Essays
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Defiant Hope : Essays On Life, Faith, And Freedom
$28.99Add to cartThe best writings from George W. Bush’s speechwriter Michael Gerson, a pioneer of the compassionate conservative movement, a champion of Christian engagement, and an eloquent defender of the poor and the marginalized.
It is not an exaggeration to say that Michael Gerson possessed one of the most important consciences of his generation. As the chief speech writer for George W. Bush, he wrote the words that rallied and ennobled the nation after September 11th. He helped design and champion Bush’s PEPFAR program, which saved upwards of 20 million lives as HIV ravaged Africa. His famous line defending public education was to say that failure would amount to “a soft bigotry of low expectations.” He became one of the nation’s most eloquent columnists, who was never content to do political horse race punditry but devoted himself to the most essential causes of the time, pushing back on the authoritarianism of Donald Trump and pushing for the kind of compassionate conservatism that he dedicated his life to designing.
Defiant Hope is his writings about the things he loved–humanity, God, his dog, and his boys. Essays feature the immensely complicated sadness when you drop your children off at college for the first time. Another is about his public battle of depression. He also includes chapters about men and women who formed this great procession of Christian Reformers–John Wesley, Jonathan Edwards, William Wilberforce, and Olaudah Equiano–and the great causes to which they were devoted, from abolitionism to civil rights.
What lingers is his gracious voice across all the roles that he played, as David Brooks writes in the introduction. What you hear is “a prophet lamenting iniquity, a father and a friend capable of great bursts of gratitude and appreciation, a Christian who is sometimes buried under sadness and close to despair, but who never loses sight of that distant illuminating beacon of hope.”
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Dejalo Ir – (Spanish)
$12.99Add to cartUna coleccion de cartas espirituales escritas por Francois Fenelon, un obispo catolico, a varias personas de quienes fue consejero espiritual. Mas de 300 aos despues, sus ideas espirituales contenidas en estas cartas continuan inspirando, desafiando y bendiciendo a los cristianos: catolicos, protestantes y evangelicos por igual.
A collection of spiritual letters written by Francois Fenelon, a Catholic bishop, to various persons to whom he was a spiritual advisor. Over 300 years later, his spiritual insights in these letters continue to inspire, challenge and bless Christians: Catholic, Protestant, and Evangelical alike.
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Compelling Convictions : Finding Our Future In A Modern World
$35.99Add to cartA fresh look at our core values
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In the twenty years since a group of Brethren in Christ pastors, educators, administrators, and laypeople first met to identify ten core values for the North American church, much has changed–including the continuing decline of the church in the west; dynamic social movements for racial, gender, and economic justice; vast advances in technology, and a worldwide pandemic.With so much happening on both the national and international stages, it seems vital that we as Brethren in Christ prayerfully reflect not only on our core values and their application, but on how those values might help our churches engage a dramatically new social context. Are these values merely sentimental slogans? Or do they constitute compelling convictions, genuine guiding lights orienting us and motivating our mission in a rapidly changing world? The answer to that all-important question depends largely on how we use them. In this forward-looking book, essays from Brethren in Christ pastors and leaders from across the globe call us into the future of the church–to unleash our creative energies, roll up our sleeves, and put these core values to good use.
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Compelling Convictions : Finding Our Future In A Modern World
$19.99Add to cartA fresh look at our core values
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In the twenty years since a group of Brethren in Christ pastors, educators, administrators, and laypeople first met to identify ten core values for the North American church, much has changed–including the continuing decline of the church in the west; dynamic social movements for racial, gender, and economic justice; vast advances in technology, and a worldwide pandemic.With so much happening on both the national and international stages, it seems vital that we as Brethren in Christ prayerfully reflect not only on our core values and their application, but on how those values might help our churches engage a dramatically new social context. Are these values merely sentimental slogans? Or do they constitute compelling convictions, genuine guiding lights orienting us and motivating our mission in a rapidly changing world? The answer to that all-important question depends largely on how we use them. In this forward-looking book, essays from Brethren in Christ pastors and leaders from across the globe call us into the future of the church–to unleash our creative energies, roll up our sleeves, and put these core values to good use.
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Before You Go
$17.99Add to cartAre you preparing to take the gospel to the nations?
You’ve said “yes” to God’s call to go, and now you will pack up your things and step into the unknown of a new location, people, and culture. The following years will likely include great joy, frustration, homesickness, difficulty, and excitement. In this book, ten men who have served in missions in various ways share what they wish they had known before they began.
This book is a handbook for entering the mission field, including essays on:
*Discerning Your Calling
*Leaving What You Love
*Identity and Task
*Integrity and Accountability
*Serving Well as a Team
*Prayer and Evangelism
*Going Single
*Family & Mission
*The Fellowship of the Suffering
*Spiritual Patterns of a Missionary -
Malines : Continuing The Conversations
$26.99Add to cartThe Malines Conversations are often described as a precursor to the theological dialogue between the Catholic Church and the Anglican Communion initiated after the Second Vatican Council.
The fruit of a friendship between a French priest and an English aristocrat, Cardinal Mercier’s initial invitation in 1921 to a group of thinkers from both communions led to several rounds of discussion focused on issues that have long divided Catholics and Anglicans.
Since 2013, an informal and international group of Anglican and Catholic friends, known as the Malines Conversations Group, has been meeting annually for discussion and fellowship.
This volume represents the fruit of some of these conversations. The informal nature of the group allows for wide-ranging interrogation of diverse topics. The discussions acted as a kind of theological laboratory, enabling us to explore afresh some of the issues at stake both between and within our churches.
This volume of essays includes contributions from sacramental theologians, liturgists, ecclesiologists, historians and philosophers. Most are actively involved in Christian ministry.
Interspersed throughout are very short reflections from other theologians and Church leaders who have participated in the conversations as guests over the last decade.
In the words of Rowan Williams’ epilogue, the hope and prayer of the contributors is that ‘this celebration and exploration of the heritage of Malines [might] give us again the grace of being surprised by the gift of Catholic communion.’
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Works Of John Wesley 28
$77.99Add to cartThe correspondence presented in this fourth volume of Wesley’s letters casts light on the growth of his movement, documenting (for example) the emergence of connexion-wide financial campaigns and continuing debates over the desire of lay preachers for ordination. It covers the decisive split between the Wesleyan and Calvinist wings of Methodism, including the ways in which Charles Wesley drew closer to his brother through these developments. The volume includes over 100 items not found in previous editions of Wesley’s letters. All Works of John Wesley volumes are designed to keep the pages clean and in place for years to come., with casebound non-cloth hardcover, dust jacket, and secure adhesive binding.
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Theos Starter Pack
$19.99Add to cartRecovering…Timeless Truths
Like an online starter pack meme, Theos Starter Pack: Toward a Recovery of Essential Christianity is designed to provoke a response.
The book includes twenty essays by a motley crew of Bible geeks who are all active in church ministry and teach at TheosU, an online, nondenominational Bible college.
The focus is on recovering the roots of Christianity–recovering the way we teach, recovering the Bible’s grand narrative, recovering Christian liberty, recovering apocalyptic, and much more.
Each writer “takes into consideration the ageless tradition of Christianity that has been handed down through the centuries, resisting the cultural soup and integrating timeless thinking into an approach that works for the present day,” explains Chris Palmer, TheosU dean. This book is a lifeline “to pull yourself out of the soup.”
You may laugh. You may run to your Bible. You may reach out to one of the writers to share a few choice words. But no matter what, these essayists hope you will be inspired and come away with rich theological insights.
Theos Starter Pack recovers beautiful elements of ancient Christianity that have been lost or shoved aside in modern society. It’s food for the souls of those who long for a return to the roots of our faith.
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Casiodoro De Reina – (Spanish)
$19.99Add to cartUna coleccion de ensayos en honor del 500 aniversario de uno de los reformadores espaoles mas importantes de la epoca, su vida y su legado.
Casiodoro de Reina es uno de los reformadores espaoles mas importantes, pero hasta hoy sabemos relativamente poco de su obra y teologia. Aunque el impacto literario de su traduccion de la Biblia compite incluso con el de Cervantes, todavia sabemos poco de la Biblia del Oso.
Este libro, con aportaciones de once expertos en la Reforma protestante espaola y aprovechandose de casi cien obras y cartas de Casiodoro de Reina que han sido ignoradas por muchos escritores, rellena estas lagunas y ofrece nuevas perspectivas sobre Casiodoro de Reina: su obra pastoral, su vida empresarial, las fuentes y recepcion de la Biblia del Oso y varios temas de su teologia, como La justificacion y Santa cena.
El libro se divide en tres bloques principales por expertos historiadores:
1. Vida y las obras de Casiodoro de Reina (Pastor, Maestro y empresario)
2. La Biblia del Oso (Antiguo y Viejo Testamento junto a material no biblico)
3. Temas teologicos (protestante y su doctrina)Casiodoro de Reina: His life, Bible and theology
A collection of essays in honor of the 500th anniversary of one of the most important Spanish reformers of the time, his life and legacy.
Casiodoro de Reina is one of the most important Spanish reformers, but to this day we know relatively little of his work and theology. Although the literary impact of his translation of the Bible rivals even that of Cervantes, we still know little about the Bear Bible.
This book, with contributions from eleven experts on the Spanish Protestant Reformation and drawing on nearly one hundred works and letters of Casiodoro de Reina that have been ignored by many writers, fills in these gaps and offers new perspectives on Casiodoro de Reina: his pastoral work, his business life, the sources and reception of the Bear Bible, and various themes of his theology, such as Justification and The Holy Supper.
The book is divided into three main blocks by expert historians:
1. Life and works of Casidoro de Reina (Pastor, Teacher and Entrepreneur).
2. The Bear Bible (Old and Old Testament along with non-biblical material).
3. Theological topics (Protestant and its doctrine). -
Things That Matter Most
$18.00Add to cartHave you forgotten how wondrous life can be? Chris De Vinck offers a timeless collection of wisdom on family, childhood, God, love, compassion, buttered toast, snowmen, Hamlet, Bugs Bunny, bees.
For anyone who is caught up in the hustle and bustle of life, weary and perhaps a little jaded by all that seems wrong in the world, this is a book that helps us to see again.
In essays that are warm, evocative, and often amusing, Christopher De Vinck gives us back the eyes of a child, the fresh vision of delight, and a renewed reminder that we are surrounded with awe that we often take for granted. This is a book about living with a perpetual array of treasures: the voices of people we love, the taste of marzipan, the sounds of October geese. This is a book that reminds us to look, smell, see, touch, and listen to what is revealed to us each morning. Chris invites us to realize life as we live it, every minute.
Reflecting on the joys of family, writing, and education, Chris doesn’t shy away from loneliness, disappointments and regrets. His is a voice that combines both the joys and sorrows of living, speaking with hope and acceptance, and celebrating the power of simplicity in our modern age.
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All Thy Lights Combine
$32.99Add to cartWe do not simply interpret God’s word. His word interprets us.
Figural interpretation has been a trademark of Anglican devotions from the beginning. Anglican readers–including Tyndale, Cranmer, Hooker, and Lewis–have been figural readers of the Bible. By paying attention to how words, images, and narratives become figures of others in Scripture, these readers sought to uncover how God’s word interprets all of reality. Every verse shines the constellation of God’s story.
Edited by David Ney and Ephraim Radner, the essays in All Thy Lights Combine explore how the Anglican tradition has employed figural interpretation to theological, Christological, and pastoral ends. The prayer book is central; it immerses Christians in the words of Scripture and orders them by the word. With guided prayers for morning and evening, this book invites readers to be re–formed by God’s word. Become immersed in the riches of the Anglican interpretive tradition.
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Last Romantic : C. S. Lewis, English Literature, And Modern Theology
$22.00Add to cartThree Essays on C. S. Lewis and Romanticism
Many readers have heard C. S. Lewis’s logical arguments for the Christian faith. Yet throughout his wide-ranging study and writing, Lewis often began with experience, intuition, and religious feeling rather than dogmatic assertions. The most profound questions of Lewis’s own life, argues theologian and literary critic Jeffrey Barbeau, can be seen in his quest to understand the relationship between personal experience and the truth about the world around him.
In a series of three essays, Barbeau explores the influence of nineteenth-century Romanticism on the writings of C. S. Lewis. Barbeau demonstrates Lewis’s indebtedness to Romantic notions of imagination and subjectivity, opens new contexts for understanding ideas about memory and personal identity in his autobiographical writings, and explores beliefs about nature and Christian sacraments throughout his writings on Christian faith. This theological and literary investigation reveals Lewis as a profoundly modern thinker and illuminates his ongoing relevance to contemporary debates about theology and culture.
Drawing on extensive reading of the marginalia in the personal library of C. S. Lewis held by the Marion E. Wade Center, Barbeau offers a fresh understanding of the influence of modern theology and Romantic poetry, especially Wordsworth and Coleridge, on many of Lewis’s most beloved works. Essays and responses include:
*C. S. Lewis and the “Romantic Heresy,” with response from professor Sarah Borden,
*C. S. Lewis and the Anxiety of Memory, with response from professor Matthew Lundin, and
*C. S. Lewis and the Sacramental Imagination, with response from professor Keith L. Johnson.Based on the annual lecture series hosted at Wheaton College’s Marion E. Wade Center, volumes in the Hansen Lectureship Series reflect on the imaginative work and lasting influence of seven British authors: Owen Barfield, G. K. Chesterton, C. S. Lewis, George MacDonald, Dorothy L. Sayers, J. R. R. Tolkien, and Charles Williams.
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Bioethics And The Character Of Human Life
$26.00Add to cartIn the essays collected here Gilbert Meilaender invites readers to reflect upon some of the bioethical issues that are important for all of us. The essays treat bioethics less as a discipline confined to a few experts than as a deeply humanistic set of concerns that inevitably draws us into religious and metaphysical issues. From reflections on his experience as a member of the President’s Council on Bioethics to the way in which Christian trinitarian teaching has shaped what it means to be a person, from life’s beginning to its ending, these essays offer readers a chance to think about matters of fundamental human significance.
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When We Pray
$26.51Add to cartThe essays in this volume from liturgists in mainstream Christian churches in Australia and New Zealand gladly acknowledge that when we pray, we join with others.
We share a history, a way of worshipping, often a common language and established forms, with authorised prayer books designed to retain the theological and liturgical emphases of the various churches. Yet it is a subject that can divide as well as unite; with a variety of experiences, attitudes and aspirations, especially in a world where forms of worship are readily accessible from internet sources.
If worship and prayer express what we believe, who authorises forms of worship; who determines the authenticity of liturgy; what principles underlie and surround how people of faith worship in formal gatherings? These are some of the issues that inform the essays in this practical and ecumenical resource.
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Christ The Cornerstone
$21.99Add to cartWhat does it mean to say Jesus is Lord?
The late Anglican pastor John Stott–named as one of the 100 most influential people in 2005 by Time magazine-was committed to the notion that Jesus’ lordship has ramifications for all of life. Out of this conviction grew his contention that the whole mission of God includes both evangelism and social action. Christ the Cornerstone recovers several decades of his writings exploring the consequences of Jesus’ lordship from the pages of Christianity Today, including the regular “Cornerstone” column he wrote from 1977-1981. In them, he treats such diverse topics as Scripture, discipleship, the worldwide mission of the church, and social concerns such as the value of human life, care for animals, racial diversity, and economic inequality. Gain insight for today from the writings of a guiding light of evangelicalism.
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Architect Of Evangelicalism
$23.99Add to cartDiscover the ongoing relevance of the essential evangelical.
In recent years, the label “evangelical” has been distorted and its usefulness questioned. No one is better equipped to provide a clear understanding of evangelicalism than the late Carl F. H. Henry, the founding editor of Christianity Today and the most influential theologian of American evangelicalism in the twentieth century. While Billy Graham was preaching the gospel to stadiums full of people, Henry was working tirelessly to help Christians adopt a worldview that encompasses all of life. Architect of Evangelicalism helps us gain a better sense of the roots of American evangelicalism by giving us the best of Henry’s Christianity Today essays on subjects such as what defines evangelicalism, what separates it from theological liberalism, what evangelical Christian education should look like, and how evangelicals should engage with society.
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World Mission : Theology, Strategy, And Current Issues
$24.99Add to cartWorld missions needs a fully biblical ethos.
This is the contention of the editors of and contributors to World Mission, a series of essays aimed at reforming popular approaches to missions.
In the first set of essays, contributors develop a biblical theology of world missions from both the Old and New Testaments, arguing that the theology of each must stand in the foreground of missions, not recede into the background. In the second, they unfold the Great Commission in sequence, detailing how it determines the biblical strategy of all mission enterprises. Finally, they treat current issues in world missions from the perspective of the sufficiency of Scripture.
Altogether, this book aims to reform missions to be thoroughly – not just foundationally – biblical, a needed correction even among the sincerest missionaries.
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Christianity And Pluralism
$8.99Add to cartAre the world’s great religions ultimately all the same?
Christianity and Pluralism is a collection of concise yet thoughtful essays by J. I. Packer and Ron Dart, interacting with and responding to the four traditional models used to answer the existence of multiple faiths (exclusive, inclusive, pluralist, and syncretist), but focusing particularly that form of syncretism which claims that all faiths find commonality through their mystical traditions. Written in response to key events in the history of the Anglican church, Packer and Dart’s analysis gives us a perennially relevant model for how the church ought to respond to our own pluralistic culture with integrity and kindness – and how to uphold the distinctiveness of the gospel. Christians directly or indirectly engaging our pluralist world will find their ideas enriched by this short yet powerful book.
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Common Prayer : Reflections On Episcopal Worship
$24.00Add to cartWhy worship? In this superb new collection of essays, lay people, clergy, poets, theologians, musicians, novelists, and scholars offer personal, profound, and provocative reflections on their experience of worship in The Episcopal Church. Through their flesh-and-blood stories of longing, loss, and love, we encounter the God who meets us in common prayer. With contributions from: Rhonda Mawhood Lee J. Neil Alexander Michael Battle Luisa Elena Bonillas Cameron Dezen Hammon Kelly Brown Douglas Rodney Clapp Melissa Deckman Kim Edwards Stephen Fowl Paul Fromberg Kathryn Greene-McCreight Stanley Hauerwas B. J. Heyboer Ian Markham Duane Alexander Miller Amy Peterson Spencer Reece Charles Robertson Sophfronia Scott Lauren Winner Fred Bahnson Rachel Marie Stone
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Gender Violence And Justice
$64.00Add to cartGender, Violence, and Justice is a volume of collected essays by an expert in the field of violence against women and pastoral theology. It represents over three decades of research, advocacy, and pastoral theological reflection on the subject of sexual and domestic violence. Topics include intimate partner violence, sexual abuse and trauma, and clergy sexual misconduct; controversial theological issues such as forgiveness; and, as well, positive frameworks for fostering well-being in families, church, and society.
Framed by a foreword and an introduction that place this work in the context of new and contemporary challenges in theory and practice, these essays show an evolution of issues and frameworks for theology, care, and activism arising over time from the movement to end violence against women (both within and beyond religious communities)-while at the same time demonstrating an unchanging core commitment to gender justice.
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Debunking Christian Zionism And Evolutionary Creation
$28.95Add to cartIn this modern era, many evangelical Christians have adopted two popular beliefs. First is Christian Zionism-the idea that believers should support modern Israel because it is a fulfillment of biblical prophecy. And second is theistic evolution-the idea that God used extensive evolution in the creation of the universe and living things. While these beliefs are popular, unfortunately they are also dangerous to the faith.
In Debunking Christian Zionism and Evolutionary Creation, author Les Nasserden presents two separate essays where he rigorously challenges the biblical integrity of those evangelical Christians who believe in these false doctrines. In the first essay, Les explains why the Christian Zionist project was one of the biggest mistakes evangelical and Pentecostal Christians made in the twentieth century. In the second essay, he calls theistic evolution a heresy and confronts evangelical Christians with a challenge: Are we going to affirm the Word and power of God? Or are we going to capitulate to both a lingering modernist rationalism that is wedded to naturalism, and a desultory postmodern ethos that denigrates truth, the meaning of texts, rationality, and historical realities?
Even though many evangelical Christians believe in these doctrines, we need to safeguard our minds against false teachings. But by turning to the authoritative Word of God and studying the scriptures, we can discover the truth and strengthen our integrity.
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Debunking Christian Zionism And Evolutionary Creation
$11.95Add to cartIn this modern era, many evangelical Christians have adopted two popular beliefs. First is Christian Zionism-the idea that believers should support modern Israel because it is a fulfillment of biblical prophecy. And second is theistic evolution-the idea that God used extensive evolution in the creation of the universe and living things. While these beliefs are popular, unfortunately they are also dangerous to the faith.
In Debunking Christian Zionism and Evolutionary Creation, author Les Nasserden presents two separate essays where he rigorously challenges the biblical integrity of those evangelical Christians who believe in these false doctrines. In the first essay, Les explains why the Christian Zionist project was one of the biggest mistakes evangelical and Pentecostal Christians made in the twentieth century. In the second essay, he calls theistic evolution a heresy and confronts evangelical Christians with a challenge: Are we going to affirm the Word and power of God? Or are we going to capitulate to both a lingering modernist rationalism that is wedded to naturalism, and a desultory postmodern ethos that denigrates truth, the meaning of texts, rationality, and historical realities?
Even though many evangelical Christians believe in these doctrines, we need to safeguard our minds against false teachings. But by turning to the authoritative Word of God and studying the scriptures, we can discover the truth and strengthen our integrity.
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Gender Violence And Justice
$39.00Add to cartGender, Violence, and Justice is a volume of collected essays by an expert in the field of violence against women and pastoral theology. It represents over three decades of research, advocacy, and pastoral theological reflection on the subject of sexual and domestic violence. Topics include intimate partner violence, sexual abuse and trauma, and clergy sexual misconduct; controversial theological issues such as forgiveness; and, as well, positive frameworks for fostering well-being in families, church, and society.
Framed by a foreword and an introduction that place this work in the context of new and contemporary challenges in theory and practice, these essays show an evolution of issues and frameworks for theology, care, and activism arising over time from the movement to end violence against women (both within and beyond religious communities)-while at the same time demonstrating an unchanging core commitment to gender justice.
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State Of The Evangelical Mind
$28.99Add to cartForeword By Richard J. Mouw
Introduction: The State Of The Evangelical Mind-Tales Of Prosperity And Peril (Todd C. Ream, Jerry Pattengale, And Christopher J. Devers)
1. Reflections On The Past: Evangelical Intellectual Life (Mark A. Noll)
2. Churches: The State Of The Evangelical Church (Jo Anne Lyon)
3. Parachurch Organizations (David C. Mahan And C. Donald Smedley)
4. Colleges And Universities: John Henry Newman’s The Idea Of A University And Christian Colleges In The Twenty-First Century (Timothy Larsen)
5. Seminaries: Contemplative Posture And Christ-Adapted Eyes-Teaching And Thinking In Christian Seminaries (Lauren Winner)
6. Prospects For The Future: The Future Is Catholic-The Next Scandal For The Evangelical Mind (James K. A. Smith)
Conclusion: The Ongoing Challenge Of The Evangelical Mind (Mark Galli)
Contributors
Author Index
Subject IndexAdditional Info
Two decades on from Mark Noll’s Scandal of the Evangelical Mind, could we now be on the threshold of another crisis of intellectual maturity in Christianity? Or are the opportunities for faithful intellectual engagement and witness even greater now than before?These essays invite readers to a virtual “summit meeting” on the current state of the evangelical mind. The insights of national leaders in their fields will aid readers to reflect on the past contributions of evangelical institutions for the life of the mind as well as prospects for the future. Contributors include:
Richard J. Mouw
Mark A. Noll
Jo Anne Lyon
David C. Mahan and C. Donald Smedley
Timothy Larsen
Lauren Winner
James K. A. Smith
Mark GalliThe State of the Evangelical Mind frames the resources needed for churches, universities, seminaries, and parachurch organizations to chart their course for the future, both separately and together, and provides readers an opportunity to participate in a timely conversation as they consider what institutional and individual role they might play.
This is not a book to define or diagnose evangelicalism broadly, and there’s no fear-mongering or demonizing here, but rather a call to attend to the evangelical mind and the role played by interlocking institutions in its intellectual formation and ongoing vitality. It will encourage-and challenge-those who want to be part of the solution in a time of need.
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Works Of John Wesley 32
$77.99Add to cartFrom the beginning of his ministry John Wesley was committed to nurturing in his own life and in the communities he served “health of body and of soul.” This volume provides a window into his concern for “health of body” by collecting all of his writings related to health and wellness. These range from his best-selling home guide to health care, the Primitive Physic, through his recommendation of electrical-shock therapy, to his concern for nervous disorders. The volume will be of keen interest to all who are committed to recovering Wesley’s holistic understanding of salvation and ministry in the present church, as well as to those seeking a better understanding of medical care in the eighteenth century. John Wesley published a collection of advice for preserving health and treating diseases, and his Primitive Physick, went through twenty-three editions in Wesley’s lifetime-among the highest number of anything that he published-and stayed in print (and use!) continuously into the 1880s. Those who are aware of this collection, and have glanced at a few of his prescriptions for ailments tend to dismiss it in bemusement. Far from being an amusing avocation, John Wesley’s interest in health and healing was a central dimension of his ministry and of the mission of early Methodism. Moreover, when considered in its historical context, Wesley’s precedent provides a model of the concern for holistic health and healing that is instructive for his present ecclesial heirs. As a primary record of one of the founders of the Wesleyan/Methodist movement, John Wesley’s Medical Writings are crucial to an understanding of the beginnings of that movement, its reflection of the context from which it emerged, and its lasting impact on English and American Methodism and the broader culture. It is likewise absolutely essential for anyone in any of the potential reader groups listed above who wants to understand the context and sensibility around issues of bodily health and Christian salvation out of which Wesleyan theology, worship, spirituality, hymnody, and conferencing emerged. For a church or movement that declares salvation and wholeness as works of divine presence impacting embodied life in the real world, Wesley’s reflections on human health are not just relics of a pre-medical age but reveal a deeper sensibility about spiritual health pertinent to the Church’s ongoing commitment to flesh and blood human health and flourishing in the real world.
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Urban Ministry Reconsidered
$50.00Add to cartChristian ministries often struggle to account for urbanization’s growing force, complexities, and reach-and to formulate theologically and sociologically appropriate responses. Urban Ministry Reconsidered features a collection of original essays by leading scholars and practitioners that explores current issues and challenges in urban communities.
Together these articles consider how cultural and structural frameworks have led to new conceptualizations and configurations of urban ministry. In addition, they examine the degree to which the social, spiritual, and organizational priorities of urban ministries have been reconceived in response to these shifts.
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In Christ In Paul
$58.99Add to cartNineteen biblical scholars and theologians in this volume explore the notions of union and participation within Pauline theology, teasing out the complex web of meaning conveyed through Paul’s theological vision of being “in Christ.”
With essays that investigate Pauline theology and exegesis, ex-amine highlights from reception history, and offer deep theological reflection, this exemplary multidisciplinary collection charts new ground in the scholarly understanding of Paul’s thought and its theological implications.
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Being A Chaplain
$16.99Add to cartChaplaincy – a place for those who have sold out, can’t hack church ministry and don’t believe in mission? Against the negative stereotypes, this book argues that chaplains are a valuable resource to the Church. Embedded in places as diverse as prisons, hospitals, educational establishments and the armed forces, chaplains often encounter social trends well in advance of the institutional churches. Their experiences and expertise can be very helpful for thinking about ministry, ecclesiology and the engagement with contemporary society. The first five parts of this book gather together stories of 22 chaplains working in a wide variety of contexts and from a range of Christian churches. The final part consists of four essays on key themes: multi-faith issues; the core skills needed by a chaplain; models of chaplaincy; and tensions that can arise in the work. This book is for chaplains, students, clergy and all those who are considering becoming a chaplain or have dealings with people in the role. It will be of considerable interest to anyone who wonders what exactly chaplains do, how and why they do it and what the churches can learn from their experiences.
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Contemporary Art And The Church
$30.99Add to cartThe church and the contemporary art world often find themselves in an uneasy relationship in which misunderstanding and mistrust abound. On one hand, the leaders of local congregations, seminaries, and other Christian ministries often don’t know what to make of works by contemporary artists. Not only are these artists mostly unknown to church leaders, they and their work often lead them to regard the world of contemporary art with indifference, frustration, or even disdain. On the other hand, many artists lack any meaningful experience with the contemporary church and are mostly ignorant of its mission. Not infrequently, these artists regard religion as irrelevant to their work, are disinclined to trust the church and its leaders, and have experienced personal rejection from these communities. In response to this situation, the 2015 biennial conference of Christians in the Visual Arts (CIVA) facilitated a conversation between these two worlds. The present volume gathers together essays and reflections by artists, theologians, and church leaders as they sought to explore misperceptions, create a hospitable space to learn from each other, and imagine the possibility of a renewed and mutually fruitful relationship. Contemporary Art and the Church seeks common ground for the common good of both the church and the contemporary art world.
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Henry Chadwick : Selected Writings
$38.99Add to cartRare scholarly insight into the early church – still relevant for the church today
This anthology offers a choice selection of writings by one of the twentieth century’s premier church historians, Sir Henry Chadwick. Many of Chadwick’s considerable contributions to a fuller understanding of the early church were unpublished or not circulated widely during his lifetime, but here they are compiled in a convenient, accessible form.
Reflecting Chadwick’s wide-ranging expertise, this volume contains his essays on a variety of themes pertaining to the early church, including the emerging faith’s relationship to classical culture; the interaction between piety, politics, and theology; councils in the early church; the power of music in the church; and more. As relevant for the study of early Christianity today as when they were first written, Chadwick’s essays remain a valuable resource for better understanding the church both past and present, shedding light on ecumenical problems that still keep Christians visibly divided.
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Hidden And The Manifest
$44.99Add to cartRowan Williams says that David Bentley Hart “can always be relied on to offer a perspective on the Christian faith that is both profound and unexpected.” A new collection of this brilliant scholar’s work, The Hidden and the Manifest contains nineteen essays by Hart on theology and metaphysics.
Spanning Hart’s career both chronologically and topically, these essays cover such subjects as the Orthodox understanding of Eucharistic sacrifice; the metaphysics of Paradise Lost; Christianity, modernity, and freedom; death, final judgment, and the meaning of life; and many more.
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Coming Home : Essays On The New Heaven And New Earth
$18.99Add to cartThe Bible has a lot to say about Christ’s return-it is mentioned more than three hundred times throughout the New Testament. We often downplay this doctrine because the precise details are debated. However, these passages are in Scripture to build our hope and joy in the here and now. This compilation of expository messages from eight leading Bible teachers, including Tim Keller, John Piper, and D. A. Carson, explores the theme of redemption from Genesis to Revelation-stirring up within us a longing for our future home and filling us with joyful hope in light of Jesus’s return.
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Pastoral Luther : Essays On Martin Luthers Practical Theology
$49.00Add to cartSixteen church historians here examine Martin Luther in an uncommon way-not as Reformer or theologian but as pastor. Luther’s work as parish pastor commanded much of his time and energy in Wittenberg.
After first introducing the pastoral Luther, including his theology of the cross, these chapters discuss Luther’s preaching and use of language (including humor), investigate his teaching ministry in depth, especially in light of the catechism, and explore his views on such things as the role of women, the Virgin Mary, and music. The book finally probes Luther’s sentiments on monasticism and secular authority.
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More Radical Gospel
$39.00Add to cartGerhard O. Forde has stood at the forefront of Lutheran thought for most of his career. This new collection of essays and sermons-many previously unpublished- makes Forde’s powerful theological vision more widely available.
The book aptly captures Forde’s deep Lutheran commitment. Here he argues that the most important task of theology is to serve the proclamation of the gospel as discerned on the basis of the doctrine of justification by grace alone through faith alone. For Forde, the doctrine of justification is not one topic among other theological topics; rather, it is the criterion that guides “all theology and ministry. Throughout the book Forde applies this truth to issues of eschatology, authority, atonement, and ecumenism. Also included are seven insightful sermons that model the Lutheran approach to proclamation.
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Scriptures And Sectarianism
$48.99Add to cartEssays representing ten years of John J. Collins’s expert reflection on Scripture and the Qumran community are here collected in a volume that is sure to be of interest to students and scholars of Early Judaism and the Dead Sea Scrolls.
Collins opens with the introductory chapter “What Have We Learned from the Dead Sea Scrolls?” before offering essays on the authority and interpretation of Scripture, historiography and the emergence of the Qumran sect, and specific aspects of the sectarian worldview: covenant and dualism, the angelic world, the afterlife, prayer and ritual, and wisdom. A concluding epilogue considers the account of the Suffering Servant and illustrates the relevance of the Dead Sea Scrolls for early Christianity.
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Believing Scientist : Essays On Science And Religion
$27.99Add to cartElegant writings by a cutting-edge research scientist defending traditional theological and philosophical positions
Both an accomplished theoretical physicist and a faithful Catholic, Stephen Barr in this book addresses a wide range of questions about the relationship between science and religion, providing a beautiful picture of how they can coexist in harmony.
In his first essay, “Retelling the Story of Science,” Barr challenges the widely held idea that there is an inherent conflict between science and religion. He goes on to analyze such topics as the quantum creation of universes from nothing, the multiverse, the Intelligent Design movement, and the implications of neuroscience for the reality of the soul.
Including reviews of highly influential books by such figures as Edward O. Wilson, Richard Dawkins, Stephen Jay Gould, Francis S. Collins, Michael Behe, and Thomas Nagel, The Believing Scientist helpfully engages pressing questions that often vex religious believers who wish to engage with the world of science.
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2 Views On Homosexuality The Bible And The Church
$16.99Add to cartUntil recently most books fit neatly into two camps: non-affirming books were written by evangelicals and affirming books by non-evangelicals. Today, this divide no longer exists. Recent books written by evangelicals appeal to the authority and inspiration of Scripture as they argue for an affirming view. The question of what the Bible says about homosexuality is now an intra-evangelical discussion. Two Views on Homosexuality, the Bible, and the Church articulates evangelical views about what the Bible says about homosexuality and how the church should minister to people who experience same-sex attraction. It addresses not only biblical and theological questions, but also the pressing pastoral questions for the church. How do we interpret the passages that appear to prohibit same-sex relations? How does a theology of marriage, gender, and sex inform our understanding of modern-day same-sex relations? How does the biblical material apply to the contemporary debate-and especially to consensual, monogamous, loving same-sex relations? How should the church posture itself towards LGBTQ people? These and other questions are examined in four essays, two defending a non-affirming view and two defending an affirming view, with each side represented by a biblical scholar and a theologian: Affirming view William Loader (biblical studies) Megan K. DeFranza (theological studies) Non-affirming view Wesley Hill (biblical studies) Stephen R. Holmes (theological studies) Contributors then engage each other’s views in responses and are given a chance for a final rejoinder.
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Reading The Bible Missionally
$38.99Add to cartInsights from a noteworthy convergence of top scholars in biblical studies and missiology
Over the past half century, it has become clear that mission is a central theme in the Bible’s narrative and, moreover, is central to the very identity of the church. This book significantly widens and deepens the emerging conversation on missional hermeneutics.
Essays from top biblical and missiological scholars discuss reading the Scriptures missionally, using mission as a key interpretive lens. Five introductory chapters probe various elements of a missional hermeneutic, followed by sections on the Old and New Testaments that include chapters on two books from each to illustrate what a missional reading of them looks like. Essays in two concluding sections draw out the implications of a missional reading of Scripture for preaching and for theological education.
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Early Christianity In Pompeian Light
$49.00Add to cartEditor’s Preface
Envisioning Situations
1. Growing Up Female In The Pauline Churches-Carolyn Osiek
2. Nine Types Of Church In Nine Types Of Space In The Insula Of The Menander-Peter Oakes
3. The Empress, The Goddess, And The Earthquake-Bruce W. LongeneckerEnhancing Texts
4. Powers And Protection In Pompeii And Paul-Natalie R. Webb
5. Violence In Pompeiian/Roman Domestic Art As A Visual Context For Pauline And Deutero-Pauline Letters-David L. Balch
6. Spheres And Trajectories-Jeremiah N. BaileyBibliography
Additional Info
Scholars of early Christianity are awakening to the potential of Pompeii’s treasures for casting light on the settings and situations that were commonplace and conventional for the first urban Christians. The uncovered world of Pompeii, destroyed by the eruption of Mount Vesuvius in 79 C.E., allows us to peer back in time, capturing a heightened sense of what life was like on the ground in the first century – the very time when the early Jesus-movement was beginning to find its feet. In light of the Vesuvian material remains, historians are beginning to ask fresh questions of early Christian texts and perceive new contours, nuances, and subtleties within the situations those texts address.The essays of this book explore different dimensions of Pompeii’s potential to refine our lenses for interpreting the texts and situations of early Christianity. The contributors to this book (including Carolyn Osiek, David Balch, Peter Oakes, Bruce Longenecker, and others) demonstrate that it is an exciting time to explore the interface between the Vesuvian contexts and the early Jesus-movement.
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From The Editors Desk
$24.00Add to cartThe Christian Century, the most respected magazine for mainline Protestants in the world, has helped Christians think critically and live faithfully since 1884. The publication’s former editor and publisher, John Buchanan, has compiled a collection of biweekly editorials from the magazine that highlight events, issues, and questions that progressive Christians faced at the turning of this century.
A must-read for Christian Century fans, From the Editor’s Desk examines twelve key areas from the years 1999-2015, focusing on war and peace, civic engagement, newsworthy events, the Middle East, and congregational life.
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On The Church
$49.99Add to cartDutch politician and Christian activist Abraham Kuyper was deeply invested in debates over the influence Christianity should have on his nation. As a pastor and theologian, he was just as concerned about the ailing Dutch church. In On the Church, the Acton Institute and the Abraham Kuyper Translation Society have partnered with Lexham Press to publish seven brand-new translations of Kuyper’s most influential essays and speeches on the relationship between Christianity and the world.
Kuyper believed that Christians must neither hide from the world behind the walls of physical church buildings nor engage the world solely through earthly institutions. The closing essay by Ad de Bruijne discusses how Kuyper’s incisive view of the church still can–and must–apply today, just as it did at the turn of the 20th century.
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Caroles Columns
$23.99Add to cartA collection of newspaper columns written for The Times, Ottawa, Illinois, from 2001 through 2016, Carole’s Columns inspire, influence and entertain. With candor and wit, Carole shares her thoughts on faith, family, and growing up in the Midwestern town of Ottawa, Illinois. Columns include interviews with local citizens, grandmas at the Y, Grumpie at the Weenie Wagon, and a group of seniors known as the “Hardee bunch.” Looking back, she recalls becoming a grandmother for the first time, her initial forays into writing, and the first time she and her husband claimed the “senior discount.
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Questions Preachers Ask
$32.00Add to cart“How do we preach in a way that affirms Christian theology while also honoring the insights of other faith traditions?” “How do we preach about and help create genuine Christian community in a social networking culture?”
Questions Preachers Ask examines many questions that are on the minds of preachers today, questions that focus on how to preach the gospel in a culture where biblical knowledge cannot be presumed and where the Bible is often viewed as untrustworthy. Well-known preachers, scholars, and authors, including Barbara Brown Taylor, Gail O’Day, Anna Carter Florence, Richard Lischer, Cleo LaRue, and Thomas Lynch, provide the answers.
This book, compiled to honor writer, preacher, teacher, and scholar Thomas G. Long at the end of his teaching career, addresses practical questions such as “How do we proclaim the good news to young adults who are on the margins of church or have left it?” and “How do we preach to faith communities that are highly diverse?” Perfect for preachers at any stage of their ministry, these essays offer hope and guidance for handling the difficult task of preaching in today’s congregations.
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Holy One In Our Midst
$49.00Add to cart1. The Flesh Of Christ And The Extra Calvinisticum
2. The Flesh Of Christ In Modern Theology
3. The Logos And The Flesh Of Christ
4. The Temple Of God And The Flesh Of Christ
5. (De)Limiting The Flesh Of Christ
6. Why One Ought To Embrace The Extra CalvinisticumAdditional Info
The Holy One in Our Midst: An Essay on the Flesh of Christ aims to defend the doctrine of the extra Calvinisticum-the doctrine that maintains the Son of God was not restricted to the flesh of Christ during the incarnation-by arguing that it is logically coherent, biblically warranted, catholically orthodox, and theologically useful. It shows that none of the standard objections are devastating to the extra, that the doctrine is rooted in the claims of Christian Scripture and not merely a remnant of perfect being philosophical theology, and that the doctrine plays an important role in contemporary theological discussion. In this way, James Gordon revives an important Catholic doctrine that has fallen out of favor in contemporary theology. Also, this project aims to integrate biblical, philosophical, and systematic theology by showing that the tools and methods of each distinct discipline can contribute to the goals and aims of the others. -
Works Of John Wesley 27
$77.99Add to cartAlthough many of the letters of John Wesley are of value as literature-especially as crisp statements of his views or desires with little attempt at embellishment-their major importance is as a revelation of him as a man and of the people and events of his day, especially those linked with the Methodist movement. They furnish us, in fact, with a portrait through seventy years that is both more revealing in detail and fuller in coverage than any other source. The correspondence presented in this third of seven planned volumes of Wesley’s Letters illuminates critical developments in the Wesleyan movement in the period between 1756 and 1765, including very significant rifts between John Wesley and his brother Charles and between John Wesley and his wife Mary, Wesley’s attempts to deal with radical enthusiasts and separatists (such as Thomas Maxfield) within the Methodist movement, his relationship to Greek Orthodox leader Gerasimos (Erasmus) Avlonites, and Wesley’s activities related to the Seven Years War.
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Joy And Human Flourishing
$39.00Add to cartJoy is crucial to human life and central to God’s relationship to the world, yet it is remarkably absent from contemporary theology and, increasingly, from our own lives! This collection remedies this situation by considering the import of joy on human flourishing. These essays-written by experts in systematic and pastoral theology, Christian ethics, and biblical studies-demonstrate the promise of joy to throw open new theological possibilities and cast fresh light on all dimensions of human life. With contributions from Jurgen Moltmann, N. T. Wright, Marianne Meye Thompson, Mary Clark Moschella, Charles Mathewes, and Miroslav Volf, this volume puts joy at the heart of Christian faith and life, exploring joy’s biblical, dogmatic, ecclesiological, and ethical dimensions in concert with close attention to the shifting tides of culture. Convinced of the need to offer to the world a compelling Christian vision of the good life, the authors treat the connections between joy and themes of creation, theodicy, politics, suffering, pastoral practice, eschatology, and more, driven by the conviction that vital relationship with the living God is integral to our fullest flourishing as human creatures.
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I Still Believe
$24.99Add to cartI (Still) Believe explores the all-important question of whether serious academic study of the Bible is threatening to one’s faith. Far from it-faith enhances study of the Bible and, reciprocally, such study enriches a person’s faith. With this in mind, this book asks prominent Bible teachers and scholars to tell their story reflecting on their own experiences at the intersection of faith and serious academic study of the Bible.
While the essays of this book will provide some apology for academic study of the Bible as an important discipline, the essays engage with this question in ways that are uncontrived. They present real stories, with all the complexities and struggles they may hold. To this end, the contributors do two things: (a) reflect on their lives as someone who teaches and researches the Bible, providing something of a story outlining their journey of life and faith, and their self-understanding as a biblical theologian; and (b) provide focused reflections on how faith has made a difference, how it has changed, and what challenges have arisen, remained, and are unresolved, all with a view toward the future and engaging the book’s main question.
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Human Development And Faith (Reprinted)
$39.99Add to cartThis book, now in its second edition, brings together the best available understandings of human development from a multidisciplinary perspective. Uniquely inclusive of the moral and faith dimensions of context and life-cycle development, Human Development and Faith examines the interplay of mind, body, family, community, and soul at every stage of development. It addresses two central questions: What are the “good-enough” conditions of parenting, family, and community in each phase of life, from birth to death, that support growth and development? What gives life adequate meaning as development proceeds? If human development describes the normative and hoped-for passages of life, then faith provides the necessary component of meaning. Throughout the various perspectives offered in this volume is the premise that faith is that quality of living that makes it possible to fully live.
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God We Worship
$23.99Add to cartIn The God We Worship Nicholas Wolterstorff takes a ground-up approach to liturgical theology, examining the oft-hidden implications of traditional elements of liturgy. Given that “no liturgy has ever been composed from scratch,” Wolterstorff argues that the assumptions taken into worship are key to perceiving the real depths of historical Christianity’s understanding of God.
Across the liturgies of the Orthodox, Catholic, Episcopal, Lutheran, and Reformed churches, Wolterstorff highlights theologically neglected elements of God, such as an implicit liturgical understanding of God as listener. A dissection of liturgy is not only interesting, Wolterstorff argues, but crucial for reconciling differences between the God studied by theologians and the God worshiped by churchgoers on Sunday.
