Spirituality and religious experience Books

Book SynopsisChristopher White points to ways that both spiritual practices and scientific speculation about multiverses and invisible dimensions are efforts to peer into the hidden elements and even existential meaning of the universe. Creatively appropriated, these ideas can restore a spiritual sense that the world is greater than anything our eyes can see.Trade ReviewWith this dazzling work of intellectual history, Christopher White provides a significant contribution to the seemingly endless task of undermining the secularization hypothesis. Turning his eye to the turn-of-the-century enlivening of the dead, mechanistic universe of Newtonian physics, White attunes his readers to the metaphysical hypotheses and spiritual disciplines conditioned by the very techno-science that keeps allegedly doing away with ‘religion.’ …In eminently readable prose augmented by carefully chosen, often arresting images, White gathers together a crew of under-celebrated interlocutors. -- Mary-Jane Rubenstein * Reading Religion *Other Worlds has a revelatory quality about it…This is one of those rare books that should be mined time and again by a diverse body of scholars seeking to build on White’s impeccable foundation. It is virtually impossible to think of a future of the religious imagination without taking it into account. -- William B. Parsons * Journal of the American Academy of Religion *A broad-ranging account of the ways in which mathematics and physics have opened up vast realms of mystical speculation and helped animate new modes of spiritual inquiry. From Edwin Abbot’s Flatland to Rod Serling’s The Twilight Zone, White makes plainly visible a hitherto largely hidden dimension of the modern spiritual imagination. An impressively original and sweeping work. -- Leigh Eric Schmidt, author of Restless Souls: The Making of American SpiritualityWhite shows us how it has come to pass that there is no more spiritual subject in modern life than science. In a wide-ranging study of modernist art and pop supernatural talk, dimensional logic and fantastic fictional worlds, haunted TV and hyperspace, he makes clear that Americans think more about metaphysics through math than they do through theology. -- Kathryn Lofton, Yale UniversityA breathtaking portrait of the ways scientific investigations into ‘higher dimensions’ have inspired spiritual imaginations, religious possibilities, and aesthetic experiences. White shows the imaginative power of scientific observations as it extends far and wide in popular culture, shaping an important domain of religion and science where the two appear to be not combatants but unwitting co-contributors to modernity’s sense of its own potential beyond the here-and-now. It is a fascinating and important contribution to our understanding of the making of modern spiritual belief and experience. -- Courtney Bender, author of The New MetaphysicalsIn popular media, science and religion are all too often presented as antagonists, with modern secular science seen as emptying the premodern religious world of its magic and mystery. Other Worlds upends this narrative by showing how very often the enchanted world of science underpins rather than undermines the religious imagination. It should be required reading for anyone interested in the intersection of science and spirituality. -- Charles M. Stang, Harvard Divinity SchoolThis is a book about nothing less than the religion of our times—the religion of the spiritual but not religious, the religion that drives many scientists and even more drives the imagination of those who have lost a traditional faith but not its wonder. It is a fascinating glimpse into the way science becomes a way into faith, and a startling perspective on the ideas many readers take for granted. -- T. M. Luhrmann, author of When God Talks BackOther Worlds is a magisterial and deeply satisfying history of a peculiarly modern idea: the fourth dimension. White focuses on the entanglement between human spiritual aspirations and the notion of hyperspace. The fun is that he makes his history into a juicy narrative, replete with geniuses, scientists, charlatans, impresarios, and artists of every stripe. So incisive is his research that one suspects he has access to an all-seeing, higher-dimensional eye. A book to treasure, a feast. -- Rudy Rucker, author of The Fourth Dimension and Infinity and the MindIn an impressive feat of scholarship spanning across several disciplines, White manages to revise the conventional way of writing about the modern ‘conflict between science and religion’ by showing how scientific insights were used sometimes not to attack spiritual beliefs but to buttress them in unexpected ways. -- Aga J. Drenda * SFRA Review *

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Book SynopsisEssays on a Science of Mythology is a cooperative work between C. Kerényi, who has been called the most psychological of mythologists, and C. G. Jung, who has been called the most mythological of psychologists. Kerényi contributes an essay on the Divine Child and one on the Kore (the Maiden), together with a substantial introduction and conclusion. Jung contributes a psychological commentary on each essay. Both men hoped, through their collaboration, to elevate the study of mythology to the status of a science. In The Primordial Child in Primordial Times Kerényi treats the child-God as an enduring and significant figure in Greek, Norse, Finnish, Etruscan, and Judeo-Christian mythology. He discusses the Kore as Athena, Artemis, Hecate, and Demeter-Persephone, the mother-daughter of the Eleusinian mysteries. Jung speaks of the Divine Child and the Maiden as living psychological realities that provide continuing meaning in people''s lives. TTrade Review"There is an abundance of interesting and occasionally suggestive detail ... and beyond all this there is the undeniable importance and fascination of the question of the archetypes which Jung puts before us."--Sewanee Review

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Book SynopsisTrade Review"[A] fascinating and masterfully interdisciplinary study. . . . With the nuance and erudition made possible by Taves's keen historical eye, firm grasp of the cognitive social sciences, and all of the primary resources now available to scholars of religion, Revelatory Events represents the best of the comparative method in twenty-first century scholarship. . . . This book is highly recommended!"---Adam Powell, Journal of Mormon History"Revelatory Events is a book that anyone studying new religious movements is going to have to deal with for the foreseeable future. . . . [Taves'] comparative work and sophisticated analysis gives us a model for how good scholarship should be done."---David Feltmate, Nova Religio"Bringing insights from psychologi­cal research on creativity, Taves proposes understanding the set of “guiding procedures” as the outcome of a creative process, whereby the emerging groups creatively accept the supra-human presence responsible for providing the initial message and shape their own social identity according to it."---Eduard Iricinschi, Journal of Religion in EuropeTable of ContentsIllustrations and Tables vii Preface xi Acknowledgments xv Abbreviations xvii Introduction 1 Part 1 Making Meaning 13 Case Study A Restored Church 17 1 Translation 23 2 Materialization 50 3 Beginnings 66 Case Study An Anonymous Fellowship 82 4 Stories 89 5 Fellowship 110 6 Seeking 129 Case Study A Course in Miracles 151 7 Emergence 157 8 Teaching(s) 180 9 Roles 195 Part 2 Creating Paths 223 10 Groups 225 11 Selves 240 12 Motives 270 Conclusion 290 Appendix Discussion of Methods 297 Appendix Charts 311 Bibliography 331 Author Index 347 Subject Index 351

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Book SynopsisAn anthology of primary texts drawn from the diverse yoga traditions of India, greater Asia, and the West. It features elegant translations of Hindu, Buddhist, Jain, and even Islamic yogic writings, emphasizing the lived experiences to be found in the many worlds of yoga.Trade Review"In this volume, which is designed to serve as a course on the historical development of the practice of yoga, editor White brings together many leading scholars to present and analyze twenty significant primary texts drawn from Hinduism, Buddhism, and Jainism (and a text from Islam)... Featuring a useful glossary, this work would be excellent as a course text or for upper-level undergraduate and graduate students undertaking research on yoga. It would also benefit practitioners who want to deepen their understanding."--Choice "For upper level undergraduates, graduate students, and intellectual practitioners desiring to engage the true variety of yoga, this dense and disparate collection is indispensable."--Lloyd W. Pflueger, Religious Studies ReviewTable of ContentsContents by Tradition vii Contents by Country ix Contributors xi Introduction by David Gordon White 1 Note for Instructors by David Gordon White 24 Foundational Yoga Texts 29 Chapter 1. The Path to Liberation through Yogic Mindfulness in Early Apyurveda by Dominik Wujastyk 31 Chapter 2. A Prescription for Yoga and Power in the Mahabharata by James L. Fitzgerald 43 Chapter 3. Yoga Practices in the Bhagavadgita by Angelika Malinar 58 Chapter 4. Ptanjala Yoga in Practice by Gerald James Larson 73 Chapter 5. Yoga in the Yoga Upanisads: Disciplines of the Mystical OM Sound by Jeffrey Clark Ruff 97 Chapter 6. The Sevenfold Yoga of the Yogavasistha by Christopher Key Chapple 117 Chapter 7. A Fourteenth-Century Persian Account of Breath Control and Meditation by Carl W. Ernst 133 Yoga in Jain, Buddhist, and Hindu Tantric Traditions 141 Chapter 8. A Digambara Jain Description of the Yogic Path to Deliverance by Paul Dundas 143 Chapter 9. Saraha's Queen Dohas by Roger R. Jackson 162 Chapter 10. The Questions and Answers of Vajrasattva by Jacob P. Dalton 185 Chapter 11. The Six-Phased Yoga of the Abbreviated Wheel of Time Tantra (Laghuklacakratantra) according to Vajrapni by Vesna A. Wallace 204 Chapter 12. Eroticism and Cosmic Transformation as Yoga: The Atmatattva of the Vaisnava Sahajiyas of Bengal by Glen Alexander Hayes 223 Chapter 13. The Transport of the Hamsas: A Sakta Rasalila as Rajayoga in Eighteenth-Century Benares by Somadeva Vasudeva 242 Yoga of the Nath Yogis 255 Chapter 14. The Original Goraksasataka by James Mallinson 257 Chapter 15. Nath Yogis, Akbar, and the "Balnath Tilla" by William R. Pinch 273 Chapter 16. Yogic Language in Village Performance: Hymns of the Householder Naths by Ann Grodzins Gold and Daniel Gold 289 Yoga in the Colonial and Post-Colonial Periods 307 Chapter 17. The Yoga System of the Josman?s by Sthaneshwar Timalsina 309 Chapter 18. Songs to the Highest God (Isvara) of Samkhya-Yoga by Knut A. Jacobsen 325 Chapter 19. Yoga Makaranda of T. Krishnamacharya by Mark Singleton, M.Narasimhan, and M. A. Jayashree 337 Chapter 20. Theos Bernard and the Early Days of Tantric Yoga in America by Paul G. Hackett 353 Chapter 21. Universalist and Missionary Jainism: Jain Yoga of the Terapanthi Tradition by Olle Qvarnstrom and Jason Birch 365 Glossary of Foreign Terms 383 Index 389

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Book SynopsisTrade Review"[A] fascinating and masterfully interdisciplinary study. . . . With the nuance and erudition made possible by Taves's keen historical eye, firm grasp of the cognitive social sciences, and all of the primary resources now available to scholars of religion, Revelatory Events represents the best of the comparative method in twenty-first century scholarship. . . . This book is highly recommended!"---Adam Powell, Journal of Mormon History"Revelatory Events is a book that anyone studying new religious movements is going to have to deal with for the foreseeable future. . . . [Taves'] comparative work and sophisticated analysis gives us a model for how good scholarship should be done."---David Feltmate, Nova ReligioTable of ContentsIllustrations and Tables vii Preface xi Acknowledgments xv Abbreviations xvii Introduction 1 Part 1 Making Meaning 13 Case Study A Restored Church 17 1 Translation 23 2 Materialization 50 3 Beginnings 66 Case Study An Anonymous Fellowship 82 4 Stories 89 5 Fellowship 110 6 Seeking 129 Case Study A Course in Miracles 151 7 Emergence 157 8 Teaching(s) 180 9 Roles 195 Part 2 Creating Paths 223 10 Groups 225 11 Selves 240 12 Motives 270 Conclusion 290 Appendix Discussion of Methods 297 Appendix Charts 311 Bibliography 331 Author Index 347 Subject Index 351

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Book SynopsisTrade Review"A fascinating meditation on 'the "infinite bustle" of modern life.'"---Robert M. Thorson, Wall Street Journal"A fascinating new book."---Craig Fehrman, Boston Globe"With a colloquial tone, Smith makes a solid case that the contemporary take on distraction. . . is an old one that came about in the 19th century. . . . The result is a rousing academic study on the meanings of mindfulness." * Publishers Weekly *"[An] elegant anthology of American anxieties over attention."---Michael Ledger-Lomas, The Spectator"Smith’s historicization of what he calls ‘disciplines of attention’ offers a useful check on reactionary nostalgia. Taking the measure of the distractions of the digital present requires caution."---Len Gutkin, Chronicle Review"[A] fascinating book. . . . Smith’s analyses are incisive and well researched. . . . Collectively they form an intriguing study of the moral framework around distraction and attention during this period." * Choice Reviews *"Thoreau’s Axe [is] a work structured like a book of devotion, offering twenty-eight ‘readings’ that traverse two centuries of discourse on attention, and how various figures, from poets to preachers to reformers, have attempted to inculcate it. . . . [Smith] has the deep and natural orientation of a historian, in his approach to archives and strange and curious corners of nineteenth-century American thought."---Rachel Kushner, Harper's"Anxieties over attention and distraction are nothing new but also, and more to the point, [Smith] raises an enduring cultural contradiction: like Thoreau, many of us feel distracted by shifts and accelerations in collective life—by new media, to be sure, but also by capitalism and its myriad crises—and yet, to combat these collective distractions, we turn inward and desperately try to become more disciplined, attentive individuals. . . . Smith is not the first to name this tension, though his ‘genealogy of distraction and the disciplines of attention’ might be the first to unearth its deep cultural roots."---Chelsea Fitzgerald, Los Angeles Review of Books"Much of Thoreau’s Axe cuts deeply into American culture, revealing how discipline and punishment, often wielded from above, have defined for us the proper objects of attention: God, country, race, and the capitalist grind. But the blade of Smith’s analysis is subtle, and what I find most remarkable about Thoreau’s Axe is Smith’s comfort with ambiguity, the apparent ease with which he makes space for contradiction, the degree to which his method depends on it."---Daegan Miller, Yale Review"Smith’s examples of attention being demanded rather than sought forces the reader to consider more carefully the goal of cultivating attention, and who benefits from such attention."---Shira Telushkin, Plough Quarterly"Original and impactful. . . . Smith shows the price we pay for remaining distracted, the challenge of cultivating responsible and impactful disciplines of attention amidst capitalistic structures, and the corresponding need to always remember to look beyond the self."---Morgan Shipley, Review19"Thoughtful and well-written."---Alan Dent, The Penniless Press"Smith’s book has the merit of showing a meaningful continuity not only between our time and Thoreau’s, but also between Thoreau and like-minded thinkers of his century."---Costica Bradatan, Times Literary Supplement

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Book SynopsisPopular Radio Host Shows Women How to Embrace God''s Unique Call for Their LifeListeners to Susie Larson''s radio show and women she meets at events across the country tell her the same thing: I want to do something meaningful for God, but I don''t know what to do, or how.Drawing on her own hard-earned experiences, Larson shows readers how to overcome insecurities, busyness, and other obstacles in order to focus their gifts and passions on their unique God-assignment. With biblical insights and inspiring stories from a variety of women, this action-oriented guide will speak to every woman who has felt a nudge from God--from the visionary who wants to end poverty to the empty-nest mom who feels called to help the young single mother next door.

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Book SynopsisEach daily devotional provides three truths--about God, about you, and about freedom. Hiding these truths in your hearts allows you to stand firm in your freedom and build a strong and holy shield against the enemy's attacks.

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Book SynopsisYour gifts reveal God's presence and power. Discover the purpose of spiritual gifts in the church, and learn how to identify your special mix of gifting and use your gifts for His glory!

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Book SynopsisIn this powerful book, Carol Ochs shows us how to develop a personal theology by examining our life stories, learning to recognize God at work in them, and bringing them into conversation with Torah. Using timeless biblical texts as lenses to see the present, she helps us understand who we are and who God is for us by exploring the tightly interwoven basic elements of our lives--our love, suffering, work, bodies, prayer, community, and experiences of death. Through the process of seeing our experiences in relation to Biblical stories, we begin to recognize our lives as part of the ongoing story of the Jewish people--as Torah. This insight allows us to see these experiences as meaningful, not accidental, and opens us to recognizing God''s power in and through all that happens to us. Rather than a collection of random events, our lives are part of the Jewish people''s ongoing adventure. Armed with our personally shaped theology, we can face this adventure of living in the vanguard ofTrade Review"A most intriguing book! What is it? A work of theology? Personal reflection and childhood memories? Biblical commentary? Psychotherapeutic exploration of the unconscious, epic stories of love and loss, a self-help guide, poetry of the soul, a book of healing? Suddenly the mind penetrates to the core of this work and grasps its inner meaning: it is all of the above and more. This is a poignantly beautiful work of theological understanding." (Blu Greenberg, author of On Women and Judaism and How to Run a Traditional Jewish Household) "A moving and inspiring book that should be read by anyone wishing to have a richer, deeper life. Ochs's approach to Jewish theology will be helpful to people of all faiths and to those in search of faith." (Professor Susannah Heschel, author of Abraham Geiger and the Jewish Jesus) "Through her powerful stories, piercing intellect, and challenging commentary, [Ochs] enables each of us to discover God's presence in all that happens to us." (Rabbi Norman J. Cohen, provost, Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion) "With uncommon wisdom, Carol Ochs blends the discipline of theology with the art of story-telling to help us achieve the kind of self-awareness that can only enrich our lives." (Neil Gillman, professor of Jewish philosophy, The Jewish Theological Seminary) "Show[s] us how to find ancient hints?a curved leaf here, a splash of water there?that help us shape a path that is ours alone, yet God's as well." (Rabbi Arthur Waskow, director of the Shalom Center and author of Godwrestling? Round 2 and Down-to-Earth Judaism) "Anyone seeking to sanctify his or her life, in all of its detail, will be enriched and enlightened by this book." (Jacob J. Staub, vice president for academic affairs, Reconstructionist Rabbinical College)Table of ContentsForeword by Rabbi Lawrence Kushner. Searching for Meaning. Forming Our Story. Committing to Love. Enduring Suffering. Undertaking Our Work. Claiming Our Bodies. Engaging in Prayer. Living in Community. Confronting Death. Encountering God. Epilogue. References.

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Book SynopsisWritten by Elizabeth Tisdell, co-author of "Women as Learners" (ISBN: 0787909203), this book considers the connection between spirituality and culture and how it relates to developing culturally relevant approaches to adult and higher education.Trade Review"This should prove to be a groundbreaking volume. Every adult educator will benefit from engaging in the conversation." (PAACE Journal of Lifelong Learning, Summer 2004) "...this book makes an important contribution to a new and growing body of knowledge." (Journal of College Student Development, December 2003) "A Professor of Adult Education describes How Spirituality Can Be a Valuable Teaching Tool" (By Dana Sobyra in The Chronicle of Higher Education) "The work is an easy read, not overly laden with references but enough to give it authority." (TCRecord.org, 10/8/03)Table of ContentsPreface Part I: Breaking the Silence: Spirituality and Culture in Adult Meaning-Making and Education 1 1. Introduction: Culture, Spirituality, and Adult Learning 3 2. Breaking the Silence: Defining Spirituality in a Culturally Relevant Educational Context 25 3. Spirituality, Religion, and Culture in Lived Experience: Overlaps and Separations 45 4. Between the Cultural and the Universal: Themes and Variations of Spiritual Experience 67 Part II: Claiming a Sacred Face: Identity and Spiritual Development 89 5. The Great Spiral: Spiritual Development as a Process of Moving Forward and Spiraling Back 93 6. Gender, Culture, and Spiritual Identity in Midlife Integration 117 7. The Role of Spiritual Experience in Developing a Positive Cultural Identity 139 8. Searching for Wholeness: Crossing Culture, White Identity, and Spiritual Development 163 Part III: Spirituality in a Culturally Relevant and Transformative Teaching Practice 183 9. Approaching Transformative Teaching Grounded in Spirituality and Cultural Relevance 187 10. A Theory-in-Progress of a Spiritually Grounded, Culturally Relevant Pedagogy: Philosophical Underpinnings and New Directions 203 11. Stories from the Field: Spirituality and Culture in Adult Higher Education Classrooms 219 12. The Possibilities and Challenges of Spiritually Grounded, Culturally Relevant Teaching 235 Epilogue: Final Reflections 259 Appendix: Research Methodology 263 References 271 Index 285

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Book SynopsisThe Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want. He maketh me to lie down in green pastures; He leadeth me bedside the still waters; He restoreth my soul. Today''s professionals need reliable models to teach them how to become better leaders. In this remarkable book, leadership experts Blaine McCormick and David Davenport introduce us to a new kind of leader by offering a new image of leadership the leader as shepherd. Drawing on the wisdom of the timeless Twenty-Third Psalm, King David''s psalm, the authors provide professionals with ancient wisdom for grappling with today''s leadership challenges. Shepherd Leadership offers a much-needed lens through which to consider our own leadership as well as the leadership of those around us. This important book teaches us important lessons about leadership: we can be vigilant without being adversarial, we can serve without being passive, and we can guide without commanding. Shepherd Leadership offers a vTable of Contents1. The Shepherd as Leader 1 2. Shepherds Meet Needs 9 3. Shepherds Lead Immortals 19 4. Shepherds Lead on Right Paths 31 5. Shepherds Know the Valley 41 6. Shepherds Come Alongside 49 7. Shepherds Use the Right Tools 59 8. Shepherds Transform Conflict 69 9. Shepherds Remove Irritants 79 10. Shepherds Create Supply 89 11. Shepherds Share a Positive Vision 99 12. Shepherds Cultivate Loyalty 109 Epilogue: A Meditation for Leaders 119 Appendix: Twelve Versions of Psalm 23 127 References 141 Acknowledgments 143 The Authors 145

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Book SynopsisDoes that sound impossible? In Organizing for the Spirit, organizing expert Sunny Schlenger demonstrates how the stuff of our livesthe objects that fill our homes and offices, as well as how we manage our time (whether we are productive or procrastinating)offers clues to what we really value in life. With simple and practical exercises, Sunny guides you through a step-by-step process to take stock of your life, clearly identify what really matters, and then use that clarity about values and priorities as a guide to organize both your physical environment and your time. The result is a life of meaning and harmonyin the office, the studio, the home, and beyond. Organizing for the Spirit is nothing less than a revolutionary guidebook for creating the life you were meant to live.Table of ContentsForeword by Harriet Schechter. Acknowledgments. Introduction. PART ONE: Discovering Your True Self. Chapter One: Begin at the Beginning. Chapter Two: Play Detective. Part Two: Developing Your True Self. Chapter Three: Be Who You Are. Chapter Four: Be Where You Are. Chapter Five: Enjoy Your Life. Chapter Six: Give Back. Conclusion: The End of One Story. The Author.

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Book SynopsisDenise Roy combines the hard-won wisdom of a parent with the insights of meditation to create a spiritual practice that goes to the heart of everyday life: mothering with mindfulness. Through anecdotes, reflections, and specific practices, this book invites mothers to wake up and embrace their lives, discovering that they are always standing on holy ground.Trade Review"...delightful book...engaging." (Publishers Weekly, November 27, 2006)Table of ContentsIntroduction. Momfulness. Developing a Practice. Presence. Breathing Meditation. I See Me in Your Eyes. Rolling Hippo Meditation. How a Mom Prays. The Alone Hat. Porch Swing. Attention. Plan B. Autopilot. The River. Mouth Yoga. The Ideal vs. the Real. Clearing Clutter. Compassion. Late-for-School Practice. Pier Pressure. Walking the Night Hallways. When Someone Deeply Listens to You. No Good Very Bad Day. Mobilize the Mothering Instinct. Embodiment. Hugging Meditation. Body Blessings. Seven Nights in a Row. Generations of Bodies. Saved by Wonder. Close to Things. The Sacred in All Things. Where Does the Wind Come From? Lobster Tale. Framing the Day. Nurturing Family Spirit. Grace. Family Circle. Community. Sacred Circles. Our Many Mothers. The Holy Family Commutes. Are All the Children In? The Mother Is Standing. What Do Trees Have to Do with Peace? A Final Word. Suggested Readings. Acknowledgments. The Author.

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Book SynopsisIn Sweet Company takes readers on a spiritual odyssey into the hearts and minds of some of the most influential women of our time Olympia Dukakis, Sister Helen Prejean, Riane Eisler, Zainab Salbi, Margaret Wheatley, Katherine Dunham, Reverend Lauren Artress, Grandmother Twylah Hurd Nitsch, Sri Daya Mata, Rabbi Laura Geller, Le Ly Hayslip, Miriam Polster, Alma Flor Ada, and Gail Williamson. For all these women, their spiritual life nourishes them and serves as a dependable compass for decision making. Written with warmth and wisdom, In Sweet Company tells their stories, their personal journeys, and relates their thoughts on living a spiritual life.Table of ContentsPreface. Introduction. One: Sister Helen Prejean. Two: Grandmother Twylah Hurd Nitsch. Three: Miriam Polster. Four: Alma Flor Ada. Five: Reverend Lauren Artress. Six: Olympia Dukakis. Seven: Riane Eisler. Eight: Le Ly Hayslip. Nine: Zainab Salbi. Ten: Katherine Dunham. Eleven: Margaret J. Wheatley. Twelve: Rabbi Laura Geller. Thirteen: Gail Williamson. Fourteen: Sri Daya Mata. Epilogue. Acknowledgments. Permissions. About the Author. Index.

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Book SynopsisIn Off-Road Disciplines, Earl Creps reveals that the on-road practices of prayer and Bible reading should be bolstered by the other kinds of encounters with God that occur unexpectedlycomplete with the bumps and bruises that happen when you go off-road. Becoming an off-road leader requires the cultivation of certain spiritual disciplines that allow the presence of the Holy Spirit to arrange your interior life. Earl Creps explorestwelve central spiritual disciplinessix personal and six organizationalthat Christian leaders of all ages and denominations need if they are to change themselves and their churches to reach out to the culture around them.Table of ContentsAbout Leadership Network ix Foreword xi Introduction: Off-Road Disciplines xiii Part One: Personal Disciplines 1. Death: The Discipline of Personal Transformation 3 2. Truth: The Discipline of Sacred Realism 15 3. Perspective: The Discipline of POV 27 4. Learning: The Discipline of Reverse Mentoring 41 5. Witness: The Discipline of Spiritual Friendship 55 6. Humility: The Discipline of Decreasing 71 Part Two: Organizational Disciplines 7. Assessment: The Discipline of Missional Efficiency 87 8. Harmony: The Discipline of Blending Differences 99 9. Reflection: The Discipline of Discernment 123 10. Opportunity: The Discipline of Making Room 139 11. Sacrifice: The Discipline of Surrendering 157 Preferences 12. Legacy: The Discipline of Passing the Baton 173 Epilogue: Three Coffee Houses 185 Notes 187 Acknowledgments 203 The Author 205 Index 207

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Book SynopsisFor more than sixteen years, veteran journalist J. Lee Grady has kept a finger on the pulse of the charismatic and Pentecostal renewal, which restored the power of the Holy Spirit to the church, but which now suffers from abuse. Since many Spirit-empowered believers have lost their original focus and purity, Grady delves into some of the problems that plague churches and ministries: financial scandal, faulty theology, moral failure, and more.Yet the message of this fervent journalist, who loves the gifts of the Spirit, isn''t one of condemnation and finger-pointing. Instead it is a clarion call to restore the fire of supernatural anointing with biblical boldness, purity, integrity, humility, truth, justice, and compassion. Grady longs for every believer to find or recover a genuine experience with the Holy Spirit. Among the topics he addresses are• the genuine work of the Holy Spirit• strategies for developing healthy leaders• h

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Book SynopsisAccessible, practical guide from Ephesians shows how to defend yourself and your loved ones from Satan's schemes by putting on the whole armor of God.

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Book SynopsisDuring seasons of hardship or shortage, we yearn for the peace and abundance we know we will find in heaven. But all of heaven's riches have your name on them, and you can access them here and now. Patricia King shares the keys, through the lens of Scripture, that will unlock your spiritual inheritance today.

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Book SynopsisChurch leaders learn how to create a healthy and strategic small group ministry from the man behind the largest and most successful small group ministry in America.

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Book SynopsisBiblical insights from a respected author bring encouragement, strength, and hope for getting over the bumps in the road.

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Book SynopsisExamines areas of overlap between spirituality, human creativity, and the arts with the goal of refining how we speak and think about the Holy Spirit.Table of ContentsContentsForeword by Jeremy S. BegbieIntroduction1. Is There Anything to Talk About Here? Spirit and MysteryPart 1: The Making of a Human2. Remaking Humanity: John Coltrane and a Love Supreme3. Remaking Human Bodies: Kingdom Come and the Kingdom of the Abstract4. Remaking Community: Singing to One Another in Songs, Hymns, and Spiritual SongsPart 2: The Spirit's Making and Ours5. Ionized Inspiration: Can a Human Voice Be Heard?6. The Gift-Giving Spirit: (De-Ionized Inspiration)7. Finding Our Voices: The Spirit of FreedomPart 3: A World Remade8. Seeing the Spirit in All Things, Seeing All Things in the Spirit: Discernment and the Restoration of Vocation9. Beautiful, Beautiful Zion: The Spirit and Completion10. Perfection, Proportion, and Pleasure: The Spirit and BeautyEpilogue: The Museum of SpiritualityIndexes

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Book SynopsisThis accessible history of monasticism recovers the riches of the monastic tradition for contemporary spiritual formation and devotional practice.Table of ContentsContentsIntroduction: The Monastic ImpulsePart I: Anthony to Benedict1. The Origins of Christian Monasticism2. Of Anchorites and Cenobites3. The RulePart II: Benedict to Bernard4. The Flowering of Benedictine Monasticism5. Other Voices: Celtic, Frankish, and Eastern Monasticism6. Challenges of Christendom7. The Road to ReformPart III: Bernard to Luther8. The Cistercians, Carthusians, and Other Reforming Orders9. Regular Canons, Hospitallers, and the Military Orders10. The Friars11. Decline or Development? Lay Piety and Religious Life in the Late Medieval EraPart IV: Luther to Merton12. The Reformers and Counter-Reformers13. Protestants and Monasticism after the Reformation14. Continuing Roman Catholic Monastic PracticeEpilogue: Monasticism Today and Tomorrow

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Book SynopsisIn response to the good news of our redemption in Christ, the Christian life is a pursuit of holiness and the development of Christian character, yet our growth in holiness is often gradual. In this book a respected theologian explains how to overcome the obstacles that hinder our spiritual development so we can be conformed into the image of Chri

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Book SynopsisPastor and author encourages readers to rejoice in the assurance of their salvation that Christ offers so they can leave any guilt or legalism behind and follow Jesus joyfully.

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Book SynopsisA widely-respected theologian recaptures a Christian vision of reality--that all the world is full of divine signs--and shows how and where meaning can be found outside the church and special revelation.Table of ContentsContents1. Recovering a Lost Vision2. The Bible: A World of Types, Keys to Types in All the Worlds3. Nature: Sermons in Stones4. Science: The Wonder of the Universe5. Law: The Moral Argument6. History: Images of God in the Histories of Peoples7. Animals: The Zoological World Bursting with Signs8. Sex: The Language of the Body9. Sports: Its Agonies and Ecstasies10. World Religions: So Similar and Yet So Different11. A New World: Believing Is SeeingAppendix: Theological Objections--Luther and BarthIndex

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Book SynopsisApproaches evangelism through contemplative spirituality, offering a corrective to the contemporary American trend of programmatic and consumeristic forms of evangelism. This second edition includes a new study guide.Table of ContentsContentsIntroductionPart One: Purgation1. Into the NightPart Two: Illumination2. Love Is God's Meaning3. Broken Bread and Poured Out Wine4. Coming Home to Love5. Healing the Threefold Wound6. Redeeming the EarthPart Three: Union7. A Hermeneutic of Love8. Giving Ourselves Away9. Homing Prayer10. New Tongues of Fire11. Your Will Be Done on EarthEpilogue: Out of the NightAppendix: Corporate Experiences of the Dark NightStudy GuideIndex

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Book SynopsisIn this book, Victor Turner is concerned with various kinds of social actions and how they relate to, and come to acquire meaning through, metaphors and paradigms in their actors' minds; how in certain circumstances new forms, new metaphors, new...Trade ReviewIn the present volume, Turner's remarkably original and wide-ranging mind examines social dramas, usually centering around religious personalities or sacred places, from medieval England to revolutionary Mexico to Zambia, in search of transitions between structure and anti-structure or 'communitas' and the symbols engendered by these processes. * Journal of the American Academy of Religion *

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Book SynopsisIn Mexico Mystique Frank Waters draws us deeply into the ancient but still-living myths of Mexico. To reveal their hidden meanings and their powerful symbolism, he brings to bear his gift for intuitive imagination as well as a broad knowledge of anthropology, Jungian psychology, astrology, and Eastern and esoteric religions.Trade Review“This penetrating account of Mexican history, legend, myth and ancient civilizations is altogether enthralling…[Waters] is an accomplished writer whose handling of complex material never blunders into confusion.”

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Book SynopsisMaximizing the Triple Bottom Line through Spiritual Leadership shows readers how to simultaneously maximize employee well-being, sustainability, and financial performance using the Spiritual Leadership Balanced Scorecard Business Model.Trade Review"The approach that Fry and Nisiewicz have taken is fresh, appropriately reflective, and uniquely grounded. Contrary to 'soft' treatments of this popular theme, their book links spirituality to effective leadership and more specifically and concretely defines spiritual leadership."—Kent Rhodes, Pepperdine University, Family Business Consulting Group, and Founder, OnCourse Network, Inc."If anyone wonders what 'spiritual leadership' means, the answer is clearly and cogently presented in this wonderful book. It includes excellent business examples and directly relates spirituality and the bottom line. Maximizing the Triple Bottom Line through Spiritual Leadership is the next 'must read' book for anyone who takes leadership seriously."—Eric B. Dent, University of North Carolina, Pembroke"It is easy enough to see that personal spiritual values inform the way one leads in business. Co-authored by one of the foremost champions of research and training in spiritual leadership, this book goes a step further, arguing that spiritually-informed leadership improves performance in terms of profits, people, and the planet."—Jonathan Gosling, Centre for Leadership Studies, University of Exeter"If you are a scholar or practitioner interested in spiritual leadership, sustainability, ethics, or social responsibility, read this book! With the models and approaches that the authors provide, it is the most complete and useful treatise on spiritual leadership."—Robert A. Giacalone, Editor-in-Chief of the Journal of Management, Spirituality, and Religion and co-editor of the Handbook of Workplace Spirituality and Organizational Performance"A powerful, well written, and engaging book from keen thought leaders! Maximizing the Triple Bottom Line through Spiritual Leadership is full of real-world examples which emphasize that sustainable business models balance profit with wider concerns that, at a fundamental level, have a spiritual foundation."—Jonathan Smith, Anglia Ruskin University"Since 2005, we at Maxwell Locke & Ritter have been using the 'triple bottom line' to measure our success and areas for growth. Jody Fry's vision of spiritual leadership has been instrumental in this process. This book is a wonderful guide for any organization that wants to create a culture of connection and purpose."—Fred Frey, Partner, Maxwell Locke & Ritter LLP"Maximizing the Triple Bottom Line Through Spiritual Leadership is grounded in pioneering research on spiritual leadership and enriched with practical applications through case studies and models. I've met many leaders who feel inspired and called to run organizations that are more sustainable and more nurturing to the human spirit, but they didn't know where to start. With this book, not only can they get started, they have guidance for the whole journey. We've been waiting a long time for a book like this."—Judi Neal, Director, Tyson Center for Faith and Spirituality in the Workplace, University of Arkansas"Think of the business benefits of tapping into the intangible, life affirming force in all human beings. What if more business leaders experienced their work as a sense of calling? Fry and Nisiewicz set out a strong case that the spiritual leadership model really can help to achieve this potential."—Rob MacLachlan, Editor, People Management and Chair, One Spirit Interfaith Foundation"This is a book long overdue. The authors complement their compelling case for an organization's multiple bottom line by providing an extensive model and practical tools for effectively implementing spiritual leadership. Fry and Nisiewicz are on to something important here and the wise leader stands to benefit from their advice. Find a place to keep the book within arms' reach. You'll refer to it often."—Peter C. Hill, co-editor of The Psychology of Religion and Workplace Spirituality and co-author of The Psychology of Religion"For many people in the worlds of business and politics, juxtaposing the words 'spiritual' and 'leadership' is off-putting, and quite possibly both pretentious and risible. This book exposes the pitfalls of such a position, giving practical examples of successful leaders and effective leadership practices across a range of organizations in which spiritual leadings have played an explicit role. It is a 'must read' for anyone interested in either leadership or the spiritual dimension of organizational development."—Ann Limb, Chair, Helena Kennedy Foundation"Few books exist on spiritual leadership and its effectiveness, and fewer still tell compelling stories and are based on solid data. Maximizing the Triple Bottom Line makes a major contribution to research on leadership and sustainability. By looking at the importance of love, altruism, and reflective personal practice to leadership, and by providing a way to measure their impact, Louis Fry and Melissa Sadler Nisiewicz enable us to take these fundamental notions into consideration in the ways that businesses want to: their impact on the bottom line."—Kathryn Goldman Schuyler, Alliant International University and President of Coherent Change"Spiritual leadership appears as our next threshold for resolving the paradox of profitability and humanity's most profound needs. This book offers a holistic approach, pragmatic business cases, success stories, accessible concepts, and how-to methods that encourage leaders to break through antiquated business models and apply creative solutions."—Richard Major, Former Worldwide Director of Human Resources, Hewlett-Packard, and former Vice President, Human Resources, Global Business Partners and Worldwide Operations, Solectron Corporation"Clear, inspiring, compelling—A must-read for anyone who cares about the future of business and the future of the planet."—Margaret Benefiel, author of Soul at Work and The Soul of a Leader

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Book SynopsisHow can Christians both value their own faith and express their convictions about Christianity yet simultaneously respect the faith of other religions? J.A. DiNoia starts from the conviction that no answers can be forthcoming unless one acknowledges the profound differences among religions.

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Book SynopsisA book of moral and religious reflections written by a Carolingian noblewoman for her teenage son. Dhuoda reveals the authority of Carolingian women in aristocratic households. She dwells on family relations, social order, and the central place of Christian devotion in a noble life.

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Book SynopsisAnalyses the prospects for adapting the Spiritual Exercises of St. Ignatius of Loyola in order to make them accessible to members of other faith traditions while still maintaining their core meaning and integrity. Erin Cline examines why this ought to be done, for whom, and what the aims of such an adaptation would be, including the different theological justifications for this practice.

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Book SynopsisExamines the emergence of the concepts of “religion”and “religions” on colonial frontiers. The book offers an analysis of the ways in which European travellers, missionaries, settlers, and government agents, as well as indigenous Africans, engaged in the comparison of alternative religious ways of life as one dimension of intercultural contact.

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Book SynopsisVolume 21 of Theatre Symposium presents essays that explore the intricate and vital relationships between theatre, religion, and ritual. Whether or not theatre arose from ritual and/or religion, from prehistory to the present there have been clear and vital connections among the three. Ritual, Religion, and Theatre, volume 21 of the annual journal Theatre Symposium, presents a series of essays that explore the intricate and vital relationships that exist, historically and today, between these various modes of expression and performance. The essays in this volume discuss the stage presence of the spiritual meme; ritual performance and spirituality in The Living Theatre; theatricality, themes, and theology in James Weldon Johnson's God's Trombones; Jordan Harrison's Act a Lady and the ritual of queerness; Gerpla and national identity in Iceland; confession in Hamlet and Measure for Measure; Christian liturgical drama; Muslim theatre and performance; cave rituals and the Brain's Theatre;

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Book SynopsisPresents an ethnography of seven Gullah/Geechee women from the South Carolina lowcountry. This book emphasizes that this communication affirms the women's spiritual faith - which seamlessly integrates Christian and folk traditions - and reinforces their position as powerful culture keepers within Gullah/Geechee society.Trade Review"Talking to the Dead is an incredibly rich study, which will reward both a general readership and readers from a range of disciplinary backgrounds." -- Teresa Zackodnik * Feminist Review *"LeRhonda Manigault-Bryant’s Talking to the Dead is well suited for the novice who is unaware of any of the traditions and religious practices of the Gullah/Geechee.... Because of its emphasis on black women, the ethnography also has much to offer to the black feminist or black womanist scholar, especially one with an interest in African Diasporic culture or African derivative belief systems." -- Constance Bailey * Western Folklore *"While talking to the dead, as well as other less ‘flashy’ Gullah/Geechee practices risk being lost in application, Manigault-Bryant and other third generation scholars have ensured they will not be completely erased through an increasingly sophisticated historiography accounting for the diverse perspectives of African American women in the South Carolina lowcountry." -- Douglas R. Valentine * Religion *"This masterful interweaving of these personal narratives of Gullah/Geechee women with the spiritual practice of talking to the dead, particularly in light of the present-day commodification of Gullah/Geechee culture (offered in the terminating chapter) in South Carolina, is the overall strength of this work.... This book, then, is a must read for advanced students and scholars in these areas of study." -- Margarita Simon Guillory * Religious Studies Review *"...Talking to the Dead is a welcome addition to scholarship on the Gullah/Geechee culture and African American religious practices in general....Most importantly, Talking to the Dead not only lays the groundwork for further investigation into the gender dymanics of longstanding Gullah-Geechee religiosity, but also underscores the fact that no study of African American religion can be complete without a thorough investigation of women as believers, practitioners, and cultural leaders." -- Shannen Dee Williams * Journal of African American History *Table of ContentsAcknowledgments ix Prologue. Talking to the Dead xiii Introduction. Gullah/Geechee Women 1 1. Culture Keepers 24 2. Folk Religion 66 3. "Ah Tulk to de Dead All de Time" 104 4. "Sendin' Up My Timbah" 136 5. Lived Memory 172 Epilogue. Between the Living and the Dead 205 Appendix A. Companion Audio Materials 211 Appendix B. Interview Format and Demographics 213 Notes 217 Select Bibliography 251 Index 267

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Book SynopsisPresents an ethnography of seven Gullah/Geechee women from the South Carolina lowcountry. By looking in depth at this long-standing spiritual practice, this book highlights the subversive ingenuity that lowcountry inhabitants use to thrive spiritually and to maintain a sense of continuity with the past.Trade Review"Talking to the Dead is an incredibly rich study, which will reward both a general readership and readers from a range of disciplinary backgrounds." -- Teresa Zackodnik * Feminist Review *"LeRhonda Manigault-Bryant’s Talking to the Dead is well suited for the novice who is unaware of any of the traditions and religious practices of the Gullah/Geechee.... Because of its emphasis on black women, the ethnography also has much to offer to the black feminist or black womanist scholar, especially one with an interest in African Diasporic culture or African derivative belief systems." -- Constance Bailey * Western Folklore *"While talking to the dead, as well as other less ‘flashy’ Gullah/Geechee practices risk being lost in application, Manigault-Bryant and other third generation scholars have ensured they will not be completely erased through an increasingly sophisticated historiography accounting for the diverse perspectives of African American women in the South Carolina lowcountry." -- Douglas R. Valentine * Religion *"This masterful interweaving of these personal narratives of Gullah/Geechee women with the spiritual practice of talking to the dead, particularly in light of the present-day commodification of Gullah/Geechee culture (offered in the terminating chapter) in South Carolina, is the overall strength of this work.... This book, then, is a must read for advanced students and scholars in these areas of study." -- Margarita Simon Guillory * Religious Studies Review *"...Talking to the Dead is a welcome addition to scholarship on the Gullah/Geechee culture and African American religious practices in general....Most importantly, Talking to the Dead not only lays the groundwork for further investigation into the gender dymanics of longstanding Gullah-Geechee religiosity, but also underscores the fact that no study of African American religion can be complete without a thorough investigation of women as believers, practitioners, and cultural leaders." -- Shannen Dee Williams * Journal of African American History *Table of ContentsAcknowledgments ix Prologue. Talking to the Dead xiii Introduction. Gullah/Geechee Women 1 1. Culture Keepers 24 2. Folk Religion 66 3. "Ah Tulk to de Dead All de Time" 104 4. "Sendin' Up My Timbah" 136 5. Lived Memory 172 Epilogue. Between the Living and the Dead 205 Appendix A. Companion Audio Materials 211 Appendix B. Interview Format and Demographics 213 Notes 217 Select Bibliography 251 Index 267

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Book SynopsisLaura E. Pérez analyzes Latina art to explore a new notion of decolonial thought and love based on the integration of body, mind, and spirit that offers a means to creating a more democratic and just present and future.Trade Review“Laura E. Pérez renews the precepts of 1950s Third World liberation and extends the contemporary politics of women-of-color freedom fighters into the future. She speaks with many voices—the learned scholar, the analyst, the teacher, the maker of new aesthetics, the poet, the dreamer, and the guide—and offers her readers a multitude of routes for crossing academic and subjective terrains to find new possibilities for thinking, doing, and being. An outstanding work of decolonial writing by one of the great Chicana feminist philosophers of our time, Eros Ideologies is exactly the book I have needed to best teach my undergraduate and graduate students.” -- Chela Sandoval, author of * Methodology of the Oppressed *“Laura E. Pérez’s newest book is a tour de force that integrates the mind-body-spirit through a series of writings that weave together the theoretical and poetical within the context of decolonization. She explores the works of artists like Gloria Anzaldúa, Ester Hernández, and Consuelo Jiménez Underwood as she crosses disciplines to bring the embodied psyche to bear on questions of the erotic and the spiritual.” -- Amalia Mesa-Bains, Professor Emerita, California State University, Monterey Bay"Pérez eloquently reflects on activism, art, philosophy, poetry, politics, and selfhood. She offers radical reappraisals of the art of Frida Kahlo, Ana Mendieta, Esther Hernández, and Liliana Wilson, among many artists whose histories have been obfuscated by Eurocentric ideas and whose praxes she creatively reexamines. This cross-disciplinary study powerfully recombines theoretical and literary sources that speak to academic practice, lived experience, and poetic meditation. Writing in multiple authorial voices, Pérez shatters the high/low art dichotomy that has often segregated Latinx art history from mainstream US culture. Recommended. Lower-division undergraduates through faculty." -- L. Estevez * Choice *"Readers unfamiliar with Latina, especially Chicana, art and politics are treated to eye-opening beauty mixed with expressions of suffering and resistance. Readers already immersed in the culturally rich world of protest art foregrounding gender and eroticisim will find new ways into the multilayered visionaries featured here." -- Marjorie Mandelstam Balzer * Religion *"Eros Ideologies is a teacherly text: Pérez shows us not only how to look at, but also how to be with, art of the Americas.… Certainly, the use of personal prose in scholarly publications is not unprecedented in the discourses of ethnic studies, anthropology, history, literature, art, and cultural studies; but Pérez's approach is tactical as readers enter her classroom—a space of 'heart and hearth'—where she interweaves decades of close study of theoretical and spiritual texts, lifelong contemplations of artwork, and the conversations she has maintained with the many artists who made them." -- Ella Maria Diaz * Latino Studies *"Eros Ideologies can serve as an approachable and valuable introduction to very urgent concerns." -- Andrew William Lee * Religion and the Arts *"It is Pérez’s mindful contributions of eros, agape, philia, In lak’ech, love, and respect for art that mark this book as a starting point in discussion of works by people of color, mostly Latinx and women artists. . . . As beautiful as Pérez’s writings on the subjects can be, as rich with historical connections calling upon syncretism and community care, these analyses are primers for further work to be done." -- Helman Alejandro Sosa * Latin American and Latinx Visual Culture *Table of ContentsList of Illustrations xi Preface xv Acknowledgments xxi 1. The Social Body of Love: Crafting Decolonial Methodologies 1 2. Eros Ideologies and Methodology of the Oppressed 17 3. Long Nguyen: Flesh of the Inscrutable 24 4. Hidden Avant-Gardes: Contemporary U.S. Latina/o Art 27 5. Freedom and Gender in Ester Hernández's Libertad 34 6. 'Ginas in the Atelier 40 7. The Poetry of Embodiment: Series and Variation in Linda Arreola's Vaguely Chicana 52 8. Art and Museums 56 9. The@-Erotics in Alex Donis's My Cathedral 70 10. Con o sin permiso (With or without Permission): Chicana Badgirls: Las hociconas 77 11. Maestrapeace: Picturing the Power of Women's Histories of Creativity 82 12. Decolonizing Self-Portraits of Frida Kahlo, Ana Mendieta, and Yreina D. Cervántez 91 13. Undead Darwinism and the Fault Lines of Neocolonialism in Latina/o Art Worlds 112 14. The Inviolate Erotic in the Paintings of Liliana Wilson 126 15. The Performance of Spirituality and Visionary Politics in the Work of Gloria Anzaldúa 133 16. Daughters Shaking Earth 147 17 Fashioning Decolonial Optics: Days of the Dead Walking Altars and Calavera Fashion Shows in Latina/o Los Angeles 155 18. On Jean Pierre Larochette and Yael Lurie's Water Songs 174 19. Prayers for the Planet: Reweaving the Natural and the Social: Consuelo Jimenez Underwood's Welcome to Flower-Landai 179 20. "Undocu Nation," Creativity, Integrity 192 21. Writing with Crooked Lines 201 Notes 211 References 245 Index 263

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Book SynopsisLaura E. Pérez analyzes Latina art to explore a new notion of decolonial thought and love based on the integration of body, mind, and spirit that offers a means to creating a more democratic and just present and future.Trade Review“Laura E. Pérez renews the precepts of 1950s Third World liberation and extends the contemporary politics of women-of-color freedom fighters into the future. She speaks with many voices—the learned scholar, the analyst, the teacher, the maker of new aesthetics, the poet, the dreamer, and the guide—and offers her readers a multitude of routes for crossing academic and subjective terrains to find new possibilities for thinking, doing, and being. An outstanding work of decolonial writing by one of the great Chicana feminist philosophers of our time, Eros Ideologies is exactly the book I have needed to best teach my undergraduate and graduate students.” -- Chela Sandoval, author of * Methodology of the Oppressed *“Laura E. Pérez’s newest book is a tour de force that integrates the mind-body-spirit through a series of writings that weave together the theoretical and poetical within the context of decolonization. She explores the works of artists like Gloria Anzaldúa, Ester Hernández, and Consuelo Jiménez Underwood as she crosses disciplines to bring the embodied psyche to bear on questions of the erotic and the spiritual.” -- Amalia Mesa-Bains, Professor Emerita, California State University, Monterey Bay"Pérez eloquently reflects on activism, art, philosophy, poetry, politics, and selfhood. She offers radical reappraisals of the art of Frida Kahlo, Ana Mendieta, Esther Hernández, and Liliana Wilson, among many artists whose histories have been obfuscated by Eurocentric ideas and whose praxes she creatively reexamines. This cross-disciplinary study powerfully recombines theoretical and literary sources that speak to academic practice, lived experience, and poetic meditation. Writing in multiple authorial voices, Pérez shatters the high/low art dichotomy that has often segregated Latinx art history from mainstream US culture. Recommended. Lower-division undergraduates through faculty." -- L. Estevez * Choice *"Readers unfamiliar with Latina, especially Chicana, art and politics are treated to eye-opening beauty mixed with expressions of suffering and resistance. Readers already immersed in the culturally rich world of protest art foregrounding gender and eroticisim will find new ways into the multilayered visionaries featured here." -- Marjorie Mandelstam Balzer * Religion *"Eros Ideologies is a teacherly text: Pérez shows us not only how to look at, but also how to be with, art of the Americas.… Certainly, the use of personal prose in scholarly publications is not unprecedented in the discourses of ethnic studies, anthropology, history, literature, art, and cultural studies; but Pérez's approach is tactical as readers enter her classroom—a space of 'heart and hearth'—where she interweaves decades of close study of theoretical and spiritual texts, lifelong contemplations of artwork, and the conversations she has maintained with the many artists who made them." -- Ella Maria Diaz * Latino Studies *"Eros Ideologies can serve as an approachable and valuable introduction to very urgent concerns." -- Andrew William Lee * Religion and the Arts *"It is Pérez’s mindful contributions of eros, agape, philia, In lak’ech, love, and respect for art that mark this book as a starting point in discussion of works by people of color, mostly Latinx and women artists. . . . As beautiful as Pérez’s writings on the subjects can be, as rich with historical connections calling upon syncretism and community care, these analyses are primers for further work to be done." -- Helman Alejandro Sosa * Latin American and Latinx Visual Culture *Table of ContentsList of Illustrations xi Preface xv Acknowledgments xxi 1. The Social Body of Love: Crafting Decolonial Methodologies 1 2. Eros Ideologies and Methodology of the Oppressed 17 3. Long Nguyen: Flesh of the Inscrutable 24 4. Hidden Avant-Gardes: Contemporary U.S. Latina/o Art 27 5. Freedom and Gender in Ester Hernández's Libertad 34 6. 'Ginas in the Atelier 40 7. The Poetry of Embodiment: Series and Variation in Linda Arreola's Vaguely Chicana 52 8. Art and Museums 56 9. The@-Erotics in Alex Donis's My Cathedral 70 10. Con o sin permiso (With or without Permission): Chicana Badgirls: Las hociconas 77 11. Maestrapeace: Picturing the Power of Women's Histories of Creativity 82 12. Decolonizing Self-Portraits of Frida Kahlo, Ana Mendieta, and Yreina D. Cervántez 91 13. Undead Darwinism and the Fault Lines of Neocolonialism in Latina/o Art Worlds 112 14. The Inviolate Erotic in the Paintings of Liliana Wilson 126 15. The Performance of Spirituality and Visionary Politics in the Work of Gloria Anzaldúa 133 16. Daughters Shaking Earth 147 17 Fashioning Decolonial Optics: Days of the Dead Walking Altars and Calavera Fashion Shows in Latina/o Los Angeles 155 18. On Jean Pierre Larochette and Yael Lurie's Water Songs 174 19. Prayers for the Planet: Reweaving the Natural and the Social: Consuelo Jimenez Underwood's Welcome to Flower-Landai 179 20. "Undocu Nation," Creativity, Integrity 192 21. Writing with Crooked Lines 201 Notes 211 References 245 Index 263

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Book SynopsisTrade Review"...this is a compassionate work that will enrich the reader's sense of the spiritual." -Journal of the American Academy of Religion "Robert C. Neville ... present[s] three prototypes-soldier, sage, and saint-who challenge the seeker to rise above the vacuous, self-centered 'solutions' offered as alternatives by our consumer society... there are great lessons here." -The New York Times

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Book SynopsisThis book dwells on elemental experiences that keep the soul alive to the enigma of the divine. It pursues what is intimate yet universal: sleep, reverence, hatred and love, peace and war. It looks at religion with an open mind, asking how philosophy might stand up to some of the questions posed to it by religion, not just vice versa.

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Book SynopsisInforming Jesuit education, ministry, and training in communities around the world, the author offers a practical vision - of engaged, responsible, discerning men and women striving to find God in all things - that resonates in this age of transition.Trade Review"This wonderful habit of devotional calendars can only change us for the better and often offer soothing advice for each day of the year." -Catholic Library World

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Book SynopsisTable of ContentsAcknowledgments xi Introduction 1 1 Explication: Representations of the Abandonment in the Relations, the Letters, and the Vie 21 2 Explanation: Contextualizing the Abandonment within Seventeenth- Century French Family Life 47 3 Explanation: The Marginalization of Motherhood in the Christian Tradition 71 4 Explanation: Maternal Hagiographies and Spiritualities of Abandonment in Seventeenth-Century France 98 5 Motherhood Refigured: Kristeva, Maternal Sacrifice, and the Imitation of Christ 124 Afterword/Afterward 149 Notes 151 Bibliography 187 Index 201

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Book SynopsisKoreans are highly religious, yet no single religious community enjoys dominance. This book explores the Korean spirituality and emphasizes the attitudes and aspirations of the Korean people rather than ideology. It studies the role of different religions in Korea.

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Book SynopsisKoreans are highly religious, yet no single religious community enjoys dominance. This book explores the different religions in Korea, emphasizing the attitudes and aspirations of the Korean people rather than ideology. It also studies the role of different religions in shaping Korea.

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Book Synopsis

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Book Synopsis

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Book Synopsis

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