LITMIR.BIZ

_ Are the gospels reliable accounts of Jesus? _ Did Jesus claim to be God? _ Was Jesus bodily raised from the dead? _ Is Jesus the only way to salvation? _ Are Christianity and Islam basically the same? _ Were the Founding Fathers orthodox Christians?
Christians in America are routinely confronted with news of archaeological discoveries or new scholarship claiming to present the «real» Jesus. These challenges have a long tradition in America and can be traced to some of the best-known founders of our nation. In pre-Revolutionary America, the formidable Jonathan Edwards directly confronted the challenge, providing an enduring model for Christians today who desire to articulate and defend the historic, orthodox doctrine of Christ.
While Edwards sought to prove the historic Jesus, Benjamin Franklin attempted to improve on the original, offering a Jesus of more practical use to his social and civic purposes. Franklin's approach, inspired by Deist thinkers and refined by Thomas Jefferson, has found new life in the advocates of the Jesus Seminar and of other alternative Christianities. Even the ambassadors of strident atheism-Richard Dawkins, Christopher Hitchens, and Sam Harris-are resurrecting Deist arguments in their best-selling books. These skeptics notably follow the Deist tactic of using the rise of Islam to undermine the uniqueness of Jesus. As a result, there is a widespread erosion of confidence among professing Christians in the supremacy of Jesus Christ. Which «Real» Jesus? reveals that these new views of the «real Jesus» are, in fact, old news.

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To serve God and Christ faithfully in the midst of a pagan society that exalts power, wealth, and pleasure is the tenor of the prophetic summons to the church in the book of Revelation. Unfortunately, this simple message, as potent today as it was at the end of the first century, is often obscured by misguided, if sincere, interpreters. The present book explores the background issues and lays out the principles that inform a sound approach to this enigmatic writing: its historical and cultural setting, its literary structure, its symbolic code, its core theological concepts, its scheme of last things, and its preachable and teachable points. In dialogue with dispensationalism on the one hand and with the skeptical criticism of it on the other, The Pith of the Apocalypse derives clues for cracking the Apocalypse from the book itself, viewed against the sweep of the biblical prophetic tradition that flowed into it, through the lens of methods widely accepted in mainstream New Testament scholarship. Readers will return to the book of Revelation itself with enhanced confidence, penetration, and understanding.

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Relationships in their comic and dramatic variety are at the core of this collection of what playwright Victor L. Cahn calls «chamber plays.» All dramatize relationships between two people: sometimes to find love, sometimes to find self-assurance or power. All are also distinguished by an elegant wit and stylistic sophistication that makes these works literary as well as theatrical delights.

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In this book Donovan Roebert provides a path for Christians and Buddhists who wish to better understand the essential, living tenets of their own faith while exploring how these two great religious paths can provide insights of real benefit to adherents of either. Without lapsing into syncretism or demanding a departure from orthodoxy, this book provides a sound and thorough basis on which Christians and Buddhists – and all those seeking greater insight into faiths other than their own – can explore the rich possibilities for learning from one another. Beyond describing in detail the doctrines and practices of Christianity and Buddhism, this book describes the authentic human path of religious development with a strong focus on the problem of 'self' or 'ego' in spiritual growth, discussing obstacles to growth and exploring their remedies. Brief histories of both religions are provided, enabling the reader to understand how diversity is an inevitable consequence of historical development and, rather than standing as a problem in religious dialogue, is always a means to spiritual enrichment. The Gospel for Buddhists and the Dharma for Christians is the fruit of a personal spiritual journey of thirty years. It demonstrates that the search for religious freedom becomes richer and more rewarding when a spacious mind engages with, rather then flees from, religious paths outside of its own tradition. Finally, it is a plea for sincere friendship across factitious religious divides.

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Human activity, both good and bad, cannot be explained merely by DNA and brain chemistry. Though disappearing in our modern world, moral knowledge is accessible. In His Sermon on the Mount, Jesus teaches how to be a truly good person. With moral authority He describes the good life and gives direction to our will.
Transforming Habits presents an accessible and straightforward study of the Sermon on the Mount. Each chapter addresses one of Jesus' preaching points and ends with a «Sermon Application»–questions to ponder and «transforming habits» (i.e., spiritual disciplines) to practice. Designed to help you live as God intends, this study (1) focuses and expands your vision of what life looks like in His immediately available kingdom, (2) builds your intention to live with Him as a disciple of Jesus, and (3) provides you with useful means to do this in everyday life.
Whether you read it on your own or in a small group, this study of the Sermon on the Mount provides spiritual guidance for your journey on the road of transformation–to God's glory and your joy!

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In a world where almost all societies are multi-religious and multi-ethnic, we need to study how social cohesion can be achieved in different contexts. In some geographical areas, as in the Middle East and the Indian subcontinent, people of different religious belonging have, through the ages, lived side by side, sometimes in harmony and sometimes in dissonance. In other geographical regions, as in Scandinavia, societies have been quite religiously homogeneous but only recently challenged by immigration. The implication in both locations is that the relation between religious minority and majority is on the agenda.
In order to discuss the situation for Non-Muslims in Muslim majority societies, a consultation was convened with both Muslim and Christian participants from Pakistan, Palestine, Lebanon, and Sweden. Some of the participants work in academic settings, others in faith based organizations, some in jurisprudence and others with theological issues. This book is the result of that consultation; the articles are «works in progress,» and they remain tentative. The intention with this anthology is to trigger reflection and further thinking. It presents articles that discuss issues such as freedom of religion, minority rights, secular and religious legislation, and inter-religious dialogue in Muslim majority societies.
Contributors include: Kajsa Ahlstrand, Goran Gunner, Mustafa Abu Sway, Johan Garde, Yasmin Haider, Jan Hjarpe, M. Aslam Khaki, Bernard Sabella, Mehboob Sada, Guirguis Ibrahim Saleh, and Ahmad Salim
This book is the second volume in Church of Sweden Research Series.

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In Lost but Making Excellent Time, Jody Seymour reminds readers that the ways and pace of our fast-track world lead to a place where we discover that we are traveling at breakneck speed but that our spirits are being left behind. Seymour uses prose and poetry to reclaim the ancient cycle of the Christian year as a new way to slow down and discover who we really are.
The Christian year becomes a kind of compass to be used so that travelers through our rat-race existence can become aware that we are really fashioned by a Master Hand not to be tourists but pilgrims. The words of this book can become a kind of «pilgrim's guide» to keep readers from being lost while making excellent time.

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This book–an edited compilation of twenty-nine essays–focuses on the difference(s) that a Christian worldview makes for the disciplines or subject areas normally taught in liberal arts colleges and universities. Three initial chapters of introductory material are followed by twenty-six essays, each dealing with the essential elements or issues in the academic discipline involved. These individual essays on each discipline are a unique element of this book. These essays also treat some of the specific differences in perspective or procedure that a biblically informed, Christian perspective brings to each discipline. Christian Worldview and the Academic Disciplines is intended principally as an introductory textbook in Christian worldview courses for Christian college or university students. This volume will also be of interest to Christian students in secular post-secondary institutions, who may be encountering challenges to their faith–both implicit and explicit–from peers or professors who assume that holding a strong Christian faith and pursuing a rigorous college or university education are essentially incompatible. This book should also be helpful for college and university professors who embrace the Christian faith but whose post-secondary academic background–because of its secular orientation–has left them inadequately prepared to intelligently apply the implications of their faith to their particular academic specialty. Such specialists, be they professors or upper-level graduate students, will find the extensive bibliographies of recent scholarship at the end of the individual chapters particularly helpful.

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Children are the focus of marriage in African cultures. Marriage is considered full and functional only if the couple has children–in many cultures preferably a boy. Becoming a parent also contributes to one's full adulthood in the sense that childlessness blocks ascent towards full personal dignity as an adult person in the community. As a result, childlessness is often a major disaster for both of the spouses. It has social, economical, and personal consequences, quite often including divorce.
This book explores in depth how childlessness is perceived, dealt with, and coped with in two Christian communities in Machame on the slopes of Mt. Kilimanjaro. Childlessness is approached through narratives of the spouses concerned and the members of their communities. Their stories reveal pain and courage, brokenness and strength, faithfulness and betrayal. Christianity presents itself in an ambiguous light, on one hand, pressuring spouses to keep up facades supporting oppressive structures. On the other hand, Christian faith provides childless couples with personal hope in the afterlife that the African traditional culture offers only to those with children.
This study proves that childlessness is not only a personal but also a communal problem. Childlessness and the fear of having no children contribute to family structures and sexual behavior. In this way, they have a considerable impact on the spread of HIV/AIDS in Africa. However, this study reveals that the attitudes and practices towards marriage and children need not be petrified, but rather that traditions can, and do, change.

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In many oral cultures local proverbs are highly regarded for their wisdom and prized for their aesthetic expression. In this study Jay Moon provides an in-depth look at the use of local proverbs among the Builsa culture of Ghana, West Africa. In particular, the author's research shows how local proverbs can facilitate contextualized expressions of Christianity that are both biblically authentic and culturally relevant. The process of initiating and sustaining this form of expression is explicated with the help of an engaging narrative, providing valuable insights for those striving for genuine and meaningful expression of Christ in culture.
This study will be especially beneficial to the missionary community, particularly for the purposes of appreciating oral literature in primary oral cultures, finding proper roles in the contextualization process, identifying cultural values via the window of local proverbs, training missionaries in cultural understanding, and tailoring discipleship training to incorporate significant aspects of orality

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