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Fierce Love: A Bold Path to Ferocious Courage and Rule-Breaking Kindness That Can Heal the World
by Dr. Jacqui LewisA healing antidote to our divisive culture, full of evocative storytelling, spiritual wisdom, and nine essential daily practices—by the first female, Black senior minister at the historic Collegiate Churches of New York&“Fierce Love teaches us that with spiritual faith we can transcend the darkest moments and come through stronger.&”—Gabrielle Bernstein, #1 New York Times bestselling author of The Universe Has Your Back We are living in a world divided. Race and ethnicity, caste and color, gender and sexuality, class and education, religion and political party have all become demographic labels that reduce our differences to simplistic categories in which &“we&” are vehemently against &“them.&” But Rev. Dr. Jacqui Lewis&’s own experience—of being the first female and first Black minister in her church&’s history, of being in an interracial marriage, and of making peace with childhood abuse—illustrates that our human capacity for empathy and forgiveness is the key to reversing these ugly trends.Inspired by the tenets of ubuntu—the Zulu philosophy that we are each impacted by the circumstances that impact those around us, and that the world won&’t get better until we all get better—Fierce Love lays out the nine daily practices for breaking through tribalism and engineering the change we seek. From downsizing our emotional baggage to speaking truth to power to fueling our activism with joy, it demonstrates the power of small, morally courageous steps to heal our own lives, our posse, and our larger communities. Sharing stories that trace her personal reckoning with racism as well as the arc of her journey to an inclusive and service-driven faith, Dr. Lewis shows that kindness, compassion, and inclusive thinking are muscles that can be exercised and strengthened. With the goal of mending our inextricable human connection, Fierce Love is a manifesto for all generations: a bighearted, healing antidote to our rancorous culture.
A Fierce Love: One Woman’s Courageous Journey to Save Her Marriage
by Shauna ShanksLove is easy to give when you are getting it back. Are we still called to God’s plan of how to love when we are getting none in return? Shauna Shanks’s brave journey through obedience reveals the outcome of when we dare to follow God’s ludicrous outline for love as described in 1 Corinthians 13.Wrecked with news of her husband’s affair and his request for a divorce, Shauna finds herself urgently faced with a decision. Does she give up and divorce her husband and move on, or does she try to fight for her marriage? The former choice seems to contradict God’s plan for how to love, such as “love never gives up,” “love is patient,” and “love is kind.”Taking God at His word and assuming the love chapter was really meant to be followed literally word by word, she not only finds herself falling in love with her spouse again, but also falling in love with Jesus, which changes everything.First Corinthians 13 presents an audacious, illogical, and irrational context of how to love, meant to be applied to every marital context not just the fairytale marriage. If God’s instructions seem illogical and audacious, you might just expect the same kind of results in return!This book is not air-brushed. It was written in the midst of the author’s deepest trauma, and she purposefully did not edit out her mistakes and failures during that season. This book will resonate with women who do not feel like the picture-perfect Christian woman with the fairytale life and marriage. A Fierce Love is the story of a train wreck and reaching out to God not in the calm but in the chaos and finding hope for the future.
Fierce Self-Compassion: How Women Can Harness Kindness to Speak Up, Claim Their Power, and Thrive
by Dr. Kristin NeffThe author of Self-Compassion follows up her groundbreaking book with new ideas that expand our notion of self-kindness and its capacity to transform our lives, showing women how to balance tender self-acceptance with fierce action to claim their power and change the world.Kristin Neff changed how we talk about self-care with her enormously popular first book, Self-Compassion. Now, ten years and many studies later, she expands her body of work to explore a brand-new take on self-compassion. Although kindness and self-acceptance allow us to be with ourselves as we are, in all our glorious imperfection, the desire to alleviate suffering at the heart of this mindset isn't always gentle, sometimes it's fierce. We must also act courageously in order to protect ourselves from harm and injustice, say no to others so we can meet our own needs, and motivate necessary change in ourselves and society. Gender roles demand that women be soft and nurturing, not angry or powerful. But like yin and yang, the energies of fierce and tender self-compassion must be balanced for wholeness and wellbeing. Drawing on a wealth of research, her personal life story and empirically supported practices, Neff demonstrates how women can use fierce and tender self-compassion to succeed in the workplace, engage in caregiving without burning out, be authentic in relationships, and end the silence around sexual harassment and abuse. Most women intuitively recognize fierceness as part of their true nature, but have been discouraged from developing it. Women must reclaim their power in order to create a healthier society and find lasting happiness. In this wise, caring, and enlightening book, Neff shows women how to reclaim balance within themselves, so they can help restore balance in the world.
Fierce Women: The Power of a Soft Warrior (True Woman)
by Kimberly WagnerCan you have a strong personality and still be a godly wife? YES!Do you ever get the idea that being a godly wife means you need to be a mousy doormat? Be as unnoticeable as a doorknob? Or have a personality transplant? Fierce Women: The Power of a Soft Warrior smashes that idea. No matter whether you&’re an extrovert or more introverted, Kimberly Wagner believes women are created to be a compelling force. You may not see yourself as beautifully fierce or even slightly strong, but what if God has placed a powerful fierceness within you, within every woman? Kim admits her fierceness became a source of conflict in her marriage, but the relationship dynamic totally changed when she discovered her fierce strengths could be used to encourage and inspire her husband. She invites you to come alongside as she takes an honest look at a destructive relationship dynamic and casts a vision for the transformation God can bring to troubled marriages.A True Woman Book; the goal of the True Woman publishing line is to encourage women to:Discover, embrace, and delight in God's divine design and mission for their livesReflect the beauty and heart of Jesus Christ to their worldIntentionally pass the baton of Truth on to the next generationPray earnestly for an outpouring of God's Spirit in their families, churches, nation and world
Fierce Women: The Power of a Soft Warrior (True Woman)
by Kimberly WagnerCan you have a strong personality and still be a godly wife? YES!Do you ever get the idea that being a godly wife means you need to be a mousy doormat? Be as unnoticeable as a doorknob? Or have a personality transplant? Fierce Women: The Power of a Soft Warrior smashes that idea. No matter whether you&’re an extrovert or more introverted, Kimberly Wagner believes women are created to be a compelling force. You may not see yourself as beautifully fierce or even slightly strong, but what if God has placed a powerful fierceness within you, within every woman? Kim admits her fierceness became a source of conflict in her marriage, but the relationship dynamic totally changed when she discovered her fierce strengths could be used to encourage and inspire her husband. She invites you to come alongside as she takes an honest look at a destructive relationship dynamic and casts a vision for the transformation God can bring to troubled marriages.A True Woman Book; the goal of the True Woman publishing line is to encourage women to:Discover, embrace, and delight in God's divine design and mission for their livesReflect the beauty and heart of Jesus Christ to their worldIntentionally pass the baton of Truth on to the next generationPray earnestly for an outpouring of God's Spirit in their families, churches, nation and world
Fierce - Women's Bible Study Leader Guide: Women of the Bible Who Changed the World (Fierce)
by Jennifer CowartLearn from the fierce women of God who changed the world. The word fierce is trendy. It is used to describe women who are extreme athletes, high-level executives, or supermodels. Women at the top of their game. But what about the rest of us? Can we be fierce? Absolutely! In fact, women like us have been changing the world for thousands of years—many who received little fanfare yet lived fiercely anyway. In this six-week study we will look at lesser-known female characters in the Bible and the ways they changed the world by living into God’s calling, including: The midwives of Egypt (Shiphrah and Puah), who made hard decisions in the face of evil Deborah, who was an unlikely and powerful leader Naaman's slave girl, who bravely points others to God's healing power The Woman at the Well, who boldly repented and shared her faith Lois and Eunice, who parented with intentionality and effectiveness Dorcas, who showed kindness to those in need. As we explore their lives, we will discover how we too can live into our callings, honor the Lord, and even change the world through our courage, faithfulness, and obedience. Bible Study Features: A six-week study of lesser-known female characters in the Bible. Helps women consider how they can be fierce women of God. Workbook includes five devotional lessons for every week of study. Each DVD segment features an opening “fierce” vignette followed by engaging Bible teaching with practical life application. Other components for the Bible study, available separately, include a Participant Workbook and DVD.
Fierce - Women's Bible Study Participant Workbook: Women of the Bible Who Changed the World (Fierce)
by Jennifer CowartLearn from the fierce women of God who changed the world. The word fierce is trendy. It is used to describe women who are extreme athletes, high-level executives, or supermodels. Women at the top of their game. But what about the rest of us? Can we be fierce? Absolutely! In fact, women like us have been changing the world for thousands of years—many who received little fanfare yet lived fiercely anyway. In this six-week study we will look at lesser-known female characters in the Bible and the ways they changed the world by living into God’s calling, including: The midwives of Egypt (Shiphrah and Puah), who made hard decisions in the face of evil Deborah, who was an unlikely and powerful leader Naaman's slave girl, who bravely points others to God's healing power The Woman at the Well, who boldly repented and shared her faith Lois and Eunice, who parented with intentionality and effectiveness Dorcas, who showed kindness to those in need. As we explore their lives, we will discover how we too can live into our callings, honor the Lord, and even change the world through our courage, faithfulness, and obedience. Bible Study Features: A six-week study of lesser-known female characters in the Bible. Helps women consider how they can be fierce women of God. Workbook includes five devotional lessons for every week of study. Each DVD segment features an opening “fierce” vignette followed by engaging Bible teaching with practical life application. Other components for the Bible study, available separately, include a Leader Guide and DVD.
Fiery Faith: Ignite Your Passion for God
by A. W. Tozer"Faith is the continuous gaze of the heart of God" — A. W. TozerWalking with God by faith permeated everything A. W. Tozer wrote. Each chapter of this unique compilation was strategically chosen to take you on an exciting journey that will revive and refresh your faith in God. Tozer was never one to mince words, and this is yet another book that shows the incredible power of a man speaking God's thoughts after Him.Fiery Faith includes questions for reflection that help make this book an excellent resource for study and small group use."Whenever my heart needs to be rekindled, I seem to find myself continually turning to Tozer." — Dr. Bruce Wilkinson, founder of Walk Thru the Bible
Fiery Faith: Ignite Your Passion for God
by A. W. Tozer"Faith is the continuous gaze of the heart of God" — A. W. TozerWalking with God by faith permeated everything A. W. Tozer wrote. Each chapter of this unique compilation was strategically chosen to take you on an exciting journey that will revive and refresh your faith in God. Tozer was never one to mince words, and this is yet another book that shows the incredible power of a man speaking God's thoughts after Him.Fiery Faith includes questions for reflection that help make this book an excellent resource for study and small group use."Whenever my heart needs to be rekindled, I seem to find myself continually turning to Tozer." — Dr. Bruce Wilkinson, founder of Walk Thru the Bible
A Fiery Gospel: The Battle Hymn of the Republic and the Road to Righteous War (Religion and American Public Life)
by Richard M. GambleSince its composition in Washington's Willard Hotel in 1861, Julia Ward Howe's "Battle Hymn of the Republic" has been used to make America and its wars sacred. Few Americans reflect on its violent and redemptive imagery, drawn freely from prophetic passages of the Old and New Testaments, and fewer still think about the implications of that apocalyptic language for how Americans interpret who they are and what they owe the world. In A Fiery Gospel, Richard M. Gamble describes how this camp-meeting tune, paired with Howe's evocative lyrics, became one of the most effective instruments of religious nationalism. He takes the reader back to the song's origins during the Civil War, and reveals how those political and military circumstances launched the song's incredible career in American public life. Gamble deftly considers the idea behind the song—humming the tune, reading the music for us—all while reveling in the multiplicity of meanings of and uses to which Howe's lyrics have been put. "The Battle Hymn of the Republic" has been versatile enough to match the needs of Civil Rights activists and conservative nationalists, war hawks and peaceniks, as well as Europeans and Americans. This varied career shows readers much about the shifting shape of American righteousness. Yet it is, argues Gamble, the creator of the song herself—her Abolitionist household, Unitarian theology, and Romantic and nationalist sensibilities—that is the true conductor of this most American of war songs. A Fiery Gospel depicts most vividly the surprising genealogy of "The Battle Hymn of the Republic," and its sure and certain position as a cultural piece in the uncertain amalgam that was and is American civil religion.
Fiesta Cristiana, Recursos para la Adoración: Resources for Worship
by Raquel M. MartinezFiesta Cristiana is a bilingual collection of worship services that can be used with Hispanic congregations. Fiesta Cristiana not only contains traditional worship services, but also features services special to the Hispanic culture.
Fiesta de Cumpleaños para Jesus: Dios nos dio la Navidad para Celebrar Su Nacimiento (Forest of Faith Books)
by Susan Jones¡Enseña a los niños pequeños a disfrutar la Navidad celebrando a Jesús! Las cálidas y adorables ilustraciones de animales atraerán a los prelectores y los primeros lectores e inspirarán su imaginación. El significado de Navidad a menudo se ve ensombrecido por la ola de comercialismo que lo precede. Es muy fácil para los niños perder de vista el verdadero significado de estas vacaciones cuando sus dibujos animados diarios incluyen una avalancha de comerciales de juguetes y su atención se centra en su propia lista de deseos. Este libro es un recordatorio reconfortante para los niños de que la Navidad no se trata de Papá Noel o de pedir regalos; se trata de celebrar el cumpleaños de Jesús. Este atractivo libro ilustrado a todo color cuenta una historia de animales del bosque que se preparan para un evento grande y emocionante. Cada página proporciona otra pista a los lectores jóvenes de que en algún lugar del bosque, un animal especial conoce el verdadero significado de la Navidad y quiere compartirlo con el resto de sus amigos del bosque. En la página final de la historia, los niños comprenderán mejor que la mayor alegría de la temporada navideña es celebrar la vida de Jesús con su familia y comunidad.
La fiesta de la liberación: ¡Asume tu poder! Cambia tu destino
by Hania CzajkowskiUna historia surrealista, mágica, adictiva. Si, como Niksha, escuchas los consejos de las 10 Aliadas, aprenderás a moverte con maestría en el Nuevo Mundo. Resolverás tus conflictos, sabrás cómo decidir, cómo reír y cómo disfrutar tu libertad. Niksha, una joven aventurera nómade, atraviesa un momento clave de su existencia preguntándose, nostálgica, cómo rearmar su vida. Una noche, tomando champagne, recostada en el sillón junto a su gato Félix, mirando la luz de la luna entrar por la ventana, se transporta a un misterioso castillo donde transcurre una fiesta psicodélica. Estrafalarios personajes como La Bufona de las cortes medievales le dan la bienvenida y le anuncian el nacimiento de un Nuevo Mundo en el que urge aprender el arte de desdramatizar. La Mística la inicia en los misterios de bajar pedacitos de cielo a la tierra. La Aventurera le revela el significado de "la marca" en su frente, una brillante estrella que identifica a quienes anhelan explorar nuevos caminos. Junto a una brava Heroína, corta con una espada de fuego los tentáculos de la mente obsesiva del Viejo Mundo, encarnado por la mítica Hydra de nueve cabezas. Una misteriosa Estratega le enseña a jugar al ajedrez y a dar jaque mate a los obstáculos. Y la majestuosa Reina blanca la impulsa a alcanzar su poder para plantarse en el tablero de la vida. De a poco, Niksha se deshace de todos sus miedos y descubre poderosas fuerzas ancestrales corriendo por su sangre. En medio del jolgorio de La Fiesta de la Liberación, se va transfigurando. ¡Se da cuenta de que puede elegir, y esto la vuelve más y más audaz! Se libera de la sutil melancolía que trae la caída del mundo viejo, abre su corazón y reordena sus sentimientos. Y, a través de su liberación, libera al mundo. ¿Cómo accedes a esta Fiesta? A través de las diez cartas que están en las solapas y consultando la Pequeña Guía para Jugar bien el Juego de la Vida + la Guía para tocar el Cielo, ambas incluidas al final de esta novela mágica.
Las Fiestas del Señor: y su significado profético
by Linda Henderson"Las Fiestas del Señor y su significado profético" te ayudará a entender lo que el pueblo judío celebra en las ocho fiestas más importantes incluidas en el calendario hebreo. Te muestra cómo estos eventos se relacionan directamente con las profecías prefiguradas tanto en el Antiguo como en el Nuevo Testamento. Es más que una mera coincidencia que estas profecías se cumplan en orden cronológico, coincidiendo con las fiestas que predicen su ocurrencia. Este manual de 190 páginas con letra grande será una buena manera de aprender más sobre el pueblo elegido de Dios. Iluminará el camino hacia una fe personal en Yeshua, dando un sólido cuerpo de pruebas para mostrarle que es el verdadero Mesías. Si ya has llegado a esta conclusión, el libro te introducirá en las raíces judías de nuestra fe, y te preparará para compartir más eficazmente esta fe con tus amigos judíos.
Fifteen Faces of God: A Quest to Know God Through the Parables of Jesus
by Michael ManningThe parable, a short story told to impart a lesson to the listener, was the chief teaching tool of Jesus Christ. In this delightful and inspirational book, author Michael Manning, the TV host ofThe Word in the World,takes readers on a journey through fifteen of the most beloved parables from the New Testament, in order to enlighten the many different ways seekers can understand God's presence in their daily lives. From the parable of the talents to the stories of the wedding feast and the Good Sa...
Fifteen Minutes: A Novel
by Karen KingsburyFrom the #1 New York Times bestselling author Karen Kingsbury, known for her “signature mix of melodrama, formula, and genuine emotional punch” (Publishers Weekly), a dramatic story about character, compromise, and the cost of having it all.Zack Dylan has a dream. He wants to sing on the biggest stages, for the biggest crowds, and he’ll do whatever it takes to make it come true. But Zack also made a promise to his college sweetheart when he left Kentucky to compete on the popular TV show Fifteen Minutes: If he made it, nothing would change him or his faith in God. Overnight, Zack becomes the nation’s most popular contestant, a country singer comparable to a young Tim McGraw. As his star rises, Zack is often asked to compromise and quiet his beliefs. Just as he’s on the verge of winning it all, his choices lead him to the brink of personal disaster. Meanwhile, a former Fifteen Minutes winner is searching for meaning amidst her own private losses. Can she warn Zack about the real price of fame? Or will Zack lose everything he loves for his fifteen minutes of glory? From America’s favorite inspirational novelist, Fifteen Minutes explores the cost of fame and celebrity set against the backdrop of America’s favorite singing competition.
Fifth Avenue Famous: The Extraordinary Story of Music at St. Patrick's Cathedral
by Salvatore Basile Timothy Michael Dolan Archbishop of New YorkVictorian-era divas who were better paid than some corporate chairmen, the boy soprano who grew up to give Bing Crosby a run for his money, music directors who were literally killed by the job—the plot of a Broadway show or a dime-store novel? No, the unique and colorful history of St. Patrick’s Cathedral. Since its inception more than 125 years ago, the Cathedral Choir has been considered the gold standard of liturgical music—an example of artistic excellence that has garnered worldwide renown. Yet behind this stately facade lies an intriguing mix of New York history, star secrets, and high-level office politics that has made the choir not only a source of prime musical entertainment but also fodder for tabloids and periodicals across the nation. In this unique and engaging book, readers are treated to a treasure trove of vibrant characters, from opera stars from around the world to the thousands of volunteer singers who brought their own hopes and dreams—and widely varying musical abilities—to the fabled choir. As the city’s preeminent Catholic institution, St. Patrick’s Cathedral has served one of the most dynamic and diverse communities in the world for well over a century. It has been intimately entwined with the history of New York: a major center of culture in the nation’s cultural capital. The Cathedral Choir provides an extraordinary and largely overlooked insight into this history, and in Salvatore Basile’s pitch-perfect exploration it becomes a microcosm for the larger trends, upheavals, and events that have made up the history of the city, the nation, and even the world. Basile also illuminates the choir’s important role in New Yorkers’ responses to some of the most momentous events of the past one hundred years, from world wars to world’s fairs, from the sinking of the Titanic to 9/11, as well as its central role in the rituals and celebrations that have made life in the city more joyful—and bearable—for millions of people over the decades. While the phrase “church choir” usually evokes the image of a dowdy group of amateurs, the phrase “Choir of St. Patrick’s Cathedral” has always meant something quite different. Salvatore Basile’s splendid history shows just how different, and just how spectacular, the music of St. Patrick’s is.
The Fifth Avenue Story Society
by Rachel HauckAn invitation to join The Fifth Avenue Story Society gives five New York strangers a chance to rewrite their own stories.Executive assistant Lexa is eager for a much-deserved promotion, but her boss is determined to keep her underemployed.Literature professor Jett is dealing with a broken heart, as well as a nagging suspicion his literary idol, Gordon Phipps Roth, might be a fraud.Uber driver Chuck just wants a second chance with his kids.Aging widower Ed is eager to write the true story of his incredible marriage.Coral, queen of the cosmetics industry, has broken her engagement and is on the verge of losing her great grandmother&’s multimillion-dollar empire.When all five New Yorkers receive an anonymous, mysterious invitation to the Fifth Avenue Story Society, they suspect they&’re victims of a practical joke. No one knows who sent the invitations or why. No one has heard of the literary society. And no one is prepared to reveal their deepest secrets to a roomful of strangers.Yet curiosity and loneliness bring them back week after week to the old library. And it&’s there they discover the stories of their hearts, and the kind of friendship and love that heals their souls.
The Fifth Dimension: An Exploration of the Spiritual Realm
by John HickDrawing on mystical and religious traditions ancient and modern, and spiritual thinkers as diverse as Julian of Norwich and Mahatma Gandhi, The Fifth Dimension is John Hick's eloquent argument for a more complete reality, in which a fifth, spiritual dimension plays a central role. Taking into account recent global crises - including the 9/11 attacks and war in Iraq - Hick addresses a variety of timeless issues, from the validity of religious experience to the science versus religion debate.
The Fifth Man (Oxygen Series, #2)
by John B. Olson Randall IngermansonThe sequel to the award-winning Oxygen. Courage and self-sacrifice have finally brought the crew of Ares 10 safely to the planet Mars. They enthusiastically begin the mission they were sent to perform. Though working under dangerous conditions and experiencing strained relationships, the astronauts are encouraged by fascinating discoveries that seem to point to the presence of microscopic life on the planet. But their work is disrupted when frightening sabotage, like that of the trip to Mars, begins again. Is the "fifth man" alien or human? In this exciting sequel to Christie-award winning "Oxygen," high-stakes action, fascinating characters, and exciting romance will captivate both male and female readers.
Fifth Seal (A.D. Chronicles, Book #5)
by Bodie Thoene Brock Thoenethis is the story of Mary and Joseph and the story of Jesus birth.
The Fifth Servant: A Novel
by Kenneth J. WishniaWhoever saves a single life saves the entire world . . .In 1592, as the Catholic Church and the Protestants battle for control of the soul of Europe, Prague is a relatively safe harbor in the religious storm. Ruled by Emperor Rudolph II, the city is a refuge for Jews who live within the gated walls of its ghetto. But their lives are jeopardized when a young Christian girl is found with her throat slashed in a Jewish shop on the eve of Passover. Charged with blood libel, the shopkeeper and his family are arrested. All that stands in the way of a rabid Christian mob is a clever Talmudic scholar, newly arrived from Poland, named Benyamin Ben-Akiva. Pleading the shopkeeper's innocence to the city's sheriff, Benyamin is given three days to bring the true killer to justice. But the search will not be easy. Hampered by rabbinic law, and with no allies or connections, Benyamin has only his wits, knowledge, and faith to guide him on his quest—a trail that weaves from the city's teeming streets to the quiet of a shul, from the forbidden back rooms of a ghetto brothel to the emperor's lavish palace. The Talmud says many things in life depend on mazl, luck. Fortunately, Benyamin is blessed, for an unlikely group of heroes will risk their own lives to help him discover the truth: Anya, a Christian butcher's daughter; the renowned reformist rabbi Judah Loew; a wise herbal healer known as Kassandra the Bohemian; and even the emperor himself.Who would most profit from the girl's murder—and from having the entire ghetto sealed off? Is the killer a Christian indebted to the girl's apothecary father? Or a messianic Jew bent on the destruction of his people to precipitate the Messiah's coming? The desperate search for answers is complicated by the arrival of a new Holy Inquisitor determined to root out witchcraft and heresy, and reclaim the fractious Bohemian territory for Rome. With time running out, Benyamin must dare the impossible—and commit the unthinkable—to save the Jews of Prague . . . and his own life.Infused with history and spiritual insight, rich in atmosphere and color, The Fifth Servant vividly re-creates sixteenth-century Prague—a bustling city where superstition, ignorance, and hatred clash with curiosity, knowledge, and tolerance; a world in which innocent lives are swept away by political and religious struggles, and righteous men and women sacrifice everything in the name of justice and truth.
The Fifth Sun: Aztec Gods, Aztec World
by Burr Cartwright BrundageThe ancient Aztecs dwelt at the center of a dazzling and complex cosmos. From this position they were acutely receptive to the demands of their gods. The Fifth Sun represents a dramatic overview of the Aztec conception of the universe and the gods who populated it-Quetzalcoatl, the Plumed Serpent; Tezcatlipoca, the Smoking Mirror; and Huitzilopochtli, the Southern Hummingbird. Burr Cartwright Brundage explores the myths behind these and others in the Aztec pantheon in a way that illuminates both the human and the divine in Aztec life. The cult of human sacrifice is a pervasive theme in this study. It is a concept that permeated Aztec mythology and was the central preoccupation of the aggressive Aztec state. Another particularly interesting belief explored here is the "mask pool," whereby gods could exchange regalia and, thus, identities. This vivid and eminently readable study also covers the use of hallucinogens; cannibalism; the calendars of ancient Mexico; tlachtli, the life-and-death ball game; the flower wars; divine transfiguration; and the evolution of the war god of the Mexica. A splendid introduction to Aztec religion, The Fifth Sun also contains insights for specialists in ethnohistory, mythology, and religion.
Fifty Early Medieval Things: Materials of Culture in Late Antiquity and the Early Middle Ages
by Deborah Deliyannis Hendrik Dey Paolo SquatritiFifty Early Medieval Things introduces readers to the material culture of late antique and early medieval Europe, north Africa, and western Asia. Ranging from Iran to Ireland and from Sweden to Tunisia, Deborah Deliyannis, Hendrik Dey, and Paolo Squatriti present fifty objects—artifacts, structures, and archaeological features—created between the fourth and eleventh centuries, an ostensibly "Dark Age" whose cultural richness and complexity is often underappreciated. Each thing introduces important themes in the social, political, cultural, religious, and economic history of the postclassical era. Some of the things, like a simple ard (plow) unearthed in Germany, illustrate changing cultural and technological horizons in the immediate aftermath of Rome's collapse; others, like the Arabic coin found in a Viking burial mound, indicate the interconnectedness of cultures in this period. Objects such as the Book of Kells and the palace-city of Anjar in present-day Jordan represent significant artistic and cultural achievements; more quotidian items (a bone comb, an oil lamp, a handful of chestnuts) belong to the material culture of everyday life. In their thing-by-thing descriptions, the authors connect each object to both specific local conditions and to the broader influences that shaped the first millennium AD, and also explore their use in modern scholarly interpretations, with suggestions for further reading. Lavishly illustrated and engagingly written, Fifty Early Medieval Things demonstrates how to read objects in ways that make the distant past understandable and approachable.
Fifty Key Christian Thinkers (Routledge Key Guides)
by Peter McEnhill George NewlandsFifty Key Christian Thinkers provides both valuable information and stimulating debate on the lives and work of fifty of the most important Christian theologians. This guide provides an overview of Christian theology from the emergence of the faith 2000 years ago to the present day. Among the figures profiled in this accessible guide are:* St Paul * Barth * Aquinas * Boethius* Niebuhr * Calvin* Luther * Feuerbach* Kierkegaard * Origen