Here’s a selection of titles added to the collection in the past week.
Exactly as you are: the life and faith of Mister Rogers /Shea Tuttle. Tuttle looks at Fred Rogers’s life, the people and places that made him who he was, and his work through Mister Rogers ‘Neighborhood. She pays particular attention to his faith—because Fred Rogers was a deeply spiritual person, ordained by his church with a one-of-a-kind charge: to minister to children and families through television. Tuttle explores this kind, influential, sometimes surprising man: the neighborhood he came from, the neighborhood he built, and the kind of neighbor he, by his example, calls all of us to be. Throughout, Tuttle shows how he was guided by his core belief: that God loves children, and everyone else, exactly as they are.
A conscious endeavor: a Judeo-Christian reflection on the distribution of wealth /Terence Wenzl ; foreword by Joseph P. Chinnici. A Conscious Endeavor is a synopsis of the social teachings and the concept of justice in the Old and New Testament. It looks through the lens of the Old Testament books of Torah law and the New Testament teachings of Jesus, applying them to contemporary situations and raising questions regarding housing costs and other basic costs of living. Ultimately, this book invokes the personal conversion of inner change so that readers can apply what they learn to their own work situations and their payment of a just wage.
A distinct twenty-first century Pentecostal hermeneutic /Harlyn Graydon Purdy. The book presents a distinct Pentecostal hermeneutic that moves away from exclusive use of historical-grammatical methodology. The hermeneutic presented here employs an eclectic methodology and a quadratic strategy. Scripture, Spirit, trained leader, and community, in the proposed hermeneutic, are shown to work together to produce an interpretation that engages both creative imagination and authorial intent. The text offers pastors, professors, and laity alike a method and approach that will allow them to interpret Scripture from a clearly Pentecostal perspective
An anomalous Jew: Paul among Jews, Greeks, and Romans /Michael F. Bird An Anomalous Jew presents the figure of Paul in all his complexity with his blend of common and controversial Jewish beliefs and a faith in Christ that brought him into conflict with the socio-religious scene around him. Bird elucidates how the apostle Paul was variously perceived — as a religious deviant by Jews, as a divisive figure by Jewish Christians, as a purveyor of dubious philosophy by Greeks, and as a dangerous troublemaker by the Romans. Readers of this book will better understand the truly anomalous shape of Paul’s thinking and worldview.
Andorra: a play in twelve scenes. Translated by Michael Bullock. Andorra is a play about political and personal issues, specifically about racial and national prejudice, stereotypes, identity, and collective guilt. Andri, a young man considered a Jew by the Andorrans, has been “adopted” by a teacher who, as he finds out later on, is his real father, although he does not admit to his paternity because he is ashamed of having a child out of wedlock. Andri tries to assimilate with the Andorrans and to their way of life, but they reject him because of his seeming “otherness.”
Araby /American Street Productions presents ; produced and directed by Dennis J. Courtney. Araby is the bittersweet tale of a young boy’s confused affection for his friend’s older sister. Taught by Jesuits in turn-of-the-century Dublin, and raised in a strict Catholic family, the boy worships his love from afar. When she finally notices him, the girl expresses her sadness in not being able to attend the enchanting Araby bazaar. The boy nobly sets out to attain a gift for the girl but instead meets with a harsh revelation. The boy’s romantic quest through the streets of Dublin becomes a religious pilgrimage, merging the sensual and the sacred.
Aristophanes: plays II /newly translated into English verse by Patric Dickinson.a vivid picture of the ancient Athenians – their social mores, their beliefs and their exuberant sense of occasion. Wasps is a lawcourt satire, Clouds a lighthearted look at education, Birds a search for the perfect society, Festival Time a feminist trial of Euripides and Frogs a celebration of and debate around the theatre.
Death, resurrection, and transporter beams: an introduction to five Christian views on life after death /Silas N. Langley. Langley uses the Star Trek transporter beam to explain five main Christian views about life after death. Readers will come away with a clearer understanding of their own beliefs on this topic, and with tools to enter into dialogue with people whose beliefs differ.
Disagreeing virtuously: religious conflict in interdisciplinary perspective /Olli-Pekka Vainio. Vainio presents a valuable interdisciplinary approach to disagreement, drawing on insights from intellectual history, the cognitive sciences, philosophy of religion, and virtue theory. After mapping the current discussion on disagreement among various disciplines, Vainio offers fresh ways to understand the complicated nature of human disagreement and recommends ways to manage our interpersonal and intercommunal conflicts in ethically sustainable ways.
Doubt, faith, and certainty /Anthony C. Thiselton. This book provides clarity on the complicated, long-misunderstood theological concepts of doubt, faith, and certainty and the practical pastoral problems they raise for Christians. It delves into past definitions while offering better, more nuanced theological understandings of these three interrelated concepts.
Expect great things, attempt great things: William Carey and Adoniram Judson, missionary pioneers /Allen Yeh. Here we have unique material by some of the world’s leading experts on these two giants of missionary history, with perspectives on these men in ways never seen before. Especially relevant to this current age of World Christianity are the perspectives from India and Burma, the lands which received these men for their missionary enterprise.
Flawed church, faithful God: a Reformed ecclesiology for the real world /Joseph D. Small. Small revisits familiar ecclesiological concepts–including the body of Christ, communion of saints, and people of God– but rather than focusing on theological abstractions or worldly cynicism, he evaluates the church in its scriptural, historical, theological, and social contexts. After stripping away the marketing and shallowness that characterizes much of contemporary church life, Small finds hope that the church’s faith, nature, and mission can be lived out within God’s calling. Both sociologically honest and theologically discerning, Flawed Church, Faithful God offers a constructive Reformed yet ecumenical ecclesiology for the real world.
Freud on Broadway: a history of psychoanalysis and the American drama [by] W. David Sievers.
Glimpses of the New Creation: worship and the formative power of the arts /W. David O. Taylor. This book explains how every choice of art in worship opens up and closes down possibilities for the formation of a human life, both individual and communal. The book guides readers toward art in worship that forms persons in the life of the triune God.
Good night, sweet prince: the life and times of John Barrymore /by Gene Fowler. In addition to his own knowledge of Barrymore, Fowler has had access to his papers. He as read the actor’s journal, and he publishes here for the first time long passages from this private autobiography
Healing God’s earth: rural community in the context of urban civilization /S. Roy Kaufman. This book reads the Bible through the lenses of rural communities.
I bring the voices of my people: a womanist vision for racial reconciliation /Chanequa Walker-Barnes ; foreword by Lisa Sharon Harper. Walker-Barnes offers a compelling argument that the Christian racial reconciliation movement is incapable of responding to modern-day racism. Drawing upon intersectionality theory and critical race studies, she demonstrates how living at the intersection of racism and sexism exposes women of color to unique experiences of gendered racism that are not about relationships, but rather are about systems of power and inequity. Refuting the idea that race and racism are one-size-fits-all, I Bring the Voices of My People highlights the particular work that White Americans must do to repent of racism and to work toward racial justice and offers a constructive view of reconciliation that prioritizes eliminating racial injustice and healing the damage that it has done to African Americans and other people of color.
I love Jesus & I accept evolution /Denis O. Lamoureux. Lamoureux argues that the God of the Bible created the universe and life through evolution–an ordained, sustained, and design-reflecting natural process. In other words, evolution is not the result of blind chance and our creation is not a mistake. Lamoureux challenges the popular assumption that God disclosed scientific facts in the opening chapters of Scripture thousands of years before their discovery by modern science. Lamoureux also shares his personal story and struggle in coming to terms with evolution and Christianity.
In praise of comedy: a study in its theory and practice [by] James K. Feibleman. In this work, the history of comic instances is combed in the search for the truth about comedy. After a chapter devoted to the explanation of a logical theory of comedy, the comedians are examined, and the humour of every one, from the Marx Brothers to surrealism, from Gertrude Stein to Mickey Mouse, from James Joyce to Charlie Chaplin, is shown to be a constant, inherent in the same set of unchanging conditions.
Incident at Vichy: a play. /Miller, Arthur, A one-act play; it depicts a group of men who have been detained in Vichy France in 1942; they are being held for their “racial” inspection by German military officers and Vichy French police. The play focuses on human nature, guilt, fear, and complicity and examines how the Nazis were able to perpetrate the Holocaust with so little resistance.
Jean Genet: a study of his novels and plays /by Philip Thody. Thody establishes the relevance of Genet’s ideas to his skill as a writer. Thody discusses the moral questions raised by the open publication of Genet’s work and the philosophical significance of an author who has admitted to devoting his art to the exaltation of evil.
Listen more, laugh often, love always: reflections for today’s church councils /Dave Wasserman. Listen More, Laugh Often, Love Always offers advice to future church leaders from the ramblings and reflections of one who saw firsthand the embattlements, wanderings, and unravelings of an institution trying to transform itself for a new time in God’s grace..
Mennonites and media: how Mennonites have been portrayed in media and how they have shaped media for identity and outreach /Steven P. Carpenter. Beginning with the Martyrs Mirror, this book examines the writings of Mennonite authors John Howard Yoder, Donald Kraybill, Rudy Wiebe, Rhoda Janzen, and Malcolm Gladwell. Citing books, film, art, theater, and Ngram, the online culturomic tool developed by Harvard University and Google, the author demonstrates that Mennonites ‘punch above their weight class’ in the media, and especially in print.
On Christian teaching: practicing faith in the classroom /David I. Smith. This book delves into the argument that faith has a critical role in shaping pedagogy and the learning experience. It explores education combining both theory and practice, showing how teachers of every subject and age group can be attentive to how their students are experiencing and interpreting learning and how there are myriad opportunities to design classes that are deeply rooted in Christian practices.
One soul at a time: the story of Billy Graham /Grant Wacker. This compact narrative biography of Billy Graham shows how he–more than any other individual–helped create and shape the powerful post-World War II evangelical movement in the United States and in many other parts of the world.
Pandora’s box opened: an examination and defense of historical-critical method and its master practitioners /Roy A. Harrisville. Harrisville argues that despite the evils brought upon biblical interpretation by the historical-critical method, there is still hope for it as a discipline. Harrisville begins by describing the emergence and use of the historical-critical method. He then attends to the malaise that has come over the method, which he says still persists. Finally, Harrisville commends the historical-critical method, though shorn of its arrogance..
Reaching for the New Jerusalem: a biblical and theological framework for the city /edited by Seong Hyun Park, Aída Besançon Spencer, and William David Spencer. The task of this book is to examine the biblical and theological meaning of the city and our mission within it. Toward achieving this goal, this single, accessible volume brings together the biblical, the systematic, and the practical aspects of urban ministry by various contributors who are urban practitioners and theologians themselves.
Reading the Gospels with Karl Barth /edited by Daniel L. Migliore. In this book, twelve leading theologians and biblical scholars examine Karl Barth’s exegesis of passages in the Gospels in his Church Dogmatics.
Religion and American culture: a brief history /George M. Marsden. Surveying the history of religion and American culture from the days of the earliest European settlers right up through the elections of 2016, Marsden offers the kind of historically and religiously informed scholarship that has made him one of the nation’s most respected and decorated historians. Students in the classroom and history readers of all ages will benefit from engaging with the story Marsden tells.
Rereading the biblical text: searching for meaning and understanding /Claude F. Mariottini. Deals with problems scholars face in translating Hebrew words and sentences into contemporary English. Mariottini has selected several difficult passages from the Old Testament and compared how different translations have dealt with these difficult texts. Pastors, seminary students, and serious students of the Bible will be challenged to reread the biblical text and understand the message of the biblical writers in a new perspective.
Signs in the wilderness: intertextuality and the testing of Nicodemus /Daniel H. Fletcher. Signs in the Wilderness portrays Nicodemus as a traveler on a faith journeythrough the wilderness who is tested by Jesus’s signs.
That his spirit may be saved: church discipline as a means to repentance and perseverance /Jeremy M. Kimble. Kimble calls readers to observe clear biblical mandates, historic precedent, as well as theological and practical implications for the practice of church discipline. Seeking to venture past the pragmatic discussions surrounding church discipline, Kimble articulates for his readers a lucid theological presentation of this topic. He argues that discipline serves as a warning of potential end-time judgment. As such, discipline also serves as a means to the sinner’s repentance and the perseverance of the saints within that local church.
The divine feminine: the biblical imagery of God as female /Virginia Ramey Mollenkott. The book reflects careful research; it is written in a style that will appeal to those interested in the implications of biblical research but without the time or inclination to follow the involved discussions of biblical scholarship.
The life of Monsieur de Molière /Mikhail Bulgakov ; translated by Mirra Ginsburg. The life of Moliere, Born Jean-Baptiste Poquelin, is a story of struggle and dedication, and Bulgakov tells it with warmth and compassion.
The messianic theology of the New Testament /Joshua W. Jipp. Jipp works methodically through the New Testament to show how the authors proclaim Jesus as the incarnate, crucified, and enthroned messiah of God. In the second section of this book, Jipp moves beyond exegesis toward larger theological questions, such as those of Christology, soteriology, ecclesiology, and eschatology, revealing the practical value of reading the Bible with an eye to its messianic vision.
The Revelation worldview: apocalyptic thinking in a postmodern world /Jon K. Newton. The Revelation Worldview is a bold attempt to construct a biblically based Christian worldview that makes sense to postmodern people. It also seeks to make the book of Revelation, one of the most strange and difficult books in the Bible, relevant to issues facing people in the twenty-first century. Jon K. Newton wrestles with the complex notion of worldview, tells the story of the changing Western worldview from its ancient and medieval beginnings through the modern era and into the unpredictable world of postmodernism, and compares the worldview found in Revelation with other worldviews of its day.
The Satan: how God’s executioner became the enemy /Ryan E. Stokes. The Satan: How God’s Executioner Became the Enemy is a history of the origin, shaping, and reshaping of beliefs about (the) Satan. It traces the development of ideas pertaining to this figure from the earliest references to the Satan in the Hebrew Bible to the varied depictions of the Satan and his evil forces in the Jewish and Christian literature of the late Second Temple period. It explains the origin of this tradition as evidenced in the Hebrew Scriptures and describes the interpretive process that transformed an agent of God into the preeminent antagonist and archenemy of good.
The secret journal of Alexander MacKenzie /Brian Fawcett. An industrial biography that investigates personal myths and the great “machines” that drive the world to the abyss of development.
Theology as construction of piety: an African perspective /David T. Ngong. This book argues that a primary purpose of theological discourses is to construct piety or spirituality. Ngong argues that theological discourses that appear to be orthodox and innocuous may actually construct forms of piety that may diminish human flourishing. The book therefore calls for an ethics of theology intended to ensure that the theologies we construct help in developing a piety that is conducive to human flourishing in the modern world, especially for Africans, who have suffered and continue to suffer unspeakable dehumanization.
Theology as interdisciplinary inquiry: learning with and from the natural and human sciences /edited by Robin W. Lovin & Joshua Mauldin. This book presents the views of leading scholars in ethics, theology, and social science regarding the value of interdisciplinary theological inquiry.
Torquato Tasso: a play /Johann Wolfgang von Goethe ; translated by Charles E. Passage. A play about the sixteenth-century Italian poet and courtier Torquato Tasso and his descent into madness.
When all else fails: rethinking our pastoral vocation in times of stuck /Wayne L. Menking. Menking argues that the way out of stuckness is not through the acquisition of faddish techniques, but through a deep rethinking of our pastoral vocation and what our pastoral work is to be about. Using biblical images and narratives that depict God as a deeply empathic and compassionate God, yet one who is never adaptively sympathetic, Menking asserts that pastoral caregivers and leaders must shed their niceness and adaptivity so as to employ their God-given power if they are to help people effectively leave what is old for what is new.
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