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Book SynopsisExamines Metis spirituality, debunking stereotypes such as ‘all Metis people are Catholic’, and ‘Metis people do not go to ceremonies’. Fiola finds that, among the Métis, spirituality exists on a continuum of Indigenous and Christian traditions, and that Métis spirituality includes ceremonies. Table of Contents Chapter 1: Métis Spirituality: Confronting Stereotypes Chapter 2: Searching for Our Stories in Oral History Chapter 3: Combing the Written Record for Our Stories Chapter 4: A Métis-Centred Study and Approach Chapter 5: Six Red River Métis Communities Chapter 6: Meeting the Participants Chapter 7: Métis Family Relationships with Land, Language, and Identity Chapter 8: Métis Family Relationships with Culture and Religion Chapter 6: Sunnyside and the Bea Chapter 9: Exploring Self-Identification Chapter 10: Spirituality, Types of Ceremonies, and Disconnection Factors Chapter 11: Connection Factors, Impacts upon Identity, and Others’ Reactions Chapter 11: Métis Spirituality Today

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Book SynopsisThis volume, continuing the series of great medieval bishops' registers, offers material valuable for both religious and social history.The register of Archbishop William Melton is one of the largest and most comprehensive to survive. Its backbone is the institution of clergy and licences to them, papal provisions and ordination of vicars and chantries, but it also contains a wealth of material for social history. During the period it covers, the East Riding of Yorkshire was flourishing, and a number of entries in the register reflect the challenges which the newly-founded town of Kingstonupon Hull was causing for the existing parochial structure. The archbishop is shown anathematizing malefactors who stole his swans and invaded his liberties in Beverley and the river Hull, and demanding the return of stolen woolon behalf of a merchant whose ship had been wrecked in the river Humber. The register also covers the origins of one of the last monasteries to be founded in medieval England, Haltemprice, and reveals the shortcomings of monks andnuns as well as secular clergy and members of the laity; more widely, many entries reflect the tensions between outlying vills and chapelries and their mother churches. The text is presented here with introduction, apparatus, and notes which elucidate the entries. David Robinson, until his retirement County Archivist of Surrey, was awarded his PhD from the University of Cambridge.Trade ReviewA fine addition to the Canterbury and York Society series. * ARCHIVES *A worthy, valuable addition to the series that brings this significant editorial project one step closer to completion. * NORTHERN HISTORY *The edition is extremely well done. [...] A valuable, rewarding and welcome addition to the run of Canterbury and York Society publications. * JOURNAL OF ECCLESIASTICAL HISTORY *Table of ContentsPreface Archdeaconry of the East Riding Index of Persons and Places Index of Subjects

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Book SynopsisThis volume brings together historians and art historians to explore the ways in which religious art was transformed by the splintering of Western Christendom that began 500 years ago with Martin Luther s Reformation. The religious turmoil of the sixteenth century has long been seen as a turning point in the history of Christian art.Table of ContentsNotes on ContributorsIntroduction: Art and Religious Reform in Early Modern Europe (Bridget Heal)1. Karlstadt's Wagen: The First Visual Propaganda for the Reformation (Lyndal Roper and Jennifer Spinks)2. ‘Between these Two Kingdoms’: Exile, Election, and Godly Law in Sebald Beham's Moses and Aaron (Mitchell B. Merback)3. The Unassembled Grammar of the Drawing in the Era of Reform (Shira Brisman)4. The Family at Table: Protestant Identity, Self-Representation and the Limits of the Visual in Seventeenth-Century Zurich (Andrew Morrall)5. Lutheran Baroque: The Afterlife of a Reformation Altarpiece (Bridget Heal)6. Images (Not) Made By Chance (Amy Knight Powell)7. The Art of Solitude: Environments of Prayer at the Bavarian Court of Wilhelm V (Christine Göttler)8. The Reliquary Reformed (Mia M. Mochizuki)Afterword (Joseph Leo Koerner)Index

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Book SynopsisThis book helps readers delight in being a part of relationships within the churchno matter how messy and awkward they seemwith rich theology, practical direction, and study questions for group use.

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Book SynopsisBecoming C. S. Lewis (3-Volume Set) by Harry Lee Poe provides an in-depth look into C. S. Lewis. Each book unfolds Lewis's lifehis key relationships, his conversion to Christianity, working on his bestselling books, and more.

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Book SynopsisThis companion study guide covers all 12 chapters ofThe Compelling Community, featuring the main idea of each chapter, a Bible passage to study, questions for reflection and discussion, and more.

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Book SynopsisThis addition to the Church Questions series offers a clear, compelling definition of the local church and its importance in every Christian's life.

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Book SynopsisThis sweeping history of popular religion in eighteenth-century New England examines the experiences of ordinary people living through extraordinary times. Drawing on an unprecedented quantity of letters, diaries, and testimonies, Douglas Winiarski recovers the pervasive and vigorous lay piety of the early eighteenth century.Trade ReviewThis finely researched project is a gold mine for students of New England church history. . . . One of the best compendia of New England social history to appear in many years. . . . Students of the region will be building on its findings for decades to come."" - Douglas Sweeney, Jonathan Edwards Center at Trinity Evangelical Divinity School""An absolute must-read for students, scholars, pastors, and laypeople who care about the legacy of the Great Awakening."" - The Gospel Coalition""Essential reading for students of early American 'evangelicalism.'"" - John Turner, Patheos""By parsing the distinctive vocabularies and rich tropes that ordinary New Englanders devised to describe their tumult within, [Winiarski] lends freshness and immediacy to the familiar narrative of the Awakening."" -Christine Heyrman, in Reviews in American History""[Winiarski] weaves together biographies of believers seeking spiritual refreshment and by turns finding in New England's established religion a font of joy or an empty, arid, and spiritless desert. Essential."" - Choice""Admirably models how the methods and gaze of lived religion can expand and humanize well established narratives."" - Reading Religion""[T]he most compelling history of the Awakening in New England we have. . . . Nowhere else in studies of religious practice in early America is social behavior so thoroughly mapped. And nowhere else have vernacular descriptions of religious experience been so acutely analyzed."" - David D. Hall, in Church History: Studies in Christianity and Culture""Winiarski brings new life to eighteenth-century religion. Perhaps as significantly, he sets a high bar for the use of compelling narrative and imaginative prose in the writing of early American history . . . [T]hrough his expert presentation of lived experience, he has at last made the stories of the awakened as compelling as those of the awakeners."" - Peter Manseau, in Journal of the American Academy of Religion

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Book SynopsisA masterful overview of Islamic law and its diversityAl-Qadi al-Nu''man was the chief legal theorist and ideologue of the North African Fatimid dynasty in the tenth century. This translation makes available for the first time in English his major work on Islamic legal theory (usul al-fiqh), which presents a legal model in support of the Fatimid claim to legitimate rule.Composed as part of a grand project to establish the theoretical bases of the official Fatimid legal school, Disagreements of the Jurists expounds a distinctly Shi''i system of hermeneutics. The work begins with a discussion of the historical causes of jurisprudential divergence in the first Islamic centuries and goes on to engage, point by point, with the specific interpretive methods of Sunni legal theory. The text thus preserves important passages from several Islamic legal theoretical works no longer extant, and in the process throws light on a critical stage in the development of Trade Review[Disagreements of the Jurists] is very important for students of jurisprudence and for reconstructing fiqh's development. * The American Journal of Islamic Social Sciences *This book will be useful especially to those who are interested in the history of law andthe history of the Fatimids. * Speculum *

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Book SynopsisExamines how the dynamics emerging from the pandemic affect our most vulnerable populations and shape a new religious landscapeThe COVID-19 pandemic upset virtually every facet of society and, in many cases, exposed gross inequality and dysfunction. The particular dynamics emerging from the coronavirus pandemic have been felt most intensely by America's most vulnerable populations, who are disproportionately people of color and the working poor, the people whom the Bible refers to as the least of these.This book makes the case that the pandemic was not just a medical phenomenon, or an economic or social one, but also a religious one. Religious practice has been altered in profound ways. Controversies around religious freedom have been re-ignited over debates concerning whether government can restrict church services. Christian white supremacists not only defied shelter in place orders, but found new ways to propagate racist attacks, with their White Christian idenTrade ReviewTruly exceptional. The inclusion of multi-ethnic voices and intersectional worldviews representing those most impacted by COVID-19 represents a major contribution to multiple disciplinary fields. -- Teresa L. Fry Brown, Bandy Professor of Preaching, Candler School of Theology, Emory UniversityIn this timely and urgent book, Floyd-Thomas has done an excellent job gathering an impressive group of diverse scholars. What makes the volume interesting and important is the variety of methods the book employs in thinking about race and religion in relation to the pandemic. -- J. Kameron Carter, author of Race: A Theological AccountThis book troubles readers to think more deeply about the impact of White supremacy—and the hope of Black and Brown love and defiance—as COVID-19 lingers on. * Christian Century *

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Book SynopsisExamines how the dynamics emerging from the pandemic affect our most vulnerable populations and shape a new religious landscapeThe COVID-19 pandemic upset virtually every facet of society and, in many cases, exposed gross inequality and dysfunction. The particular dynamics emerging from the coronavirus pandemic have been felt most intensely by America's most vulnerable populations, who are disproportionately people of color and the working poor, the people whom the Bible refers to as the least of these.This book makes the case that the pandemic was not just a medical phenomenon, or an economic or social one, but also a religious one. Religious practice has been altered in profound ways. Controversies around religious freedom have been re-ignited over debates concerning whether government can restrict church services. Christian white supremacists not only defied shelter in place orders, but found new ways to propagate racist attacks, with their White Christian idenTrade ReviewTruly exceptional. The inclusion of multi-ethnic voices and intersectional worldviews representing those most impacted by COVID-19 represents a major contribution to multiple disciplinary fields. -- Teresa L. Fry Brown, Bandy Professor of Preaching, Candler School of Theology, Emory UniversityIn this timely and urgent book, Floyd-Thomas has done an excellent job gathering an impressive group of diverse scholars. What makes the volume interesting and important is the variety of methods the book employs in thinking about race and religion in relation to the pandemic. -- J. Kameron Carter, author of Race: A Theological AccountThis book troubles readers to think more deeply about the impact of White supremacy—and the hope of Black and Brown love and defiance—as COVID-19 lingers on. * Christian Century *

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Book SynopsisHonorable Mention, Theology and Religious Studies PROSE Award A powerful insight into the historical and cultural roles of the Black churchIf we are in a post-racial era, then what is the future of the Black Church? If the US will at some time in the future be free from discrimination and prejudices that are based on race how will that affect the church's very identity?In The Ground Has Shifted, Walter Earl Fluker passionately and thoroughly discusses the historical and current role of the Black church and argues that the older race-based language and metaphors of religious discourse have outlived their utility. He offers instead a larger, global vision for the Black church that focuses on young Black men and other disenfranchised groups who have been left behind in a world of globalized capital. Lyrically written with an emphasis on the dynamic and fluid movement of life itself, Fluker argues that the church must find new ways to use race as an emancipatory instrument if it is to reTrade ReviewFluker has a fresh approach to deal with the subject and provides new insights on the subject. It is meticulously researched and well-referenced. Walter Earl Fluker's scholarship is unmatchable. * The Washington Book Review *An exuberant, thought-provoking assessment of the dilemmas facing black churches. [A] passionate analysis and call for change. * STARRED Publishers Weekly *An important and perceptive contribution to the literature on religion and race. * Choice *Flukers book is thoroughly interesting as he studies the history and present of the black church Fluker brings us a work for todays church and a charge to connect that church to the world house. * Journal of the American Academy of Religion *[T]imely and fascinating...The Ground Has Shifteddoes a masterful job of blending black religious thought, literature, critical theory, memoir, and personal experience. * Religion Dispatches *An excellent conversation starter to inspire holistic freedom for all people. -- The Journal of African American HistoryThe Ground Has Shifted analyses the ramifications of post-racialism in the black church and emphasizes the various ways that religious leaders and scholars can engage and re-evaluate critical questions; thus, coming up with clear and concise solutions towards historical problems of race, and sexualized and gendered politics of the church … The author paves a way for a new generation of church leaders, scholars, and activists for them to reclaim the black church’s historical identity of being the pivotal force within the community, while also instilling character, civility, and a sense of community among its congregants once again. -- Black TheologyThe Ground Has Shifted addresses questions being posed by a historical Black Church caught between its piety, the politics of respectability, and a cataclysmic shifting of the taken-for-granted realities of a besieged/blessed people. I will buy and teach this book as often as I can. What an amazing contribution to the literature. -- Barbara A. Holmes,President Emerita of United Theological Seminary of the Twin CitiesThis is the most decisive statement on post-racialism, the American dilemma, and black church positive agency. On each page, Fluker's writing moans and wails us out of southern African American religiosity, up north into the fragmentation of black urban life, and into an ethical world of hope for an America becoming. A defining direction and persuasive proposal on how to get us to healthy community. -- Dwight N. Hopkins,author of Being Human: Race, Culture, and ReligionWalter Fluker is the towering theorist of the Black Church and the unapologetic lover of the black prophetic tradition. This powerful and timely book is sophisticated, subtle, and rich. And it soars with a deep, long memory alive in the present a present that reeks of a 'cultural asylum' that he notes the Black Lives Movement is shattering! -- Dr. Cornel WestFlukers judicious use of personal reflection provides an exciting affirmation that our black lives and our black churches really do matter as important standpoints for engaging spirituality, renewing the national imaginary, and enhancing the human condition. -- Cheryl Townsend Gilkes,Colby CollegeThe Ground Has Shifted puts forward a passionate challenge to the Black Church and all those who profess to stand in the prophetic Black Church tradition. It is a powerful and provocative treatment of the role and place of this venerable institution and the Gospel that gives it life. But more than that, the book offers a blueprint for a way forwarda pathway that involves "reclaiming [our] humanity through the integrity of the act"; to find beauty and grace in the dark places of what it means to live in this world without the burdens of ghosts. Beautiful written; passionately argued. A must read! -- Eddie S. Glaude, Jr.,author of Democracy in Black: How Race Still Enslaves the American SoulThis is a very important work that challenges all who read it to continue to search for answers to the growing crisis of faith in the black community, answers that will provide a viable way forward for black Christians and their churches in the challenging years ahead. * The Journal of Religion *

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Book SynopsisExposes the invisible ways in which white Christian privilege disadvantages racial and religious minorities in AmericaThe United States is recognized as the most religiously diverse country in the world, and yet its laws and customs, which many have come to see as normal features of American life, actually keep the Constitutional ideal of religious freedom for all from becoming a reality. Christian beliefs, norms, and practices infuse our society; they are embedded in our institutions, creating the structures and expectations that define the idea of Americanness. Religious minorities still struggle for recognition and for the opportunity to be treated as fully and equally legitimate members of American society. From the courtroom to the classroom, their scriptures and practices are viewed with suspicion, and bias embedded in centuries of Supreme Court rulings create structural disadvantages that endure today. In White Christian Privilege, Khyati Y. Joshi traces Christianity's influenceTrade Review"Looking at America’s history—including slavery and westward expansion—White Christian Privilege explores how Christian privilege and white racial norms impact the lives of all Americans. The book demonstrates how Christian beliefs have been built into the Constitution and beyond, and the sometimes subtle and overlooked ramifications it has for religious minorities." * Publishers Weekly *"'In order to form a more perfect Union,' books such as White Christian Privilege add enormous value to highlighting the gap between illusion and reality." * New York Journal of Books *"Joshi explores the structures of white Christian privilege embedded in American institutions, laws, and culture ... insightful ... outlines examples of those who have the privilege but are blind to it, and some of the inequities suffered by uneven privilege. Recommended for readers interested in historical roots of religious freedom." * Library Journal *"From the first page of White Christian Privilege, Khyati Joshi makes it plain that she is not interested in euphemizing. Nor is she interested in gently nudging her audience— one comprised at least in part by, if not mostly by, the people whose privilege she is illuminating— into a more aware mindset. Instead, Joshi wastes no time by acknowledging the truth." * Englewood Review of Books *"By the time you have finished reading Khyati Joshi’s first chapter, in which she defines such things as 'separation of Church and State' and 'secularization' as optical illusions to mask the overwhelming dominance of Christianity in American culture, you wonder if you might have stumbled upon a gem. By the time you are finished, you might find yourself wondering if you’ve finished a new classic." * Journal of Interreligious Studies *"Books that unpack problems in and questions about religion and race always feel timely in America; however, Joshi’s intersectional and social justice-grounded approach makes this a necessary read for those who desire a more just America. The book’s accessibility for students and the general public make its contribution all the stronger and more important" * Religions Journal *"Joshi explores how Christian privilege and White racial norms affect the lives of all Americans, often in subtle ways that society overlooks. By shining a light on the inequalities these privileges create, Joshi points the way forward, urging readers to help remake America as a diverse democracy with a commitment to true religious freedom." * Anthropology Book Forum *"Insightful and provocative. Taking a social justice approach, this timely book explores how Christianity has been leveraged to maintain and reproduce structures of domination and subordination, a discussion that is much needed and most welcome as debates about borders, migrants, and citizenship inflect public policy and civic engagement." -- Zayn Kassam, John Knox McLean Professor of Religious Studies, Pomona College"Smart and timely, energetic and approachable, this book is destined to be one of those touchstone texts that finds its way to a varied audience eager both to learn and to make meaningful change in American culture." -- Philip Goff, Director, Center for the Study of Religion and American Culture, Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis"Illuminates the myriad ways that social structures, individual actions, and cultural assumptions have brought White Christians outsized power and freedom from responsibility. Thoughtful people of all races and faiths need to read and heed her words." -- Paul Spickard, Distinguished Professor of History, University of California, Santa Barbara"Joshi views subliminal privilege in the common metaphors and underlying assumptions of our society. This privilege is sometimes Christian, sometimes White, and sometimes both. White Christian Privilegesets forth the history and the evidence for this privilege, and then proposes how to change it." -- David R. Blumenthal, Jay and Leslie Cohen Professor of Judaic Studies, Emory University, retired"Joshi’s historical account is one thing, but her ability to bring the reader into her more than two decades of scholarship and practice, offering solutions to long standing issues and concerns within society is some of the most important methodology of the last decade or more. Overall, the book is refreshing, challenging, and timely. The reader should be prepared to experience this book all the way from beginning to end." -- Dr. J Cody Nielson * Journal of Interreligious Studies *"In embracing a head, heart, and hand approach to bringing about religious social justice, Joshi highlights the concept of lived religion—how people within same-named faith communities practice differently, based on personal choice, sociopolitical circumstance, cultural nuance, and other differentiating influences." -- Rosnidar B. Arshad and Christine Clark - University of Nevada * Journal of Church and State *

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Book SynopsisCharts the development of progressive Christianity's engagement with modern science, historical criticism, and liberal humanismChristians who have doubts about the existence of God? Who do not believe in the divinity of Jesus? Who reject the accuracy of the Bible? The New Heretics explores the development of progressive Christianity, a movement of Christians who do not reject their identity as Christians, but who believe Christianity must be updated for today's times and take into consideration modern science, historical criticism, and liberal humanism. Drawing on three years of ethnographic fieldwork in North America, Rebekka King focuses on testimonies of deconversion, collective reading practices, and the ways in which religious beliefs and practices are adapted to fit secular lives. King introduces the concept of lived secularity as a category with which to examine the ways in which religiosity often is entangled with and subsumed by secular identities over and against religious Trade Review"An extraordinary work: engaging and insightful from cover to cover. King’s organizing concept of lived secularity makes an innovative contribution that scholars across disciplines will find useful." -- James Bielo, Miami University"King deftly brings to life her concept of ‘lived secularity’ through vivid testimony and engaging scholarship. . . . The New Heretics furthers our understanding of contemporary Christianity." -- Ryan Cragun, The University of Tampa

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Book SynopsisCharts the changing dynamics of religion and spirituality among African Americans Recent decades have ushered in a profound transformation within the American religious landscape, characterized by an explosion of religious diversification and individualism as well as a rising number of "nones." The Contemporary Black Church makes the case that the story of this changing religious landscape needs to be told incorporating more data as it applies specifically to African Americans. Jason E. Shelton draws from survey data as well as interviews with individuals from a wide variety of religious backgrounds to argue that social reforms and the resulting freedoms have paved the way for a pronounced diversification among African Americans in matters of faith. Many African Americans have switched denominational affiliations within the Black Church, others now adhere to historically White traditions, and a record number of African Americans have left organized religion altogether in recent decades. These changing demographics and affiliations are having a real and measurable effect on American politics, particularly as members of the historic Black Church are much more likely than those of other faiths to vote and to strongly support government policies aimed at bridging the racial divide. Though not the first work to note that African Americans are not monolithic in their religious affiliation, or to argue that there is a trend toward secularism in Black America, this book is the first to substantiate these claims with extensive empirical data, charting these changing dynamics and their ramifications for American society and politics.

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Book SynopsisExposes the invisible ways in which white Christian privilege disadvantages racial and religious minorities in AmericaThe United States is recognized as the most religiously diverse country in the world, and yet its laws and customs, which many have come to see as normal features of American life, actually keep the Constitutional ideal of religious freedom for all from becoming a reality. Christian beliefs, norms, and practices infuse our society; they are embedded in our institutions, creating the structures and expectations that define the idea of Americanness. Religious minorities still struggle for recognition and for the opportunity to be treated as fully and equally legitimate members of American society. From the courtroom to the classroom, their scriptures and practices are viewed with suspicion, and bias embedded in centuries of Supreme Court rulings create structural disadvantages that endure today. In White Christian Privilege, Khyati Y. Joshi traces Christianity's influenceTrade ReviewLooking at America’s history—including slavery and westward expansion—White Christian Privilege explores how Christian privilege and white racial norms impact the lives of all Americans. The book demonstrates how Christian beliefs have been built into the Constitution and beyond, and the sometimes subtle and overlooked ramifications it has for religious minorities. * Publishers Weekly *'In order to form a more perfect Union,' books such as White Christian Privilege add enormous value to highlighting the gap between illusion and reality. * New York Journal of Books *Joshi explores the structures of white Christian privilege embedded in American institutions, laws, and culture ... insightful ... outlines examples of those who have the privilege but are blind to it, and some of the inequities suffered by uneven privilege. Recommended for readers interested in historical roots of religious freedom. * Library Journal *From the first page of White Christian Privilege, Khyati Joshi makes it plain that she is not interested in euphemizing. Nor is she interested in gently nudging her audience— one comprised at least in part by, if not mostly by, the people whose privilege she is illuminating— into a more aware mindset. Instead, Joshi wastes no time by acknowledging the truth. * Englewood Review of Books *By the time you have finished reading Khyati Joshi’s first chapter, in which she defines such things as 'separation of Church and State' and 'secularization' as optical illusions to mask the overwhelming dominance of Christianity in American culture, you wonder if you might have stumbled upon a gem. By the time you are finished, you might find yourself wondering if you’ve finished a new classic. * Journal of Interreligious Studies *Books that unpack problems in and questions about religion and race always feel timely in America; however, Joshi’s intersectional and social justice-grounded approach makes this a necessary read for those who desire a more just America. The book’s accessibility for students and the general public make its contribution all the stronger and more important * Religions Journal *Joshi explores how Christian privilege and White racial norms affect the lives of all Americans, often in subtle ways that society overlooks. By shining a light on the inequalities these privileges create, Joshi points the way forward, urging readers to help remake America as a diverse democracy with a commitment to true religious freedom. * Anthropology Book Forum *Insightful and provocative. Taking a social justice approach, this timely book explores how Christianity has been leveraged to maintain and reproduce structures of domination and subordination, a discussion that is much needed and most welcome as debates about borders, migrants, and citizenship inflect public policy and civic engagement. -- Zayn Kassam, John Knox McLean Professor of Religious Studies, Pomona CollegeSmart and timely, energetic and approachable, this book is destined to be one of those touchstone texts that finds its way to a varied audience eager both to learn and to make meaningful change in American culture. -- Philip Goff, Director, Center for the Study of Religion and American Culture, Indiana University-Purdue University IndianapolisIlluminates the myriad ways that social structures, individual actions, and cultural assumptions have brought White Christians outsized power and freedom from responsibility. Thoughtful people of all races and faiths need to read and heed her words. -- Paul Spickard, Distinguished Professor of History, University of California, Santa BarbaraJoshi views subliminal privilege in the common metaphors and underlying assumptions of our society. This privilege is sometimes Christian, sometimes White, and sometimes both. White Christian Privilegesets forth the history and the evidence for this privilege, and then proposes how to change it. -- David R. Blumenthal, Jay and Leslie Cohen Professor of Judaic Studies, Emory University, retiredJoshi’s historical account is one thing, but her ability to bring the reader into her more than two decades of scholarship and practice, offering solutions to long standing issues and concerns within society is some of the most important methodology of the last decade or more. Overall, the book is refreshing, challenging, and timely. The reader should be prepared to experience this book all the way from beginning to end. -- Dr. J Cody Nielson * Journal of Interreligious Studies *In embracing a head, heart, and hand approach to bringing about religious social justice, Joshi highlights the concept of lived religion—how people within same-named faith communities practice differently, based on personal choice, sociopolitical circumstance, cultural nuance, and other differentiating influences. -- Rosnidar B. Arshad and Christine Clark - University of Nevada * Journal of Church and State *

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Book SynopsisHonorable Mention, Theology and Religious Studies PROSE Award A powerful insight into the historical and cultural roles of the Black churchIf we are in a post-racial era, then what is the future of the Black Church? If the US will at some time in the future be free from discrimination and prejudices that are based on race how will that affect the church's very identity?In The Ground Has Shifted, Walter Earl Fluker passionately and thoroughly discusses the historical and current role of the Black church and argues that the older race-based language and metaphors of religious discourse have outlived their utility. He offers instead a larger, global vision for the Black church that focuses on young Black men and other disenfranchised groups who have been left behind in a world of globalized capital. Lyrically written with an emphasis on the dynamic and fluid movement of life itself, Fluker argues that the church must find new ways to use race as an emancipatory instrument if it is to reTrade ReviewFluker has a fresh approach to deal with the subject and provides new insights on the subject. It is meticulously researched and well-referenced. Walter Earl Fluker's scholarship is unmatchable. * The Washington Book Review *An exuberant, thought-provoking assessment of the dilemmas facing black churches. [A] passionate analysis and call for change. * STARRED Publishers Weekly *An important and perceptive contribution to the literature on religion and race. * Choice *Flukers book is thoroughly interesting as he studies the history and present of the black church Fluker brings us a work for todays church and a charge to connect that church to the world house. * Journal of the American Academy of Religion *[T]imely and fascinating...The Ground Has Shifteddoes a masterful job of blending black religious thought, literature, critical theory, memoir, and personal experience. * Religion Dispatches *An excellent conversation starter to inspire holistic freedom for all people. -- The Journal of African American HistoryThe Ground Has Shifted analyses the ramifications of post-racialism in the black church and emphasizes the various ways that religious leaders and scholars can engage and re-evaluate critical questions; thus, coming up with clear and concise solutions towards historical problems of race, and sexualized and gendered politics of the church … The author paves a way for a new generation of church leaders, scholars, and activists for them to reclaim the black church’s historical identity of being the pivotal force within the community, while also instilling character, civility, and a sense of community among its congregants once again. -- Black TheologyThe Ground Has Shifted addresses questions being posed by a historical Black Church caught between its piety, the politics of respectability, and a cataclysmic shifting of the taken-for-granted realities of a besieged/blessed people. I will buy and teach this book as often as I can. What an amazing contribution to the literature. -- Barbara A. Holmes,President Emerita of United Theological Seminary of the Twin CitiesThis is the most decisive statement on post-racialism, the American dilemma, and black church positive agency. On each page, Fluker's writing moans and wails us out of southern African American religiosity, up north into the fragmentation of black urban life, and into an ethical world of hope for an America becoming. A defining direction and persuasive proposal on how to get us to healthy community. -- Dwight N. Hopkins,author of Being Human: Race, Culture, and ReligionWalter Fluker is the towering theorist of the Black Church and the unapologetic lover of the black prophetic tradition. This powerful and timely book is sophisticated, subtle, and rich. And it soars with a deep, long memory alive in the present a present that reeks of a 'cultural asylum' that he notes the Black Lives Movement is shattering! -- Dr. Cornel WestFlukers judicious use of personal reflection provides an exciting affirmation that our black lives and our black churches really do matter as important standpoints for engaging spirituality, renewing the national imaginary, and enhancing the human condition. -- Cheryl Townsend Gilkes,Colby CollegeThe Ground Has Shifted puts forward a passionate challenge to the Black Church and all those who profess to stand in the prophetic Black Church tradition. It is a powerful and provocative treatment of the role and place of this venerable institution and the Gospel that gives it life. But more than that, the book offers a blueprint for a way forwarda pathway that involves "reclaiming [our] humanity through the integrity of the act"; to find beauty and grace in the dark places of what it means to live in this world without the burdens of ghosts. Beautiful written; passionately argued. A must read! -- Eddie S. Glaude, Jr.,author of Democracy in Black: How Race Still Enslaves the American SoulThis is a very important work that challenges all who read it to continue to search for answers to the growing crisis of faith in the black community, answers that will provide a viable way forward for black Christians and their churches in the challenging years ahead. * The Journal of Religion *

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Book SynopsisFuses the Church's traditional doctrine of the Communion of Saints and Baptists' theology of salvation and discipleship - charting how Baptists can speak of a communion of saints here and now. Paul Fiddes and his coauthors emphasize that this communion is only possible within the fellowship of the triune God who covenants with and for believers.Trade ReviewBaptists and the Communion of Saints is a feast to relish. Not only does it offer substantive and convincing proposals for a properly Baptist approach to this issue, it is a sterling example of constructive theology. -- Dan R Stiver, Cook-Derrick Professor of Theology, Logsdon School of Theology, Hardin-Simmons UniversityAn important and timely book on one of the most neglected articles of the Apostles' Creed, Baptists and the Communion of Saints explores what it means for believers to share together life in Christ in this world -- and the next -- along the boundaries of space and time that both separate and unite the church militant, triumphant, and vigilant. -- Timothy George, Dean of Beeson Divinity School, Samford University & Chair, Doctrine & Christian Unity Commission, Baptist World Alliance"The Covenant of Saints is a feast to relish. Not only does it offer substantive and convincing proposals for a properly Baptist approach to this issue, it is a sterling example of constructive theology." -- Dan R Stiver, Hardin-Simmons UniversityThroughout of writing of this study the three scholars collaborated extensively and brought their rich understandings of the Baptist tradition to the common topic which provides the work's title. -- Richard J. Sklba, Auxiliary Bishop Emeritus of Milwaukee, WI -- Pro EcclesiaThis is a richly simulating book, born of conversation and shared theologising by three Baptist theologians of whom we should be justly proud. It explores an area of doctrine where these three do no fear to tread, even if angels might be cautious, and unfolds for us dimensions of the reality of the purposes and breadth of God that we, as Baptists, have ignored to our impoverishing and disabling. -- Paul Goodliff -- Baptist QuarterlyThis is an exceptionally well-written, many-sourced, imaginative and theologically generous book. If written primarily with fellow-Baptists in mind, it nevertheless deserves a much wider and ecumenical readership. Thinkers of every tradition will learn from it. -- Keith Clements -- EcclesiologyTable of ContentsIntroduction 1. Why Talk about the Saints? 2. Memory and Communion 3. Hope, Strangeness, and Interconnections 4. Praying with Mary and All the Saints 5. The Fellowship of Faces 6. Communion and Covenant Conclusion: The Difference the Doctrine Makes

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Book SynopsisTraces the arc of Dietrich Bonhoeffer's public career, demonstrating how, at every stage, Bonhoeffer focused upon preaching, both in terms of its ecclesial practice and the theology that gave it life.Trade ReviewPasquarello's engagement with Bonhoeffer's post-university preaching life from 1931-1937 not only provides excellent theological analysis of Bonhoeffer's sermons, but unearths the ways Bonhoeffer's historical context informed both his homiletics and hermeneutics -- Matthew K. Jones -- Reading ReligionPasquarello strikes a commendable balance between breadth-providing the bigger picture of Bonhoeffer's career as a preacher-and depth, carefully analyzing his homiletical theology and individual sermons. The writing style is engaging in both allowing Bonhoeffer's voice to take centre stage and in offering connections, commentary, and conclusions that demonstrate clear authorial grasp of the subject matter. -- Javier A. Garcia -- The Journal of Theological StudiesTable of ContentsPreface and Acknowledgments Introduction Part I: Preparation Chapter 1. Learning a Theology of Preaching from Luther and Barth: Berlin 1925â1927 Chapter 2. Reconciling Pastoral Ministry with Preaching: Barcelona 1928â1929 Chapter 3. The Discovery of a Black Jesus: New York 1929â1931 Part II: Preaching Chapter 4. Preaching as Theology: Berlin 1931â1932 Chapter 5. Preaching as Politics: London 1932â1935 Chapter 6. Preaching as Public Confession: Finkenwalde 1935â1937 Part III: Consequences Chapter 7. A Forced Itinerary: 1937â1939 Chapter 8. Preaching without Words: 1940â1945 Conclusion Notes Bibliography Index

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Book SynopsisProvides a clear introduction to the history and theology of this influential and international people. David Bebbington, a leading Baptist historian, surveys the main developments in Baptist life and thought from the seventeenth century to the present.Trade Review"Conversations about Baptist identity too often generate more heat than light. This book is a happy exception, telling the Baptist story with great insight and clarity." Curtis W. Freeman, Research Professor of Theology and Baptist Studies, Duke University Divinity School"David Bebbington's well-earned reputation as a brilliant historian is certainly confirmed with this fine overview of Baptist history and practices. Bebbington's work will provide students with a timely, balanced, and insightful guide for generations to come." David S. Dockery, President, Union University"Bebbington, one of the leading historians of worldwide evangelicalism, presents a sweeping overview of Baptist history in Europe and the US from its beginnings in the Reformation to the present. A synthesis of the original research of others, Bebbington's interpretive scheme is nuanced and quite readable." J. F. Findlay, University of Rhode Island, Choice (2011, 48:8)"... the scope of [Bebbington's] coverage in just 300 pages is breathtaking. If you read only one book on the Baptists, this is the one for you." Richard V. Pierard, International Bulletin of Missionary Research, Oct. 2011"... the scope of [Bebbington's] coverage in just 300 pages is breathtaking. If you read only one book on the Baptists, this is the one for you." Richard V. Pierard, International Bulletin of Missionary Research, Oct. 2011"... a welcomed addition to the field of Baptist studies." Baptist History & Heritage Society (Fall 2012)"David Bebbington has placed us all in his debt by producing this volume." Journal of European Baptist Studies (2012, 12:2)"In Baptists through the Centuries, the distinguished University of Stirling (UK) professor further solidifies his already established reputation for careful scholarship, astute interpretation, and compelling storylines.... Bebbington offers the necessary resources for understanding the tradition's comlex historical roots, as well as the meandering pathways that have characterized denomination life for 400 years." Renewing Minds (2012, 1:1)"David Bebbington is one of our finest historians, and he has given us here a superb overview of the Baptist movement, from its Reformation roots to its global reach." Timothy George, founding Dean of Beeson Divinity School of Samford University, and General Editor of the Reformation Commentary on Scripture"Bebbington is a wise guide... This judicious and insightful account of Baptist history is to be commended." John Briggs, President of the Baptist Hictorical Society, Baptist Quarterly (2013, 45)Bebbingtons careful work and attempt to categorize and define the diverse family called Baptists is laudable and worthy of commendation. Jason. G. Duesing, Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary, Journal of Ecclesiastical History (62:4)This book offers a world view and combines the fairly familiar with the surprisingly little known. It shows a remarkably vigorous community of faith throughout the world. -- David Salter -- Congregational History Society Magazine

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Book SynopsisDespite the growing volume of literature about the orishas, surprisingly little has been published about the ubiquitous Yorùbá music spirit. This groundbreaking collection addresses the gap in the research with contributions from a cross-section of prestigious musicians, scholars, and priests from Nigeria, the Americas, and Europe who have dedicated themselves to studying Yorùbá sacred drums.Trade ReviewRecipient of the Commendation Book Prize 2016: ""The Yorùbá God of Drumming is a multifaceted book with an emphasis on collaboration, deeply immersed in Yorùbá studies. It shows meticulous attention to detail and is densely referenced, with a strong sense of passion for the subject. It supports writing from practitioners whose voices might otherwise not be heard, including them as the authors rather than informants, showing impressive editorial skill in making this a coherent book while retaining a diversity of experience and communication styles."" - British Forum for Ethnomusicology""This volume is a remarkable collection of essays, in which scholars of diverse disciplines, nationalities, and regional specializations study transatlantic Yorùbá music and religion through the lens of the spiritual power invested in its drums. The result is a uniquely broad and nuanced portrait of a powerful expressive tradition that has thrived vigorously in the New World, even as it struggles to survive in its ancestral homeland."" - Peter Manuel, professor of ethnomusicology, Graduate Center of the City University of New York""Far more than providing yet another addition to the genre of 'single orisha volumes,' Villepastour's collection raises the bar for such enterprises. In focusing on perhaps the most mysterious and ill-understood entity in the circum-Atlantic congeries of ritual practices that hark back to what, by the late nineteenth century, gradually became known as Yorùbá religion, The Yorùbá God of Drumming presents both a major empirical contribution and a model for integrating the voices and perspectives of scholars and practitioners/musicians alike."" - Stephan Palmié, professor of anthropology and social sciences, University of Chicago

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Book SynopsisRepresenting the culmination of the author’s personal involvement, interviews, research, and visits to Brazil, this book relates the story of Eg·ng·n from an insider's view. Part journal, part metaphysical mystery, part scholarly work, part field research, and part reportage, this book illuminates the nature of Eg·ng·n as it is practiced in Brazil.

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Book SynopsisFrom the tenor of contemporary discussions, it would be easy to conclude that the idea of marriage between two people of the same sex is a uniquely contemporary phenomenon. Not so, argues Gary Ferguson in Same-Sex Marriage in Renaissance Rome. Making use of substantial fragments of trial transcripts Gary Ferguson brings the story of a same-sex marriage to life in striking detail. He unearths an incredible amount of detail about the men, their sex lives, and how others responded to this information, which allows him to explore attitudes toward marriage, sex, and gender at the time. Emphasizing the instability of marriage in premodern Europe, Ferguson argues that same-sex unions should be considered part of the institution''s complex and contested history.Trade ReviewFerguson's findings about a group of foreign immigrants appropriating the social and religious ritual of marriage within their own self-defined community open up a new window on homosexual activity in Renaissance Rome. The author has deftly uncovered a clandestine subculture that departed from traditional gender norms, sexual stereotypes, and marriage practices, making an important contribution to the history of marriage and sexuality. * American Historical Review *In its analysis of texts, narrative and legal, Same-Sex Marriage in Renaissance Rome is truly exemplary. * Journal of Modern History *This is a short book, but it punches above its weight. Although the book will be of most interest to historians of sexuality and other early modern historians, I would not hesitate to give it to students as an excellent model of how to read historical documents as texts while also placing them within several different relevant contexts and opening up productive ambiguities. * Journal of the History of Sexuality *[The book is a] splendid microhistorical investigation, a piece of archival detective work that challenges prevailing views about sexual identity in early modern Europe.... It is compelling reading that should make scholars, students, and activists think again about the history of sexuality. * H-Net Reviews/H-Histsex *An original and deeply thoughtful study.... Ferguson's sensitive discussion of the men's testimonies, fragmentary though they are, challenges 'some engrained historiographical notions' about same-sex erotic relationships in early modern Europe.... Ferguson's extraordinary, compassionate and poignant book allows these events to speak to us urgently about sexuality past and the present. * Gender & History *Same-Sex Marriage in Renaissance Rome will be of interest to historically inclined scholars from all disciplines, but will especially delight historians, anthropologists, sociologists, and art historians.... The case of the men at the church of Saint John at the Latin Gate demands attention, and should not be thought of as an exceptional event but as a new window into the diverse forms of historical sexuality and as a methodological example of the way to excavate these latent pasts. * H-Histsex *Table of ContentsIntroduction: Engagement PART I. STORIES—OBSERVERS 1. A French Writer Visits: Montaigne's Travel Journal and a Thrice-Told Tale 2. "Our Marriages"? Male to Male / Like Husband and Wife 3. Marriage— Rites, Analogues, Meanings 4. Other Witnesses, Other Stories PART II. STORIES—ACTORS 5. Final Hours: Wills and Execution 6. Voices on Trial: Beginning with Battista the Boatman 7. Saint John at the Latin Gate: Marco Pinto 8. Marriage as Alibi, as Euphemism, as Recruitment 9. Marriage and Community PART III. HISTORIES 10. Looking Forward / Looking Back: The History of Sexuality 11. Ghost Stories: Queer History

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Book SynopsisHistorians typically single out the hundred-year period from about 1050 to 1150 as the pivotal moment in the history of the Latin Church, for it was then that the Gregorian Reform movement established the ecclesiastical structure that would ensure Rome's dominance throughout the Middle Ages and beyond. In Before the Gregorian Reform John Howe challenges this familiar narrative by examining earlier, pre-Gregorian reform efforts within the Church. He finds that they were more extensive and widespread than previously thought and that they actually established a foundation for the subsequent Gregorian Reform movement.The low point in the history of Christendom came in the late ninth and early tenth centuriesa period when much of Europe was overwhelmed by barbarian raids and widespread civil disorder, which left the Church in a state of disarray. As Howe shows, however, the destruction gave rise to creativity. Aristocrats and churchmen rebuilt churches and constructed new oTrade ReviewA comprehensive and accessible survey of two hundred years of church history.... A richly textured and arresting image of a world rooted in its Carolingian past yet foundational to the expansionist and ecumenical church of the later Middle Ages.... Indispensible to any medieval history syllabus. * H-Soz-Kult *Howe calls upon a truly impressive array of evidence and scholarship from the fields of history, literature, liturgical studies, art and architectural history, and theological studies in support of his argument, and scholars will profit immensely from perusing his footnotes. The book is loaded with important insights and asides.... Most importantly, Howe's work lands another hammer blow on the older, confessionally-driven, top-down paradigm of church reform... and does so in a style that is self-consciously accessible to specialist and non-specialist readers. * SPECULUM *Builds on a good deal of recent research which emphasises the deep roots of later developments, and draws attention to the diversity and vitality of religious life at this time.... He succeeds in evoking interest in the tenth-century Church. * English Historical Review *There is much of use here: the stress on the physical, acoustic and aesthetic aspects of developments in the tenth and early eleventh centuries is welcome, and these sections bring together a wide range of recent literature. Mediterranean areas, especially Italy, receive due attention... the emphasis on Byzantine ideas is refreshing. * Journal of Ecclesiastical History *An extensively researched, engagingly written, and nicely illustrated book.... Howe draws upon his own impressive research to demonstrate the numerous contacts between the Roman and Greek churches. * American Historical Review *Table of ContentsIntroduction: A Pre-Gregorian Reform? 1. "Wolves Devouring the Lambs of Christ" 2. "Enter Confidently into the War of the Lord God" 3. "A White Mantle of Churches" 4. "To Rouse Devotion in a Carnal People" 5. "Following in the Footsteps of the Saints" 6. "When My Soul Longs for the Divine Vision" 7. "Learning Is Part of Holiness" 8. "The Body Is Not a Single Part" 9. "One Shepherd Presides over All Generally" Epilogue: A Pope Captured, A Church Triumphant

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Book SynopsisIn The Medieval Economy of Salvation, Adam J. Davis shows how the burgeoning commercial economy of western Europe in the twelfth and thirteenth centuries, alongside an emerging culture of Christian charity, led to the establishment of hundreds of hospitals and leper houses. Focusing on the county of Champagne, he looks at the ways in which charitable organizations and individualstownspeople, merchants, aristocrats, and ecclesiasticssaw in these new institutions a means of infusing charitable giving and service with new social significance and heightened expectations of spiritual rewards.In tracing the rise of the medieval hospital during a period of intense urbanization and the transition from a gift economy to a commercial one, Davis makes clear how embedded this charitable institution was in the wider social, cultural, religious, and economic fabric of medieval life.Open Access edition funded by the National Endowment for the HumanitiesTrade ReviewA meticulously researched study of an important area of medieval life. Adam J. Davis, an expert historian of medieval religion, locates his work in the context of various scholarly debates and draws on an exhaustive range of English and French sources. The Medieval Economy of Salvation provides a scholarly insight into medieval hospitals and their relationships with the wider society. Davis teases out the twisted strands of complex realities with a marvelously expert hand. The reward for the reader is not just to understand more about the medieval mindset and hospitals, but to appreciate how much there is to know. * Health and History *The Medieval Economy of Salvation is a pleasurable read suited to both the scholar and enthusiast alike. Adam J. Davis brings to light the importance of the medieval hospital and its link to social, religious and economic changes in the twelfth and thirteenth centuries. * Social History of Medicine *The Medieval Economy of Salvation is a welcome addition to the scholarship on the role and place of hospitals in medieval European society. The richness of Davies's sources means that he has been able to provide a detailed account of life inside and outside the hospital embedded in developments and ideas to be found in French society more widely. * JOURNAL OF BRITISH STUDIES *The book offers a precise and detailed casuistry of the figures taken in the hospital's area of influence, drawing a glimpse of daily life in medieval Champagne. Davis focuses on treatises and sermons about helping the poorest, casting new light on the close relationship between economic growth and welfare practices. * Comitatus *This richly researched book opens up fresh perspectives on charity, hospitals, and experiences of illness in Europe before the Black Death. By challenging our thinking about the boundaries between institutional and noninstitutional care, between wealth and poverty, and between devotional and mercantile pursuits, it encourages further research on provision for the needy in medieval society. * Bulletin of the History of Medicine *Table of ContentsList of Illustrations Acknowledgments Abbreviations A Note on Monies and Measures Introduction: A Charitable Revolution in an Age of Commerce 1. Medieval Understandings of Charity: From Penance to Commerce 2. The Creation of a Charitable Landscape 3. Hospital Patrons and Social Networks 4. Managing a Hospital's Property 5. "In Service of the Poor": Hospital Personnel in Pursuit of Security 6. The Sick Poor and the Economy of Care Epilogue Bibliography Index

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Book SynopsisIn The Medieval Economy of Salvation, Adam J. Davis shows how the burgeoning commercial economy of western Europe in the twelfth and thirteenth centuries, alongside an emerging culture of Christian charity, led to the establishment of hundreds of hospitals and leper houses. Focusing on the county of Champagne, he looks at the ways in which charitable organizations and individualstownspeople, merchants, aristocrats, and ecclesiasticssaw in these new institutions a means of infusing charitable giving and service with new social significance and heightened expectations of spiritual rewards.In tracing the rise of the medieval hospital during a period of intense urbanization and the transition from a gift economy to a commercial one, Davis makes clear how embedded this charitable institution was in the wider social, cultural, religious, and economic fabric of medieval life.Open Access edition funded by the National Endowment for the HumanitiesTrade ReviewA meticulously researched study of an important area of medieval life. Adam J. Davis, an expert historian of medieval religion, locates his work in the context of various scholarly debates and draws on an exhaustive range of English and French sources. The Medieval Economy of Salvation provides a scholarly insight into medieval hospitals and their relationships with the wider society. Davis teases out the twisted strands of complex realities with a marvelously expert hand. The reward for the reader is not just to understand more about the medieval mindset and hospitals, but to appreciate how much there is to know. * Health and History *The Medieval Economy of Salvation is a pleasurable read suited to both the scholar and enthusiast alike. Adam J. Davis brings to light the importance of the medieval hospital and its link to social, religious and economic changes in the twelfth and thirteenth centuries. * Social History of Medicine *The Medieval Economy of Salvation is a welcome addition to the scholarship on the role and place of hospitals in medieval European society. The richness of Davies's sources means that he has been able to provide a detailed account of life inside and outside the hospital embedded in developments and ideas to be found in French society more widely. * JOURNAL OF BRITISH STUDIES *The book offers a precise and detailed casuistry of the figures taken in the hospital's area of influence, drawing a glimpse of daily life in medieval Champagne. Davis focuses on treatises and sermons about helping the poorest, casting new light on the close relationship between economic growth and welfare practices. * Comitatus *This richly researched book opens up fresh perspectives on charity, hospitals, and experiences of illness in Europe before the Black Death. By challenging our thinking about the boundaries between institutional and noninstitutional care, between wealth and poverty, and between devotional and mercantile pursuits, it encourages further research on provision for the needy in medieval society. * Bulletin of the History of Medicine *Table of ContentsList of Illustrations Acknowledgments Abbreviations A Note on Monies and Measures Introduction: A Charitable Revolution in an Age of Commerce 1. Medieval Understandings of Charity: From Penance to Commerce 2. The Creation of a Charitable Landscape 3. Hospital Patrons and Social Networks 4. Managing a Hospital's Property 5. "In Service of the Poor": Hospital Personnel in Pursuit of Security 6. The Sick Poor and the Economy of Care Epilogue Bibliography Index

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Book SynopsisIn The Nature of the Religious Right, Neall W. Pogue examines how white conservative evangelical Christians became a political force known for hostility toward environmental legislation. Before the 1990s, this group used ideas of nature to help construct the religious right movement while developing theologically based, eco-friendly philosophies that can be described as Christian environmental stewardship. On the twentieth anniversary of Earth Day in 1990, members of this conservative evangelical community tried to turn their eco-friendly philosophies into action. Yet this attempt was overwhelmed by a growing number in the leadership who made anti-environmentalism the accepted position through public ridicule, conspiracy theories, and cherry-picked science.Through analysis of rhetoric, political expediency, and theological imperatives, The Nature of the Religious Right explains how ideas of nature played a role in constructing the conservatiTrade ReviewPogue carefully delineates the backtracking of many conservative evangelicals on environmentalism, even as he presents the valiant but unsuccessful efforts of the Evangelical Environmental Network's Ron Sider and climate scientist Katharine Hayhoe, among other evangelicals, to forestall this abandonment of environmental stewardship. * The Chrisitan Century *This book offers an important, persuasive corrective to the history of religious conservatism. Pogue argues that Evangelicals' dogmatic opposition of environmentalism is historically contingent rather than an inevitable result of theology and political ideology. Using a variety of primary and secondary sources, Pogue documents a doctrine of "Christian environmental stewardship" that was clearly articulated among prominent Evangelicals beginning in the late 1960s and shows how this environmentalism was purged from the religious Right only in the early 1990s. Though the book's accounting of evangelical theology, particularly the analysis of "the natural" and a land-based nationalism, will not particularly surprise scholars, Pogue successfully shows how these ideas might have been compatible with early conceptions of stewardship long before being deployed to oppose actions protecting the environment. The book also offers lessons for the environmental movement, noting that the first Earth Day activists' critique of Christianity helped lay the groundwork for Evangelicals' eventual rejection of environmentalism. Required reading for historians and analysts of the conservative movement, the religious Right, and/or the environmental movement. * Choice *Table of ContentsIntroduction 1. Conservative Evangelicals Respond to the Founding of Earth Day 2. Humanity's Proper Place Between God and Nature 3. Nature in a Religious Right Perspective 4. The Moral Majority Finds Favor in the Republican Party 5. The Struggle Between Christian Environmental Stewardship and Anti-Environmentalism in the Religious Right 6. The National Association of Evangelicals Turn Against the Environment 7. "It Could Have Taken a Very Different Path" Conclusion

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Book SynopsisEvery ministry needs capable and reliable volunteers, but so often it feels like no one is coming forward to fill your church's needs. In reality, the people around us do want to volunteer their time and talents, but we often fail to connect potential volunteers to ministry opportunities or lose them somewhere along the way. The Volunteer Effect is your start-to-finish guide to recruiting, leading, and retaining volunteers for your ministry. Based on solid management theory delivered in an engaging narrative form, this book shows you how to - recruit people to a mission, not just a role - create low-risk entry points - build a team that evokes pride - train them for the bigger picture - and much more Your most effective volunteers are already in your church! Let this resource show you how to find--and keep--them.

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Book SynopsisAmerica was founded on the concept of the innate and inalienable rights of humankind. Many Christians see an echo of the imago Dei--that every human being carries the image of God--within those ideals. Yet these rights were systemically withheld from the Black and enslaved residents of this country for centuries. Through it all, Black people have proclaimed the truth of their dignity and personhood in powerful and profound ways. Crowned with Glory collects many of the writings of these men and women, both familiar and lesser-known, to shine a light on what has always been there: an enormous movement of Black Americans demanding the liberty they were promised and deserved. With moving and insightful reflections on these oft-forgotten or suppressed voices, author Jasmine L. Holmes offers a hopeful and encouraging testament to the power of unrelenting cries for justice that will strike a chord with anyone looking for a robust Christian history of resistance. If you want to understand how we got here, read this book. If you want to know where we go from here, read it again.

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Book SynopsisBeginning as a marginal group in Galilee, the movement initiated by Jesus of Nazareth became a world religion within 100 years. Why, among various religious movements, did Christianity succeed? This major work by internationally renowned scholar Udo Schnelle traces the historical, cultural, and theological influences and developments of the early years of the Christian movement. It shows how Christianity provided an intellectual framework, a literature, and socialization among converts that led to its enduring influence. Senior New Testament scholar James Thompson offers a clear, fluent English translation of the successful German edition.Table of ContentsContents 1. On Writing a History of Origins 1.1 History as Interpretation of the Present and the Past 1.2 History and Method 2. Definition and Demarcation of the Epoch 2.1 Primitive Christianity or Early Christianity? 2.2 The Chronological Framework 3. Presuppositions and Contexts 3.1 Hellenism as a World Culture 3.2 Greco-Roman Culture 3.3 Judaism 3.4 The Political and Economic Situation in the Roman Empire in the First and Second Centuries CE 4. The New Movement of Christ-Believers 4.1 The Easter Events 4.2 The Origin of Christology 4.3 The Founder of a New Discourse and New Thinking 5. The Jerusalem Church 5.1 The Beginnings 5.2 Groups and Persons 5.3 Places: The Temple 5.4 Conflicts 5.5 Theological Institutions and Discourse 5.6 Texts: The Passion Narrative 5.7 The Theological Development of the Early Jerusalem Church 6. Early Churches and Early Mission outside of Jerusalem 6.1 Contexts: Mobility and Religious-Philosophical Variety in the Roman Empire 6.2 Persons 6.3 Groups: The Jesus Movement 6.4 Lands and Places 6.5 Competitors and Conflicts 6.6 The Development of the Community's Own Cult Praxis and Theology/the First Forms of Institutionalization 6.7 Texts 6.8 The First Missionary Journey and the Mission to the Gentiles without the Requirement of Circumcision 6.9 The Three Great Currents at the Beginning 7. The Apostolic Conference 7.1 The Initial Conflict 7.2 The Essential Problem 7.3 The Process 7.4 The Result 7.5 Interpretations of the Outcome 7.6 The Incident at Antioch 8. The Independent Mission of Paul 8.1 Perspective, Process, and Conflicts 8.2 Persons 8.3 Structures 8.4 External Discourse 8.5 Internal Discourse 8.6 Theology in Letter Form: The Pauline Letters 8.7 Paul and the Development of Early Christianity as an Independent Movement 9. The Crisis of Early Christianity around 70 CE 9.1 The Deaths of Peter, Paul, and James and the First Persecutions 9.2 The Destruction of the Temple, the Fall of the Jerusalem Church, and the Fiscus Judaicus 9.3 The Rise of the Flavians 9.4 The Writing of the Gospels and Pseudepigraphy as Innovative Responses to Crises 10. The Establishment of Early Christianity 10.1 A New Genre for a New Era: The Gospels 10.2 The Synoptic Gospels and Acts as Master Narratives 10.3 The Continuing Legacy of Paul 10.4 Johannine Christianity as the Fourth Great Current (Stream) 10.5 Jewish Christianity as an Abiding Power 10.6 Perceptions by Outsiders 11. Dangers and Threats 11.1 The Delay of the Parousia 11.2 Poor and Rich 11.3 Controversies/False Teachers/Opponents 11.4 Structures and Offices 11.5 Conflicts with Judaism after 70 CE 12. Persecutions of Christians and the Imperial Cult 12.1 The Imperial Cult as a Political Religion 12.2 Persecution under Nero 12.3 Persecution under Domitian? 12.4 Pliny and Trajan concerning Christianity 13. Early Christianity as an Independent Movement 13.1 The New Narrative and the New Language of the Christians 13.2 New Perspectives about God 13.3 Serving as a Model of Success 13.4 Early Christianity as a Religion of the City and of Education 13.5 The Major Theological Currents and Networks near the End of the First Century 13.6 The Expansion of Early Christianity 14. The Transition to the Ancient Church 14.1 Claims to Power and Established Structures 14.2 The Emergence of Another Message: Early Gnosticism 15. Fifteen Reasons for the Success of Early Christianity Works Cited Indexes

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Book SynopsisThe church needs to do a better job of speaking theologically to single Christians. Challenging prevailing evangelical assumptions about "the problem" of singleness, this book explains why the church needs single people and offers a contemporary theology of singleness relevant to all members of the church. Drawing on the examples of three important figures from the history of Christianity, the book helps today's church form a vision of life in the kingdom of God that is as theologically significant for single people as it is for those who are married.Table of ContentsContentsIntroductionPart 11. Why Singleness?Part 22. Macrina: Singleness and Community3. Perpetua: Singleness and Identity4. Lottie Moon: Singleness and AuthorityPart 35. How Singleness Can Shape Us into Better Theologians

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Book SynopsisA veteran Baptist pastor and ministry professor offers a distinctive free church vision for pastoral leadership, attending to voices from the past four centuries as they speak about the practice of ministry. The book contains theological reflection on current ministry issues among Baptists based on biblical and historical foundations and reflects a diversity of Baptist life across time and around the world, including many different voices. Each chapter contains reflection questions to help readers consider the implications of Baptist thinking.Table of ContentsContentsIntroductionPart 1: Becoming a Pastor1. Pastoral Identity: The Shepherd and the Flock2. The Call to Ministry: More Than a Job3. Ordination: Set Apart to Serve4. Women in Ministry: Your Daughters Shall ProphesyPart 2: Proclamation: Pastor as Prophet5. The Preaching Ministry: Fire in My Bones6. Witness to the World: Sent to ProclaimPart 3: Care: Pastor as Priest7. Worship and the Ordinances: Directing Attention to God8. Pastoral Care: Tending the Flock9. Spiritual Formation: Teaching Them to Obey All That I Have CommandedPart 4: Leadership: Pastor as Servant10. Pastoral Authority: Serving Something Larger11. The Equipping Leader: Sharing Ministry12. Dreaming of the Future: Offering HopeConclusionAppendix: A Baptist Who's WhoIndexes

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Book SynopsisAndrew Root's well-received Ministry in a Secular Age series offers a developed practical theology that uniquely attends to divine action. Series volumes engage with Charles Taylor's articulation of our cultural context and the challenge he raises for Christian life in a Western world that has found divine action increasingly unbelievable. This project provides not only a needed and deep dialogue with the issues Taylor presents but also offers a constructive vision for confronting Taylor's challenge. Volumes include: · Faith Formation in a Secular Age: Responding to the Church's Obsession with Youthfulness · The Pastor in a Secular Age: Ministry to People Who No Longer Need a God · The Congregation in a Secular Age: Keeping Sacred Time against the Speed of Modern Life · Churches and the Crisis of Decline: A Hopeful, Practical Ecclesiology for a Secular Age · The Church after Innovation: Questioning Our Obsession with Work, Creativity, and Entrepreneurship · The Church in an Age of Secular Mysticisms: Why Spiritualities without God Fail to Transform Us

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Book SynopsisAugustine: From Rhetor to Theologian arose from a conference held at Trinity College, Toronto, to celebrate the 1600th anniversary of the conversion to Catholic Christianity of Augustine of Hippo. Fifteen papers from international scholars make up this book. Augustine set his stamp on the Latin Church, yet only in the twentieth century, with its profound, even paradigmatic change did the descendants of that church -- Anglican, Reformed, and Roman Catholic -- recognize the degree to which their inbred attitudes and theological positions were ""Augustinian."" It is, however, another measure of the importance of Augustine that many aspects of his life and meanings of his writings are still disputed. This continuing investigation and debate is evidenced in this volume.

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Book SynopsisThe goal of preaching is to let the powerful message of the Bible penetrate the lives of your congregation. A well-crafted sermon can help to bridge the gap between biblical context and contemporary application.In Excellent Preaching, Craig Bartholomew explains why we need to be acquainted with both the context of Scripture and the context in which we preach. Good contextualization is hard work, but Bartholomew shows that it can be done.Practical, accessible, and rooted in years of preaching experience, this short book helps preachers connect the message of the text to everyday life.Trade ReviewIn this masterful little book, Craig Bartholomew provides a view of preaching in which the preacher proclaims God's living and authoritative word in a manner appropriate to a specific cultural context. Along the way he teaches the reader how to view a biblical text within the context of the whole biblical narrative, preach it in a way that draws hearers closer to God and at the same time sends them out into the world, and apply it to the prevalent idolatries of our time.--Bruce Riley AshfordBartholomew's thoughts on preaching should be read by every preacher. Our congregation is richly blessed when he opens God's word to us. His singular focus on the glory of Christ in all of scripture has been inspiring to me in our friendship and partnership in preaching the gospel. This book challenges us to take our task seriously, offering practical guidance and instruction for every preacher from the recently ordained and to the seasoned pastor.--The Rev R.D. Glenn, Rector (Senior Pastor) St. George's Anglican Church, BurlingtonIn this serious and, at times, deeply challenging book Craig Bartholomew brings together many of his passions: the Bible as the story of the world, the richness of Christian spirituality, the best of Reformed theology, hermeneutics and Christian philosophy. All these are put to work on the place of preaching in the life of the Church. Flying a plane works as a powerful metaphor for this foundational task and reminds us of the most important thing in the life of a believer: arriving at the destination of God himself ... an awesome, intimate, personal and transforming encounter. Such is the accumulated Christian wisdom of Bartholomew's own life of discipleship that almost every page of this small book is full of good things, things that invite us into deeper fellowship with the Trinity. I recommend this carefully distilled wisdom without hesitation to every person who is engaged in the preaching ministry.--Rev Dr William Olhausen, Church of Ireland priest and theological adviser to the Archbishop of DublinStanding in the tradition of John Stott, with his passion for preaching that was both faithful to the biblical text and relevantly applied to the contemporary context, Craig Bartholomew argues persuasively and passionately for a revival of exactly that quality of preaching in today's church. In a short space he combines deep biblical scholarship with acute cultural analysis. Pastors who long to be effective in their primary calling - to preach the Word of God - will find encouragement, vindication and ongoing challenge in this book.--Christopher J.H. Wright, Langham Partnership

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Book SynopsisThe work of St. Bartholomew of Braga, O.P. (1514–1590) appears here in English for the first time despite its long and enduring influence in ecclesiastical circles. His meditations on the office of pastor have provided critical insight bishops since their initial circulation and have helped form the most famous among them, including Bartholomew's proteges Charles Borromeo. Pope Paul VI ordered a copy of Bartholomew's work to be distributed among the Catholic bishops at the Second Vatican Council. Donald Prudlo's translation situates St. Bartholomew of the Martyrs in his historical context as a lynchpin of Catholic Reform and affirms him as a figurehead of pastoral administration even in our own times.

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Book SynopsisConsonant with its commitment to publish seminal works in the field of canon law, St. Augustine's Press is pleased to make available the first volume in a series that will undoubtedly endure as a masterpiece of scholarship. Carlos José Errázuriz, Professor of Canon Law at the Pontifical University of the Holy Cross (Rome) has provided a comprehensive and insightful treatment of rights, justice, and law in the Catholic Church, beginning with the most basic questions regarding the essence of these realities. His responses exhibit the perspective of that which is just in the Church, which consists of ecclesial juridical goods: the Word of God, the sacraments, the freedom of the children of God, and sacred potestas. This work vindicates the institution of law, but also addresses the "spontaneity" of just freedom proper to what has been instituted by Christ. Errázuriz presents more than the current Code of Canon Law. He instills a realistic perspective of right and law in the Church, and in so doing fills a massive gap in English scholarship. No introduction to canon law available in English rivals Errázuriz's description of justice in the Church and its relationship with communion and sacramentality. Volume I is comprised of the first three chapters of the original, Corso fondamentale sul diritto nella Chiesa (in two volumes, Giuffrè: Milan, 2009 and 2017): "Rights, Justice and Law in the Church," "Canon Law in History," and "The Configuration of Rights and Law in the Church."

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Book SynopsisHow do Christians account for the widespread presence of goodness in a fallen world? Richard Mouw, one of the most influential evangelical voices in America, presents his mature thought on the topic of common grace. Addressing a range of issues relevant to engaging common grace in the 21st century, Mouw shows how God takes delight in all things that glorify him--even those that happen beyond the boundaries of the church--and defends the doctrine of common grace from its detractors.Table of ContentsContentsIntroduction1. God's Complex Concerns2. The Joys of Discipleship3. The Divine Distance4. "That's Good!"5. Assessing "the Natural Mind"6. Is "Restraint" Enough?7. A Pause for Some "Meta-Calvinist" Considerations8. Resisting an Altar Call9. A Shared Humanness10. The Larger Story11. But Is It "Grace"?12. Attending to the Antithesis13. Religions Now "More Precisely Known"14. Common Grace and "the Last Days"15. Neo-Calvinism in America16. How Much Calvinism?17. Divine Generosity

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