinking" (Turner)., “How Enlightenment Changes Your Brain: The New Science of Transformation” (Avery); “Words Can Change Your Brain” (Hudson Street Press); and “Born to Believe: God, Science, and the Origin of Ordinary and Extraordinary Beliefs” (Free Press). And he is the author of several academic books including: “Neurotheology: How Science Can Enlighten Us About Spirituality” (Columbia University Press); “The Metaphysical Mind: Probing the Biology of Philosophical Thought”; “Principles of Neurotheology” (Ashgate); and co-author of “The Mystical Mind: Probing the Biology of Belief” (Fortress Press). The latter book received the 2000 award for Outstanding Books in Theology and the Natural Sciences presented by the Center for Theology and the Natural Sciences. He has also produced a 24 lecture video program entitled, “The Spiritual Brain,” for The Teaching Company.

He has presented his work at scientific and religious meetings throughout the world and has appeared on Dr. Oz, StarTalk with Neil deGrasse Tyson, Good Morning America, Nightline, 20/20, CNN, CBS News, ABC World News Tonight, as well as in the nationally distributed movies: “What the Bleep Do We Know?”; Bill Maher’s “Religulous”; and “Awake: The Life of Yogananda.” His brain scan images have been included in several major museum exhibits including the Franklin Institute in Philadelphia and the American Visionary Art Museum in Baltimore. His work has been featured in a number of major media articles including in Newsweek, Time, National Geographic, Discover, New York Times, O Magazine, Los Angeles Times, London Observer, Forbes, Washington Post, Philadelphia Inquirer, and Readers Digest.