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A noted scholar examines the work of the English mystic Julian of Norwich Julian of Norwich is the late fourteenth-century and early fifteenth-century English woman theologian. With her mystical writings, she has become one of the most popular and influential spiritual figures of our times. In Julian of Norwich: In God's Sight, the eminent scholar Philip Sheldrake offers a study of the theology that Julian expresses in her writings. The author examines what is known about Julian’s mystical experience or mystical consciousness, discusses what can be surmised about Julian’s likely identity and places her writings in historical, cultural and spiritual contexts. Julian of Norwich: In God's Sight is based on a faithful reading of Julian’s texts, especially the Long Text, as well as on her own declared theological-spiritual purpose. This compelling book: Presents a contextually-grounded and text-related study of the key elements of Julian’s theology Offers a scholarly work by a well-known expert in the field Unlocks an ever-richer understanding of Julian’s writings Includes an examination of the key texts attributed to Julian Written for students of theology and those interested in learning more about this popular mystic, Julian of Norwich: In God's Sight offers ascholarly review of Julian’s most important writings.
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The revised second edition of the accessible guide to contemporary ethical issues that are at the intersection of religion and morality The updated second edition of Do Morals Matter? offers an authoritative yet approachable guide to the current ethical issues that bridge the gap between religion and morality. This informed text examines today’s key ethical issues that range from making moral decisions in business and medicine, to the uncertainty of war and terrorism and the tenuous condition of our environment. This popular textbook embraces the dramatic changes that have occurred since the first edition was published such as changes in attitude towards the LGBT community as well as emerging ethical areas such as cyber ethics. In consultation with professors, the new edition includes sections at the beginning and end of each chapter that provide clear and succinct summaries of key issues, as well as reflective and discussion questions. This revised text: Sets out all the major ethical options in a balanced way inviting students to make their own mind up Deals with both moral philosophy and applied ethics Starts every chapter with a thought-exercise to provoke discussion Places Brexit and President Trump in an appropriate ethical framework Develops the concept of a Morally Serious Person. Written for students studying ethics in departments of theology and religion, Do Morals Matter? is the thoroughly revised and updated edition of the text that explores contemporary ethical issues.
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Rob Bell’s bestselling book Love Wins struck a powerful chord with a new generation of Christians who are asking the questions church leaders have been afraid to touch. His new book, What We Talk About When We Talk About God, continues down this path, helping us with the ultimate big-picture issue: how do we know God?Love Wins was a Sunday Times bestseller that created a media storm, launching Bell as a national religious voice who is reinvigorating what it means to be religious and a Christian today.He is one of the most influential voices in the Christian world, and now his new book, What We Talk About When We Talk About God, is poised to blow open the doors on how we understand God.Bell believes we need to drop our primitive, tribal views of God and instead understand the God who wants us to become who we were designed to be, a God who created a universe of quarks and quantum string dynamics, but who also gives meaning to why new-born babies and stories of heroes and sacrifice inspire in us a deep reverence.What We Talk About When We Talk About God will reveal that God is not in need of repair to catch him up with today’s world so much as we need to discover the God who goes before us and beckons us forward.A book full of mystery, controversy, and reverence, What We Talk About When We Talk About God has fans and critics alike anxiously awaiting, and promises not to disappoint.
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For anyone who wants to delve deeper into Rob Bell’s bestselling Love Wins, the expansive and accessible Love Wins Companion offers scholarly support and critiques, resources for individuals, groups, and classes, and brand new material by Rob Bell himself.As Love Wins continues to become a touchstone for thousands of readers worldwide, controversy surrounds the book’s arguments. Here, in The Love Wins Companion, Rob Bell offers commentary on the positive and negative attention his groundbreaking book is receiving, delivering a crucial supplement to one of the most important books Christian books today.• For those looking to go deeper with Rob Bell’s bestselling pioneering book Love Wins, this companion offers:• Insights and commentary by theologians, Bible scholars, scientists, and pastors• Deep analysis of all relevant Bible passages on heaven, hell, and salvation• Detailed chapter summaries, discussion questions, and Bible studies for individuals, groups, and classes• Excerpts from works throughout Christian history illustrating the variety of teachers also debating the issues Bell wrestles with• New material by Bell on his mission for the book and how people can take the next step
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There are many reports of strange cults which enthral their followers and cut themselves off from the world. Invariably led by gurus, or «spiritual leaders», the fruit of these cults are mass suicides in the South American jungle or the self-immolation of hundreds in besieged fortresses.There are said to be at least six hundred New Religious Movements in Britain, and many more in other parts of the world. They range from benign, charitable organisations to corrupt, dangerous cults which may end in murder or mass suicide. Since cults have a special appeal to the young, anxious parents have prompted a good deal of research into who joins cults and why. Less has been written about the gurus who institute and lead such movements.Gurus are extraordinary individuals who cast doubt upon current psychiatric distinctions between sanity and madness. A guru convinces others that he knows – a persuasive capacity which can bring illumination but which may also and in disaster.Anthony Storr’s book is a study of some of the best-known gurus, ranging from monsters such as Jim Jones or David Koresh, to saints such as Ignatius of Loyola. It includes both Freud and Jung because, as Storr demonstrates, what ostensibly began as a scientific investigation became, in each case, a secular path to salvation.'Feet of Clay' is one of Anthony Storr’s most original and illuminating books. It demonstrates that most of us harbour irrational beliefs, and discusses how the human wish for certainty in an insecure world leads to confusing delusion with truth. No-one knows, in the sense that gurus claim that they know. Maturity requires us to be able to tolerate doubt. The book ends with reflections upon why human beings need gurus at all, and indicates how those in need of guidance can distinguish the false and dangerous from the genuine and good.
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From the bestselling writer of ‘The History of God’ and the widely acclaimed ‘Islam – A Short History’ comes Karen Armstrong's ‘Muhammad’.Muhammad was born in 570 C.E., and over the following sixty years built a thriving spiritual community, laying the foundations of a religion that changed the course of world history. There is more historical data on his life than on that of the founder of any other major faith, and yet his story is consistently misunderstood, and subject to much distortion and error. This story is more relevant now than ever, offering crucial insight into the true origins of an increasingly radicalized Islam.An acclaimed authority on religious and spiritual issues, Karen Armstrong offers a balanced portrait of this revered figure. Through comparison with other prophets and mystics, she illuminates Muhammad's spiritual ideas; she uses the facts of his life, from which Muslims have drawn instruction for centuries, to make the tenets of Islam clear and accessible for modern readers of all faiths.This is an immaculately researched new biography of Muhammad that dismantles centuries of misconceptions to reveal the man at the heart of Islam.
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Rob Bell’s extraordinary and provocative Drops Like Stars, published as part of the Rob Bell Classics relaunch, explores the relationship between suffering and creativity, and the transformative power of pain.‘We plot. We plan. We assume things are going to go a certain way. And when they don’t, we find ourselves in a new place – a place we haven’t been before; a place we never would have imagined on our own. It is the difficult and the unexpected, and maybe even the tragic, that opens us up and frees us to see things in new ways.‘Many of the most significant moments in our lives come not because it all went right but because it all fell apart. Suffering does that. It hurts, but it also creates. This book is an exploration of the complex relationship between suffering and creativity, driven by the belief that there is art in the agony.’ Rob Bell
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A enthralling novel about the journey of life.The Compass focuses on the individual journey, as seen through the lead character Jonathan's eyes and walk in life.Jonathan's family has been torn apart following a horrific car accident and he is numb to everything around him. Unable to continue life as normal, he sets of on a journey – a journey that places him alone in a desert, trekking through the wilderness.As Jonathan embarks on his journey, he meets many people; each person has a reason for being there. Each pivotal person represents a specific element of life: love, forgiveness, prophecy. This is the way that life is.Reading this book, the reader is taken on the same journey, and taught how to understand what is happening in life, as they are led towards an internal excavation of their soul. Illustrating key principles taught by leading life experts, The Compass will help to give people direction in their lives.
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Following the extraordinary success of the New York Times bestseller Bonhoeffer, Eric Metaxas's latest book offers inspirational and intellectually rigorous thoughts on the big questions surrounding us all today.The Greek philosopher Socrates famously said that ‘the unexamined life is not worth living’. Taking this as a starting point, Eric Metaxas founded a speaking series that encouraged busy and successful professionals to attend forums and think actively about the bigger questions in life. Thus Socrates in the City: Conversations on ‘Life, God, and Other Small Topics’.This book is for the seeker in all of us, the collector of wisdom, and the person who asks ‘what’s the point?’. Within this collection of original essays that were first given to standing-room-only crowds in New York City are serious thinkers from all around the world taking on Life, God, Evil, Redemption, and other similarly small topics.Luminaries such as Dr. Francis Collins, Sir John Polkinghorne, Tom Wright, Os Guinness, Peter Kreeft and George Weigel have written about extraordinary topics vital to both secular and Christian thinking, such as ‘Making Sense Out of Suffering’, ‘The Concept of Evil after 9/11’, and ‘Can a Scientist Pray?’. No question is too big – in fact, the bigger and the more complex the better. These essays are both thought-provoking and entertaining, because nowhere is it written that finding answers to life's biggest questions shouldn't be great fun…
