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The Invention of Jesus
by Peter CresswellThe Invention of Jesus is a pivotal, ground-breaking work, arguably one of the most important ever written in the field of New Testament textual analysis, and one that should direct scholastic endeavour for years to come. The author has developed some new techniques and taken an indepth look at the earliest surviving manuscripts of the gospels describing the life and death of Jesus as well as letters, attributed to Paul and others, to the outposts of the early Church. There are papyrus fragments, some from as early as the second century, and then later manuscripts written on parchment, with fewer gaps in the text. The vast majority are written in Greek - the language of Empire and of the early Church. Cresswell carefully analyses the surviving texts to show how doctrines, such as the divinity of Jesus and the Resurrection, have been progressively introduced into the narrative. By establishing what has been added, he defines what part of the character of Jesus the Christian Church has, over time, invented. He provides a solution to a highly unusual and hitherto baffling pattern of scribal cooperation in the New Testament of Codex Sinaiticus. Clues within the manuscript show that sheets by a second scribe could not have been generated to correct mistakes, as others have since contended. These must have been written in a division of labour, whose purpose was to introduce doctrinally motivated changes to the text. In resolving these puzzles, the author reveals something of the struggle that took place in the scriptorium, as the early Church manipulated the text to impose its message.
The Invention of Judaism: Torah and Jewish Identity from Deuteronomy to Paul
by John J. CollinsMost people understand Judaism to be the Torah and the Torah to be Judaism. However, in The Invention of Judaism, John J. Collins persuasively argues this was not always the case. The Torah became the touchstone for most of Judaism’s adherents only in the hands of the rabbis of late antiquity. For 600 years prior, from the Babylonian Exile to the Roman destruction of the Second Temple, there was enormous variation in the way the Torah was understood. Collins provides a comprehensive account of the role of the Torah in ancient Judaism, exploring key moments in its history, beginning with the formation of Deuteronomy and continuing through the Maccabean revolt and the rise of Jewish sectarianism and early Christianity.
The Invention of Peter
by George E. DemacopoulosOn the first anniversary of his election to the papacy, Leo the Great stood before the assembly of bishops convening in Rome and forcefully asserted his privileged position as the heir of Peter the Apostle. This declaration marked the beginning of a powerful tradition: the Bishop of Rome would henceforth leverage the cult of St. Peter, and the popular association of St. Peter with the city itself, to his advantage. In The Invention of Peter, George E. Demacopoulos examines this Petrine discourse, revealing how the link between the historic Peter and the Roman Church strengthened, shifted, and evolved during the papacies of two of the most creative and dynamic popes of late antiquity, ultimately shaping medieval Christianity as we now know it. By emphasizing the ways in which this rhetoric of apostolic privilege was employed, extended, transformed, or resisted between the reigns of Leo the Great and Gregory the Great, Demacopoulos offers an alternate account of papal history that challenges the dominant narrative of an inevitable and unbroken rise in papal power from late antiquity through the Middle Ages. He unpacks escalating claims to ecclesiastical authority, demonstrating how this rhetoric, which almost always invokes a link to St. Peter, does not necessarily represent actual power or prestige but instead reflects moments of papal anxiety and weakness. Through its nuanced examination of an array of episcopal activity--diplomatic, pastoral, political, and administrative--The Invention of Peter offers a new perspective on the emergence of papal authority and illuminates the influence that Petrine discourse exerted on the survival and exceptional status of the Bishop of Rome.
The Invention of Religion: Faith and Covenant in the Book of Exodus
by Jan AssmannA groundbreaking account of how the Book of Exodus shaped fundamental aspects of Judaism, Christianity, and IslamThe Book of Exodus may be the most consequential story ever told. But its spectacular moments of heaven-sent plagues and parting seas overshadow its true significance, says Jan Assmann, a leading historian of ancient religion. The story of Moses guiding the enslaved children of Israel out of captivity to become God's chosen people is the foundation of an entirely new idea of religion, one that lives on today in many of the world's faiths. The Invention of Religion sheds new light on ancient scriptures to show how Exodus has shaped fundamental understandings of monotheistic practice and belief.Assmann delves into the enduring mythic power of the Exodus narrative, examining the text's compositional history and calling attention to distinctive motifs and dichotomies: enslavement and redemption; belief and doubt; proper worship and idolatry; loyalty and betrayal. Revelation is a central theme--the revelation of God's power in miracles, of God's presence in the burning bush, and of God's chosen dwelling among the Israelites in the vision of the tabernacle. Above all, it is God's covenant with Israel—the binding obligation of the Israelites to acknowledge God as their redeemer and obey His law—that is Exodus's most encompassing and transformative idea, one that challenged basic assumptions about humankind's relationship to the divine in the ancient world.The Invention of Religion is a powerful account of how ideas of faith, revelation, and covenant, first introduced in Exodus, shaped Judaism and were later adopted by Christianity and Islam to form the bedrock of the world's Abrahamic religions.
The Invention of Religion in Japan (Elecronic Resource Ser.)
by Jason Ananda JosephsonThroughout its long history, Japan had no concept of what we call OC religion. OCO There was no corresponding Japanese word, nor anything close to its meaning. But when American warships appeared off the coast of Japan in 1853 and forced the Japanese government to sign treaties demanding, among other things, freedom of religion, the country had to contend with this Western idea. In this book, Jason Ananda Josephson reveals how Japanese officials invented religion in Japan and traces the sweeping intellectual, legal, and cultural changes that followed. aMore than a tale of oppression or hegemony, JosephsonOCOs account demonstrates that the process of articulating religion offered the Japanese state a valuable opportunity. In addition to carving out space for belief in Christianity and certain forms of Buddhism, Japanese officials excluded Shinto from the category. Instead, they enshrined it as a national ideology while relegating the popular practices of indigenous shamans and female mediums to the category of OC superstitionsOCOOCoand thus beyond the sphere of tolerance. Josephson argues that the invention of religion in Japan was a politically charged, boundary-drawing exercise that not only extensively reclassified the inherited materials of Buddhism, Confucianism, and Shinto to lasting effect, but also reshaped, in subtle but significant ways, our own formulation of the concept of religion today. This ambitious and wide-ranging book contributes an important perspective to broader debates on the nature of religion, the secular, science, and superstition.
The Invention of Saintliness (Routledge Studies in Medieval Religion and Culture)
by Anneke B. Mulder-BakkerThis volume discusses, from an historical and literary angle, the ways in which sanctification and the inscription of saintliness take place. Going beyond the traditional categories of canonization, cult, liturgical veneration and hagiographical lives, the work raises fundamental issues concerning definitions of saints and saintliness in a period before the concept was crystallized in canon law. As well as discussing sources and methodology, contributions cover contextual issues, including relics and veneration, life and the afterlife, and examinations of specific sources and texts. Subjects raised include the idea of hagiography as intimate biography, perceptions of holiness in writings by and about female mystics, and bodily aspects of the Franciscan search for evangelical perfection.
The Invention of Satanism
by Asbjorn Dyrendal James R. Lewis Jesper Aa. PetersenSatanism is a complex and controversial phenomenon co-existing in many social and rhetorical contexts. Some consider it the root of all evil in the world. Shifting the focus from mythology to meaning-making, this is a book about the invention of Satanism among self-declared religious Satanists. Like all ideologists and believers, Satanists incorporate, borrow, and modify elements from other traditions, and this book explores how traditional folklore and prior strands of occultism were synthesized by Anton LaVey in his founding of the Church of Satan and the creation of the Satanic Bible. <P><P>Later chapters examine contemporary Satanist subcultures from various perspectives, also demonstrating how Satanism, despite its brief history as an organized phenomenon, continues to reinvent itself. There are now numerous Satanisms with distinctive interpretations of what being a Satanist entails, with some of these new versions deviating more from the historical "mainstream" than others. In this fascinating account of a seemingly abstruse and often-feared movement, the authors demonstrate that the invention of Satanism is an ongoing, ever-evolving process.
The Invention of the Jewish People
by Yael Lotan Shlomo SandA historical tour de force, The Invention of the Jewish People offers a groundbreaking account of Jewish and Israeli history. Exploding the myth that there was a forced Jewish exile in the first century at the hands of the Romans, Israeli historian Shlomo Sand argues that most modern Jews descend from converts, whose native lands were scattered across the Middle East and Eastern Europe. In this iconoclastic work, which spent nineteen weeks on the Israeli bestseller list and won the coveted Aujourd'hui Award in France, Sand provides the intellectual foundations for a new vision of Israel's future.
Invention of Tradition and Syncretism in Contemporary Religions
by Stefania Palmisano Nicola PannofinoThis book explores manifestations of creativity in the religious domain. Specifically, the contributions focus on the nexus of the sacred and the creative, and the mechanisms of syncretism and (re)invention of tradition by which this manifestations occur. The text is divided into two sections. In the first, empirical cases of spirituality characterized by syncretistic processes are highlighted; in the second, examples which can be traced back to forms of the (re)invention of tradition are examined. The authors document possible forms of adaptations and religious enculturation. In the second, the authors demonstrate that spiritual traditions, whether ancient or historically fictitious, are suitable for reframing in the context of critical interpretative frameworks related to cultural expectations which challenge them and call their continuity into question.
The Invention of World Religions
by Tomoko MasuzawaThe idea of "world religions" expresses a vague commitment to multiculturalism. Not merely a descriptive concept, "world religions" is actually a particular ethos, a pluralist ideology, a logic of classification, and a form of knowledge that has shaped the study of religion and infiltrated ordinary language. In this ambitious study, Tomoko Masuzawa examines the emergence of "world religions" in modern European thought. Devoting particular attention to the relation between the comparative study of language and the nascent science of religion, she demonstrates how new classifications of language and race caused Buddhism and Islam to gain special significance, as these religions came to be seen in opposing terms-Aryan on one hand and Semitic on the other. Masuzawa also explores the complex relation of "world religions" to Protestant theology, from the hierarchical ordering of religions typical of the Christian supremacists of the nineteenth century to the aspirations of early twentieth-century theologian Ernst Troeltsch, who embraced the pluralist logic of "world religions" and by so doing sought to reclaim the universalist destiny of European modernity.
The Inventions of God (Made in His Image)
by Dave ConnisThis delightfully illustrated picture book tells the story of inventor extraordinaire Eva—and the God who created her to be a lot like Him.Little Eva is a budding engineer who loves to invent machines, toys, and robots that bring her joy. But where does her curiosity, creativity, and pizzazz come from? Meet God. He loves to invent, too, and delights in His creations, especially Eva. God and Eva are A LOT alike because God made Eva to be just like Him.Eva loves her inventions, but maybe not their earlier versions. God loves Eva, every version of her, and He wants her to know just how much. Parents and children alike will relish the playful illustrations and the gentle reminder that the image of God is alive in each of us.
Inversiones con futuro
by Edwin SantiagoLa economía celestial es la más rentable a corto y largo plazo, por lo tanto, te animo a que te transformes en un «inversionista del reino». Debes saber que en el cielo hay un banco donde puedes acumular tesoros y obtener la rentabilidad más importante que jamás hayas tenido, porque las cuentas del reino están envueltas de fe. ¡Conoce las características de un inversionista del cielo y transfórmate en uno!
Investigación sobre Jesús: ¿Quién era el hombre que cambió el mundo?
by Corrado Augias Mauro PesceUna investigación para esclarecer el Jesús histórico a la luz de los nuevos hallazgos. La figura de Jesús de Nazaret ha sido, desde el mismo momento de su muerte hace dos mil años, centro de interés y fuente de inspiración de todo tipo de disciplinas que van desde la filosofía, la ciencia, la religión, la política o la historia hasta la literatura o el cine. A lo largo de los siglos han proliferado numerosas leyendas sobre Jesús y alguna que otra invención muestra de la curiosidad, del ansia de saber. Porque ¿quién era en realidad el hombre de carne y hueso que recorrió la tierra de Israel hablando con los locos, curando a los enfermos y lanzando un mensaje de esperanza hasta morir en un patíbulo infame antes de que el manto de la teología lo cubriera ocultando la figura histórica? En los últimos cincuenta años, análisis filológicos e investigaciones arqueológicas han ampliado la posibilidad de acercarse a la verdadera personalidad del hombre llamado Jesús. Muchas cuestiones hasta ahora irresolubles se acercan a una respuesta en esta Investigación sobre Jesús, donde Augias y Pesce buscan acercarse al hombre y desvelar qué es real y qué es mito, respondiendo a las preguntas que se formulan tanto cristianos como no cristianos.
Investigación sobre Jesús
by Mauro Pesce Corrado AugiasLa figura de Jesús de Nazaret ha sido, desde el mismo momento de su muerte hace dos mil años, centro de interés y fuente de inspiración de todo tipo de disciplinas que van desde la filosofía, la ciencia, la religión, la política o la historia hasta la literatura o el cine. A lo largo de los siglos han proliferado numerosas leyendas sobre Jesús y alguna que otra invención muestra de la curiosidad, del ansia de saber. Porque ¿quién era en realidad el hombre de carne y hueso que recorrió la tierra de Israel hablando con los locos, curando a los enfermos y lanzando un mensaje de esperanza hasta morir en un patíbulo infame antes de que el manto de la teología lo cubriera ocultando la figura histórica?En los últimos cincuenta años, análisis filológicos e investigaciones arqueológicas han ampliado la posibilidad de acercarse a la verdadera personalidad del hombre llamado Jesús. Muchas cuestiones hasta ahora irresolubles se acercan a una respuesta en esta Investigación sobre Jesús, donde Augias y Pesce buscan acercarse al hombre y desvelar qué es real y qué es mito, respondiendo a las preguntas que se formulan tanto cristianos como no cristianos.
Investigación sobre María
by Corrado Augias¿Quién es María? <P><P>La verdadera historia de la joven que se convirtió en mito Entre las diferentes figuras celestiales, divinas y semidivinas santificadas por las religiones mundiales María es, sin lugar a dudas, la más compleja, tierna y conmovedora. Una muchacha judía que recibió la visita del ángel, que se comprometió y se casó con un hombre que no era el padre de su hijo, virgen y madre de Dios, símbolo de la gracia y Mater dolorosa, que sufre el terrible destino de ver morir a la criatura que ha engendrado, poco citada en los evangelios y poco menos que ausente en los Hechos de los apóstoles y en las Cartas de Pablo, objeto de un culto inigualable, concebida sin pecado original y que ascendió al cielo: comprender a María significa penetrar en el corazón de la fe católica. <P><P>En Investigación sobre María, Corrado Augias dialoga con un gran estudioso de mística y de historia de las religiones, Marco Vannini, para profundizar en la historia y en el mito de la Virgen, tocando todos los aspectos que sitúan a María en el centro de la experiencia cultural y religiosa de nuestra civilización: las fuentes (de los evangelios canónicos a los apócrifos), las hipótesis sobre su biografía, la relación con la situación de las mujeres en la Palestina de hace dos mil años, con las demás mujeres de la Biblia y con la mitología de la Gran Madre, el nacimiento de los dogmas y el desarrollo del culto, los milagros y las apariciones, la presencia constante de la Virgen en la cultura y en el arte. <P><P> El resultado es un volumen sin precedentes que, en tono narrativo, responde a las preguntas cruciales de los creyentes y de los no creyentes, indaga las bases mismas de nuestra cultura y mentalidad, y compone el relato de una extraordinaria historia humana.
Investigating God's World (4th Edition)
by Gregory Rickard Julie Rickard Stephen Mcalister Matilda NordtvedtThe book investigates the things that you see every day and to know the laws that these objects of nature obey and how they all fit together in God's creation.
Investigating Prayer
by Ian OlverThis book relates the experience of researching, planning, and conducting a scientific study into intercessory prayer (prayer for others). The purpose of the study was to ascertain whether the impact of prayer could be measured in a formal study, based on the large number of anecdotal reports of efficacy. The study was a prospectively randomized double-blind trial that added prayer by an established Christian prayer group to conventional therapy for cancer. The unique design feature was that the primary endpoint was a change in a validated scale of spiritual well-being. The patients were informed that they were participating in a study about spiritual well-being and quality of life but remained blinded to the intervention. The initial observation from the baseline data was that spiritual well-being made a unique contribution to quality of life. The final outcome of the study was that there was a statistically significant difference in spiritual well-being favoring the prayer group. The background includes a fascinating review of the medical literature on the topic, which contains positive and negative studies that each attracts a vigorous debate about methodology, endpoints, and whether metaphysical phenomena can or should be studied using scientific methodology. The complementary and alternative medicine literature is also equivocal as to whether prayer, arguably the most common complementary medical therapy, should be included in the range of interventions grouped under that heading. In addition to reporting the background and results of the study, the book explores the reactions of a range of individuals to the trial, all of which help reflect on the nature of prayer.
Investigating the Resurrection of Jesus Christ: A New Transdisciplinary Approach (Routledge New Critical Thinking in Religion, Theology and Biblical Studies)
by Andrew LokeThis book provides an original and comprehensive assessment of the hypotheses concerning the origin of resurrection Christology. It fills a gap in the literature by addressing these issues using a transdisciplinary approach involving historical-critical study of the New Testament, theology, analytic philosophy, psychology and comparative religion. Using a novel analytic framework, this book demonstrates that a logically exhaustive list of hypotheses concerning the claims of Jesus’ post-mortem appearances and the outcome of Jesus’ body can be formulated. It addresses these hypotheses in detail, including sophisticated combinations of hallucination hypothesis with cognitive dissonance; memory distortion; and confirmation bias. Addressing writings from both within and outside of Christianity, it also demonstrates how a comparative religion approach might further illuminate the origins of Christianity. This is a thorough study of arguably the key event in the formation of the Christian faith. As such, it will be of keen interest to theologians, New Testament scholars, philosophers, and scholars of religious studies.
Investigating the Supernatural: From Spiritism and Occultism to Psychical Research and Metapsychics in France, 1853–1931
by Sofie Lachapelle“A convincing account of science’s flirtation with the marginal and the marvelous” from the author of Conjuring Science (Journal of the History of the Behavioral Sciences).Séances were wildly popular in France between 1850 and 1930, when members of the general public and scholars alike turned to the wondrous as a means of understanding and explaining the world. Sofie Lachapelle explores how five distinct groups attempted to use and legitimize séances: spiritists, who tried to create a new “science” concerned with the spiritual realm and the afterlife; occultists, who hoped to connect ancient revelations with contemporary science; physicians, psychiatrists, and psychologists, who developed a pathology of supernatural experiences; psychical researchers, who drew on the unexplained experiences of the public to create a new field of research; and metapsychists, who attempted to develop a new science of yet-to-be understood natural forces.An enlightening and entertaining narrative that includes colorful people like “Allan Kardec”—a pseudonymous former mathematics teacher from Lyon who wrote successful works on the science of the séance and what happened after death—Investigating the Supernatural reveals the rich and vibrant diversity of unorthodox beliefs and practices that existed at the borders of the French scientific culture in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries.“What is science? . . . In her engaging book, Sophie Lachapelle probes for an answer by looking at the liminal realm between science and superstition and the attempt to render the supernatural explicable in naturalistic terms.” —Isis“A welcome addition to the growing literature on spiritism, occultism and physical research in modern France.” —French History
Investing In Islamic Funds
by Noripah KamsoA guide to Islamic investment opportunities from the CEO of the world's leading Islamic finance bankOffering an insider's perspective on a rapidly growing sector of the financial industry, Investing in Islamic Funds details the basic principles of Islamic investing for Muslims and non-Muslims alike. It explains how Islamic equity and fixed-income products differ from traditional funds, and how they deliver excellent results while still conforming to Sharia principles. Using hard data from the last six years, the book also reveals how Islamic funds have offered predictable, reliable returns in volatile markets and turbulent financial times. For institutional investors as well as sophisticated individual investors, the book serves as an excellent introduction to the subject and surveys the full range of products available. Additionally, the book will arm financial services professionals with the knowledge they need to explain this new investment opportunity to clients.One of the few books available that offers comprehensive data on the performance of Islamic funds in addition to the underlying theory that governs themWritten by the CEO of CIMB-Principal Islamic Asset Management, the world's leading Islamic finance bankFeatures charts, case studies, comparative analysis, and a tabular data formatDebunks the misconceptions traditional investors may have about the profitability Islamic fundsFor professional and institutional investors, as well as private investors looking for new opportunities, Investing in Islamic Funds offers a much-needed primer on this fast-growing market.
Invincible Wisdom: Quotations from the Scriptures, Saints, and Sages of All Times and Places
by William StoddartThe guiding idea of this book has been to gather together sayings, maxims, and aphorisms, which, in some respect or other are of profound and permanent spiritual value. Moreover, the net has been cast wide, with the result that the selected items are extremely variegated; for, in the present age, protective dividing walls have crumbled; the whole world has become our parish, and our gaze must now be universal. The quotations here presented were collected during the course of a lifetime. Each quotation was hand-picked for a particular purpose, and anything deemed superfluous was excluded. Wise and useful quotations are of course endless, but a selection is what it is and, far from being arbitrary, this anthology, taken as a whole, amounts to a succinct, but powerful, affirmation of "the True, the Good, and the Beautiful". This is its purpose-and may it bear fruit.
Invisible Acts of Power: The Divine Energy of a Giving Heart
by Caroline MyssFor more than two decades, internationally renowned pioneer in energy medicine Caroline Myss has been studying how people use their personal power. Through her special brand of spiritual insight and intuition, her popular workshops, and her bestselling books, Myss has helped hundreds of thousands of people meet the lifelong challenge of managing their spiritual energy and improving their lives. Now, in this inspiring new book, Myss expands her message about power in an entirely new spiritual direction. With characteristic originality, she explains how we become channels for divine grace and a conduit for miracles through kind, compassionate, generous actions, or, as she calls them, invisible acts of power. When we act compassionately, without a private agenda or expectation of credit or reward, God works invisibly, anonymously through us. And as we move from visible acts, such as giving a friend a helping hand, to invisible acts, such as prayer and healing, we undergo a profound journey of personal empowerment. The myriad simple but profound ways that people connect to create small miracles, gain a greater sense of spirituality, and transform their own -- and others' -- lives in an instant will inspire you to your own invisible acts of power...and attract them to you.
The Invisible Alliance: Psyche and Spirit in Feminist Therapy
by Ellyn KaschakExplore the relationship between psychology and spirituality from a feminist perspective!From the editor: “There are forces in the universe about which we know nothing and can learn nothing through empiricism and material means. Such forces can be invoked in the process of therapy to assist in healing, to deepen experience, and to free us from the confining limits of the human mind. This is a book about the spiritual within each of us and about spirituality as it extends beyond any of us to embrace all of us. It deals with inspiration and passion, sorrow and loss, meaning and depth. It focuses upon the relationship between matters of spirit and of psychology, leading to new treatments within the parameters of psychotherapy that extend its vision far beyond the treatment of affliction.”The Invisible Alliance: Psyche and Spirit in Feminist Therapy provides you with a comprehensive review of multiculturalism and its relationship with feminism and spirituality and explores: ways to incorporate Jewish principles and beliefs into feminist therapy the application of religious sources of passion and perspective to parenting and working with children ways to combine Christian and Wiccan philosophies in therapy a provocative approach for integrating Christian biblical teachings into feminist therapy for survivors of sexual abuse ways that Buddhist ideas can enrich the understanding of the self and identity a case study of ancient healing traditions used by Latinas criteria for therapists to use in deciding whether to work with clients dealing with spiritual/religious issues or refer them to someone more appropriate a way to use the power of ritual to heal and give more meaning to important life transitions
The Invisible Arab: The Promise and Peril of the Arab Revolutions
by Marwan BisharaThe Invisible Arabtraces the roots of the revolutions in the Arab world. Marwan Bishara, chief policy analyst of Al Jazeera English and the anchor of the program "Empire”, combines on-the-ground reporting, extensive research and scholarship, and political commentary in this book on the complex influences that made the revolutions possible. Bishara argues that the inclusive, pluralistic nationalism that motivated the revolutions are indispensable to their long-term success. The Invisible Arabis a voyage in time from the Arab world’s 'liberation generation’ through the 'defeated' and 'lost generations', arriving at today’s 'miracle generation'. Bishara unpacks how this new generation, long seen as a demographic bomb, has proved to be the agent of progress, unity and freedom. It has in turn used social networks to mobilize for social justice. Bishara discusses how Israel, oil, terrorism and radical Islam have affected the interior identity of the region as well as Western projections upon it. Protection of Israel, Western imperial ambition, a thirst for oil, and fear of radicalism have caused many Western regimes and media to characterize Arab countries and people as unreceptive to democracy or progress. These ideas are as one-dimensional as they are foolhardy. Bishara argues that the Arab revolutions present a great window of opportunity for reinventing and improving Arab ties with the rest of the world- notably the West-on the basis of mutual respect and mutual interest. The revolutions will be judged by how they realize freedom and justice, and how they can pave the way for reconciling and accommodating nationalism and Islam with democracy. Bishara argues that these pillars-liberty and justice reconciled with religion and nationalism, form the bedrock that will allow stability and progress to flourish in the Arab world and beyond.
The Invisible Bestseller: Searching for the Bible in America
by Kenneth A. BriggsA personal and journalistic inquiry into the Bible's disappearance from American life In The Invisible Bestseller veteran religion writer Kenneth Briggs asks how the Bible remains the best-selling book of all time, while fewer Americans than ever can correctly articulate what it says, much less how it might offer guidance for their lives. How can a book — one that's found in courthouses, libraries, and millions of households across the land — be everywhere and nowhere at the same time? In his quest to make sense of the Bible's relative dis-appearance from public life, Briggs leads readers on a rollicking exploration that includes visits to Family Christian Stores, the Society of Biblical Literature, and the kitchen tables of everyday families. He offers insight on the Bible's current position in American public life and suggests where it may be headed next.