But Mariamne has a further gift: an illness has left her with visions; she has the power of prophecy. It is her prophesying that drives the two girls to flee to Egypt, where they study philosophy, mathematics, and astronomy in the Great Library of Alexandria.After seven years they return to a Judaea where many now believe John the Baptizer is the messiah. Salome too begins to believe, but Mariamne, now called Magdalene, is drawn to his cousin, Yeshu'a, a man touched by the divine in the same way she was during her days of illness. Together they speak of sharing their direct experience of God; but Yeshu'a unexpectedly gains a reputation as a healer, and as the ill and the troubled flock to him, he and Magdalene are forced to make a terrible decision.This radical retelling of the greatest story ever told brings Mary Magdalene to life—not as a prostitute or demon-possessed—but as an educated woman who was truly the "apostle to the apostles."From the Hardcover edition.

    In command of one of Rome's finest legions, he and his closest friend, Androcles, have fought side by side to uphold the glory of the empire.But at the end of a long and bloody campaign, Maximus begins to question his purpose, his past, and the gods he has been taught to believe in.When word reaches Rome of a man named Jesus who is causing a stir in faraway Judaea, Maximus and Androcles are sent, disguised as Jews, to ascertain the truth of the situation: Is this Jesus merely a radical preacher, or is he instigating a revolution against Rome?As Maximus immerses himself in Jewish culture, he must confront questions that could change his life: Is it possible this carpenter from Nazareth is the Son of God? Is it possible for a man of war to live a life of peace?

    His wife, Miriam, is expecting their first baby, but complications threaten to take the lives of both mother and child. In desperate need of God s help, Joshua journeys to the temple in Jerusalem to make an offering and to pray. What follows is a compassionate, emotional story about God s love as Joshua becomes one of the shepherds chosen to greet the Christ child on the night of his birth. Torn between concern for his wife and a desire to follow the angel s directive-- to go and find the babe lying in a manger-- Joshua makes a startling discovery that will change his life forever. What sets this Christmas story apart from many others is that although it is written as fiction, the descriptions of time, place, and circumstances are based on fact. This is a story that will penetrate your heart and remind you why the shepherds rejoiced on that wondrous night in Bethlehem.

    This endearing story and beloved music have truly become a Christmas classic. The holiday tale of Uncle John and Connie Lou have touched the hearts of millions and taught all of us about the true meaning of Christmas.

    So I record it now for all future generations to accept or dismiss as seems them good. As for me, I believe. And it is, after all, my story." So begins "The Christmas Box, " the touching story of a widow and the young family who moves in with her. Together they discover the first gift of Christmas and learn what Christmas is really all about. "The Christmas Box" is a Christmas story unlike any other.

    Claire is a survivor. After battling breast cancer and suffering through a painful divorce, she is working on rebuilding a simple, uncomplicated life. Quite by accident, she stumbles across a link to her past that will forever change her future—the M.I.A./P.O.W. bracelet she wore as a teenager. Paige wonders if the soldier ever made it home.Dalton McNamara did return from Vietnam after spending time as a prisoner of war in Hanoi. He now lives in Newport Beach—near Paige's best friend, Louisa. When Paige goes to California to help her friend through surgery, she visits the returned soldier.After an awkward beginning, Paige soon realizes that Dalton is an amazing man. And even though this widower and single father has many female admirers in the local LDS community, Dalton recognizes that there has been no one he has connected with—until Paige.As their friendship grows into love, can they overcome their emotional and physical scars of the past and face whatever the future may hold? From best-selling author Michele Ashman Bell, Timeless Moments is an unforgettable story, glimmering with hope and healing.

    Her family talks as if he were perfect! All Kathy knows for sure is that Brett is dead. He died of leukemia when he was sixteen and she was only two. But when Kathy turns sixteen, she discovers her brother s hidden journal - a journal written especially for her - and learns about the brother she never knew. At the same time, Kathy is mortified by an assignment to tutor the popular high school quarterback Jason West, a football jock who, even worse, is a Mormon. Author Kay Lynn Mangum brilliantly weaves the dual stories of a dying brother and a coming-of-age sister who learn the importance of loving our family and our friends and nurturing our faith.

    It is the 1820s, and years earlier, Ezekiel had fled his abusive stepfather and his loving, yet browbeaten mother promising he would never return. He vowed that when he had a family they would be bound together in freedom, happiness, and love. But now this strange, new Mormon religion seems to have captured the hearts of his wife and children in spite of the rumors that surround it and its supposed prophet, Joseph Smith. As wicked individuals and strong temptations seek to block his familys path to happiness, Ezekiel realizes that he must either allow them to join the Church and risk losing them, or tear them away from their newfound faith even if they end up hating him for it. From authors Marcie Gallacher and Kerri Robinson comes the emotional first volume in the epic series A Banner Is Unfurled, telling the remarkable story of a real family in Church history and the choices they must face. Full of drama and passion, this book is one you will want to share with your family, friends, and loved ones.

    By his looks, as appealing as they are, the tall Lamanite is the mortal enemy of Kiah and her people. She can't hope that her father, Captain Moroni, and his Nephite soldiers will rescue her — the strong-willed young woman has wandered well beyond the safe borders of Zarahemla. However, she is determined to use her warrior training to fight the Lamanite called Jeran until the end, no matter how hopeless the odds.The land of Zarahemla has long been under serious threat from its enemies. But recently, its worst foes come from within — including Corahan, a man who would stop at nothing to fulfill his desires. One of the things Corahan most wants is Kiah as his wife. Now Kiah and her new unlikely ally must call on all their faith and courage to save Zarahemla in a struggle that will bring either deliverance or death — to both of them.Journey to 62 BC and discover adventure, intrigue, and romance in a story where evil must be fought against, no matter how high the cost.

    And even though the rest of the wagon company has decided they must continue on to Zion, Constance Brown refuses to go any further until she finds her husband. All she can think about is the last time she saw him#151;he lovingly touched her face and then sang their baby girl to sleep. Will that memory be all Constance has to hold on to? In a future time and place, Liz King is a teenager struggling with her identity in the modern world. The embarrassment she feels because of her parents' divorce and her family's newfound financial problems turns to bitterness. Through an inexplicable twist of fate, Constance and Liz are brought face to face. Liz recognizes Constance's name from her mother's endless lectures on their family history, and she also recognizes her eyes#151;they are exactly like her own. Were these distant relatives brought together in order to help each other? Will Constance be able to return to her own life and find William, and will Liz be able to keep from telling Constance how her story ends? In this irresistible novel filled with gripping adventure and heartfelt emotion, two young women from drastically different times and settings learn that the challenges life holds for them are not so different after all.

    Christ and the New Covenant

    Determined to stick the job out, Julia faces her biggest challenge yet letting go of borrowed light to find her own testimony. Set in the early 1900s, this is one romantic adventure you'll never forget!

    He who sees too much is cursed for a dreamer, a fanatic, or a fool, by the mad mob, who, having eyes, see not, ears and hear not, and refuse to understand."--From The Shepherd of the HillsOriginally published in 1907, The Shepherd of the Hills is Harold Bell Wright's most famous work. Pelican Publishing Company is honored to bring this classic novel back to print as part of the Pelican Pouch series. In The Shepherd of the Hills, Wright spins a tale of universal truths across the years to the modern-day reader. His Eden in the Ozarks has a bountiful share of life's enchantments, but is not without its serpents. While Wright rejoices in the triumphs, grace, and dignity of his characters, he has not naively created a pastoral fantasyland where the pure at heart are spared life's struggles and pains. Refusing to yield to the oft-indulged temptation of painting for the reader the simple life of country innocents, Wright forthrightly shows the passions and the life-and-death struggles that go on even in the fairest of environments that man invades. The shepherd, an elderly, mysterious, learned man, escapes the buzzing restlessness of the city to live in the backwoods neighborhood of Mutton Hollow in the Ozark hills. There he encounters Jim Lane, Grant Matthews, Sammy, Young Matt, and other residents of the village, and gradually learns to find a peace about the losses he has borne and has yet to bear. Through the shepherd and those around him, Wright assembles here a gentle and utterly masterful commentary on strength and weakness, failure and success, tranquility and turmoil, and punishment and absolution. This tale of life in the Ozarks continues to draw thousands of devotees to outdoor performances in Branson, Missouri, where visitors can also see the cabin where the real Old Matt and Aunt Mollie lived.Harold Bell Wright also is the author of That Printer of Udell's (pb) and The Calling of Dan Matthews (pb), both published by Pelican.

    The daughter of a powerful lord, Sarah balks at the marriage her father has planned for her. On her wedding day, she impulsively flees to the vast, empty marshes outside the city walls, where she meets a young man named Abram, son of a tribe of outsiders. Drawn to this exotic stranger, Sarah spends one night with him and reluctantly returns to her father’s house. But on her return, she secretly drinks a poisonous potion that will make her barren and thus unfit for marriage.Many years later, Abram returns to Ur and discovers that the lost, rebellious girl from the marsh has been transformed into a splendid woman—the high priestess of the goddess Ishtar. But Sarah gives up her exalted life to join Abram’s tribe and follow the one true God, an invisible deity who speaks only to Abram. It is then that her journey truly begins.From the great ziggurat of Ishtar to the fertile valleys of Canaan to the bedchamber of the mighty Pharaoh himself, Sarah’s story reveals an ancient world full of beauty, intrigue, and miracles.

    The curator is murdered at a clandestine meeting on the outskirts of Rome a week before it opens. That same night, a violent break-in rocks the home of Greek Catholic priest Father Alex Andreou. When the papal police fail to identify a suspect in either crime, Father Alex decides that to find the killer he must reconstruct the secret of what a little-known, true-to-life fifth gospel known as the Diatessaron reveals about the church’s most controversial holy relic. But just as he begins to understand the truth about his friend’s death and its consequences for the future of the Christian church, Father Alex discovers a ruthless stalker is hunting him—an enemy with a vested stake in the exhibit that he must outwit to survive.Rich, authentic, erudite, and emotionally searing, The Fifth Gospel is a riveting novel of suspense and a feast of biblical history that satisfies on every level.