there's a book called "Breathing Underwater: Spirituality and the 12 Steps" that suffers from the same problem as most Western philosophers appropriating Eastern philosophies and religions, which is that they attempt to intellectually grasp things without ever trying to practice them. Richard Rohr has never worked the 12 steps for himself ever in his life, which is obvious from the way he writes about them, he merely connects what he's read in the AA Big Book to what he knows of Christ from being a priest and so everything he says falls flat. it's the same with a person who wants to understand a Buddhist worldview without ever practicing Buddhist ethics, or, just generally, practicing what one learns of Buddhism. it's impossible because the understanding and pleasure of understanding are developed in and through the application