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The Great Spring: Writing, Zen, and This Zigzag Life
by Natalie GoldbergFrom beloved writing teacher and author of the best-selling Writing Down the Bones: a treasury of personal stories reflecting a life filled with journeys—inner and outer—zigzagging around the world and home again.Here, Natalie Goldberg, "a writer both energized and enlightened" (Julia Cameron), shares those vivid moments that have wakened her to new ways of being. We follow alongside her mapless meanderings in the New Mexican desert and her pilgrimages to Bob Dylan's birthplace and to Larry McMurtry's dusty Texas ghost town of rare books. We feel her deep hunger while she sits zazen in a monastery in Japan, and her profound loss when she hears of the passing of a dear friend while teaching in the French countryside.Through it all, she remains grounded in a life informed by two constants: the practices of writing and of Zen. With humor and insight, Natalie encircles around the essential questions these paths compel her toward: Where does this life lead? Who are we?This is a book to be relished one awakening at a time. Each story is a reminder that no matter how hard the situation or desolate you may feel, spring will come again, breaking through a cold winter, bringing early yellow forsythia flowers. And the Great Spring of enlightenment—that sudden rush of acceptance, pain cracking open, obstructions shattering—will also burst forth.
Great Stories
by Mohamed Bouzitoune Luis HuizziSouth of Calcutta, in one of the dim curves of the Hugli River, before inserting its dense wet arms into the clay sand, several children played with innocent joy as they dipped their tiny bodies in one of the nearby public fountains. The old city was cut off by the warm gray air that cut out the profiles of its distant buildings. The afternoon progressed, heavy as if wanting to glimpse his presence in an unappealable appointment with the night, still distant waiting for her in his warm and dark arms. A little farther on, on one of the almost invisible edges of the Garden Reach, was a scattered rustic farmhouse; its alleyways of humid earth, let escape a strange smell, that at times seemed to flee from the earth and to meet with the dirty puddles, that abounded for those days of spring. Women, dressed in rustic, light-colored saris, emerged for moments in the courtyards, barely divided by a few boards and cartons. Going up the most imperceptible alley, and after passing by the edge of the hill, you could see a ramshackle and chaotic hut. It was difficult to perceive the place of the entrance and, how much ...
Great Talk Outlines for Youth Ministry: 40 Field-Tested Guides from Experienced Speakers
by Mark OestreicherAn essential speaking tool for youth workers These 40 outlines for youth talks--written by veteran youth leaders--are just the beginning. Youth pastors, volunteer youth leaders, camp directors and counselors, and retreat leaders will also find suggestions for bringing talks to life--with illustrations, object lessons, video clips, music, and more. Each outline is followed by dozens of questions for use in small groups--to ensure that your words are heard, processed, and applied. Features include: * Sidebars for every main point which contain key illustrations, object lessons, and video or music clip suggestions * Dozens of small group discussion questions for middle and high schoolers * Fully indexed by contributor, topic, and Scripture * All of the outlines are compiled onto a companion CD-ROM in Microsoft Word® format
Great Talk Outlines for Youth Ministry 2: 40 More Field-Tested Guides from Experienced Speakers
by Mark OestreicherThese forty field-tested guides from veteran speakers are essential tools and supplements for any youth worker. Each outline includes sidebars with key illustrations, object lessons, video or music clip suggestions, and/or speaker tips. To facilitate application of the message, each outline is followed by dozens of questions for use in small groups. All the outlines are compiled on a companion CD-ROM and are fully indexed.
The Great Theft: Wrestling Islam from the Extremists
by Khaled Abou El FadlDespite President George W. Bush's assurances that Islam is a peaceful religion and that all good Muslims hunger for democracy, confusion persists and far too many Westerners remain convinced that Muslims and terrorists are synonymous. In the aftermath of the attacks of 9/11, the subsequent wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, and the recent bombings in London, an unprecedented amount of attention has been directed toward Islam and the Muslim world. Yet, even with this increased scrutiny, most of the public discourse regarding Islam revolves around the actions of extremist factions such as the Wahhabis and al-Qa'ida. But what of the Islam we don't hear about?As the second-largest and fastest-growing religion in the world, Islam is deemed by more than a billion Muslims to be a source of serenity and spiritual peace, and a touchstone for moral and ethical guidance. While extremists have an impact upon the religion that is wildly disproportionate to their numbers, moderates constitute the majority of Muslims worldwide. It is this rift between the quiet voice of the moderates and the deafening statements of the extremists that threatens the future of the faith.In The Great Theft, Khaled Abou El Fadl, one of the world's preeminent Islamic scholars, argues that Islam is currently passing through a transformative period no less dramatic than the movements that swept through Europe during the Reformation. At this critical juncture there are two completely opposed worldviews within Islam competing to define this great world religion. The stakes have never been higher, and the future of the Muslim world hangs in the balance.Drawing on the rich tradition of Islamic history and law, The Great Theft is an impassioned defense of Islam against the encroaching power of the extremists. As an accomplished Islamic jurist, Abou El Fadl roots his arguments in long-standing historical legal debates and delineates point by point the beliefs and practices of moderate Muslims, distinguishing these tenets from the corrupting influences of the extremists. From the role of women in Islam to the nature of jihad, from democracy and human rights to terrorism and warfare, Abou El Fadl builds a vital vision for a moderate Islam. At long last, the great majority of Muslims who oppose extremism have a desperately needed voice to help reclaim Islam's great moral tradition.
The Great Theft: Wrestling Islam from the Extremists
by Khaled Abou El FadlAn Islamic jurist and American lawyer offers a passionate defense of Islam against the encroaching tide of fundamentalists corrupting the true faith. Seduced by the lure of fundamentalism himself as a teenager in Egypt, he rejected that path once he began studying Islamic law. A longtime moderate Muslims everywhere as one of the only learned voices defending the faith, he has received death threats from extremists for that very same reason. As quick to criticize the failure of Islamic leadership in the U.S. as abroad, Abou El Fadl remains a brave voice against the pressures and threats of Wahhabi extremism. The Great Theft will present the beliefs and practices of moderate Muslims, and identify the points of difference and disagreement with the fundamentalist-puritan practice of Islam. This book offers a vision for Moderate Islam- past, present, and future. Abou El Fadl is dedicated to providing the tools necessary to help readers reclaim an understanding of Islam that is grounded in the tradition's history and law.
The Great Transformation: The Beginning of Our Religious Traditions
by Karen ArmstrongFrom one of the world's leading writers on religion and the highly acclaimed author of the bestselling A History of God,The Battle for God and The Spiral Staircase, comes a major new work: a chronicle of one of the most important intellectual revolutions in world history and its relevance to our own time. In one astonishing, short period - the ninth century BCE - the peoples of four distinct regions of the civilized world created the religious and philosophical traditions that have continued to nourish humanity into the present day: Confucianism and Daoism in China; Hinduism and Buddhism in India; monotheism in Israel; and philosophical rationalism in Greece. Historians call this the Axial Age because of its central importance to humanity's spiritual development. Now, Karen Armstrong traces the rise and development of this transformative moment in history, examining the brilliant contributions to these traditions made by such figures as the Buddha, Socrates, Confucius and Ezekiel. Armstrong makes clear that despite some differences of emphasis, there was remarkable consensus among these religions and philosophies: each insisted on the primacy of compassion over hatred and violence. She illuminates what this "family" resemblance reveals about the religious impulse and quest of humankind. And she goes beyond spiritual archaeology, delving into the ways in which these Axial Age beliefs can present an instructive and thought-provoking challenge to the ways we think about and practice religion today. A revelation of humankind's early shared imperatives, yearnings and inspired solutions - as salutary as it is fascinating. Excerpt from The Great Transformation: In our global world, we can no longer afford a parochial or exclusive vision. We must learn to live and behave as though people in remote parts of the globe were as important as ourselves. The sages of the Axial Age did not create their compassionate ethic in idyllic circumstances. Each tradition developed in societies like our own that were torn apart by violence and warfare as never before; indeed, the first catalyst of religious change was usually a visceral rejection of the aggression that the sages witnessed all around them. ... All the great traditions that were created at this time are in agreement about the supreme importance of charity and benevolence, and this tells us something important about our humanity.
The Great Treatise on the Stages of the Path to Enlightenment
by Tsong-Kha-PaThe first volume of the fifteenth-century spiritual classic that condenses the enormous breadth of Buddhist teachings into one easy-to-follow meditation manual. The Great Treatise on the Stages of the Path to Enlightenment (Tib. Lam rim chen mo) is one of the brightest jewels in the world's treasury of sacred literature. The author, Tsong-kha-pa, completed it in 1402, and it soon became one of the most renowned works of spiritual practice and philosophy in the world of Tibetan Buddhism. Because it condenses all the exoteric sūtra scriptures into a meditation manual that is easy to understand, scholars and practitioners rely on its authoritative presentation as a gateway that leads to a full understanding of the Buddha's teachings. Tsong-kha-pa took great pains to base his insights on classical Indian Buddhist literature, illustrating his points with classical citations as well as with sayings of the masters of the earlier Kadampa tradition. In this way the text demonstrates clearly how Tibetan Buddhism carefully preserved and developed the Indian Buddhist traditions. This first of three volumes covers all the practices that are prerequisite for developing the spirit of enlightenment (bodhicitta).
Great Turning Point
by Dr Terry MortensonMany people in the Church today have the idea that "young-earth" creationism is a fairly recent invention, popularized by fundamentalist Christians in the mid-20th century. Is this view correct? In fact, scholar Terry Mortenson has done fascinating original research on this subject in England, and documents that several leading, pre-Darwin scholars and scientists, known as "scriptural geologists" did not believe in long ages for the earth. Mortenson sheds light on the following: Before Darwin, what did the Church believe about the age of the earth? Why did it believe this way? What was the controversy that rocked the Church in 19th-century England? Who were the "scriptural geologists"? What influences did the Church contend with even before Darwin's book? What is the stance of the Church today? This book is a thoroughly researched work of reference for every library - certainly every creationist library. Terry Mortenson spent much time and work on this project in both the United States and Great Britain. The history of the Church and evolution is fascinating, and it is interesting to see not only the tremendous influence that evolution has had on the Church, but on society as well.
The Great TV Turn-Off (The Cul-De-Sac Kids #18)
by Beverly LewisIt's "TV Turn-Off Week" across America, and Eric Hagel proposes that the kids on Blossom Hill Lane--adults, too!--don't watch a speck of TV for seven days. But midway through the week, Eric catches Mr. Tressler sneaking a peek at his TV. What will they do now?
The Great UFO Chase (Thorne Twins Adventure Books, #17)
by Dayle Courtney John HamWhen the mysterious Mr. Kingsley comes to their home town of Ivy, Illinois, on government business, the Thorne twins are convinced that he has something to do with UFO's.
The Great Wall of China and the Salton Sea: Monuments, Missteps, and the Audacity of Ambition
by Russell RathbunWe've been building and making things ever since we stumbled out of Paradise. Some of those things are incredible continuations of God's creation, while others are nothing but ambitious catastrophes. We continue making, says Russell Rathbun, but we've lost ourselves in the process. So how do we find ourselves again—rebuild our connections to each other, the earth, maybe even God? In search of an answer, Rathbun drives cross-country to the Salton Sea and takes a trip to China's Great Wall, interspersing his traveling revelations with engaging musings on Madame Mao's Gang of Four, Grandpa Webb's family secret, the Great Flood and the Tower of Babel, and a host of other subjects that grab his attention. With cheeky wit and sharp insight, Rathbun uncovers a way of finding ourselves and the deep connections we long for in an increasingly complex world.
The Great War and the Death of God
by Charles A. O'ConnorA compelling analysis of how World War I spurred the rise of atheism and the subsequent effect on Western theology, philosophy, literature, and art. The catastrophic Great War left humanity in a world no longer trustworthy and reassuring but seemingly meaningless and indifferent. Instead of redressing humanity’s cosmic alienation, postwar Western culture abandoned its concern for cosmic meaning, lost its confidence in human reason, and enabled the scientific worldview of neo-Darwinian materialism to emerge and eventually dominate the Western mind. According to the proponents of that worldview, science is the only source of genuine truth, nature is the product of a blind evolutionary process, and reality at bottom is just physics and chemistry. Thus, God is dead and continued belief in a transcendently purposeful universe is intellectually indefensible and either disingenuous or delusional. By turning away from the eternal questions about the nature of reality, Western culture effectively ceded unwarranted credibility and prominence to neo-Darwinian materialism, including its recently strident New Atheism.“O’Connor revisits the 20th century’s journey from Nietzsche’s declaration of the ‘death of God’ to the rise of materialism as the dominant worldview of western intelligentsia. We live in a world that has largely expelled both mind and meaning from the citadels of serious intellectual pursuit, and O’Connor’s book is a fascinating and scholarly expedition into the ‘how’ and ‘why’ of that troubling development.” —Carter Phipps, author of Evolutionaries“I found this topic to be top-rate. The book is well researched and conceived, nicely narrated and analyzed, and an original body of inquiry into a challenging, fascinating intellectual tradition.” —Ronald M. Johnson, Professor Emeritus of American History, Georgetown University
Great War, Religious Dimensions (Elements in Religion and Violence)
by Bobby WintermuteThe First World War was a transformative event, affecting international culture, economics, and geopolitics. Though often presented as the moment heralding a new secular era of modernity, in actuality the war experience was grounded in religious faith and ritual for many participants. This Element examines how religion was employed by the state to solicit support and civic participation, while also being subordinated to the strategic and operational demands of the combatant armies. Even as religion was employed to express dissent, it was also used as a coercive tool to ensure compliance with the wartime demands of the state on civilians.
The Great Western Schism, 1378–1417
by Joëlle Rollo-KosterThe Great Schism divided Western Christianity between 1378 and 1417. Two popes and their courts occupied the see of St. Peter, one in Rome, and one in Avignon. Traditionally, this event has received attention from scholars of institutional history. In this book, by contrast, Joëlle Rollo-Koster investigates the event through the prism of social drama. Marshalling liturgical, cultural, artistic, literary and archival evidence, she explores the four phases of the Schism: the breach after the 1378 election, the subsequent division of the Church, redressive actions, and reintegration of the papacy in a single pope. Investigating how popes legitimized their respective positions and the reception of these efforts, Rollo-Koster shows how the Schism influenced political thought, how unity was achieved, and how the two capitals, Rome and Avignon, responded to events. Rollo-Koster's approach humanizes the Schism, enabling us to understand the event as it was experienced by contemporaries.
The Great White Way: Race and the Broadway Musical
by Warren HoffmanBroadway musicals are one of America’s most beloved art forms and play to millions of people each year. But what do these shows, which are often thought to be just frothy entertainment, really have to say about our country and who we are as a nation? Now in a new second edition, The Great White Way is the first book to reveal the racial politics, content, and subtexts that have haunted musicals for almost one hundred years from Show Boat (1927) to Hamilton (2015). This revised edition includes a new introduction and conclusion, updated chapters, as well as a brand-new chapter that looks at the blockbuster musicals The Book of Mormon and Hamilton. Musicals mirror their time periods and reflect the political and social issues of their day. Warren Hoffman investigates the thematic content of the Broadway musical and considers how musicals work on a structural level, allowing them to simultaneously present and hide their racial agendas in plain view of their audiences. While the musical is informed by the cultural contributions of African Americans and Jewish immigrants, Hoffman argues that ultimately the history of the American musical is the history of white identity in the United States. Presented chronologically, The Great White Way shows how perceptions of race altered over time and how musicals dealt with those changes. Hoffman focuses first on shows leading up to and comprising the Golden Age of Broadway (1927–1960s), then turns his attention to the revivals and nostalgic vehicles that defined the final quarter of the twentieth century. He offers entirely new and surprising takes on shows from the American musical canon—Show Boat (1927), Oklahoma! (1943), Annie Get Your Gun (1946), The Music Man (1957), West Side Story (1957), A Chorus Line (1975), and 42nd Street (1980), among others. In addition to a new chapter on Hamilton and The Book of Mormon, this revised edition brings The Great White Way fully into the twenty-first century with an examination of jukebox musicals and the role of off-Broadway and regional theaters in the development of the American musical. New archival research on the creators who produced and wrote these shows, including Leonard Bernstein, Jerome Robbins, Stephen Sondheim, and Edward Kleban, will have theater fans and scholars rethinking forever how they view this popular American entertainment.
The Great Within: The Transformative Power and Psychology of the Spiritual Path
by Han F. de WitA book for anyone who wants to understand the psychological nature of contemplative practice as a transformative process.Renowned psychologist Han de Wit explores the psychology found in age-old contemplative traditions and takes us deep into the mind of the spiritual practitioner. Using Buddhism as a framework, and drawing insights from several world religions, he demonstrates how contemplative practices can open us up to our own wisdom and compassion. The result is a vivid illumination of the process of spiritual transformation and an important contribution to contemporary psychology and psychotherapy.
Great Words
by Jack L. ArnoldIt took so little a sin to plunge the world into all the sin and misery we live in every day, but it took a great deal for God to be able to restore His relationship with us. This study, written by the late PCA pastor Jack L. Arnold, who died while preaching, will explain many of the words that help us to understand all God has done for us in Christ. Study about Predestination, Salvation, Gospel, Grace, Mercy, Atonement, Substitution, Redemption, Forgiveness, Reconciliation, Propitiation, and Death. This is not just a study about words, it is intended to help you develop your relationship with God as you comprehend what He did for us in providing us with our salvation.The study is designed for individuals or groups.A Leader's Guide is also available
Greater: Dream bigger. Start smaller. Ignite God's Vision for Your Life
by Steven FurtickAre you ready to open your imagination to the possibility that God has a vision for your life that is greater?We all have honest moments when we're gripped by a desire to feel that what we're doing matters more. That who we are matters more. And according to one of the most shocking verses in the Bible, Jesus wants the very same thing for every one of us:"Very truly I tell you, whoever believes in me will do the works I have been doing, and they will do even greater things than these, because I am going to the Father." -John 14:12That single promise--"even greater things than these"--should be enough to shatter our acceptance of spiritual mediocrity. Unfortunately, most believers have only tried and given up on vague notions of greatness...then settled into a life that's just good enough.Good enough = Baseline living that is marked by mediocrity, stuck in spiritual survival mode, and controlled by complacency.Greatness = Vague, unrealistic aspirations of doing better that don't work in real life and lead to endless frustration.But there is a third way.Greater = The life-altering understanding that God is ready to accomplish a greatness in your life that is entirely out of human reach--beyond anything you see in yourself on your best day, but exactly what God has seen in you all along. In Greater, Pastor Steven Furtick draws on the biblical story of Elisha to empower you to: * Take a God-given dream from idea to reality * Stretch your limited resources and abilities in ways you never thought possible * Replace the images of yourself that keep you feeling stuck in the past * Make a significant impact with your life starting today, rather than making endless plans for tomorrow that you never get around to If you're tired of being ordinary, it's time to dream bigger. If you're feeling overwhelmed about where to begin, it's time start smaller. It's time to ignite God's Greater vision for your life.
Greater Devotional
by Steven FurtickIn Greater, Pastor Steven Furtick challenged us to dream bigger, start smaller, and ignite God's vision for our lives. In this devotional designed for daily guidance, you'll begin your journey toward the greater life God wants for you. Over the next forty days of teaching, scripture readings, and prayer, your life will change. You'll find the confidence to believe that nothing is impossible with God, the clarity to see what He's calling you toward, and the courage to take your next step. Dream bigger. Start smaller. Ignite God's vision for your life.
Greater DVD Participant's Guide: Dream Bigger. Start Smaller. Ignite God's Vision For Your Life
by Steven FurtickTake Hold of God's Vision for Your Life. A Life that is GREATER. This companion guide to Steven Furtick's life-changing Greater DVD will help you take the next step--and the ones after that--to follow Jesus's call to do even greater things than He did (John 14:12). Drawn from the powerful book Greater--and designed to be used with the Greater DVD--this user-friendly resource shows you how to apply four "greater"-releasing principles from the prophet Elisha's life: · Burn the Plows: Make a decisive break with your old life.· Digging Ditches: Start small and make practical preparations.· Upon Further Review: Live with the knowledge that faith is never wasted.· Strike the Water: Step out to live the greater life God promises. Each chapter includes a study plan that corresponds with the DVD, discussion questions, space for individual reflection, a Bible study, and suggestions for group leaders. Created to ignite your passion and move you forward, the Greater DVD Participant's Guide will inspire you to reach for the greater life--and show you how to get there.
Greater Expectations: Succeed (and Stay Sane) in an On-Demand, All-Access, Always-On Age
by Barna Group Claire Diaz-OrtizRemember when all you needed was a cool business card for cocktail parties? Now social status is determined in a hundred ways that all come with their own pressures-how many Twitter followers do you have? How many facebook page likes? How much traffic does your site get? Are you speaking? Traveling? How full is your inbox? While pressure has always been there, in many ways that pressure is more public than ever. The world is both bigger and smaller today. With access to so much media and so quickly, we know everything that's going on in the world. We are bombarded with possibilities and opportunities. It seems like we have limitless choices. It's easy to feel like your life is small, that you aren't doing enough, that other lives, careers, and even cities are more exciting than yours. The challenge today is, with limitless public pressure on how your life measures up against everyone else's, how do you find contentment in this context? Join Claire Diaz-Ortiz, an author, speaker, and Twitter employee, in this Barna Frame as she explores this timely issue.
Greater Glory
by Stephen CaseyThe Greater Glory is a candid memoir about a way of life that, after fifteen hundred years, is disappearing. Casey offers a vivid and incisive portrayal of the seminary, especially the training for novices - the physical and spiritual discipline, the asceticism, the anxieties that surrounded the socialization of young seminarians, the struggles that their chosen careers held for them.
Greater Harrisburg's Jewish Community (Images of America)
by Simon J. BronnerThe Jewish community of Greater Harrisburg became established after 1825, mostly by German immigrants who took up peddling and clothing trades. They were attracted inland from East Coast cities to Harrisburg, the growing upriver hub of trade that became Pennsylvania's state capital in 1812. The community grew to 600 residents by the end of the 19th century and drew attention for a level of civic engagement well beyond that of comparably sized settlements. Immigration from eastern Europe in the early 20th century contributed to a tenfold increase of the Jewish population and a changing ethnic and commercial profile. In the years that followed, the community added an impressive range of institutions and continued to have a reputation for activism. Emerging as the hub of Jewish life in central Pennsylvania, the community produced internationally renowned figures in Jewish affairs, business, and arts.
Greater Joy TWOgether: A 52-Week Marriage Devotional
by Ted CunninghamThis 52-week couples&’ devotional combines biblical wisdom and sage marriage advice with fun date ideas, thoughtful conversation starters, short prayers, and creative techniques to help you recapture joy in your marriage. Do you and your spouse feel more like roommates than a married couple? Greater Joy TWOgether will help you go deep in your faith, nurture your marriage, and make laughter a part of your everyday life. Each weekly devotion includes a short reading, a Scripture verse, conversation prompts, ideas for putting the week&’s theme into action, and prayer starters to draw you closer to God and each other. Author Ted Cunningham offers his trademark blend of humor and inspiring biblical content to help you and your spouse: Understand the importance of intentional little connections Engage more with each other throughout the week Encourage and equip other couples Realize that daily married life can be more fun than you think With a laugh-out-loud emphasis on laughing out loud, Greater Joy TWOgether will add spark to your relationship as you prioritize faith, each other, and the lighter moments of your crazy life.