Here is a sample of the 62 titles added to the collection this week. Click on a link for more information. Use your library barcode to place a hold on any print title or your TWU login to view eBooks
CURRENT INTERESTS
Terrorism expert Erick Stakelbeck pulls back the curtain on ISIS and has produced the definitive guide to America’s most recent and most frightening enemy.
HISTORY
Oral history and ethnic history [electronic resource] /JAlexander Freund.
The Pope and Mussolini: the secret history of Pius XI and the rise of Fascism in Europe /David I. Kertzer.
PULITZER PRIZE WINNER From National Book Award finalist David I. Kertzer comes the gripping story of Pope Pius XI’s secret relations with Italian dictator Benito Mussolini. This groundbreaking work, based on seven years of research in the Vatican and Fascist archives, including reports from Mussolini’s spies inside the highest levels of the Church, will forever change our understanding of the Vatican’s role in the rise of Fascism in Europe.
Receiving Canada’s immigrants [electronic resource]: the work of the state before 1930/Lisa Chilton.
The purpose of this booklet is to provide a history of the Canadian state’s relationship with immigrants prior to the Great Depression of the 1930s through an examination of official immigrant reception work and the contexts within which that work was performed. It provides a history of the construction of the state’s infrastructure relating to immigration: the development of agencies, the building of institutions, and the regulation of transportation transfer sites.
LITERATURE
Damned to fame: the life of Samuel Beckett /James Knowlson.
Holy luck: poems /Eugene H. Peterson.
Holy Luckpresents, in one luminous volume, seventy poems by Peterson, most of them not previously published. Echoing the language of Peterson’s popular Bible translation, The Message, the poems in Holy Luck are well suited for devotional purposes.
Mockingjay/by Suzanne Collins.
Katniss Everdeen’s having survived the Hunger games twice makes her a target of the Capitol and President Snow, as well as a hero to the rebels who will succeed only if Katniss is willing to put aside her personal feelings and serve as their pawn.
RELIGIOUS STUDIES
40 questions about the historical Jesus /C. Marvin Pate.
Pate demonstrates that a critical analysis of the gospel text along with historical and cultural methods of investigation actually point toward an orthodox view of Christ. This work argues that the canonical Gospels are the most trustworthy information we have about the gospel writers as well as the life and ministry of Jesus, including his death, visit to Hades, resurrection, and ascension. Readers will be encouraged by the reliability of the Gospel writers, the reality of Jesus’ humanity and deity, and the inferiority of the apocryphal gospels.
The happy atheist /P.Z. Myers.
This funny and fearless book collects and expands on some of Myers’ most popular writings, giving the religious fanaticism of our times the gleeful disrespect it deserves by skewering the apocalyptic fantasies, magical thinking, hypocrisies, and pseudoscientific theories advanced by religious fundamentalists of all stripes. Forceful and articulate, scathing and funny, The Happy Atheist is a reaffirmation of the revelatory power of humor and the truth-revealing powers of science and reason.
How (not) to be secular: reading Charles Taylor /James K.A. Smith.
Jamie Smith’s book is a compact field guide to Taylor’s insightful study of the secular, making that very significant but daunting work accessible to a wide array of readers. Even more, though, Smith’s How (Not) to Be Secular is a practical philosophical guidebook, a kind of how-to manual on how to live in our secular age. It ultimately offers us an adventure in self-understanding and maps out a way to get our bearings in today’s secular culture, no matter who “we” are — whether believers or skeptics, devout or doubting, self-assured or puzzled and confused. This is a book for any thinking person to chew on.
I refuse to preach a boring sermon!: engaging the 21st century listener /Karyn L. Wiseman.
Encourages preachers to be creative, to take risks and to adapt to tough realities. From imagery to technology, Wiseman offers new techniques that will enable any preacher to creatively energize their sermons.
In the company of the poor: conversations between Dr. Paul Farmer and Fr. Gustavo Gutierrez /edited by Michael Griffin and Jennie Weiss Block.
This title weaves together several addresses and an interview with Farmer and Gutierrez from a 2011 academic conference. Inspired by the theological vision of Peruvian pastor and liberation theologian Gutierrez, medical anthropologist Farmer argues that “analysis of social suffering invariably reveals its social origins. It is not primarily cataclysms of nature that wreak havoc in the lives of the Latin American poor.”
Insourcing: bringing discipleship back to the local church /Randy Pope with Kitti Murray.
Randy Pope writes for church leaders who recognize the value of discipleship and need practical ideas for reorienting church ministries around personal discipleship. Readers will be encouraged that a wide scale personal discipleship program is attainable for any church.
Interpreting the prophets: reading, understanding and preaching from the worlds of the prophets /Aaron Chalmers.
Beginning with the nature of the prophetic role and prophetic books in Israel, Old Testament scholar Aaron Chalmers leads the reader through the various “worlds” of Israel’s prophets–historical, social, theological and rhetorical– providing the basic contextual and background information needed both for sound and sensible exegesis, and for sensitive interpretation and application for today. He concludes with a helpful chapter giving guidelines for preaching from the Prophets–including advice on choosing the texts, making appropriate analogies, and the potential problems and common pitfalls to avoid.
Inventing American religion: polls, surveys, and the tenuous quest for a nation’s faith/Robert Wuthnow.
Inventing American Religion offers a provocative new argument about the influence of polls in contemporary American society. Wuthnow contends that polls and surveys have shaped – and distorted – how religion is understood and portrayed in the media and also by religious leaders, practitioners, andscholars. He calls for a robust public discussion about American religion that extends well beyond the information provided by polls and surveys, and suggests practical steps to facilitate such a discussion, including changes in how the results of polls and surveys are presented.
Jesus: a pilgrimage /James Martin.
Combining the fascinating insights of historical Jesus studies with profound spiritual insights about the Christ of faith, Father Martin recreates the world of first-century Galilee and Judea to usher you into Jesus’s life and times and show readers how Jesus speaks to us today. Martin also brings together the most up-to-date Scripture scholarship, wise spiritual reflections, and lighthearted stories about traveling through the Holy Land with a fellow (and funny) Jesuit, visiting important sites in the life of Jesus of Nazareth.
In this unapologetic but nuanced piece, Keller presents a caring and careful case for biblical gender differences and the complementarian view of women in ministry. At the same time, she encourages women to teach and lead in the church in ways that may startle some complementarians. Readers on both sides of this hot-button topic will be challenged by her ministry-tested and thoroughly Scriptural perspective.
Jesus on trial: a lawyer affirms the truth of the Gospel /David Limbaugh.
David Limbaugh applies his lifetime of legal experience to a unique new undertaking: making a case for the gospels as hard evidence of the life and work of Jesus Christ. His analysis of the texts becomes profoundly personal as he reflects on his own spiritual and intellectual odyssey from determined skeptic to devout Christian. Ultimately, Limbaugh concludes that the words Christians have treasured for centuries stand up to his exhaustive inquiry—including his examination of historical and religious evidence beyond the gospels—and thereby affirms Christian faith, spirituality, and tradition
Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount: mandating a better righteousness /Jack R. Lundbom.
Through careful attention to the structure of Matthew’s Gospel and the place of the Sermon within it, keen sensitivity to the patterns and themes of Israelite prophecy, and judicious comparisons with other Jewish and rabbinic literature, Lundbom elucidates the meaning of the Sermon and its continuity with Israel’s prophetic heritage as well as the best of Jewish teaching.
Know the heretics /Justin S. Holcomb.
Know the Heretics provides an accessible “travel guide” to the most significant heresies throughout Christian history. Each chapter covers a key statement of faith and includes a discussion of its historical context; a simple explanation of the unorthodox teaching, the orthodox response and a key defender; reflections of contemporary relevance; and discussion questions.
Knowledge and Christian belief /Alvin Plantinga.
Plantinga probes what exactly is meant by the claim that religious — and specifically Christian — belief is irrational and cannot sensibly be held. He argues that the criticisms of such well-known atheists as Richard Dawkins, Daniel Dennett, Sam Harris, and Christopher Hitchens are completely wrong. Finally, Plantinga addresses several potential “defeaters” to Christian belief — pluralism, science, evil and suffering — and shows how they fail to successfully defeat rational Christian belief.
Letters to an atheist: wrestling with faith /Peter Kreeft.
Esteemed philosopher and author Peter Kreeft corresponds with a young atheist who is wrestling with the question of God. Together they work through some of the primary reasons people don t believe in God, including violence committed in the name of religion, the problem of evil, and more. They also discuss many of the reasons for belief, including love, miracles, and the relationship between religion and science.
The lost way: how two forgotten gospels are rewriting the story of Christian origins /Stephen J. Patterson.
Patterson explains how scholars have uncovered a Gospel that preceded at least three of those in the Bible, which is called Q. Patterson also explores other examples of this wisdom tradition, from the discovery of the Gospel of Thomas; to the emergence of Apollos, a likely teacher of Christian wisdom; to the main authority of the church in Jerusalem, Jesus’s brother James. The Lost Way offers a profound new portrait of Jesus—one who can show us a new way to live.
Luther’s fortress: Martin Luther and his Reformation under siege /James Reston, Jr.
Drawing on Luther’s correspondence, notes, and other writings, Luther’s Fortress presents an earthy, gripping portrait of the Reformation’s architect at this transformational moment, revealing him at his most productive, courageous, and profound.
The many faces of Christ: the thousand-year story of the survival and influence of the lost gospels /Philip Jenkins.
Religious historian Philip Jenkins refutes our most basic assumptions about the Lost Gospels and the history of Christianity. He reveals that hundreds of alternative gospels were never lost, but survived and in many cases remained influential texts, both outside and within the official Church. Offering a revelatory new perspective on the formation of the biblical canon, the nature of the early Church, and the evolution of Christianity, The Many Faces of Christ restores these Lost Gospels to their central place in Christian history.
Misquoting Muhammad: the challenge and choices of interpreting the Prophet’s legacy /Jonathan A. C. Brown.
Misquoting Muhammad takes the reader back in time through Islamic civilization, offering an inside view into how key and controversial aspects of Islam took shape. Misquoting Muhammad lays out how Muslim intellectuals have sought to balance reason and revelation, weigh science and religion, and negotiate the eternal truths of scripture amid shifting values.
Proof: finding freedom through the intoxicating joy of irresistible grace /Daniel Montgomery and Timothy Paul Jones.
The question that never goes away: what is God up to or not in a world of such tragedy and pain? /Philip Yancey.
Thirty years after writing his first book, Yancey revisits our cry of “Why, God” in three places stunned into silence by the calamities that have devastated them. He shares experiences meeting with those dealing with loss after the tsunami in Japan, the war in Sarajevo, and the school massacre in Newtown, Conn. Yancey still can’t provide a definitive answer that will satisfy everyone about how God allows these kind of tragedies while conceivably able to prevent them, but the lessons learned by those who have made it through the land of suffering can be passed on to help those still on the journey.
Rescuing Jesus: how people of color, women, & queer Christians are reclaiming evangelicalism /Deborah Jian Lee.
An inside look at the young, diverse, progressive Christians who are transforming the evangelical movement
Ruth and Billy Graham: the legacy of a couple /Hanspeter Nüesch.
This deeply personal book illuminates the legacy the Grahams leave to couples doing ministry today and into the future, sharing stories and anecdotes from their life and times.
The Samaritans: a profile /Reinhard Pummer.
Reinhard Pummer, one of the world’s foremost experts on Samaritanism, offers in this book a comprehensive introduction to the people identified as Samaritans in both biblical and nonbiblical sources. Besides analyzing the literary, epigraphic, and archaeological sources, he examines the Samaritans’ history, their geographical distribution, their version of the Pentateuch, their rituals and customs, and their situation today. There is no better book available on the subject.
Serving with eyes wide open: doing short-term missions with cultural intelligence/David A. Livermore.
David A. Livermore calls us to serve with our eyes open to global and cultural realities so we can become more effective cross-cultural ministers. Serving with Eyes Wide Open is a must-have book for anyone doing a short-term mission or service project, whether domestic or overseas.
In Simply Good News, Wright takes us back in time to reveal how the people of the first-century—the gospel’s original audience—would have received Jesus’ message. He offer a clear and thoughtful analysis of what the “good news” really is, and applies it to our lives today, revealing its power to transform us.
The social media gospel: sharing the good news in new ways /Meredith Gould.
Gould provides an easy-to-understand, step-by-step guide to digital ministry for those wishing to embrace new technologies to build community and deepen faith. In this expanded edition, Gould delivers new content with humor, helpful tips, and counsel anchored in practical experience.
Spirit and salvation /Veli-Matti Kärkkäinen.
This fourth volume in Veli-Matti Kärkkäinen’s ambitious five-volume systematic theology develops a constructive Christian pneumatology and soteriology in dialogue with the diverse global Christian tradition and with other major living faiths .
#Stolen: is social media stealing your identity? /Jessica Fralin.
Fralin uncovers our deep desire to be affirmed, valued, and loved and then points to the only place where that desire can be filled: in Christ not social media. She offers creative #FunFact, #GiveItATry, and #WhatDoYouThink callouts containing fun notes, activities, and ideas to discuss with your youth group and friends. As she tackles the issues and insecurities like popularity, body image, and cyberbullying, Jessica shows you how to find your identity in the one voice that really matters, not the million of voices online.
Strange glory: a life of Dietrich Bonhoeffer /Charles Marsh.
Charles Marsh brings Bonhoeffer to life in his full complexity. With a keen understanding of the multifaceted writings, often misunderstood, as well as the imperfect man behind the saintly image, here is a nuanced, exhilarating, and often heartrending portrait that lays bare Bonhoeffer’s flaws and inner torment, as well as the friendships and the faith that sustained and finally redeemed him. Strange Glory is a momentous achievement.
The ten commandments: a short history of an ancient text /Michael Coogan.
Theology and the mirror of scripture: a mere evangelical account /Kevin J. Vanhoozer and Daniel J. Treier.
Theology and the Mirror of Scriptureoffers a clarion call to reconceive evangelical theology theologically by reflecting on the God of the gospel as mirrored in Scripture. Such “mere” evangelical theology will be an exercise in Christian wisdom for the purpose of building up the fellowship of saints.
Too many to jail: the story of Iran’s new Christians /Mark Bradley ; with a foreword by Sam Yeghnazar.
This book sets the rapid church growth in Iran in the context of the deteriorating relationship between Iranians and their national religion. There is a major focus on the Ahmadinejad years, but the author also covers the history of the church before 1979, developing the central idea that the spark may have become buried in the ashes, but has never been extinguished. The book is careful, proportionate, well-informed and accurate. Throughout the text there are stories of faith, persecution, and encouragement.
The unbelievable gospel: say something worth believing /Jonathan K. Dodson.
Dodson diagnoses the evangelistic paralysis of the modern church, pinpointing the reasons people don’t share their faith today and offering a desperately needed solution. Showing readers how to utilize the rich gospel metaphors found in Scripture and how to communicate a gospel worth believing–one that speaks to the heart-felt needs of diverse individuals–Dodson connects the gospel to the real issues people face each day by speaking to both the head and the heart.
Waking up: a guide to spirituality without religion /Sam Harris.
Waking Up is a guide to meditation as a rational practice informed by neuroscience and psychology. Throughout this book, Harris argues that there is more to understanding reality than science and secular culture generally allow, and that how we pay attention to the present moment largely determines the quality of our lives.
Who designed the designer /Michael Augros.
Here is essential reading for all people who care about contemplating God, not exclusively as a best-explanation for the findings of science, but also as the surprising-yet-inevitable implication of our commonsense contact with reality. Augros harnesses such intellects as Plato, Aristotle, and Aquinas, ushering into the light a wealth of powerful inferences that have hitherto received little or no public exposure. The result is an easygoing yet extraordinary journey, beginning from the world as we all encounter it and ending in the divine mind.
Whose land? whose promise?: what Christians are not being told about Israel and the Palestinians /Gary M. Burge.
In this updated version of Whose Land? Whose Promise?, Burge further explores the personal emotions and opinions; and sharpens his theological argument in the context of the new developments surrounding the crisis in the Middle East.
Why science does not disprove God /Amir D. Aczel.
Based on interviews with eleven Nobel Prize winners and many other prominent physicists, biologists, anthropologists, and psychologists, as well as leading theologians and spiritual leaders, Why Science Does Not Disprove God is a “well-informed and readable” analysis of the religious implications of our understanding of life and the universe. The renowned science writer Amir Aczel masterfully refutes the overreaching claims of the “New Atheists,” providing a clear, engaging explanation of what science really says, how there’s still much space for the Divine in the universe, and why faith in both God and empirical science are not mutually exclusive.
Your guide to writing quality research papers for students of religion and theology /Nancy Jean Vyhmeister, Terry Dwain Robertson.
In addition to substantial, current information on electronic resources and online research, this third edition preserves all of the features of the original editions, now presented in a newly revised, more logical order.
Zealot: the life and times of Jesus of Nazareth /Reza Aslan.
Zealot yields a fresh perspective on one of the greatest stories ever told even as it affirms the radical and transformative nature of Jesus of Nazareth’s life and mission. The result is a thought-provoking, elegantly written biography with the pulse of a fast-paced novel: a singularly brilliant portrait of a man, a time, and the birth of a religion.
