Religion & Spirituality - Books

The Doctrine of Creation

Religion & Spirituality

Christianity Today Book Award ECPA Top Shelf Book Cover AwardApart from the doctrine of God, no doctrine is as comprehensive as that of creation. It is woven throughout the entire fabric of Christian theology. It goes to the deepest roots of reality and leaves no area of life untouched. Across the centuries, however, the doctrine of creation has often been eclipsed or threatened by various forms of gnosticism. Yet if Christians are to rise to current challenges related to public theology and ethics, we must regain a robust, biblical doctrine of creation.According to Bruce Ashford and Craig Bartholomew, one of the best sources for outfitting this recovery is Dutch neo-Calvinism. Abraham Kuyper, Herman Bavinck, and their successors set forth a substantial doctrine of creation's goodness, but recent theological advances in this tradition have been limited. Now in The Doctrine of Creation Ashford and Bartholomew develop the Kuyperian tradition's rich resources on creation for systematic theology and the life of the church today.In addition to tracing historical treatments of the doctrine, the authors explore intertwined theological themes such as the omnipotence of God, human vocation, and providence. They draw from diverse streams of Christian thought while remaining rooted in the Kuyperian tradition, with a sustained focus on doing theology in deep engagement with Scripture.Approaching the world as God's creation changes everything. Thus The Doctrine of Creation concludes with implications for current issues, including those related to philosophy, science, the self, and human dignity. This exegetically grounded constructive theology contributes to renewed appreciation for and application of the doctrine of creation—which is ultimately a doctrine of profound hope.

The Existence and Attributes of God (Complete)

Religion & Spirituality

Stephen Charnock, B.D., was born in the year 1628, in the parish of St. Katharine Cree, London. His father, Mr. Richard Charnock, practised as a solicitor in the Court of Chancery, and was descended from a family of some antiquity in Lancashire. Stephen, after a course of preparatory study, entered himself, at an early period of life, a student in Emmanuel College, Cambridge, where he was placed under the immediate tuition of the celebrated Dr. William Sancroft, who became afterwards Archbishop of Canterbury. Although there is too much reason to fear that colleges seldom prove the spiritual birthplaces of the youth that attend them, it was otherwise in this case. The Sovereign Spirit, who worketh where and how he wills, had determined that this young man, while prosecuting his early studies, should undergo that essential change of heart which, besides yielding an amount of personal comfort, could not fail to exert a salutary influence on all his future inquiries, sanctify whatever learning he might hereafter acquire, and fit him for being eminently useful to thousands of his fellow-creatures. To this all-important event we may safely trace the eminence to which, both as a Preacher and as a Divine, he afterwards attained,—as he had thus a stimulus to exertion, a motive to vigorous and unremitting application, which could not otherwise have existed. On his leaving the University he spent some time in a private family, either as a preceptor or for the purpose of qualifying himself the better for discharging the solemn and arduous duties of public life, on which he was about to enter. Soon after this, just as the Civil War broke out in England, he commenced his official labors as a minister of the gospel of peace, somewhere in Southwark. He does not appear to have held this situation long; but short as was his ministry there, it was not altogether without fruit. He who had made the student himself, while yet young, the subject of saving operations, was pleased also to give efficacy to the first efforts of the youthful pastor to win souls to Christ. Several individuals in this his first charge were led to own him as their spiritual father. Nor is this a solitary instance of the early ministry of an individual receiving that countenance from on high which has been withheld from the labors of his riper years. A circumstance this, full of encouragement to those who, in the days of youth, are entering with much fear and trembling on service in the Lord’s vineyard. At the time when they may feel impelled to exclaim with most vehemence, Who is sufficient for these things? God may cheer them with practical confirmations of the truth, that their sufficiency is of God.

Benjamin Hoff: The Tao of Pooh

Religion & Spirituality

For Taoists everywhere, the New York Times bestseller from the author of The Te of Piglet. The how of Pooh? The Tao of who? The Tao of Pooh!?! In which it is revealed that one of the world’s great Taoist masters isn’t Chinese—or a venerable philosopher—but is in fact none other than that effortlessly calm, still, reflective bear. A. A. Milne’s Winnie-the-Pooh! While Eeyore frets, and Piglet hesitates, and Rabbit calculates, and Owl pontificates, Pooh just is. And that’s a clue to the secret wisdom of the Taoists.

War, Peace, and Violence: Four Christian Views

Religion & Spirituality

In a world of war, terrorism, and other geopolitical threats to global stability, how should committed Christians honor Jesus Christ and his Word? How should Christians think and act when it comes to church-state relations, the preservation of order, the practice of just peacemaking, and the use of coercive force?In this volume in IVP Academic's Spectrum series, four contributors—experts in Christian ethics, political philosophy, and international affairs—offer the best of current Christian thinking on issues of war and peace. They present four distinct views:Eric Patterson, just war viewMyles Werntz, nonviolence viewA. J. Nolte, Christian realist viewMeic Pearse, church historical viewEach contributor makes a case for his own view and responds to the others, highlighting complexities and real-world implications of the various perspectives. Edited and with an introduction and conclusion by the philosopher Paul Copan, this book provides a helpful orientation to the key positions today.Spectrum Multiview Books offer a range of viewpoints on contested topics within Christianity, giving contributors the opportunity to present their position and also respond to others in this dynamic publishing format.

The Case for God

Religion & Spirituality

NATIONAL BESTSELLER • A nuanced exploration of the role of religion in our lives, drawing on insights of the past to build a faith for our dangerously polarized age—from the New York Times bestselling author of The History of God Moving from the Paleolithic age to the present, Karen Armstrong details the great lengths to which humankind has gone in order to experience a sacred reality that it called by many names, such as God, Brahman, Nirvana, Allah, or Dao. Focusing especially on Christianity but including Judaism, Islam, Buddhism, Hinduism, and Chinese spiritualities, Armstrong examines the diminished impulse toward religion in our own time, when a significant number of people either want nothing to do with God or question the efficacy of faith. Why has God become unbelievable? Why is it that atheists and theists alike now think and speak about God in a way that veers so profoundly from the thinking of our ancestors?Answering these questions with the same depth of knowledge and profound insight that have marked all her acclaimed books, Armstrong makes clear how the changing face of the world has necessarily changed the importance of religion at both the societal and the individual level. Yet she cautions us that religion was never supposed to provide answers that lie within the competence of human reason; that, she says, is the role of logos. The task of religion is “to help us live creatively, peacefully, and even joyously with realities for which there are no easy explanations.” She emphasizes, too, that religion will not work automatically. It is, she says, a practical discipline: its insights are derived not from abstract speculation but from “dedicated intellectual endeavor” and a “compassionate lifestyle that enables us to break out of the prism of selfhood.”

Buddhism, Knowledge and Liberation

Religion & Spirituality

Buddhism is essentially a teaching about liberation - from suffering, ignorance, selfishness and continued rebirth. Knowledge of 'the way things really are' is thought by many Buddhists to be vital in bringing about this emancipation. This book is a philosophical study of the notion of liberating knowledge as it occurs in a range of Buddhist sources. Buddhism, Knowledge and Liberation assesses the common Buddhist idea that knowledge of the three characteristics of existence (impermanence, not-self and suffering) is the key to liberation. It argues that this claim must be seen in the context of the Buddhist path and training as a whole. Detailed attention is also given to anti-realist, sceptical and mystical strands within the Buddhist tradition, all of which make distinctive claims about liberating knowledge and the nature of reality. David Burton seeks to uncover various problematic assumptions which underpin the Buddhist worldview. Sensitive to the wide diversity of philosophical perspectives and interpretations that Buddhism has engendered, this book makes a serious contribution to critical and philosophically aware engagement with Buddhist thought. Written in an accessible style, it will be of value to those interested in Buddhist Studies and broader issues in comparative philosophy and religion.

Chinesische Weisheiten: Tao Te King (Das Buch vom Sinn und Leben)

Religion & Spirituality

Dieses eBook: "Chinesische Weisheiten: Tao Te King (Das Buch vom Sinn und Leben)" ist mit einem detaillierten und dynamischen Inhaltsverzeichnis versehen und wurde sorgfältig korrekturgelesen. Das Tao Te King (Daodejing) ist eine Sammlung von Spruchkapiteln. Das Werk gilt als die Gründungsschrift des Daoismus, ein heiliger Text. Der heutige Titel des Werks "Das Buch vom Dao und vom De" verweist auf die beiden zentralen Begriffe der Weltanschauung von Laozi. Der Mensch könne die Wirkung des Dao auf zweierlei Weise erfahren: Zum einen, indem er die Erscheinungen der Welt beobachte und das Dao am Werke sehe; zum anderen, indem er seine Sinne abkehre und sich der Stille zuwende. Damit könne er sein Wesen sensibilisieren und das Dao geschehen lassen. Von der ersten Weise zeugen die zahlreichen Gleichnisse aus Natur und menschlicher Gesellschaft: Das Wasser bahnt sich seinen Weg, indem es nachgibt und unten bleibt. Ein Mensch, der viel besitzt, zieht Räuber und Feinde an. Die Welt unterliege stetigem Wandel. Darin sei ein grundlegendes und unveränderliches Gesetz wirksam, das Gesetz vom Ausgleich der Gegensätze. Weithin bekannt ist das Symbol Taiji, welches symbolisch Yin und Yang in einem Kreis vereinigt. Der Kreis selbst symbolisiert die Ureinheit dieser beiden Kräfte, welche bei Laozi dem Dao entspringt. Laozi ist ein legendärer chinesischer Philosoph, der im 6. Jahrhundert v. Chr. gelebt haben soll. Laozi gilt als Begründer des Daoismus (Taoismus).

Fede e modernità

Religion & Spirituality

Quali sono gli effetti della perdita di fede nella modernità? Karen Armstrong ci accompagna in un coinvolgente viaggio dalle origini all’evoluzione della fede. Partendo dal significato primordiale del “credo” e dalla tradizionale distinzione tra mythos e logos, l’autrice racconta la storia delle religioni ebraica, cattolica e islamica fino a giungere all’era moderna, in cui l’uomo, schiavo della ragione scientifica e sempre più distante dal mito, perde il senso sacro della vita. Ma come ci siamo arrivati? La saggista britannica, attraverso le riflessioni di Cartesio, Hobbes, Pascal e Nietzsche, ripercorre il cammino che ha portato alla supremazia di un logos svincolato dal mito, invitandoci infine a ricercare il senso del divino nella nostra vita, senza il quale l’uomo precipita facilmente nella disperazione.

The Intolerance of Tolerance

Religion & Spirituality

Tolerance currently occupies a very high place in Western societies: it is considered gauche, even boorish, to question it. In The Intolerance of Tolerance, however, questioning tolerance -- or, at least, contemporary understandings of tolerance -- is exactly what D. A . Carson does.Carson traces the subtle but enormous shift in the way we have come to understand tolerance over recent years -- from defending the rights of those who hold different beliefs to affirming all beliefs as equally valid and correct. He looks back at the history of this shift and discusses its implications for culture today, especially its bearing on democracy, discussions about good and evil, and Christian truth claims.Using real-life examples that will sometimes arouse laughter and sometimes make the blood boil, Carson argues not only that the "new tolerance" is socially dangerous and intellectually debilitating but also that it actually leads to genuine intolerance of all who struggle to hold fast to their beliefs.

365 Glasses of Wine - Revised Edition

Religion & Spirituality

This collection from Helen Brown gives a daily "sip" of inspiration and encouragement. Each story is taken from her real-life experiences of walking, with God, through farming, drought, hardship, family life, and depression. Each story is designed to encourage others as they walk with God.

Bushido: The Soul of Japan

Religion & Spirituality

Bushido: The Soul of Japan written by Inazo Nitobe is, along with the classic text Hagakure by Tsunetomo Yamamoto (1659-1719), a study of the way of the samurai. A best-seller in its day, it was read by many influential foreigners, among them President Theodore Roosevelt, President John F. Kennedy and Robert Baden-Powell. It may well have shaped Baden-Powell's ideas on the Boy Scout movement he founded. As Japan underwent deep transformations of its traditional lifestyle while becoming a modern nation, Nitobe engaged in an inquiry into the ethos of his nation, and the result of his meditations was this seminal work. A fine stylist in English, he wrote many books in that language, which earned him a place among the best known Japanese writers of his age. He found in Bushido, the Way of the Warrior, the sources of the virtues most admired by his people: rectitude, courage, benevolence, politeness, sincerity, honor, loyalty and self-control. His approach to his task was eclectic and far-reaching.

Hagakure Kikigaki: Hidden Leaves

Religion & Spirituality

Hagakure Kikigaki, or Hagakure, is a practical and spiritual guide for a warrior, drawn from a collection of commentaries by the samurai Yamamoto Tsunetomo, former retainer to Nabeshima Mitsushige, the third ruler of what is now Saga prefecture in Japan. Tsuramoto Tashiro compiled these commentaries from his conversations with Tsunetomo from 1709 to 1716; however, it was not published until many years afterwards. Hagakure is also known as The Book of the Samurai, Analects of Nabeshima or Hagakure Analects. The book records Tsunetomo's views on bushido, the warrior code of the samurai. Hagakure is sometimes said to assert that bushido is really the "Way of Dying" or living as though one was already dead, and that a samurai must be willing to die at any moment in order to be true to his lord. His saying "the way of the warrior is death" was a summation of the willingness to sacrifice that bushido codified.

Signs You'll See Just Before Jesus Comes

Religion & Spirituality

Something New Is Coming Watch for the SignsSigns. They are important in almost everything we do. Nearly everywhere we go, there are signs in our lives that serve to guide us. We look for them wherever we travel, whether to the next city, state, or country or to the next phase of our journey through life.Jesus thinks signs are important too. That's why He gave us clear markers in Matthew 24 that would indicate His soon return and the end of this present age. In this book, Rick Renner digs deep into the Bible to describe these signs in vivid detail so we can recognize them and know how to navigate the last-days road ahead.The signs on the road are appearing closer together. We are on the precipice of something new. Soon we'll see the final sign at the edge of our destination in the very last moments just before Jesus comes.

Lotus Buds

Religion & Spirituality

Once I read of a soldier who wrote a letter home from the midst of a battle, on a crumpled piece of paper laid upon a cannon ball. His home people he knew would overlook the appearance of the paper and the lack of various things expected in a letter written in a quiet room upon a study table. And he knew he could trust them not to bring too fine a criticism to bear upon the unstudied words hot from the battle's heart. I have thought sometimes that these books were not unlike that soldier's letter; and those who read them seem to me very like his home people, for they have been so generous in the kindness of their welcome.

The Compassionate Universe

Religion & Spirituality

A practical and inspiring approach to tackling our environmental crisis, from a master spiritual teacher. We can heal our earth by choosing a simpler, more fulfilling lifestyle, as trustees of a compassionate universe. Eknath Easwaran presents a penetrating analysis of the spiritual roots of our current predicament and offers a realistic and hopeful way forward. Each of us has a role to play in making wise choices, and each of us can genuinely make a difference. Drawing inspiration and insight from Mahatma Gandhi, Saint Francis, and his own experience of living in the East and the West, Easwaran shows the connections between individual thoughts and actions that move beyond consumerism to the unity of life. Mahatma Gandhi formulated a series of diagnoses of our seemingly perpetual state of crisis, which he called “the seven social sins”: knowledge without character, science without humanity, wealth without work, commerce without morality, politics without principles, pleasure without conscience, and worship without self-sacrifice. Easwaran explores each of these diagnoses in turn and presents an alternative hypothesis of who we are and how we fit into the universe. This is ecology as a great adventure, filled with the challenges and rewards of inner growth. Easwaran tells us that “once we open our eyes to cooperation, artistry, thrift, and compassion, we begin to see thousands of little things we can do to help restore the environment – and restore dignity and deeper fulfillment to our own lives.” Eknath Easwaran is renowned as a teacher of meditation and for his translations of the Indian scriptures. His writings express timeless spiritual insights and are illustrated by stories from East and West. His books reflect two cultures: India, where he grew up in a self-supporting agrarian village, and the United States, where he taught and lectured for over thirty years. His early experiences of living in harmony with nature, his firsthand acquaintance with Gandhi’s India, and his long familiarity with an American audience have resulted in this book: a deeply thoughtful examination of our present situation, and a blueprint for living as trustees of a compassionate universe, in a world that we would want our children and grandchildren to inherit.

The Imitation of Christ

Religion & Spirituality

A new, revised translation of Thomas à Kempis' spiritual masterwork, originally written in 15th century Latin. This edition takes the well-loved Benham translation as its starting point and features: New translations to more accurately reflect the meaning of the original text for modern readers. Updated grammar and revised language to reflect modern English conventions, while retaining the classic feel of the Benham edition. Select annotations to help explain the ideas behind Thomas' writing, including the tensions and apparent contradictions within the text. The Imitation of Christ is one of the most popular works of Christian devotion and popular piety. Many of its chapters take up only a single page or two, but they are packed with spiritual insights that continue to bear fruit long after the first reading. These bite-sized chapters make the work easy to read and exceptionally approachable - perfect for use as a daily prayer meditation or devotional. Thomas à Kempis was born in 1379 or 1380 in Kempen, Germany. At the age of thirteen, he followed his brother John to university at Deventer, in Holland, and then into religious life at the nearby town of Windesheim. There, Thomas joined a community of Canons Regular and became part of a fledgling spiritual revival known as the devotio moderna. This work, The Imitation of Christ, would become a seminal text capturing the spirit of this movement and its eager desire to return to a true, humble, and authentic devotion to Christ. It has since become the most widely read book on Christianity apart from the Bible.

Moi, Eve...

Religion & Spirituality

Des dieux, des héros et des mythes... Les figures légendaires ont la parole.Ève a croqué le fruit que Dieu lui avait interdit, entraînant dans sa chute Adam et l'humanité à venir. Et si l'on relisait le mythe, si on le débarrassait de cette culpabilité qu'a endossée l'Homme et tout particulièrement la femme au long des siècles ?Ève, mère de tous les vivants, curieuse, gourmande et courageuse. Ève, heureuse de faire un choix, le tout premier. Celui d'accéder à la connaissance. Ainsi en transgressant l'ordre divin, découvre-t-elle l'altérité, le doute et bientôt la finitude ; elle acquiert aussi la capacité de raisonner, de s'impliquer, d'enfanter.Avec Ève, c'est l'histoire de l'humanité qui se joue, le passage de l'état de nature à celui de culture, de l'enfance à l'âge adulte, du chasseur-cueilleur au cultivateur. En désobéissant, c'est la vie qu'Ève a choisi de croquer.

The Confessions

Religion & Spirituality

Confessions (Latin: Confessiones) is the name of an autobiographical work, consisting of 13 books, by St. Augustine of Hippo, written in Latin between AD 397 and 400. Its original title was Confessions in Thirteen Books, and it was composed to be read out loud with each book being a complete unit.The work outlines St. Augustine's sinful youth and his conversion to Christianity. It is widely seen as the first Western autobiography ever written, and was an influential model for Christian writers throughout the following 1,000 years, through the Middle Ages. It is generally considered one of Augustine's most important texts.

Influences of Lucifer and Ahriman

Religion & Spirituality

In these lectures, Steiner focuses on the vital task of developing the proper orientation toward a free spiritual life. With great compassion and understanding, he offers telling examples of how humanity must walk a conscious middle way between the two tempting powers of Lucifer and Ahriman. He describes the incarnation of Lucifer in the third millennium before the Christ event, out of which flowed not just the wisdom of paganism, but also the conscious intellect we enjoy today. Ahriman, on the other hand, is shown approaching human beings through such phenomena as materialism, nationalism, and literalism, all in preparation for his incarnation in the third millennium. Keep in mind, however, that these two powers do not work separately; rather, they are working increasingly together. Our task as human beings is to hold them in balance, continually permeating one with the other. Steiner tells us that “Lucifer and Ahriman must be regarded as two scales of a balance, and it is we who must hold the beam in equipoise. How can we train ourselves to do this? By permeating what takes ahrimanic form within us with a strongly luciferic element.” To accomplish this task we need a new, more conscious inner life.

A Mind Set Free

Religion & Spirituality

We live in a world filled with sexual imagery and seduction. These influences seek to assault us at every turn. The enemy has created this battlefield in order to corrupt our minds. But whether you're married or single, young or old, man or woman, this book will unlock the keys to how you can have "a mind set free" from the temptation that surrounds us every day. Jimmy Evans exposes such things as "The Secret of Satan's Success." He'll teach you about "The Promise and Process of Biblical Meditation," and discuss "The Four Pillars of Moral Integrity." As you employ the truths from this mini-book, you'll be equipped to fight and win as you "Enter the Battlefield". PRAISE FOR A MIND SET FREE: IN A DAY OF EXTREME EMPHASIS ON SEXUALITY AND SENSITIVITY, I rejoice when the concern of a gifted minister brings to the forefront the importance of purity. Jimmy Evans has approached this issue with compassion and a sincere desire to help set at liberty those who have been entangled in the web of distraction and deceit. I thank God for every attempt to help set captives free from all areas of bondage - but especially the bondage of sex, which has widespread negative effects. My earnest prayer is that God will bless the insights and help given in this book. JAMES ROBISON, President, LIFE Outreach International Fort Worth, Texas

Religion & Spirituality Books