New Titles Tuesday, July 18

Here is a sample of the 58 books added to the collection this week. Click on a title for more information, or to place a hold. TWU login may be required to access eResources

EDUCATION

Data literacy for educators: making it count in teacher preparation and practice /Ellen B. Mandinach, Edith S. Gummer ; foreword by Barbara Schneider. This groundbreaking resource describes data literacy for teaching, emphasizing the important relationship between data knowledge and skills and disciplinary and pedagogical content knowledge. Case studies of emerging programs in schools of education are used to illustrate the key components needed to integrate data-driven decisionmaking into the teaching curricula. The book offers a clear path for change while also addressing the inherent complexities associated with change.

 HISTORY

The race for paradise: an Islamic history of the crusades /Paul M. Cobb.  Cobb offers an accurate and accessible representation of the Islamic experience of the Crusades during the Middle Ages. He stresses that, for medieval Muslims, the contemporaneous Latin Christian expansion throughout the Mediterranean was seen as closely linked to events in the Levant. As a consequence of this expanded geographical range, the book takes a broader chronological range to encompass the campaigns of Spanish kings north of the Ebro and the Norman conquest of Sicily (beginning in 1060), well before Pope Urban II’s famous call to the First Crusade in 1095.

RELIGIOUS STUDIES

The Apostle Paul: his life, thought, and letters /Stanley E. Porter.  In this comprehensive introduction to the apostle Paul, Stanley Porter devotes serious consideration both to the background and major contours of Paul’s thought and to the unique contributions of each of his letters.

Bad faith: when religious belief undermines modern medicine /Paul A. Offit.  Acclaimed physician and author Paul Offit gives readers a never-before-seen look into the minds of those who choose to medically martyr themselves, or their children, in the name of religion. Never afraid of controversy, Offit takes a stark and disturbing look at our surprising capacity to risk the health and safety of children in service of our beliefs.

Changing your mind: the Bible, the brain, and spiritual growth /Victor Copan.  What is unique about Victor Copan’s approach to spiritual growth is that he explores recent findings of brain research as well as scientific research on habit formation and brings them into conversation with the process of spiritual formation.

The cross before Constantine: the early life of a Christian symbol /Bruce W. Longenecker.  Upending a longstanding consensus, Bruce W.   Longenecker presents a wide variety of material artifacts to illustrate that Christians made use of the cross as a visual symbol of their faith long before Constantine appropriated it to consolidate his power in the fourth century.

The disciples’ prayer: the prayer Jesus taught in its historical setting /Jeffrey B. Gibson.  Gibson disputes the view that Jesus’ prayer was derived from Jewish synagogal prayers. Understanding its intent requires understanding Jesus’ purpose in calling disciples as witnesses against ‘this generation.’ In context, the prayer was not eschatological and was not aimed at ‘calling down’ into the present the realities of the ‘age to come.’ Rather, it was meant to protect disciples from the temptations of their age.

Evangelical versus liturgical?: defying a dichotomy /Melanie C. Ross.  Ross draws on historical analysis, systematic theology, and the worship life of two vibrant congregations to argue that the common ground shared by evangelical and liturgical churches is much more important than the differences than divide them. Evangelical versus Liturgical? is an important addition to the scant literature explaining nondenominational worship practices to those from more historically established liturgical traditions.

 God: a very short introduction /John Bowker.  Exploring  how the major religions interpret the  idea of God, and have  established their own distinctive beliefs about God’s existence, Bowker shows how and why our understanding of God continues to evolve.

 God cannot do without America: Matthew Simpson and the apotheosis of Protestant Nationalism /by Darius Salter.  The argument of this book is that Matthew Simpson, the most prominent bishop in USA’s largest denomination, was a decisive force in both the political and religious life of the American civil war According to his contemporaries, Simpson was the most influential clergyman in the life of Abraham Lincoln.

Heavenly participation: the weaving of a sacramental tapestry /Hans Boersma. TWU  Author  Surveying the barriers that contemporary thinking has erected between the natural and the supernatural, between earth and heaven, Hans Boersma issues a wake-up call for Western Christianity. Both Catholics and evangelicals, he says, have moved too far away from a sacramental mindset, focusing more on the “here-and-now” than on the “then-and-there.” Yet, as Boersma points out, the teaching of Jesus, Paul, and St. Augustine — indeed, of most of Scripture and the church fathers — is profoundly otherworldly, much more concerned with heavenly participation than with earthly enjoyment. Boersma draws on the wisdom of great Christian minds ancient and modern — Irenaeus, Gregory of Nyssa, C. S. Lewis, Henri de Lubac, John Milbank, and many others. He urges Catholics and evangelicals alike to retrieve a sacramental worldview, to cultivate a greater awareness of eternal mysteries, to partake eagerly of the divine life that transcends and transforms all earthly realities.

  A history of the floating societies of the Christian Endeavor /Robert A. Danielson.  The first Floating Christian Endeavor Society was established in Boston sometime in 1890. to preach and minister to the unique needs of sailors. In a short span of eleven years, the work had grown tremendously, not due to the work of traditional missionaries or an ordained chaplaincy. It grew because of the flexibility of a lay-led movement accompanied by the transient nature of the mission field and a genuine passion for Christ in its members. The movement quickly spread internationally as well, with Floating Christian Endeavor Societies on British and Japanese vessels.

 In defense of doctrine: Evangelicalism, theology, and scripture /Rhyne R. Putman.  An apologetic for the ongoing, constructive theological task in Protestant and Evangelical traditions, it suggests that doctrinal development can be explained as a hermeneutical phenomenon and that insights from hermeneutical philosophy and the philosophy of language can aid theologians in constructing explanatory theses for particular theological problems associated with the facts of doctrinal development, namely, questions related to textual authority, reality depiction, and theological identity. Joining the recent call to theological interpretation of Scripture, Putman provides a constructive model that forwards a descriptive and normative pattern for reading Scripture and theological tradition together.

 In the school of prophets: the formation of Thomas Merton’s prophetic spirituality /Ephrem Arcement, O.S.B.  A fresh examination of the works Merton read, responded to, and celebrated, In the School of Prophets examines the final decade of Merton’s life, mainly through the lens of his journals and letters, and helps to fill a gap in contemporary Merton studies.

 Jesus without borders: Christology in the majority world /edited by  Gene L. Green, Stephen T. Pardue, and K. K. Yeo.  Offering an excellent glimpse of contemporary global, evangelical dialogue on the person and work of Jesus, this volume epitomizes the best Christian thinking from the Majority World in relation to Western Christian tradition and Scripture. The contributors engage throughout with historic Christian confessions — especially the Creed of Chalcedon — and unpack their continuing relevance for Christian teaching about Jesus today.

 Journal of creation [electronic resource].  Journal of Creation brings in-depth, peer-reviewed comment, reviews and the latest research findings that relate to origins and the biblical account of Creation, the Flood and the Fall. The journal covers a wide spectrum of studies, not just science. Powerful articles have appeared on topics such as philosophy, theology, history, archaeology, social sciences and many more.

 Rudolf Bultmann: a companion to his theology /David W. Congdon.  In this introduction to Bultmann’s theology–the first of its kind in more than twenty years– Congdon guides readers through ten central themes in Bultmann’s theology, ranging from eschatology and dialectic to freedom and advent. By gaining an understanding of these themes, students of Bultmann will have the necessary tools to understand and profit from his writings. The result is not only an accessible guide for those encountering Bultmann for the first time but also a cohesive, systematic presentation of his thought for those wondering how his work might speak to our current context.

 Saint Bernard’s three-course banquet: humility, charity, and contemplation in the De gradibus /by Bernard Bonowitz.  Bonowitz makes the teaching of both Bernard and Benedict accessible to modern readers in a set of conferences originally conceived for and delivered to a group of Cistercians.

Sex difference in Christian theology: male, female, and intersex in the image of God /Megan K. DeFranza.  DeFranza argues, from a conservative theological standpoint, that all people are made in the image of God — male, female, and intersex — and that we must listen to and learn from the voices of the intersexed among us.

 The Trinity: how not to be a heretic /Stephen Bullivant.  The central idea of this book is that, contrary to popular assumption, the Trinity is a very simple doctrine. The Trinity: How Not to Be a Heretic explains how the earliest Christians came to be convinced of the doctrine, why it matters, and how slowly, over a period of several centuries it found a concise way of being expressed.

 Turning east: contemporary philosophers and the ancient Christian faith /edited by Rico Vitz, Department of Philosophy, Azusa Pacific University, Azusa, California, U.S.A.  Turning East is a collection of autobiographical essays in which sixteen philosophers describe their personal journeys to the Orthodox Church, explain their reasons for becoming Orthodox Christians, and offer a sense of how their conversions have changed their lives.

  Way below the angels: the pretty clearly troubled but not even close to tragic confessions of a real live Mormon missionary /Craig Harline.  Part religious history, part coming-of-age story, part witty spiritual memoir, this book takes readers beyond the stereotypical white shirts and name tags to reveal just how unpredictable, funny, and poignant the missionary life can be.

 Whiteman’s gospel: a Native American examines the Christian church and its ministry among Native Americans / Smith, Craig Stephen

 SOCIAL SCIENCES

A beginner’s guide to language and gender /Allyson Jule. TWU Author.  In this revised and updated 2nd edition of her pioneering textbook, Jule offers fresh insights into the study of language and gender for those new to the subject. Students will gain a thorough grounding in theoretical and practical perspectives on gender and language in the workplace, media, school, religion and domestic settings. Updates to the 2nd edition include discussion of: language and rape culture; LGBTQ terminology; language and social media; gaming; eco-feminism; and language, gender and Islam. The book is an ideal introductory text for courses specifically focused on language and gender, as well as those where an understanding of these issues would be helpful. Written in an engaging and reader-friendly style, with study questions, suggestions for further reading and a glossary, this book is the ideal starting point for students wishing to understand how language and gender interact in the modern world.

 Microaggressions in everyday life: race, gender, and sexual orientation /Derald Wing Sue.  A first-of-its-kind guide on the subject of microaggressions. This book insightfully looks at the various kinds of microaggressions and their psychological effects on both perpetrators and their targets. Thought provoking and timely, Dr. Sue suggests realistic and optimistic guidance for combating-and ending-microaggressions in our society.

 On being raped /Raymond M. Douglas.   A personal and moral inquiry into the crime we do our best to ignore: the rape of adult men. Douglas recounts his own experience as a victim of rape and his later attempts to seek help to lay bare the physical and psychological trauma. With eloquence and passion, he examines the requirements society implicitly places upon men who are victims of rape, examines the reasons for our resounding silence around this issue, and reveals how alarmingly prevalent this kind of sexual violence truly is. An insightful and sensitive analysis On Being Raped promises to open an important dialogue about male rape and what needs to be done to provide adequate services and support for victims.

 What is Africa’s problem? /Yoweri K. Museveni ; edited by Elizabeth Kanyogonya ; foreword by Mwalimu Julius K. Nyerere.  This collection of Museveni’s writings and speeches lays out the possibilities for social change in Africa. Working with a broad historical understanding and an intimate knowledge of the problems at hand, Museveni describes how movements can be formed to foster democracy, how class consciousness can transcend tribal differences in the development of democratic institutions, and how the politics of identity operate in postcolonial Africa.