This text helps develop in readers the skills, knowledge and strategies needed to read and interpret research reports and to evaluate the quality of such reports.

    Simply translated, the title means "love of the beautiful," which reflects the text's emphasis on mystical and contemplative practices to engage all of our senses in the acts of worship and prayer.This introduction to the wisdom of the Philokalia illuminates a text that until now has intimidated the general reader in its scholarly translations from Greek and Russian. Allyne Smith focuses his thoughtful selection on seven themes that recur throughout the five-volume work--repentance, the heart, prayer, the Jesus Prayer, the passions, stillness, and theosis. Smith's enlightening, accessible facing-page commentary fills in the historical and spiritual context, clarifies core teachings, including the Eastern understanding of salvation, and draws connections to modern-day practices, such as contemplative prayer.Now you can experience the spiritual wisdom of the Philokalia even if you have no previous knowledge of Eastern Christianity. This SkyLight Illuminations edition takes you on a journey through this beloved text, showing you how the teachings of Eastern monks can help you become by grace what God is by nature.

    WILD AT HEART DVD-BASED STUDY SESSIONSWILD AT HEART DVD-BASED STUDY SESSIONS

    A worldwide bestseller published in countless sizes and bindings, translations and languages. Sworn by in court, fought over by religious people, quoted in arguments. The Bible is clearly no ordinary book. How can you begin to read and understand it as a whole? In this excellent overview, Vaughan Roberts gives you the big picture—showing how the different parts of the Bible fit together under the theme of the kingdom of God. He provides both the encouragement and the tools to help you read the Bible with confidence and understanding. And he points you to the Bible's supreme subject, Jesus Christ, and the salvation God offers through him.

    Humans–as Augustine noted–are "desiring agents," full of longings and passions; in brief, we are what we love.James K. A. Smith focuses on the themes of liturgy and desire in "Desiring the Kingdom," the first book in what will be a three-volume set on the theology of culture. He redirects our yearnings to focus on the greatest good: God. Ultimately, Smith seeks to re-vision education through the process and practice of worship. Students of philosophy, theology, worldview, and culture will welcome "Desiring the Kingdom," as will those involved in ministry and other interested readers.

    Pieper shows that the Greeks understood and valued leisure, as did the medieval Europeans. He points out that religion can be born only in leisure - a leisure that allows time for the contemplation of the nature of God. Leisure has been, and always will be, the first foundation of any culture.He maintains that our bourgeois world of total labor has vanquished leisure, and issues a startling warning: Unless we regain the art of silence and insight, the ability for nonactivity, unless we substitute true leisure for our hectic amusements, we will destroy our culture - and ourselves.These astonishing essays contradict all our pragmatic and puritanical conceptions about labor and leisure; Josef Pieper demolishes the twentieth-century cult of "work" as he predicts its destructive consequences.

    In order to discover the truth of the Gospels the Orthodox priest Father Spyridon guides the reader through reflections on how to rediscover that ancient path to Christ. Together with quotations from the Church Fathers he highlights how far from the teachings of Christ and the Apostles so much of what passes for Christianity has become. Dealing with issues such as the saints, the family, sex, theosis, repentance, wealth and others, he demonstrates that the faith of the Early Church is alive in our world and to be found in Orthodoxy. A challenging read, The Ancient Path pulls no punches in its call for Christians to return to the authentic path of faith and encourages us all to see the dangers of modern ife. Please note - the page numbers in the contents page refer to the paperback version.

    It tells the basic beliefs, short history, important aspects, and it identifies the religions in pop culture-all in a teen-magazine style of writing. The goal of this book is to educate teens to be able to identify the religions they come in contact with daily. All content has been reviewed by experts in Christian theology.

    School(s) for Conversion is a communal attempt to discern the marks of a new monasticism in the inner-cities and forgotten landscapes of the Empire that is called America. Endorsements: This book invites us into a way of life that is simultaneously ancient and wonderfully new. By combining first-person accounts of the marks of Christ-formed communities with rich historical and biblical reflection, the various writers provide truthful and hope-filled descriptions of contemporary Christian community. Taking seriously the resources of the monastic tradition and the importance of preserving a relationship with the wider church, the authors offer mature, wise, and gracious insight into the practices of faithful living. I heartily recommend this book to anyone yearning for evidence and promise of renewal in the church! Christine D. Pohl Professor of Social Ethics, Asbury Theological Seminary author of Making Room: Recovering Hospitality as a Christian Tradition (Eerdmans, 1999) Whatever future God has for the church, I am convinced the essays in this remarkable book will help us discern that future. Monasticism has always been one of the main means God has used to renew the church. Through some strange miracle God now seems to be calling Protestants to consider what it might mean for them to live in communities that might look very much like monastic communities. Such a call might tempt many toward some kind of romanticism, but one of the remarkable things about these essays is their stark realism. Such a realism is unavoidable not only because of the challenges facing those who are about the formation of communities faithful to God but also because they have lived with one another enough to know this is not going to be easy. So these essays are full of good sense and they help us see the potential of this extraordinary movement. Moreover, each essayist never forgets to remind us that when it's all said and done, it's about God who makes it possible for us to live patiently and nonviolently in a world of impatience and violence. Stanley Hauerwas, Gilbert T. Rowe Professor of Theological Ethics, Duke Divinity School ""I believe the new monasticism represents a source of vital renewal from the margins and forgotten places of empire. It is my sincere hope that the new monasticism will grow so strong and healthy and widespread that every follower of Jesus in every church has the opportunity - if not to actually live in a new monastic community - to at least have enough proximity and relationship to be influenced by it. This book can help that dream and prayer come true."" Brian McLaren, pastor (crcc.org), author (anewkindofchristian.com) ""In this vision of transformation, the prophets of a new monasticism have a single commitment. They want to realize together--in prayer, thought, and action--their total dependence on God by simply following Jesus. A book prompted by our civilization's signs of death may not seem hopeful, but this one is. The new monasticism has seen the truth that in deepening darkness there is nothing so hopeful as embracing the cross."" Jim Douglass, author of THE NONVIOLENT COMING OF GOD and co-founder of Mary's House Catholic Worker in Birmingham, Alabama. God is stirring something new...a new monasticism. This book will take you on an intriguing journey with a few followers of Jesus who are discovering some new ways to give expression to the monastic vocation in our troubled world. Must reading for those who want to take their faith seriously in community with others. Tom Sine, author of Mustard Seed vs. McWorld (www.msa.org) About the Contributor(s): The Rutba House is a Christian community of hospitality, peacemaking, and discipleship in the Walltown neighborhood of Durham, NC.

    Convinced that many Christians “have some level of awareness that God is triune…[but] are virtually Unitarian,” the authors have written a practical and theologically robust resource to help readers grow closer to the Triune God. Philip Ryken and Michael LeFebvre examine the doctrine of the Trinity in four parts. They explain the roles of the Father, Son, and Spirit in salvation; answer difficult questions about the Trinity; explore the believer’s relationship to each person of the Trinity; and provide an exposition of the various Gospel narratives depicting how the three persons of the Trinity work together to accomplish the redemptive purposes of God. Their careful treatment of these central truths captures important implications for the Christian life.Our Triune God is a helpful guide for Christians wanting to deepen their faith and for pastors as they shepherd their congregations toward a richer love of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.

    

    Sometimes the way forward is found by looking back.Abraham Kuyper, a Dutch theologian and prime minister of Holland (1901-1905), elaborated on the doctrine of common grace, a theology of public service, and cultural engagement of Christians' shared humanity with the rest of the world.

    It is intended to instruct the faithful, and satisfy their pious desires. There might, perhaps, have been some reason to fear, at the very outset, that the mere title of Devotion to the Sacred Heart of Jesus Christ, however it might attract many persons to read this book, might also deter many others. Arrested by the first words, they might be led to form an inaccurate idea of the devotion. To remove this difficulty, it has been thought well to explain in the beginning, what is understood by devotion to the Sacred Heart of Jesus Christ. Experience has proved, that there is no one, who, after seeing in what it consists, does not agree, that it is reasonable, solid, and most useful, for our salvation, as well as for our perfection

    At the request of Henri Nouwen's literary estate, she has written this book, which includes unpublished material recorded from Nouwen's lectures. As an art educator, Berry is uniquely situated to develop Nouwen's work on Vincent van Gogh and to add her own research. She fills in background on the much misunderstood spiritual context of van Gogh's work, and reinterprets van Gogh's art (presented here in full color) in light of Nouwen's lectures. Berry also brings in her own experience in ministry, sharing how Nouwen and van Gogh, each in his own way, led her to the richness and beauty of the compassionate life.

    But what if we understood these decisions, minor as well as major, as matters of faithful Christian living? In this helpful and encouraging book, Elizabeth Liebert introduces the practice of discernment and guides readers through the process of faithful decision making. Following the way of discernment means becoming increasingly able to notice where God is at work in the world and in one's own life--and becoming increasingly generous with one's own life in response. After briefly exploring the Christian tradition of discernment, Liebert then turns to practical steps and exercises that will help readers as they seek God's call in the midst of their decisions, allowing readers to internalize some of these practices and incorporate them into their daily lives.