Philosophy of religion Books

Book SynopsisThe Satanic Bible was written by Anton LaVey in 1969. It is a collection of essays, observations and basic Satanic rituals, and outlines LaVey''s Satanic ideology. It contains the core principles of LaVeyan Satanism and is considered the foundation of the philosophy and dogma that constitute Satanism.

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Book SynopsisBeautifully written, accessible and provocative, THE END OF FAITH is an impassioned plea for reason in a world divided by faith.

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Book Synopsis''This is a brilliant, shocking book ... also witty, painfully self-critical and humane ... it is a work of great literature'' Tim Whitmarsh, Guardian ''The Kingdom, already a huge bestseller in France, is thrilling, magnificent and strange'' Bryan Appleyard, Sunday TimesThe sensational international bestseller from one of France''s most fêted writers - an epic novel telling the story of Christianity as it has never been told before, and one man''s crisis of faith.Corinth, ancient Greece, two thousand years ago. An itinerant preacher, poor, wracked by illness, tells the story of a prophet who was crucified in Judea, who came back from the dead, and whose return is a sign of something enormous. Like a contagion, the story will spread over the city, the country and, eventually, the world. Emmanuel Carrère''s astonishing historical epic tells the story of the mysterious beginnings of Christianity, bringing to life a distant, primTrade ReviewBrilliant, shocking... also witty, painfully self-critical and humane... it is a work of great literature -- Tim Whitmarsh * Guardian *Emmanuel Carrère is said by many to be one of the best writers in France, if not Europe... The Kingdom, a huge bestseller in France, is thrilling, magnificent and strange -- Bryan Appleyard * Sunday Times *An utterly brilliant book... Carrère is a vivid guide and a knowledgeable one -- Catherine Nixey * The Times *A novelised memoir that vividly captures the drama of the Christian experience... A celebration of religious imagination - Catholic, French, Judaic, Hellenic - The Kingdom has been a runaway bestseller in France. In Britain, it may succeed as a relief and an antidote -- John Cornwell * Financial Times *There are few great writers in France today, and Emmanuel Carrère is one of them * Paris Review *

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Book SynopsisDr Francis S. Collins, head of the Human Genome Project, is one of the world's leading scientists, working at the cutting edge of the study of DNA, the code of life. Yet he is also a man of unshakable faith in God. How does he reconcile the seemingly unreconcilable? In THE LANGUAGE OF GOD he explains his own journey from atheism to faith, and then takes the reader on a stunning tour of modern science to show that physics, chemistry and biology -- indeed, reason itself -- are not incompatible with belief. His book is essential reading for anyone who wonders about the deepest questions of all: why are we here? How did we get here? And what does life mean?

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Book SynopsisTrade ReviewA Secular Age is a work of stupendous breadth and erudition. -- John Patrick Diggins * New York Times Book Review *A Secular Age represents a singular achievement… Taylor is somehow uniquely able to combine chutzpah and good manners, making bold and imaginative claims, yet always attending respectfully to the whole range of disciplines that touch on the philosophical trajectory being drawn, whether that be history, sociology, theology, art theory, cultural studies, anthropology or social theory… A Secular Age succeeds in the same way as his previous work: in illuminating through complicating. At the same time, this book seems to step up the ambition somewhat: by attempting to provide a final definitive account of all the narratives and complications that make up our contemporary age, as they implode on themselves and interact with one another… Hegel knew, of course, that ‘the owl of Minerva spreads its wings only with the falling of the dusk’; or, in other words, that philosophy can only fathom the truth about an age in hindsight, when the day has passed. But then again, that didn’t stop Hegel having a go; and we should be glad that it hasn’t stopped Charles Taylor, either. -- Christopher J. Insole * Times Literary Supplement *Charles Taylor’s remarkable book A Secular Age achieves something quite different from what other writers on secularization have accomplished. Most have focused on decline as the essence of secularism—either the removal of religion from sphere after sphere of public life, or the decrease of religious belief and practice. But Taylor focuses on what kind of religion makes sense in a secular age… Taylor is asking not only how secularism became a significant option in a civilization that not so long ago was explicitly Christian, but what that change means for the spiritual quest, both of those who are still religious and those who consider themselves secular. I doubt many people have even perceived that aspect of secularism, and Taylor’s book should be as much of a revelation to them as it was to me. -- Robert N. Bellah * Commonweal *Taylor’s book is a major and highly original contribution to the debates on secularization that have been ongoing for the past century. There is no book remotely like it. -- Alasdair MacIntyreOne finds big nuggets of insight, useful to almost anybody with an interest in the progress of human society… A vast ideological anatomy of possible ways of thinking about the gradual onset of secularism as experienced in fields ranging from art to poetry to psychoanalysis… Taylor also lays bare the inconsistencies of some secular critiques of religion. * The Economist *[A] thumping great volume. -- Stuart Jeffries * The Guardian *In A Secular Age, philosopher Charles Taylor takes on the broad phenomenon of secularization in its full complexity… [A] voluminous, impressively researched and often fascinating social and intellectual history…Taylor’s account encompasses art, literature, science, fashion, private life—all those human activities that have been sometimes more, sometimes less affected by religion over the last five centuries. -- Jack Miles * Los Angeles Times *A rich, complex book, but what I most appreciate is [Taylor’s] vision of a ‘secular’ future that is both open and also contains at least pockets of spiritual rigor, and that is propelled by religious motivation, a strong and enduring piece of our nature. -- David Brooks * New York Times *Taylor is arguably the most interesting and important philosopher writing in English today… What makes Taylor so important? Over more than 40 years, four large books, four or five slimmer essays and several volumes of articles, he has worked out a distinctive network of arguments and an exceptionally rich analysis of the modern self and its values—an analysis that reveals us to be altogether deeper and more interesting, but also less self-aware, than we tend to suppose… A Secular Age sets out to offer a richer characterization of secularization and the nature of contemporary belief, both religious and skeptical… Taylor writes brilliantly about the new social forms—the nation state, the market economy, the charitable enterprise—and the ideals of altruism and public service that have emerged with them… A Secular Age is effectively a polemic against dogmatic atheism… It is full of insights, and many of its component parts—notably Taylor’s discussion of the ‘pressures’ that make a settled view on the big ontological questions hard to sustain—are as good as anything by this magnificent philosopher. -- Ben Rogers * Prospect *Taylor’s masterful integration of history, sociology, philosophy, and theology demands much of the reader. In return you will be convinced that Charles Taylor is one of the smartest and deepest social thinkers of our time. -- Tyler Cowen * Slate *In an idiosyncratic blend of the philosophical, the historical, and the speculative, Taylor describes the shift from a world brim-full with spirits and magic to a world where divinity is absent. His account resists the idea that the rise of secularism is a process of subtraction, of loss, and of disenchantment. Rather, Taylor describes secularity’s birth as the migration of ideas, subtle changes in those ideas, and the opening of new possibilities. If Taylor’s communitarian scholarship celebrated historical and social rootedness, A Secular Age is an encomium to the sheer happenstance of how those circumstances arose. -- Azziz Huq * American Prospect *[A Secular Age] may become an enduring contribution to understanding religious belief, the evolution of the secular order, and the defining characteristics of modern secularism and contemporary spirituality. Like Charles Taylor’s earlier books, it is a product of prodigious erudition. Its 874 dense pages brim with original observation, cogent argument constructed from sources in a wide array of disciplines, and generous ecumenical gestures, even towards humanists. His story is complex, somewhat repetitious and yet unflaggingly interesting: it is loaded with so much novel detail and insight that the reader will be grateful for each scrap of familiar ground. -- Tamas Pataki * Australian Review of Books *Sophisticated, erudite…with excursions into history, philosophy and literature, A Secular Age is a weighty and challenging tome. It is also a brilliant account of the ‘sensed context’ in which secularization developed. And a moving meditation, by a believer, on the ‘ineradicable bent’ of human beings to respond to something beyond life, to keep open ‘the transcendent window.’ -- Glenn C. Altschuler * Baltimore Sun *If you are, as I am, often puzzled by the landscape of contemporary religious belief and unbelief, you will regard Charles Taylor’s huge and hugely rewarding intellectual history of the secularization of European and North American culture as a marvelous gift. A Secular Age is a first-class map of the spiritual terrain of Western modernity as well as the road that got us here. -- Robert Westbrook * Christian Century *A culminating dispatch from the philosophical frontlines. It is at once encyclopedic and incisive, a sweeping overview that is no less analytically rigorous for its breadth. Its subject is a philosophical history of the past, present and future of Western Christendom. As such, it begins with a deceptively simple question: How did it become possible for anyone to not believe in God?… A Secular Age recounts the history of an idea, in other words, but in it the past is not an inert, settled fact, but a reservoir to be drawn upon to shatter the sameness and the apparent inevitability of the present. As a history it clarifies crucial intellectual and theological divisions that continue to structure debates about divinity, but with the aim of reforming the way we think about them, ‘to show the play of destabilization and recomposition.’ Though this isn’t a book you take to the beach, it remains eminently readable. As philosophers go, Taylor is a kind of behaviorist, more concerned with elaborating the implications of a way of thinking than with showing its contradictions. Unlike most philosophers, though, Taylor seems at pains to remain accessible to a general audience to capture complex philosophical debate in ordinary language. An important part of Taylor’s argument is that religion and the belief in God, most particularly the experience of transcendence, are not at all outmoded… Though it avoids predictions or prescriptions, A Secular Age leaves us with the sense that the future will be a far poorer, less human place, if we do not discover some expression for that transcendent otherness. -- Steven Hayward * Cleveland Plain Dealer *It is, simply, the most comprehensive account of the process and meaning of secularization… Taylor’s depiction of the past two centuries is rich with insights and subtle analyses… Familiarity with Taylor’s book is now the entry ticket for any serious discussion of secularization. -- Peter Steinfels * Commonweal *Very occasionally there appears a book destined to endure. A Secular Age is such a book… A Secular Age is an important and deeply interesting work. Its central thesis is that secularization must be understood not simply as the decline of certain beliefs and institutions, but as a total change in our experience of the world… There are subtle, original discussions of the modern self, of changing conceptions of time, of the religious landscape of art, and much else besides. Taylor has a great gift of empathy, an ability to inhabit and bring to life the mental world of both believers and unbelievers. A true Hegelian, he sees the goal of philosophy as understanding, not judgment. -- Edward Skidelsky * Daily Telegraph *A Secular Age offers an invaluable map of how the modern religious–secular divide came into being. -- Andrew Koppelman * Dissent *Though this essential Canadian intellectual may overstate the triumph of secularity, his huge and elegant work takes on the transformation of the world from 1500, when it was almost impossible not to believe in a Creator, to 2000, when religion was simply one choice on a menu of belief systems. He finds the answer in ‘exclusive humanism,’ which sees ‘no final goals beyond human flourishing, nor any allegiance to anything else beyond this flourishing.’ -- Donald Harman Akenson * Globe & Mail *It is refreshing to read an inquiry into the condition of religion that is exploratory in its approach. Charles Taylor, a Roman Catholic as well as one of the world’s leading political theorists, does not aim to attack or defend any system of belief in his new book, A Secular Age. Rather, he wants to elucidate the very idea of a secular world. For Taylor, the difference between the pre-modern Western world and the modern West is not simply that beliefs held then are no longer accepted today; it is that the entire framework of thought has changed. -- John Gray * Harper’s *In a determinedly brilliant new book, Charles Taylor challenges the ‘subtraction theory’ of secularization which defines it as a process whereby religion simply falls away, to be replaced by science and rationality. Instead, he sees secularism as a development within Western Christianity, stemming from the increasingly anthropocentric versions of religion that arose from the Reformation. For Taylor, the modern age is not an age without religion; instead, secularization heralds ‘a move from a society where belief in God is unchallenged and indeed, unproblematic, to one in which it is understood to be one option among others.’ The result is a radical pluralism which, as well as offering unprecedented freedom, creates new challenges and instabilities. * London Review of Books *The real genius of this erudite and profound book resides in its grandeur of theme and richness of detail. For all its imposing intellectual density, it is a delight to read; at times, it was literally impossible to put down. Yet it is also a work that ought to be read by degrees—one chapter at a time, with ample pause for reflection. -- Lorenzo DiTommaso * Montreal Gazette *A salutary and sophisticated defense of how life was lived before the daring views of a tiny secular elite inspired mass indifference, and how it might be lived in the future. -- Michael Burleigh * New York Sun *Taylor reminds us that we remain spiritual creatures in our most essential natures, and that what we take for granted—our age’s lack of religious faith—is, in fact, an anomaly of history. Our forefathers did not live this way and our grandchildren might not either. Considering the doubts about extreme secularism, it is possible we are entering a new Age of Spirit. If so, Taylor’s latest magnum opus serves as a comprehensive guide to the reemergence of religious sensibility. -- Robert Sibley * Ottawa Citizen *The focus here is neither on the role of religion in public institutions nor on the extent of religious belief, but rather on its conditions… It is the slow emergence of secularity in this sense that Taylor sets out to explain, at formidable length, and in remarkable historical and philosophical detail. Binding all that detail together is an argument that Taylor manages to sustain over nearly eight hundred pages. Simply put, A Secular Age is a magisterial refutation of what Taylor calls the ‘subtraction story’ of secularisation. -- Jonathan Derbyshire * Philosopher’s Magazine *Taylor’s gargantuan philosophical history of modernity, which complicates the flattering and simplified story we like to tell ourselves about secularization, is a major intellectual event. -- Jonathan Derbyshire * Prospect *Grapples with the Christian–secular relationship, and with admirable nuance (unlike most theology). -- Theo Hobson * The Tablet *Taylor makes a strong case for the presence in ordinary moral life of something like Plato’s idea of the Good, however little acknowledged… A Secular Age carries the story further, into the question of the role of religion in constituting a person’s identity. Taylor wants to lay out what it takes to go on believing in God, in the absence of any equivalent to the intellectual, cultural and imaginative surroundings in which pre-modern religion was quietly embedded. This is what he calls our ‘social imaginary’: how we collectively sense what is normal and appropriate in our dealings with one another and with the world around us. This is something deeper and more diffused than philosophical theories or thought-out positions. -- Fergus Kerr * The Tablet *A Secular Age is a towering achievement… It shows the ways we have traveled from the automatic certainties of 1500 to the fragile alignments of today. It transforms the secularization debate. -- David Martin * The Tablet *Charles Taylor’s A Secular Age offers a uniquely rich historical and philosophical overview of how we came to take a disenchanted world for granted—quietly inviting us to reflect that if disenchantment and the absence of the divine were learned habits of mind, they might not necessarily be the self-evidently rational truths so many think they are. -- Rowan Williams * Times Literary Supplement *[A] big, powerful book… [Taylor’s] book is massive in its historical and philosophical scope. Penetrating and dense, it would take months to fully digest. Loosely structured, it’s crammed with original insights. Taylor, 75, can pack more into one of his complex paragraphs than most prevaricating, deconstructing academic philosophers can say in a chapter, or even a book… The book explores the immense ramifications of how the West shifted in a few centuries from being a society in which ‘it was virtually impossible not to believe in God’ to one in which belief is optional, often frowned upon. -- Douglas Todd * Vancouver Sun *If the author had accomplished nothing more than a survey of the voluminous body of ‘secularization theory,’ he would have done something valuable. But, although Taylor clearly articulates his disdain for the view that modernity ineluctably led to the death of God, he goes far beyond a literature review… In addition to its conceptual value, this study is notable for its lucidity. Taylor has translated complex philosophical theories into language that any educated reader will be able to follow, yet he has not sacrificed an iota of sophistication or nuance. A magisterial book. * Kirkus Reviews (starred review) *In his characteristically erudite yet engaging fashion, Taylor takes up where he left off in his magnificent Sources of the Self (1989) as he brilliantly traces the emergence of secularity and the processes of secularization in the modern age… Taylor sweeps grandly and magisterially through the 18th and 19th centuries as he recreates the history of secularism and its parallel challenges to religion. He concludes that a focus on the religious has never been lost in Western culture, but that it is one among many stories striving for acceptance. Taylor’s examination of the rise of unbelief in the 19th century is alone worth the price of the book and offers an essential reminder that the Victorian age, more than the Enlightenment, dominates our present view of the meanings of secularity. Taylor’s inspired combination of philosophy and history sparkles in this must-read virtuoso performance. * Publishers Weekly (starred review) *This is Charles Taylor’s breakthrough book, a book of really major importance, because he succeeds in recasting the whole debate about secularism. This is one of the most important books written in my lifetime. I am tempted to say the most important book, but that may just express the spell the book has cast over me at the moment. -- Robert N. Bellah

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Book SynopsisThe bestselling historian of early Christianity takes on two of the most gripping questions of human existence where did the ideas of heaven and hell come from, and why do they endure?Trade Review‘[Ehrman’s] is a vast learning worn wonderfully lightly and he is an engaging but expert guide around how religious ideas were formed and shaped our world.’ * The Times *‘Many redoubtable volumes have been written about all this, but Ehrman, who already has more than two-dozen books on early Christianity under his belt, merrily blows the dust off the subject.’ * The Economist *‘This elegant history explores the evolution of the concept of the afterlife in Western thought... Well-trod subjects are presented with engaging clarity, and more contentious theories are laid out carefully.’ * The New Yorker *‘Ehrman, as always, writes in a very accessible way, and gives the reader plenty to think about.’ * Irish Independent *‘An impressively readable, clear and wide-ranging study.’ -- Spectator‘A number of religions and philosophies give detailed accounts of post-mortem existence; in this learned and highly readable book, Bart Ehrman offers a tour of the whole field… There are many nuances possible here; Ehrman presents them all with great clarity and massive scholarship.' * TLS *Table of ContentsAcknowledgments Preface Chapter One: Guided Tours of Heaven and Hell Chapter Two: The Fear of Death Chapter Three: Life After Death Before There Was Life After Death Chapter Four: Will Justice Be Done? The Rise of Postmortem Rewards and Punishments Chapter Five: Death After Death in the Hebrew Bible Chapter Six: Dead Bodies That Return to Life: The Resurrection in Ancient Israel Chapter Seven: Why Wait for the Resurrection? Life After Death Right After Death Chapter Eight: Jesus and the Afterlife Chapter Nine: The Afterlife After Jesus’s Life: Paul the Apostle Chapter Ten: Altering the Views of Jesus: The Later Gospels Chapter Eleven: The Afterlife Mysteries of the Book of Revelation Chapter Twelve: Eternal Life in the Flesh Chapter Thirteen: Tactile Ecstasy and Torment in the Christian Hereafter Chapter Fourteen: Who Will Inherit the Blessings? Purgatory, Reincarnation, and Salvation for All Afterword Notes Index

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Book SynopsisFor curious readers young and old, a rich and colorful history of religion from humanity's earliest days to our own contentious timesTrade Review"This is a well-written book, from which most of us will come away knowing more about the religions of the world than we knew before. . . . In its own way this engaging book might be seen as a period piece."—John Charmley, Times"Holloway’s account is brimful of arresting facts."—Ian Thomson, Financial Times"As an informed reflection on the state of faith in the western world in the 21st century, written by someone who has plenty of experience, it is insightful and intelligent."—Tim Whitmarsh, The Guardian“Holloway’s narrative is made up of many different threads and details carefully woven together to make a satisfying read. The pace is leisurely despite the amount of ground covered, and he manages to include memorable details.”—Carol Palfrey, Sofia "In an age of religious tension, this is an important contribution to understanding different beliefs. . . . A straightforward, well-written introduction to religion and its various manifestations."—Library Journal"Thank God – if I can use that phrase in a neutral way – for Richard Holloway and his carefully weighted, beautifully written and strangely compelling brief history of world religions. . . . There can be no better place to learn about [religion] than in the pages of this enlightening book."—Peter Stanford, The Observer"Holloway is a uniquely qualified and respectful guide. He neither preaches nor mocks . . . it’s a timely reminder that that, despite our differences, we have more in common than we think."—Catherine Small, East Anglian Daily Times"This lovable book is clearly modelled on a best-seller from the same publisher, Gombrich’s A Little History of the World. . . . It takes you from the assertion that religion is something which 'comes from the mind of the human animal,' and romps through the whole story, from the revelation on Sinai to the composition of the Vedas and the chronology of Hinduism and Buddhism, with short-summaries of their better known texts."—A.N. Wilson, The Tablet"Retells the entire history of religion with deepest respect and keen commitment to accuracy. . . . An empathetic yet discerning guide to the enduring significance and power of faith."—Edinburgh Life"For clarity and accessibility, in the minefield of tomes dealing with the fervours and fevers of 'accepted' religions, I recommend, with pleasure, Richard Holloway’s A Little History of Religion."—Hayden Murphy, The Glasgow Herald"As always, Holloway writes clearly and freshly, with good analogies and comparisons. He describes the basic terms and ideas in the simplest possible way without being patronising."—Richard Harries, Church Times"Richard Holloway’s deep affection for religious tradition, coupled with intellectual honesty and clarity of expression, has won him a host of avid readers among the faithful and the faith-less . . ."—David Boulton, The Friend“Fulfills exactly what its title promises, but with more depth and elegance than the title might imply. Holloway offers an engaging canter through almost four millennia of religious history, zigzagging both chronologically and geographically into a comprehensive range of sources, contexts and stories.”—Julie Grove, RE Today"It is difficult to name anyone more qualified to write on this topic than Richard Holloway. His own journey of faith has encompassed so many experiences that he writes with an admirable combination of detachment, knowledge and affectionate engagement."—Diarmaid MacCulloch, author of A History of Christianity: The First Three Thousand Years

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Book SynopsisTaking absolute nothingness as the fundamental notion in rational explanations of the Eastern experience of human life, this book examines the relevance of this notion for contemporary life, and in particular for Western philosophical theories and religious believes.Table of ContentsForeward Translation's Introduction Preface 1. What Is Religion? 2. The Personal and the Impersonal in Religion 3. Nihility and Sunyata 4. The Standpoint of Sunyata 5. Sunyata and Time 6. Sunyata and History Notes Glossary Index

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Book SynopsisTrade Review“It is a delight to see this beautifully smooth English translation of Against the Academics, with commentary that is both learned and engaging! Foley’s Augustine will reach students, scholars, and many others too.”—John C. Cavadini, University of Notre Dame“Michael Foley’s translations of Augustine’s dialogue Against the Academics is accurate and elegantly written, and his Introduction will provide both students and advanced scholars with a guide to Augustine’s early thinking on the Christian contemplative life.”—Brian Stock, University of Toronto and Collège de France“Foley’s text of Against the Academics is a valuable resource for students and scholars alike. The translation is accurate and readable, and the extensive commentary is full of insightful analysis.”—Blake Dutton, Loyola University ChicagoPraise for the series: “Foley’s exceptional labors now allow modern Anglophone readers to access the treasure of these dialogues, along with the related On the Immortality of the Soul. In each of Foley’s four volumes, an excellent translation is accompanied by a short introduction, then a commentary slightly longer than Augustine’s text, as well as hundreds of footnotes. Each volume stands on its own for classroom use.”—Daniel E. Burns, Review of Politics “Michael Foley’s orchestration of the Cassiciacum dialogues—a four-part translation, annotation, and commentary—renders Augustine’s most important voice, the voice of the seeker, readily available to a broad readership. These are perfect teaching texts, and they are equally compelling for experts. This welcome return of the dialogues, separate and yet intimately related in Foley’s handling of them, marks the most important literary event in Augustinian studies since Peter Brown’s biography.”—James Wetzel, Villanova University “Yale University Press has excelled in publishing these beautiful volumes. Michael Foley models good translation, deeply engaged with the intricacies of the Latin and yet flowing elegantly and readably across the page. Foley’s commentary introduces the reader carefully and invitingly into these important and complex texts from Augustine’s first years as a Christian writer. They belong on the shelves of all who value the wisdom of the early Christian tradition.”—Lewis Ayres, Durham University “A truly impressive undertaking.”—Marc D. Guerra, Assumption College “A consistent, faithful and elegant translation of the crucial but relatively neglected dialogues by Augustine of Hippo.”—Simon Oliver, Durham University “Michael Foley’s lively, precise new translation makes this dramatic dialogue accessible to today’s reader, adding yet another dimension to our understanding of the endless breadth of Augustine’s developing thought.”—Brian Daley, University of Notre Dame “Foley has provided a vital and long-needed service, giving us lively, engaging and accurate translations, and commentaries that are well-grounded without being overwhelming.”—Erik Kenyon, Bryn Mawr Classical Review “Michael P. Foley has given us a clear, compelling, and valuable resource in his new translation of Augustine’s inaugural work as a Christian convert. . . . Foley’s commentary and introductions somehow manage to be both informative and contextualizing without overshadowing the intricacies and insights of the text they are in service of.”—Zachary Thomas Settle, Augustinian Studies “Michael Foley’s new translation of Augustine’s Cassiciacum dialogues (of which the first two of a projected four volumes are now available) is clear, useful, and long overdue.”—Elizabeth Klein, Theological Studies “Foley is to be congratulated on providing a good critical edition and not least a readable translation of the text.”—Nicholas Paxton, Melita Theologica “Foley’s translation reads easily and is transparent. Literal translation and identical formatting in each volume contribute substantially to the reader’s insight into the plan of the Cassiciacum dialogues. Michael Foley’s reading and translation are convincing in many respects.”—Martin Claes, Augustiniana “Foley’s translations and commentaries on the Cassiciacum dialogues offer a smooth presentation of Augustine’s ear

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Book SynopsisThis third volume in N. T. Wright's magisterial series, Christian Origins and the Question of GodTrade Review"The most monumental defence of the Easter heritage in decades . . . The Resurrection of the Son of God marches through a clearly organized case that confronts every major doubt about Easter, ancient and modern." -- Richard N. Ostling, Associated Press * Associated Press *A monumental achievement in its scope, depth and execution... a landmark in scholarly studies of the resurrection." -- Gerard O'Collins, The TabletWright has succeeded in building a theological cathedral of illuminated historical insights, convincing and surprising exegetical observations, and thoroughly argued systematic conclusions. No prophetic intuition is needed to predict thatthis book will remain a classic. * Scottish Journal of Theology *book really is a bomb thrown into the playground of the theologians. Not only that, it is perhaps even more unusual in being both a joy to read and nearly 850 pages in length . . . It is not only an excellent argument, it is a model for how scholarship should be done. * Themelios *Displays on every page an enviable competence and lucidity in handling all the evidence. * The Times Literary Supplement *

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Book SynopsisTrade Review"World’s 2017 Book of the Year in “History”"

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Book Synopsis''Empowering....of great benefit to those who want their doors flung open by Allah'' - Mufti MenkWhat seems impossible can become possible through du'aIn The Power of Du'a, Sunday Times bestselling author and revert, Aliyah Umm Raiyaan takes you on a journey that shows how faith and practising du'a (a personal supplication) can transform your life.Featuring inspirational real-life stories from those who have experienced miraculous results from living with du'a, this book is a comforting guide to revive and develop a close relationship with Al Mujeeb The One Who Responds. Through life's challenges and struggles, with tools from the Qur'an and Sunnah, you will learn how to: Sincerely prepare your heart before du'a Ask of Allah from a place of certainty, during du'a Move forward in faithful trust after He responds You will learn how to

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Book SynopsisThis deluxe hardback edition presents Gibran''s poetic masterpiece The Prophet, featuring gilded page edges, beautiful black and white illustrations and a foil-embossed cover design. The Prophet is a concise but deeply profound prose poem set in the city of Orphalese. Before leaving on a journey to his homeland, the prophet Almustafa imparts words of wisdom to the crowds, touching on occasions of birth, marriage, death and all of life''s other milestones. An international bestseller, it has furnished individuals the world over with words of joy or consolation. Introduced by John Baldock, this beautiful Wibalin-bound edition makes a wonderful gift for anyone seeking insight and reflection on life''s simple truths. ABOUT THE SERIES: Arcturus Ornate Classics are beautifully bound editions of iconic literary works across history. These compact, foil-embossed hardbacks are printed using deluxe ivory paper and make the perfect gift.

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Book Synopsis"No one has done so much as Mr. Eliade to inform literature students in the West about 'primitive' and Oriental religions...Everyone who cares about the human adventure will find new information and new angles of vision."--Martin E. Marty, "New York Times Book Review"

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Book SynopsisOne of the classics of modern spirituality, Encounters with Silence is one of Karl Rahner’s most lucid and powerful books. A book of meditations about man’s relation with God, it is not a work of dry theology, but rather a book of prayerful reflections on love, knowledge, and faith, obedience, everyday routines, life with our friends and neighbors, our work and vocation, and human goodness. The immense success of this moving work is a tribute to its practicality and the ability of the great theologian to speak simply and yet profoundly to ordinary men and women seeking an inspiring guide to the inner life, one that never forsakes the world of reality. The book is cast in the form of a dialogue with God that moves from humble but concerned inquiry to joyful contemplation.“You will come again because the fact that you have already come must continue to be revealed ever more clearly. It must become progressively manifest to the world that the heart of all things is already transformed, because you have taken them all to your heart. . . . The false appearance of our world, the shabby pretense that it has not been liberated . . . must be more and more thoroughly rooted out and destroyed. . . . And your coming is neither past nor future, but the present, which has only to reach its fulfillment. Now it is still the one single hour of your advent.” (from the book)

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Book SynopsisBarbara Ehrenreich is an acclaimed social critic on both sides of the Atlantic, renowned for her trenchant, witty polemics, her pieces of journalism, and her trademark intelligence. She writes with unparalleled precision, insight and a rationalist's unwavering gaze. But in middle age, she rediscovered the journal she had kept during her tumultuous adolescence, which records an event so strange that she had never, in all the intervening years, written or spoken about it. It was the kind of event that people call a 'mystical experience' - and to a steadfast atheist and rationalist, was nothing less than shattering. In Living with a Wild God, Ehrenreich vividly explores her life-long quest to find 'the truth' about the universe and everything else, in an attempt to reconcile this cataclysmic, defining moment with her secular understanding of the world. The result is a profound reflection on science, religion and the human condition, and a personal insight into the inner life of one of our finest thinkers. It is a book that challenges us all to reassess our perceptions of the world and what it means to be alive.

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Book SynopsisThis book presents Paul Tillich at his very best--brief, clear, stimulating, provocative. Speaking with understanding and force, he makes a basic analysis of love, power, and justice, all concepts fundamental in the mutual relations of people, of social groups, and of humankind to God. His concern is to penetrate to the essential, or ontological foundation of the meaning of each of these words and thus save them from the vague talk, idealism, cynicism, andsentimentality with which they are usually treated. The basic unity of love, power, and justice is affirmed and described in terms that are fresh and compelling.Trade Review"One of the most thoughtful analyses of a basic problem of Christian ethics which we have had in our day."--Reinhold Niebuhr "Tillich...is one among the few leading Christian theologians who have begun to write in a provocative and fresh way in areas immediately relevant to the problem of ethics."--Philosophical Review

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Book SynopsisThe Foundation for Inner Peace is based in Mill Valley, California, USA. Within the UK, the contact organisation is the Miracle Network, which is based in London.

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Book SynopsisIn this wide-ranging book, Rowan Williams argues that what we say about Jesus Christ is key to understanding what Christian belief says about creator and creation overall. Through detailed discussion of texts from the earliest centuries to the present day, we are shown some of the various and subtle ways in which Christians have discovered in their reflections on Christ the possibility of a deeply affirmative approach to creation, and a set of radical insights in ethics and politics as well. Throughout his life, Rowan Williams has been deeply influenced by thinkers of the Eastern Christian tradition as well as Catholic and Anglican writers. This book draws on insights from Eastern Christianity, from the Western Middle Ages and from Reformed thinkers, from Calvin to Bonhoeffer as well as considering theological insights sparked by philosophers like Kierkegaard and Wittgenstein. Christ the Heart of Creation concerns fundamental issues for Christian belief and Williams Trade ReviewI have not caught anything like the full complexity or density of William's book ... [It is] a display of daunting wide erudition, of a powerful and well-stocked mind at work making connections and offering insights, judgements and suggestions in many directions across a whole range of scholarly debates ... Readers who tackle it will find much that is rich and illuminating. * Times Literary Supplement *[A] magisterial new survey of Christology. * Church Times *Rewarding ... An intellectually challenging book ... I can think of no more stimulating companion to have in trying to negotiate the thickets of christology. * Augustinianum *A major work of modern theology ... with impressive scholarship. * Theology Journal *Christ the Heart of Creation is an insightful, masterful and thoroughly impressive work. * International Journal of Systematic Theology *Table of ContentsAcknowledgements Preface Introduction: Beginning the Middle (Ages): Aquinas's Christological Vision 1 Jesus Christ: Infinite Act and Finite Embodiment 2 Summarizing a Tradition: The Christology of Thomas Aquinas 3 The Unity of Christ 4 Transforming Humanity: Christ as the Ground of Communion PART ONE 1.1 Formulating the Question: From Paul to Augustine 1 New Testament Origins: History, Faith and Narrative 2 From Paul to Nicaea: The Logos and the Flesh 3 Towards Chalcedon 4 A Latin Voice: Augustine on the Unity of Christ 1.2 Refining the Vocabulary: The Contribution of Early Byzantine Theology 1 Chalcedon and its Aftermath 2 Terminological Developments: Leontius of Byzantium and Leontius of Jerusalem 3 Maximus the Confessor: Christology and the Reconciled Cosmos 4 A Byzantine Synthesis: John of Damascus 5 The Story So Far PART TWO 2.2 Loss and Recovery: Calvin and the Re-formation of Christology 1 Dismantling Aquinas: The Later Medieval Discussion 2 The Catholic Calvin: A Theological Tradition Renewed 3 A New Diversity: The Varieties of Protestant Christology 2.2 Christ, Creation and Community: Christology in the Shadow of Antichrist 1 Barth, Bonhoeffer and the Legacy of Protestant Orthodoxy 2 Bonhoeffer's Christology Lectures 3 Christology, Ethics and Politics: Discourses of Transformation Conclusion: Christ, the Heart of Creation; The Tension in Metaphysics and Theology Appendix: Concluding (Unethological?) Postscript: Wittgenstein, Kierkegaard and Chalcedon Index

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Book SynopsisDrawn from a wide range of writings and featuring state-of-the-art translations, Basic Works offers convenient access to Thomas Aquinas' most important discussions of nature, being and essence, divine and human nature, and ethics and human action.The translations all capture Aquinas's sharp, transparent style and display terminological consistency. Many were originally published in the acclaimed translation-cum-commentary series The Hackett Aquinas, edited by Robert Pasnau and Jeffrey Hause. Others appear here for the first time: Eleonore Stump and Stephen Chanderbahn's translation of On the Principles of Nature, Peter King's translation of On Being and Essence, and Thomas Williams' translations of the treatises On Happiness and On Human Acts from the Summa theologiae.Basic Works will enable students to immerse themselves in Aquinas's thought by offering his fundamental works without internal abridgements. It will also appeal to anyone in search of an up-to-date, one-volume collection containing Aquinas' essential philosophical contributions--from the Five Ways to the immortality of the soul, and from the nature of happiness to virtue theory, and on to natural law.

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Book SynopsisCalled The Black Pope by many of his followers, Anton La Vey began the road to High Priesthood of the Church of Satan when he was only 16 years old and an organ player in a carnival...On Saturday night I would see men lusting after halfnaked girls dancing at the carnival, and on Sunday morning when I was playing the organ for tent-show evangelists at the other end of the carnival lot, I would see these same men sitting in the pews with their wives and children, asking God to forgive them and purge them of carnal desires. And the next Saturday night they''d be back at The carnival or some other place of indulgence.I knew then that the Christian Church thrives on hypocrisy, and that man''s carnal nature will out!From that time early in his life his path was clear. Finally, on the last night of April, 1966?Walpurgisnacht,the most important festival of the believers in witchcraft?LaVey shaved his head in the tradition of Ancient executioners and announced the formation of The Church Of Satan. He had seen the need for a church that would recapture man''s body and his carnal desires as objects of celebration.Since worship of fleshly things produces pleasure, he said, there would then be a temple of glorious indulgence . . .

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Book Synopsis''We have left dry land and put out to sea! We have burned the bridge behind us - what is more, we have burned the land behind us!''Nietzsche''s devastating demolition of religion would have seismic consequences for future generations. With God dead, he envisages a brilliant future for humanity: one in which individuals would at last be responsible for their destinies.One of twenty new books in the bestselling Penguin Great Ideas series. This new selection showcases a diverse list of thinkers who have helped shape our world today, from anarchists to stoics, feminists to prophets, satirists to Zen Buddhists.

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Book SynopsisEvery culture hands wisdom down through generations. What doesn't kill you makes you stronger. What you do not wish for yourself, do not do to others. Happiness comes from within. Can these 'truths' hold the key to a happier, more fulfilled life?In The Happiness Hypothesis, social psychologist Jonathan Haidt examines ten Great Ideas which have been championed across centuries and civilisations and asks: how can we apply these ideas to our twenty-first century lives? By holding ancient wisdom to the test of modern psychology, Haidt extracts lessons on how we can train our brains to be more optimistic, build better relationships and achieve a sense of balance. He also explores how we can overcome the obstacles to well-being that we place in our own way.In this uplifting and empowering book, Haidt draws on sources as diverse as Buddha, Benjamin Franklin and Shakespeare to show how we can find happiness and meaning in life.'I don't think I ever read a book that laid out the contemporary understanding of the human condition with such simple clarity and sense.' GuardianTrade ReviewI really can't recommend this book enough. It's one of the best and most insightful books I've ever read . . . this book is just amazing for helping you recognize errors in thinking and personal biases that we all experience. It really gets to the roots of what makes people happy and unhappy rather than being some sort of a positive thinking, motivational book. Just outstanding stuff that you can really apply in day to day life.Examining the ideas of thinkers like Plato, Buddha and Jesus in light of modern research . . . Haidt, a social psychologist, provides practical advice for parenting, romance, work and coping with the political and cultural divisions. * Psychology Today *The Happiness Hypothesis is a wonderful and nuanced book that provides deep insight into the some of the most important questions in life - Why are we here? What kind of life should we lead? What paths lead to happiness? From the ancient philosophers to cutting edge scientists, Haidt weaves a tapestry of the best and the brightest. His highly original work on elevation and awe - two long-neglected emotions - adds a new weave to that tapestry. A truly inspiring book.This is a delightful book . . . Haidt's writing embraces spiritual and mystical viewpoints while retaining scientific and rational coherence. * Nature *This unusual book sets itself apart from the self-help category with its extensive scientific references, and intelligent, neutral prose, while the author's illuminating illustration of how the human mind works is both educational and refreshing. * Sunday Times *Psychologist Jonathan Haidt shows in his wonderfully smart and readable The Happiness Hypothesis [that] modern science and history have a lot to say to each other * Washington Post *You know what? Reading it did actually make this reviewer happier. * Arena *This is my most gifted book. -- Prof Damien Hughes, co-author of HIGH PERFORMANCE

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Book SynopsisThis book is a three-part journey into the rabbit hole we call the nature of reality. Its ultimate destination is a plausible, living validation of transcendence. Each of its three parts is like a turn of a spiral, exploring recurring ideas through the prisms of religious myth, truth and belief, respectively. With each turn, the book seeks to convey a more nuanced and complete understanding of the many facets of transcendence. Part I puts forward the controversial notion that many religious myths are actually true; and not just allegorically so. Part II argues that our own inner storytelling plays a surprising role in creating the seeming concreteness of things and the tangibility of history. Part III suggests, in the form of a myth, how deeply ingrained belief systems create the world we live in. The three themes, myth, truth and belief, flow into and interpenetrate each other throughout the book.

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Book SynopsisContemporary scholarship tends to view Albert Camus as a modern, but he himself was conscious of the past and called the transition from Hellenism to Christianity “the true and only turning point in history.” For Camus, modernity was not fully comprehensible without an examination of the aspirations that were first articulated in antiquity and that later received their clearest expression in Christianity. These aspirations amounted to a fundamental reorientation of human life in politics, religious, science, and philosophy. Understanding the nature and achievement of that reorientation became the central task of Christian Metaphysics and Neoplatonism. Primarily known through its inclusion in a French omnibus edition, it has remained one of Camus’s least-read works, yet it marks his first attempt to understand the relationship between Greek philosophy and Christianity as he charted the movement from the Gospels through Gnosticism and Plotinus to what he calls Augustine’s “second revelation” of the Christian faith. Ronald Srigley’s translation of this seminal document helps illuminate these aspects of Camus’ work. His freestanding English edition exposes readers to an important part of Camus’ thought that is often overlooked by those concerned primarily with the book’s literary value and supersedes the extant McBride translation by retaining a greater degree of literalness. Srigley has fully annotated the book to include nearly all of Camus’ original citations and has tracked down many poorly identified sources. His introduction and new preface places the text in the context of Camus’ better-known later work, explicating its relationship to those mature writings and exploring how its themes were reworked in subsequent books. He included a new preface to highlight Camus’ relationship with Christianity, especially to St. Augustine. As the only stand-alone English version of this important work – and a long-overdue critical edition – Srigley’s fluent translation is an essential bench-mark in our understanding of Camus and his place in modern thought.Table of ContentsAcknowledgments Translator's Introduction Translator's Preface CHRISTIAN METAPHYSIC AND NEOPLATONISM Introduction Chap. 1: Evangelicl Christianiy Chap. 2: Gnosis Chap. 3: Mystic Reason Chap. 4: Augustne Bibliography Index

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Book SynopsisIn Breaking the Spell Daniel C. Dennett explores how the great ideas of religion have enthralled us for thousands of years - and whether we could (or should) break free. What is religion and how did it evolve? Is it the product of blind evolutionary instinct or of rational choice? Is the only way to live a good life through religion? Few forces in the world are as potent as religion: it comforts people in their suffering and inspires them to both magnificent and terrible deeds. In this provocative and timely book, Daniel C. Dennett seeks to uncover the origins of religion and discusses how and why different faiths have shaped so many lives, whether religion is an addiction or a genuine human need, and even whether it is good for our health. Arguing passionately for the need to understand this multifaceted phenomenon, Breaking the Spell offers a truly original - and comprehensive - explanation for faith. ''Packed with a mass of intriguing detail and anecdote ... witty and clear prose''  Observer ''He''s the good cop among religion''s critics (Richard Dawkins is the bad cop), but he still makes people angry''  New Statesman ''Dennett writes with brio and humour''  Telegraph ''Elegant, sharp-minded ... clear-eyed but courteous''  Economist Daniel Dennett is one of the most original and provocative thinkers in the world. A brilliant polemicist and philosopher, he is famous for challenging unexamined orthodoxies, and an outspoken supporter of the Brights movement. His books include Brainstorms, Brainchildren, Elbow Room, Consciousness Explained, Darwin''s Dangerous Idea and Freedom Evolves.

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Book SynopsisTrade Review"A tour-de-force survey of the changing relation of culture and religion."—Publishers Weekly"Eagleton produces an account of the continuing power of religion that is rich and compelling. Open this book at random, and you will find on a single page more thought-stirring argument than can be gleaned from a dozen ponderous treatises on philosophy of sociology. Most of the critical turning points in modern thought are examined illuminatingly."—John Gray, New Statesman"Wide-ranging and intellectually impassioned."—Sarah Bakewell, Financial Times"His latest book confirms him as one of the most interesting thinkers on culture and religion that we have, and the good news is that what he says about our contemporary situation is true, important and accessible . . . That Eagleton . . . ought to be taken seriously by serious people is beyond doubt."—John McDade, The Tablet"Getting rid of God has been a long slog, Eagleton’s concise, absorbing overview of the philosophical and cultural trends of the past three centuries explains."—Marcus Tanner, The Independent"Terry Eagleton brings all his forensic insights and acerbic wit, to the search for a replacement for God in critical thinking since the Enlightenment . . . Eagleton’s thoughts – 'one can kill for all sorts of motives, but killing on a spectacular scale is almost always the consequence of ideas' – are a joy to ponder. That and his depth of knowledge make for fascinating reading."—Scarlett MacGwire, Tribune Magazine"If Terry Eagleton didn't exist, it would be necessary to invent him."—Simon Critchley, author of The Book of Dead Philosophers"The central virtue of Eagleton's reliably witty and erudite story of culture and politics in Western thought is the insistence on how difficult, and how rare, genuine atheism is. No one interested in the seemingly endless 'God debate' can ignore this book, which briskly surveys more than three centuries of intellectual discourse about democracy and the divine, and then ends with a well-turned, provocative snarl."—Mark Kingwell, author of Unruly Voices: Essays on Democracy, Civility and the Human Imagination

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Book SynopsisThis highly original interpretation of Paul by the Jewish philosopher of religion Jacob Taubes was presented in a number of lectures held in Heidelberg toward the end of his life, and was regarded by him as his "spiritual testament".Trade Review"As always with Taubes, it is all very apocalyptic and reasonably brilliant or, at least, brilliantly distorted and filled with strokes of genius—the genius of a charlatan at his very, very best."—Hebraic Political StudiesTable of Contents@fmct:Contents @toc4:Translator's Note and Acknowledgments iii @toc4:Preface iii @toc2:Introduction 1 @toc3:1. Autobiographical Approaches to the Epistle to the Romans 000 2. Paul in Jewish Religious History: Messianic Logic 000 @toc2:Part I: Readings: Paul and Moses, the Establishment of a New People of God @toc3:1. Addresses of the Epistle to the Romans 000 Excursus: The Fate of the Jewish Christian Congregations 000 2. Nomos: Law and Justification; a Reading of Romans 811 000 3. Election and Rejection: A Reading of Romans 8:319:5 and Berakhot 32a 000 4. Pneuma: The Surpassing of Salvation History and the Overcoming of This World; a Reading of Romans 913 000 @toc2:Part II. Effects: Paul and Modernity, Transfigurations of the Messianic @toc2:1. Strangers in This World: Marcion and the Consequences 000 2. The Zealots of the Absolute and of Decision: Carl Schmitt and Karl Barth 000 3. Nihilism as World Politics and Aestheticized Messianism: Walter Benjamin and Theodor W. Adorno 000 4. Exodus from Biblical Religion: Friedrich Nietzsche and Sigmund Freud 000 @toc2:Appendix A: The Jacob TaubesCarl Schmitt Story 000 @toc2:Apprendix B: Two Letters @toc2:Afterword 000 @tocca:Wolf-Daniel Hartwich, Aleida and Jan Assmann @toc3:1. Readings: The Legitimation and Formation of a New Union-Covenant [Ver-Bund] 000 2. Effects: Paul and Modernity 000 3. Political Theology 000 @toc3:Editorial Note 000 @toc4:Notes 000 @toc4:Index of Names 000 Library of Congress Subject Headings for this publication: Bible, N, T, Romans Criticism, interpretation, etc, Paul, the Apostle, Saint, Christianity and politics

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Book SynopsisDoes for spirituality what Sophie's World did for philosophy.Theo is fourteen, very clever, reads a lot, loves computer games and the Greek myths. But then, suddenly, he falls ill. His rich aunt Martha decides that they must roam the world to find a cure for his malaise.What follows is a tour of the world's religions and religious sites, with the sceptical, quizzical Theo being shown the varieties and depths of faith that exist in other places, other cultures.All this is handled with real style, pace, wit and clarity. The book is a thoroughly enjoyable introduction to why and how people believe in their God even Dave Allen would have liked it.Trade Review‘A wonderful book that both adults and adolescents like Theo will find richly rewarding.’Le Populaire ‘With its fluent and alert prose, this encyclopaedic novel will entrance any smart reader keen to extend their spiritual understanding.’Madame Figaro ‘Clement has written her great book of questions. The reader needs to dive into it as they would plunge into crystal-clear waters: it will open their heart and refresh their spirit.’Magazine Litteraire

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Book SynopsisAn accessible introduction to the study of logic (parts 1 & 2), as well as an in-depth treatment of the discipline (parts 3 & 4), built on a robust Christian worldview. Includes helpful charts, diagrams, and review questions.

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Book Synopsis“By far the most profound thinker of the 19th century” — Ludwig WittgensteinOne of Soren Kierkegaard''s most important writings, Works of Love is a profound examination of the human heart, in which the great philosopher conducts the reader into the inmost secrets of Love. Deep within every man, Kierkegaard writes, there lies the dread of being alone in the world, forgotten by God, overlooked among the household of millions upon millions. Love, for Kierkegaard, is one of the central aspects of existence; it saves us from isolation and unites us with one another and with God. This new edition of Works of Love features an original foreword by Kierkegaard scholar George Pattison.Trade Review“The one book in which all these aspects of Kierkegaard’s authorship flow together into a single work. . . . Works of Love is the central work in Kierkegaard’s entire authorship . . . Be warned! Works of Love is the kind of book that can change your life.” — George Pattison, Oxford University, from the "Introduction" “By far the most profound thinker of the 19th century” — Ludwig Wittgenstein “Kierkegaard’s great contribution to Western philosophy was to assert, or to reassert with Romantic urgency, that, subjectively speaking, each existence is the center of the universe. He offered himself as a corrective to idealism, from Plato to Hegel.” — John Updike, The New Yorker “The father of existentialism, Kierkegaard asserted the primacy of the individual in all his or her raging contradiction” — New York Times

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Book SynopsisOutline of the seven books in the Abhidhamma Pitaka by Nyanatiloka Mahathera, aiming to clarify the complex structure of the Abhidhamma works. Essential for students seeking an introduction and overview of the collection.

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Book SynopsisFear and Trembling and The Sickness Unto Death established Kierkegaard as the father of existentialism and has come to define his contribution to philosophy.Table of ContentsIntroduction by Gordon Marino vii Fear and Trembling 1 The Sickness Unto Death 235 Index 479

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Book SynopsisGreen Mass is a meditation on—and with—twelfth-century Christian mystic and polymath Saint Hildegard of Bingen. Attending to Hildegard's vegetal vision, which greens theological tradition and imbues plant life with spirit, philosopher Michael Marder uncovers a verdant mode of thinking. The book stages a fresh encounter between present-day and premodern concerns, ecology and theology, philosophy and mysticism, the material and the spiritual, in word and sound. Hildegard's lush notion of viriditas, the vegetal power of creation, is emblematic of her deeply entwined understanding of physical reality and spiritual elevation. From blossoming flora to burning desert, Marder plays with the symphonic multiplicity of meanings in her thought, listening to the resonances between the ardency of holy fire and the aridity of a world aflame. Across Hildegard's cosmos, we hear the anarchic proliferation of her ecological theology, in which both God and greening are circular, without beginning or end. Introduced with a foreword by philosopher Marcia Sá Cavalcante Schuback and accompanied by cellist Peter Schuback's musical movements, which echo both Hildegard's own compositions and key themes in each chapter of the book, this multifaceted work creates a resonance chamber, in which to discover the living world anew. The original compositions accompanying each chapter are available free for streaming and for download at www.sup.org/greenmassTrade Review"Michael Marder brings Hildegard's creativity to light and to life, highlighting what is unique about her and, especially, what makes her such a needed voice that should be heard today."—Willemien Otten, University of Chicago Divinity School"A brilliant meditation on viriditas, where materiality and spirituality meet, and truly a 'resonance chamber' of themes that explore the full range of Hildegard's thinking, from roots to flowers."—Charles M. Stang, Harvard Divinity School"The wordviriditas is important to understand here. The author explains that it literally means 'the greening green,' and figuratively it means 'a self-refreshing vegetal power of creation ingrained in all finite things.' That's a mouthful, but it's also rich and beautiful. Take a moment to ponder such a world. This is St. Hildegard of Bingen's vision of what we inhabit, whether we realize it yet or not... Michael Marder points to the transformational quality of such teachings, for Christians and everyone who seeks to integrate the physical and the spiritual in their lives."—Jon M. Sweeney, Spirituality & Practice"I consider this to be one of the—if not the—most significant books of ecotheology to have appeared in recent years... Rather than attempt to explain Hildegard's many-layered analogies between divine spirit and vegetal mattering, Marder seeks to narrate the conditions under which those analogies could be true. The result is a book that is at once faithful to Hildegard's words (Green Mass is a close reading that cites source texts in detail, and dispenses with footnotes) and promiscuous in hermeneutic."—Simone Kotva, Worldviews: Global Religions, Culture, and Ecology"This is an extraordinary work of ecotheology. Not only is it a book, it is also a meditation at the meeting point of materiality and spirituality, a resonance chamber of Peter Schuback's musical compositions, and an invitation to encounter the present world through medieval mindsets."—Luke Penkett, The WayTable of ContentsPrelude Verges Analogies Resonances Missives Ardencies Anarchies Kisses Postlude

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