Religious Theology

There are many different forms, arguments, denominations, and doctrines within the Christian faith. Diving into the various theories and histories can be a lengthy and often confusing journey. This collection of sermons concisely discusses many views on salvation and faith. Anyone who has felt overwhelmed by church history, has started questioning their own theology, or is simply looking to learn more about Christianity will find great help and comfort in The Plan of Salvation.

Parley P. Pratt began to work on The Key to the Science of Theology in San Francisco in August 1851, just before leaving for his mission to Chile. He continued writing it while in Chile. He finished the manuscript upon his return to Utah in 1853. The manuscript remained unpublished, however, until 1855 when Parley found a publisher in England. Parley's book represented a lifetime of thought and built on ideas first propounded in Pratt's earlier writings, especially missionary tracts stemming from his years in England. The impact of The Key to the Science of Theology was unparalleled. One Latter-day Saint diarist of the 19th century observed: "We had every encouragement to read the Church publications: The Voice of Warning; the Pearl of Great Price; and Key to Theology."

In western post-Christian society, humans are thought of less like precious image bearers and more like commodities. The canary in the coal mine of this ideological shift is often women and children, which manifests itself in the seemingly built-in disdain towards motherhood and children for their lack of production of economically valuable goods. However, the risk of this utilitarian approach to human life is not just outside the church, but within those spaces as well.

A une époque où l'Eglise évacuait le spirituel, la vie de Padre Pio témoignait de la présence du surnaturel au quotidien. Découvrons ce saint joyeux, grand amoureux de Jésus et de la Croix.

Through her autobiography and an extensive collection of letters, St. Thérèse helped people understand nothing was too little to give Jesus, and nothing done out of love for him was insignificant. Perhaps this is why so many lives still resonate with hers. It is easy to feel insignificant and unimportant. Yet, the clear and compelling language of her story and her letters remains the perfect antidote to such feelings.

In this Christian classic, late pastor and evangelist A. W. Tozer brings the mystics to bear on modern spirituality, grieving the hustle and bustle and calling for a slow, steady gaze upon God. With prophetic vigor and flowing prose, he urges us to replace low thoughts of God with lofty ones, to quiet our lives so we can know God's presence. He reminds us that life apart from God is really no life at all.

John L. Esposito is one of America's leading authorities on Islam. Now, in this brilliant portrait of Islam today - and tomorrow - he draws on a lifetime of thought and research to sweep away the negative stereotypes and provide an accurate, richly nuanced, and revelatory account of the fastest-growing religion in the world. Here Esposito explores the major questions and issues that face Islam in the 21st century and how that will deeply affect global politics.

At the age of 21, Monica Baldwin - the niece of Stanley Baldwin - entered one of the most strictly enclosed contemplative orders of the Roman Catholic Church. At the age of 48, and after struggling with her vocation for many years, she left the convent. But the world Monica had known and forsaken in 1914 was very different from the world into which she emerged at the height of the Second World War.

Did you know that the original biblical languages use several words for heaven and hell that mean different things? Did you know that there are different beliefs about how many heavens and hells there are? Get ready for some surprises! This book will help you set aside your preconceptions and pierce through the myths and misinformation to gain an accurate, truly biblical perspective on heaven and hell.

What really happened back in the first century, in Jerusalem and around the Sea of Galilee, that changed the shape of world history? Who is this figure that emerges from history to have a profound impact on culture, ethics, politics, and philosophy? Join historian John Dickson on this journey through the life of Jesus.

America's two greatest strengths - her liberal democratic culture and her free market economy - have made her a global superpower. But left unchecked, these two strengths can become great cultural weaknesses, sowing selfishness, recklessness, and apathy. In Resurrecting the Idea of a Christian Society, theologian R. R. Reno argues that America needs a renewal of Christian ideals - ideals that encourage self-sacrifice, responsibility, and solidarity.

What is the relationship between charity and knowledge in the theology of Thomas Aquinas? Did Aquinas in his mature thought portray charity's act as antecedent to and independent of practical reasoning? Did he view charity's motion as rendering us morally good before God, apart from whether or not we do what is right in our actions? A dominant stream in contemporary Catholic ethics holds for precisely such a concept of charity, and many recent commentators on Aquinas maintain that this is his position as well.

One of the most neglected but pervasive threats to the Christian world and life view is that of neoplatonism. This leftover of ancient Greek philosophy is grounded upon a dual aspect to reality: It views that which is form or spirit (such as mind) as good and that which is physical (flesh) as evil. Neoplatonism is a "dialectical" philosophy that tries to reconcile two basically hostile concepts and retain both within its system.

The Kant revealed in this book reminds us of a perennial task of philosophy, going back to Plato, where philosophy is construed as a way of life, oriented towards happiness, achieved through a properly expansive conception of reason and happiness. When we understand this philosophical religiosity, many standard "problems" in the interpretation of Kant can be seen in a new light, and resolved. Kant witnesses to a strand of philosophy that leans into the category of the divine, at the edges of what we can say about reason, freedom, autonomy, and happiness.

Drawn from passages and Scriptures Beth Moore brings to light in Chasing Vines, this audio booklet will help you find new hope for Kingdom-building. With each listen, you’ll be reminded that your life matters - and nothing you’ve experienced will be wasted by the One who created you. After all, you were created to thrive in fruitfulness.

Andrew Murray (1828-1917) was a South African Christian pastor and an internationally known author of numerous Christian books. This enduring classic, published in 1896, was written to assist believers to pray in the right way. The book is based on the way that Christ taught his disciples to pray, and the style is simple and engaging. The chapters are titled, "The Model Prayer", "Pray to Thy Father in Secret", "In Spirit and in Truth or The True Worshippers", and "The Only Teacher".

G. K. Chesterton joyously skewers modern philosophers, authors, and artists in Heretics. This is the companion volume to Orthodoxy. Visit www.chestertonbooks.com to see other books in our G. K. Chesterton series.

The figure of Dietrich Bonhoeffer (1906-1945) has become a clay puppet in modern American politics. Secular, radical, liberal, and evangelical interpreters variously shape and mold the martyr’s legacy to suit their own pet agendas. Stephen Haynes offers an incisive and clarifying perspective. A recognized Bonhoeffer expert, Haynes examines “populist” readings of Bonhoeffer, including the acclaimed biography by Eric Metaxas, Bonhoeffer: Pastor, Martyr, Prophet, Spy.

Transcending Architecture considers the mysterious, profound, and real power of designed environments to address the spiritual dimension of our humanity. The book offers a wide, critical, and nuanced understanding of the lived relationship between the built and the numinous worlds. It examines phenomenological, symbolic and designerly ways in which the holy gets fixed and experienced through buildings, landscapes, and urban forms, and not just in institutionally defined religious or sacred places. Transcending Architecture brings together a stellar group of scholars and practitioners to share their insights: architect Juhani Pallasmaa and philosopher Karsten Harries, comparative religion scholar Lindsay Jones and architectural theoretician Karla Britton, sacred architecture researcher Thomas Barrie and theologian Kevin Seasoltz, landscape architect Rebecca Krinke and Faith & Form magazine editor Michael Crosbie, are among the illustrious contributors.

Wounds Are Where Light Enters is a collection of stories that are warm, sometimes funny, sometimes not, but always taking unexpected turns to find the care of God in all the pathways of life. In them we find the grace that enables us to live with the answers we see and the answers we don't see. In this collection we meet Arthur Bias, the retired black police officer who loves those who hate; Agnes Brill, the shrill piano teacher of patience; Junie Piper, precious of the homeless; Melvin, who honors his aging mother by honoring the little girl she has become; Lucian; and more.