LITMIR.BIZ

Globalization has taken the world by storm and has facilitated the unprecedented migrations of the peoples of this world. Whether we like it or not, we will meet foreigners in our communities, schools, universities, buses, and other public places. But, when people migrate they take their religions with them. If people of different religious traditions are to live side by side amicably, interfaith dialogue becomes imperative. But, for people to be able to speak about their own religions with enlightenment and listen to other people's religious beliefs with respect, they must have some basic knowledge of how faiths and believers operate because for some people, religion is inseparably intertwined with their economics, politics, and everyday lives. This book clearly and concisely introduces religious studies to the reader. It makes a strong case for the quest and study of world religions and explores the challenges, controversies, and methodological issues in the study of religions. It also explores other pertinent religious issues such as beliefs, rituals, myths, sacredness, morality, the problem of evil, and interreligious dialogue. Although written from a classroom perspective, this book can be useful to any reader who would like to acquire knowledge of religious issues.

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In a time when Charles Wesley's hymns, and even his name, are slowly fading from the purview of many Christians, this book is intended to recover the precious heritage of our past, and to bring to the reader's attention a sample of the massive body of Christian verse which that genius composed throughout his life. The main body of the book is a selection of well known, lesser known, and unknown hymns and Psalm paraphrases, intended for devotional use and for teaching the basic Christian doctrines. These selections are arranged around the Christian year, as is appropriate, since Wesley was and remained a devout Anglican. Associated essays give a biographical outline of Wesley's life and ministry, analyze his verse, explore the sources of his music, and discuss various theological and devotional issues which arise from his hymns. With this volume goes the prayer that it will be used of God to recover Scriptural worship «in reverence and holy fear,» appreciate his poetry, foster humble piety, promote doctrinal awareness, and to love and serve the same God of all grace and Christ of redemption whom it was Wesley's delight to serve.

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The 2010 earthquake in Haiti buried Renee Splichal Larson in concrete rubble, killing her husband and leaving her a widow at age 27. Surviving only to be overwhelmed by loss and trauma, she wondered if life was still possible for her. Even as she trained to become a pastor, her faith in a loving God was shaken and battered by the earthquake that devastated Port-au-Prince and took the lives of many thousands.
This is Renee's moving story of love, grief, survival, and new life. It is an account of the lives of three young people, their experience of the challenges, beauty, and hospitality of Haiti, and the tumult that overthrew all they held dear.
After years of struggle and healing, aided by remarkable signs of the love and presence of God, Renee offers us an intimate look at her young romance, her experience of the earthquake, and the journey that followed. Most of all, she proclaims her hard-won witness: that in Christ, love and life conquer death.

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Almost every person has owned a pet at one time or another in life or known someone who has. In all world religions, animals serve as spirit guides; there is spirituality to animal and human dialogue. Animals have the ability to help us reach wholeness if we learn their wisdom and integrate it into our lives. This abecedarian–a book whose contents are in alphabetical order–explores the spiritual growth that is possible by reflecting on the wisdom of creatures, which serve as spirit guides in all world religions and help humans experience the divine. The author explores animal spirit guides in the Bible, The Quran, The Dhammapada, The Rig Veda, The Analects of Confucius, stories from Aesop and Grimm, and much more. In these pages you can explore bears and bees, eagles and elephants, ravens and roosters, tadpoles and turtles, and many more. For each of the thirty-two entries, the author presents a text identifying the animal spirit guide, a reflective study, a question for journaling or personal meditation, and a concluding prayer. The spiritual life can be nourished in many ways; in this book it is enhanced by animal spirit guides.

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Questions regarding the orthodoxy of Dale Moody and Ralph Elliott propelled the Southern Baptist Convention (SBC) toward a re-evaluation of its doctrinal statement, the Baptist Faith and Message (BFM). The SBC adopted this document in 1925 under the leadership of E. Y. Mullins when faced by the challenge of modernism. This dissertation argues that the 1962 Committee on Baptist Faith and Message produced a document that expressed subtle shifts in Baptist theology. This shift had the effect of assuring the conservative base while allowing enough latitude in interpretation for those serving in the academy to teach more «progressive» views.
After a first, introductory chapter, chapters 2 and 3 trace the historical developments leading to the formation of the Committee. Biblical inspiration and interpretation were key concerns, but as chapter 3 demonstrates, other concerns drew the attention of the Committee. Chapters 4 and 5 deal with the ever-sensitive issue of the relationship between Baptist confessionalism, soul liberty, and soul competency. Each chapter examines how Baptist confessionalism functioned in relation to these concepts.
Chapter 6 examines in detail the work of the Committee itself and looks at those persons or groups who influenced the outcome of the Committee's work. Of special note are the contributions made by Wayne Ward, Leo Garrett, the religion faculty of Mercer University, and the theology faculty of Southern Seminary.
Chapter 7 examines four areas where the 1963 BFM altered the confessional expression of Baptist doctrines: (1) Scripture; (2) Man; (3) Salvation; (4) The Church. Chapter 8 is the conclusion. Four appendices contain early drafts of the Committee's work.

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Remembering the Future is a collection of poems, essays, and interviews that ask readers to see their world with double-vision-to imagine the redemptive consequences of engaging the world with a fastidious awareness of both the biblical tradition and the cultural moment. Remembering the Future is gathered from the first years of The Other Journal, an online quarterly positioned at the intersection of theology and culture. The Other Journal examines theology with fresh eyes, probing faith with passion, authenticity, and creativity; and this anthology represents the highlights of that endeavor, including content from some of the most important voices in the field of theology today. Remembering the Future offers readers an engaging, thought-provoking picture of what sound theological thinking can and must offer today's Christians giving witness to Christ in our contemporary cultural landscape.

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Making Jesus Attractive is an in-depth look at the history and theology of this parachurch organization dedicated to ministry with young people. Beginning with the theological background of founder Jim Rayburn and moving through the decades of the ministry, this book examines not only the articulated theological statements of the organization but the lived theology as well. This book provides a thorough overview of the theological underpinnings of the Young Life organization and challenges their model of an attractive Christianity, providing insights that could be utilized by all youth ministry workers.

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Before there were worshippers of Jesus, there were followers of Jesus. Before there were organized churches with creeds and doctrines, there were small communities of love, equality, and sharing dedicated to the practice of Jesus' teachings and committed to a wholly new way of living.
Today, the churches of the Global North are in decline and younger generations no longer seek meaning there. Traditional «church Christianity» is gradually giving way to some new way of faithful living. From a Nazi prison cell, German pastor Dietrich Bonhoeffer imagined a future «religionless Christianity» consisting of contemplative prayer and righteous action in the secular world.
A Conspiracy of Love presents the contours of such a faith based on the «way» of Jesus. It calls us to become troublemakers, revolutionaries, seekers of change, and agents of transformation engaged in conspiracies of love to establish justice and peace in a postmodern world. It offers many different people–those who remain in the church, those who have left, and those who have never ventured near–with a life of faith that is meaningful, intelligent, and passionate.

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Jesus before Pentecost studies the history of Jesus' ministry from William P. Atkinson's Pentecostal perspective. This perspective affects both his method and the book's content. In terms of method, Atkinson puts forward a strong argument for looking carefully at John's Gospel, as well as the synoptic gospels, as a reliable historical source for Jesus' life. And in terms of content, his main areas of study follow key Pentecostal interests, summed up in the «foursquare» Pentecostal rubric of Jesus as savior, healer, baptizer in the Spirit, and soon-coming king. The picture that emerges offers fresh insights into Jesus' life: notably, the symbolic meaning Jesus invested in the feeding of the five thousand; the personal cost to Jesus of his approach to healing the sick; the involvement of God's Spirit in his life and in the lives of those around him; and, lastly, his enigmatic predictions of his future coming. Overall, the study is both academically rigorous and warmly engaging. It will appeal to anyone who is seriously interested in Jesus, whether or not they are Pentecostal.

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Every generation must accept the responsibility of training the next. Yet, are modern Christian pastors and educators using teaching paradigms that impact memory and long-term memory retention? Pedagogical Theory of the Hebrew Bible is a cross-disciplinary book that connects religious education with active learning theory and demonstrates how these two areas are intimately connected within the biblical texts of Genesis through 2 Kings. Through vivid discussion of the literary texts, Adrian Hinkle demonstrates that religious educators never used isolated oral stories or instructions. Instead, these are purposefully connected with other learning formats to increase memory retention and ensure each generation experiences the traditions of Yahweh.

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