English Church

Should we actually practice church discipline today? Is it unloving? Once an ordinary part of church life, churches gradually stopped practicing church discipline in the 20th century. But Jesus commands it. Paul practiced it. And churches benefit from it. Why practice church discipline? It shows love for the individual caught in sin, love for the whole church, love for non-Christian neighbors, and love for the glory of Christ.

When the jolly Italian peasant-turned-cardinal Angelo Giuseppe Roncalli of Venice was elected Pope John XXIII in 1958, change was in the air. The Church, many said, had refused to enter the twentieth century. In response, Pope John launched Vatican II, an “ecumenical council” that summoned hundreds of church leaders to Rome. It marked one of the most progressive turns the Church had taken in centuries: “medicine of mercy,” as Pope John called it. Yet not everyone in the Church was prepared to accept this modernization.

Do "In God We Trust", the Declaration of Independence, and other historical "evidence" prove that America was founded on Judeo-Christian principles? Are the Ten Commandments the basis for American law? A constitutional attorney dives into the debate about religion's role in America's founding.

Saint, slave or scholar? Patrick of Ireland is known as all three, but who is he really? Let K. C. Murdarasi bring to light the real life of this father of the Christian faith. Kidnapped from his home and family as a young boy you would think forgiveness would have been far from his mind.Yet with God's grace Patrick returned to the land of his captivity where he preached the good news of Jesus Christ to slaves and kings alike - and left a legacy of faith that would last for centuries.

It’s the 1960s in North Carolina, and Lorraine Delford has it all—an upstanding family, a perfect boyfriend, and an idyllic home complete with a white picket fence. Yet every time she looks through her father’s telescope, she dreams of leaving it all behind to go to space. It’s ambitious, but Lorraine has always been exceptional.

Like millions of her millennial peers, Rachel Held Evans didn't want to go to church anymore. The hypocrisy, the politics, the gargantuan building budgets, the scandals - church culture seemed so far removed from Jesus. Yet despite her cynicism and misgivings, something kept drawing her back. And so she set out on a journey to understand the Church and to find her place in it.

The Bible is made up of 66 books that tell the magnificent story of God's redemptive work in Christ. In this new audio recording of the full Bible, that story comes alive in a fresh way through the voice of award-winning modern hymn writer Kristyn Getty. From Genesis to Revelation, this word-for-word reading of the ESV Bible text is a great way to encounter God's word and the story of salvation.

From the UK best-selling author of Abbot's Keep comes a new dimension in terror. Spanning four decades, the dark history of Church Farm House is explored within four interlinking horror stories. Welcome to the nightmare... Benedict Ashforth is the author of the UK best-selling Kindle ghost story, Abbot's Keep.

In The Priesthood Power of Women, author Barbara Morgan Gardner explores teachings of the living prophets and scriptures to increase our understanding of God's power as it operates in the temple, the Church, and the family. Her well-documented research demonstrates that women have more authority and power in all those settings than they may have previously supposed.

There was something different about the way Jesus communicated with the lost: He didn't force answers upon people, he asked questions. So why don't we? Following Christ's lead, Randy Newman has been using a questioning style of evangelism for decades. In this provocative book, he provides practical insights to help Christians engage others in meaningful spiritual conversations. He challenges us to examine how we think about people, their questions, and our crucial message.

In this popular introduction to church history, now in its third edition, Mark Noll isolates key events that provide a framework for understanding the history of Christianity. The book presents Christianity as a worldwide phenomenon rather than just a Western experience. Students in academic settings and church adult education contexts will benefit from this one-semester survey of Christian history.

What's the big deal about baptism? Jesus commands his disciples to be baptized, and it's a glorious picture of a person's union with Jesus' death, burial, and resurrection. Still, many Christians feel unclear about the topic, having more questions than answers. This short work provides a biblical explanation of baptism. What is it? Who should be baptized? Why is it required for church membership? And how should churches practice baptism?

You may have encountered books on this topic before, but not like this one. Instead of an instruction manual for church growth, this classic text points to basic biblical principles for assessing and strengthening the health of your church. Whether you’re a pastor, a leader, or an involved member of your congregation, studying the nine marks of a healthy church will help you cultivate new life and well-being within your own church for God’s glory.

The growth of information makes for an ever-changing world. However, the importance of Scripture remains unchanged. To ensure the enduring value of inspired sacred texts, Friendship Press, together with the National Council of Churches and in partnership with the Society of Biblical Literature, has undertaken the careful task of updating the NRSV Edition of the Bible. We are pleased to present you with what we can in full confidence call the world’s most meticulously researched, rigorously reviewed, and faithfully accurate English-language Bible translation.

Most pastors and leaders are godly, wonderful people that don't abuse their sheep. They shepherd their flocks gently and patiently. But we can't ignore the growing number who do not. We need gentle shepherds now more than ever, and in Bully Pulpit, seminary president and biblical scholar Michael J. Kruger offers a unique perspective for both church leaders and church members on the problem of spiritual abuse, how to spot it, and how to handle it in the church.

“Women of faith, discussing complicated things.” That’s how authors Susan Hinckley and Cynthia Winward describe At Last She Said It, and they don’t expect the knots to untangle themselves. Even with two very different personalities and a decade or so between them, as their friendship developed they kept stumbling onto what felt like an uncanny amount of common ground in their church experiences. Often their conversations ended with, “Why isn’t anyone talking about this? Someone should do a podcast!” So they did.

For 35 years Biblical Eldership has been the premier book explaining the biblical teaching on church eldership, which is shared pastoral leadership by a council of scripturally qualified, Spirit-placed elders. Biblical Eldership has helped ignite a worldwide awakening to this long-neglected and misunderstood subject. This new edition is a comprehensive revision. For those who love solid Bible exposition, this is a much-welcomed volume.

At work, I’m King of Wall Street. I’m shrewd. Exacting. Some say ruthless. At home, I’m a single dad trying to keep his fourteen-year-old daughter a kid for as long as possible. And nothing I say is ever right. When Harper Jayne starts as a junior researcher at my firm, the barriers between my worlds begin to dissolve. Soon, she will have to learn that I don't just rule the boardroom. I’m in charge of the bedroom, too.

Filled with stories of those who have walked the path of deconstruction without losing their faith, Invisible Jesus: A Book about Leaving the Church and Looking for Christ by Scot McKnight with Tommy Phillips is a prophetic call to discern if the faith we practice and the church we belong to is representative of the Jesus we follow.

Luca Lewis is done with church. It killed his father, and now he wants nothing to do with the whole thing. Yet, he can’t seem to shake the unwanted conviction his father planted deep in his soul: that maybe something else is possible–something much more important.