Twenty years before his famous trial, Galileo Galilei had spent two years carefully considering how the results of his own telescopic observations of the heavens as well as his convictions about the truth of the Copernican theory could be aligned with the Catholic Church's position on biblical interpretation and the authority of the magisterium. The product of these two years was an unpublished letter to the Grand Duchess Christina of Tuscany, the mother of his patron, Cosimo II de' Medici.
Much has changed since this letter was written in 1615, but much has remained the same. This collection of articles by renowned international scholars provides the historical context of the letter as well as a description of the scientific world of Galileo. It also explores those issues that make this 1615 letter a document for our time: the public role of religious authority, the truth of the Bible, and the relationship of scientific inquiry to social justice. Galileo's letter to Christina has become a classic text in the history of the relationship between science and religion in the West for good reason; this volume explores why the letter has earned its rightful place as a classic even for today.
An idol is a good thing. It is good because God created it. Nothing exists that God did not create and God created all things good. So sex can be an idol, but before it was an idol it was a good creation of God. Materialism is an idol, but to have a material world was God's idea in the first place. Workaholism is an idol, but work is itself a good gift of God. What turns these good gifts of God into idols is what we have done with them. So we have common forms of idolatry expressed in consumerism, individualism, narcissism, careerism, and hedonism; while there are less familiar expressions found in omnism, fatalism, Gnosticism, relativism, positivism, and reductionism. We have put these and other things on a pedestal and made them into mini-gods. In the end they fail to deliver what they promise. These twelve mediations on a scriptural passage by faculty members of Wycliffe College, Toronto, emphasize that the good news is that God can redeem idols. Each one can be restored to its proper place in God's created order and placed under God's authority.
Conservatism, Republican politics, and traditional Christianity are thought by some to go together like baseball and apple pie. Yet, for a growing number of people, libertarian political thought provides an alternative to the traditional Christian right. That number includes the six young authors of this book who explore and expound the case that one can be both a Christian and a libertarian. Called to Freedom explores the major points of tension between the Christian faith and political liberty to demonstrate why the two can coexist in harmony. Through their own personal experiences, and from six different perspectives, the authors offer both thoughtful arguments and encouragement to anyone navigating the space between Christianity and libertarianism. It is in that space that the authors have found a home, one that prioritizes the kingship of Jesus Christ and the inherent dignity of the people created in his image. If you are a Christian exploring libertarian thought, or if you feel caught between your Christian beliefs and libertarian political instincts, this book is written for you.
Contributors: Jacqueline Isaacs is the inaugural Fellow in Strategic Communication at the American Studies Program in Washington, DC. She earned her MBA in marketing at Johns Hopkins University and her BS in government at Oral Roberts University.
Jason Hughey is a certified personal trainer and group fitness instructor. He earned his BA in government from Regent University in 2012 and worked for several liberty-advancing nonprofits before switching to the fit- ness industry full-time.
Taylor Barkley lives in Washington, DC with his wife and works at a public policy organization and part-time with Search Ministries. He graduated from Taylor University with a degree in history and political science.
Leah Hughey is a graduate of Regent University, where she studied government and history. She works at a Christian ministry focused on fostering collaboration between charities and churches to solve social problems in the cities they serve. Leah has been happily married to coauthor Jason since 2013.
Philip Luca is an award-winning marketing strategist working with tech companies and startups in the DC area. He currently serves on the board of the American Marketing Association, DC as the VP of Social Media. He holds two graduate degrees from Liberty University in digital media and theology.
Berkeley Street Theatre chronicles Christian World Liberation Front's 1969-1975 ministry to the counterculture. Founded by Jack Sparks, CWLF was featured in the June 1971 Time Magazine's epic «Jesus Revolution» edition. Reverend Billy Graham sponsored the CWLF outreach and referred to CWLF as a highly effective outreach to the counterculture. The book included a foreword by David W. Gill, former CWLF leader, scholar, and author, contributing chapters from BST's members: Gene Burkett, Charlie Lehman, Susan Dockery Andrews, Father James Bernstein, and Jeanne DeFazio, editor of the book. Part Two of this work outlines Christian Guerilla theater following the timeline of BST with contributing chapters from: JMD Myers, Joanne Petronella, Jozy Pollock, Olga Soler, and Sheri Pedigo. William David Spencer's afterword details the cultural contributions of the Jesus movement. This book will appeal to the baby boom generation as well as millennials. It is a resource work for anyone interested in religious history, Christian theater and the arts, and in how baby boomers embraced the Jesus Movement. The photos of BST's Sproul Plaza performances will charm all readers.
The origin of the phrase «the church has left the building» lies with Elvis. In order to clear halls of his riotous fans after concerts, it was announced that «Elvis has left the building.» Here, the expression highlights intense change within the church. Not only does the church change for its own existence, it also does so for the life of the world. The church cannot avoid the many past and future changes of our constantly transforming society, demographic changes long in process. What you have before you is a gathering of first-hand reflections–stories really–from a diverse group of Christians, lay as well as ordained. While each has a distinctive experience of the church in our time, all of them have something to say about the many changes in our society and how these are affecting our faith, the parish, and pastoral work.
Contributors: Mary Breton Nicholas Denysenko Adam A. J. DeVille John C. Frazier David Frost Carol Fryer Kenneth J. Guest Brett Hoover Abbie Huff Wongee Joh Justin Mathews Maria Gwyn McDowell William C. Mills Robert Corin Morris Sarah Hinlicky Wilson Michael Plekon
Less is More is a collection of eight ten-minute plays. These tiny dramas speak to the necessity to say what is essential in a small number of words. As Shakespeare said, «Brevity is the soul of wit.» The first play, «The Dissolution Mask,» is by the well-known playwright Nancy West. The next two plays, «Thanatos Calling» and «Leap for Life,» are the first ten-minute plays by David H. Rosen and they speak to an area of his research involving suicidology. «The Tea Gown,» by known writer Maura Conlon, is a moving ten-minute play. The two gripping plays, «Baby Boomer Blues» and «Flip,» were written by the dramaturge Martin Cohen. The final two plays, «True Blue» and «Sisters,» are by an inspiring dramatist Eliza Roaring-Springs.
Korean American Catholics are celebrating their jubilee after having been officially recognized by the Archdiocese of San Francisco in 1966. This occasion affords the flourishing Korean American Catholic community to take stock of their identity, celebrate this milestone, and prepare for the future. What does it mean to be a Korean American Catholic? What are their particular challenges and hopes? The works contained in this book, articles written by leading Korean American scholars, theologians, and priests, serve to answer those questions and pose new ones, and lay down a marker that will surely one day be recognized as another significant one in the history of this growing voice in the United States religious landscape.
Leading in the Belly of the Beast is an anthology of essays from transformational school leaders around the country who lead in a school system that is not set up for the success of their students, namely students of color and students living in poverty. The book highlights leaders who begin from the premise that the institution of school/system of education in the United States, since its inception, has been established to maintain the racial, cultural, and economic status quo – and to maintain divisions among these racial, cultural, and class groups. These leaders use this very assertion as a foundation for their transformational leadership from within the system. Leading in the Belly of the Beast includes the voices of nine educators in a variety of positions of school leadership, from principals and deans to teacher leaders. The unifying experience of these leaders is that they all currently work in the context of a school and, therefore, have authentic and fresh experiences and expertise to share. The goal of Leading in the Belly of the Beast is to emphasize the need to understand that our current system of education as not broken but as functioning to achieve exactly the results it was designed to achieve, and then to demonstrate why and how transformative leaders can and must achieve different results for students of color and students living in poverty, even while operating in the “belly of the beast”.
The second issue of a digital journal created to alleviate the malaise of social distancing with exceptional writing and artwork. The Quarantine Review celebrates literature and art, connecting readers through reflections on the human condition – our lived experiences, afflictions, and dreams. As we face a pandemic with profound implications, the essays within offer a variety of perspectives on the current predicament, encouraging readers to reflect on the world we knew before and contemplate how society can be reshaped once we emerge. Through The Quarantine Review , Dupuis and Sarfraz hope to give voice to the swirling emotions inside each of us during this unprecedented moment, to create a circuit of empathy between the reader, the work itself, and the wider world beyond the walls of our homes. This issue includes writing from Waris Ahluwalia, Catherine Bush, Roseanne Carrara, J.J. Dupuis, Khandijah Kanji, J.J. Martin, C.S. O'Cinneide, Terese Mason Pierre, Teri Vlassopoulos, and artwork by Blaise Moritz.