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Scandalous Obligation: Rethinking Christian Responsibility
by Eric R. SeversonResponsibility is routinely overlooked, manipulated, and oversimplified. In Scandalous Obligation, Eric Severson explores the scope of Christian responsibility. This book delves into the slippery nature of obligation, the dilemma of competing calls for justice, and the perilous temptation to dismiss or avoid responsibility. Using examples from popular culture Severson casts an expansive and often daunting vision of responsibility that challenges the status quo. This book presses readers to consider the many complications that arise when Christians begin to understand the extent of their responsibility for the suffering that abounds in the world. It explores how Christians are to turn this approach to responsibility toward the clouds of injustice and pain that hang over our world today. With a brilliant use of Scripture, illustrations, and insights from classical literature and philosophy, Eric Severson makes us aware in this book that sin is not simply the breaking of rules, but is living with indifference to the needs of others when confronted by those needs. '--Tony Campolo, Professor Emeritus of Sociology, Eastern University, Author, Adventures in Missing the Point, Red Letter Christians. "In an era when so many Christians confuse their ethics with their politics, Severson summons the followers of Christ to once again take note of the 'alien at the gate.' Scandalous Obligation is a disturbing wake-up call to a church grown self-absorbed and complacent."--Karl Giberson, Vice President, BioLogos Foundation, Co-author, The Language of Faith and Science
Scandalous Stories: A Sort of Commentary on Parables
by Chad Bird Daniel Emery PriceParables are some of the most familiar stories in the Bible, yet their interpretations and applications are anything but uniform. Scandalous Stories is a "sort" of commentary on these familiar stories that are steeped in God's offensive grace and loving mercy for sinners and saints alike.
Scandalous Truth
by Monica P. CarterNikki Broussard hasn't always been saved, but she is now, and that's what counts. Happily married and raising an active young daughter, her past is tucked safely away--until a tragic turn of events threatens to unravel her idyllic life. When their daughter is diagnosed with a life-threatening condition, Nikki and William worry about how they will afford her treatment. Nikki's faith is tested as she considers returning to her old ways in order to pay for it.To add to their stress, William is thrust into the spotlight when he decides to run for mayor after a candidate--his pastor and mentor--winds up dead. Suddenly, every detail of their life is under scrutiny. As William struggles to live out the commitment he feels to his dead pastor, Nikki wonders if the details of her past will emerge and damage their relationship. When life spins out of control, the scandalous truth can be too much for anyone--even a Christian family--to bear.
Scandalous Witness: A Little Political Manifesto for Christians
by Lee C. CampChristian identity is in moral and political crisis, scandalized by the many ways in which it has been coopted and misrepresented. Addressing this painful reality, Lee Camp writes that Christianity in America has been made into a bad public joke because of &“our failure to rightly understand what Christianity is.&” From this provocative claim, Camp&’s manifesto makes the convincing case that a renewed Christian politic is more essential than ever, one that is &“neither left nor right nor religious,&” but a prophetic way of life modeled after Jesus of Nazareth. Camp&’s robust vision exposes modern parodies of faith—the American concept of &“Christian values,&” for one—and challenges Christians to rethink who they are and how they participate in the modern world. Authentic gospel truth is a scandal to the American myth, he argues, and we are called to be scandalous witnesses.
Scandalous Witness: A Little Political Manifesto for Christians
by Lee C. CampChristian identity is in moral and political crisis, scandalized by the many ways in which it has been coopted and misrepresented. Addressing this painful reality, Lee Camp writes that Christianity in America has been made into a bad public joke because of &“our failure to rightly understand what Christianity is.&” From this provocative claim, Camp&’s manifesto makes the convincing case that a renewed Christian politic is more essential than ever, one that is &“neither left nor right nor religious,&” but a prophetic way of life modeled after Jesus of Nazareth. Camp&’s robust vision exposes modern parodies of faith—the American concept of &“Christian values,&” for one—and challenges Christians to rethink who they are and how they participate in the modern world. Authentic gospel truth is a scandal to the American myth, he argues, and we are called to be scandalous witnesses.
The Scapegoat
by René GirardWidely regarded as one of the most profound critics of our time, René Girard has pursued a powerful line of inquiry across the fields of the humanities and the social sciences. His theories, which the French press has termed "l'hypothèse girardienne," have sparked interdisciplinary, even international, controversy. In The Scapegoat, Girard applies his approach to "texts of persecution," documents that recount phenomena of collective violence from the standpoint of the persecutor—documents such as the medieval poet Guillaume de Machaut's Judgement of the King of Navarre, which blames the Jews for the Black Death and describes their mass murder.Girard compares persecution texts with myths, most notably with the myth of Oedipus, and finds strikingly similar themes and structures. Could myths regularly conceal texts of persecution? Girard's answers lies in a study of the Christian Passion, which represents the same central event, the same collective violence, found in all mythology, but which is read from the point of view of the innocent victim. The Passion text provides the model interpretation that has enabled Western culture to demystify its own violence—a demystification Girard now extends to mythology.Underlying Girard's daring textual hypothesis is a powerful theory of history and culture. Christ's rejection of all guilt breaks the mythic cycle of violence and the sacred. The scapegoat becomes the Lamb of God; "the foolish genesis of blood-stained idols and the false gods of superstition, politics, and ideologies" are revealed.
Scapegoats: How Islamophobia Helps Our Enemies and Threatens Our Freedoms
by Reza Aslan Arsalan IftikharWhen a murderous psychopath goes on a killing spree, law enforcement officials and the media never make his religion the central issue?unless he happens to be a Muslim. Then it sets off another frenzied wave of commentary about the inherent evils that lurk within the Muslim faith. From Fox News talking heads, who regularly smear Muslim leaders as secret terrorists, to Bill Maher, who has made Islam a routine target, it has become widely acceptable to libel a religion with a following of over 1.5 billion people?nearly one-quarter of the world’s population. Now popular commentator Arsalan Iftikhar?better known as ?The Muslim Guy”?offers a spirited defense of his faith that is certain to win him wide acclaim?and yes, another round of overheated scolding from the usual media quarters. Iftikahr’s spirited defense of his faith is certain to hit a chord during the 2016 campaign season, as politicians and pundits vie to be the toughest on the block when it comes to escalating the hostilities in the Middle East, often demonizing Islam in the process. With his witty and levelheaded demeanor, the author will cut through all the sound and fury as a voice of sanity and reason.
Scapegoats, Shambles and Shibboleths: The Queen's English from the King James Bible
by Martin Manser`The fruit of his labours?, Martin Manser?s SCAPEGOATS, SHAMBLES AND SHIBBOLETHS is a delightful book for all who adore the English language. `In the twinkling of an eye? we learn that many of our most familiar phrases are taken straight from the King James Version of the Bible. Far from being `holier than thou?, it seems we quote from the Bible without even realising!Martin Manser explains in detail what it is to be `the apple of someone's eye? . . . `No modern physiology book would put it like this, but in the past the pupil of the eye was referred to as "the apple". After all, it was shaped like one. In addition, because it was recognised to be the most important part of the eye it was a symbol for all things precious. The most valuable part of a highly valued organ of the body. Dotted around the Bible the phrase therefore represents anything that is of great worth - whether it is the law of God in Proverbs 7 v 2, the people of Israel found and nurtured in the desert or as an individual on the receiving end of divine care.'A quirky present, SCAPEGOATS SHAMBLES AND SHIBBOLETHS will amuse and entertain as well as shed a thought-provoking light on the background to our rich and varied language.
Scapegoats, Shambles and Shibboleths: The Queen's English from the King James Bible
by Martin Manser‘The fruit of his labours’, Martin Manser’s SCAPEGOATS, SHAMBLES AND SHIBBOLETHS is a delightful book for all who adore the English language. ‘In the twinkling of an eye’ we learn that many of our most familiar phrases are taken straight from the King James Version of the Bible. Far from being ‘holier than thou’, it seems we quote from the Bible without even realising!Martin Manser explains in detail what it is to be ‘the apple of someone's eye’ . . . ‘No modern physiology book would put it like this, but in the past the pupil of the eye was referred to as "the apple". After all, it was shaped like one. In addition, because it was recognised to be the most important part of the eye it was a symbol for all things precious. The most valuable part of a highly valued organ of the body. Dotted around the Bible the phrase therefore represents anything that is of great worth - whether it is the law of God in Proverbs 7 v 2, the people of Israel found and nurtured in the desert or as an individual on the receiving end of divine care.'A quirky present, SCAPEGOATS SHAMBLES AND SHIBBOLETHS will amuse and entertain as well as shed a thought-provoking light on the background to our rich and varied language.
Scared
by Tom DavisStuart Daniels has hit bottom. Once a celebrated and award-winning photojournalist, he is reeling from debt, a broken marriage, and crippling depression. The source of Stuart's grief is his most famous photo, a snapshot of brutality in the dangerous Congo. A haunting image that indicts him as a passive witness to gross injustice.Stuart is given a one last chance to redeem his career: A make-or-break assignment covering the AIDS crisis in a small African country. It is here that Stuart meets Adanna, a young orphan fighting for survival in a community ravaged by tragedy and disease. But in the face of overwhelming odds, Adanna finds hope in a special dream, where she is visited by an illuminated man and given a precious gift.Now, in a dark place that's a world away from home, Stuart will once again confront the harsh reality of a suffering people in a forgotten land. And as a chance encounter becomes divine providence, two very different people will find their lives forever changed.
Scared of Santa: Scenes of Terror in Toyland
by Denise Joyce Nancy WatkinsHe's huge and hairy and hulking. He dresses in strange furry clothing. He sneaks into people's homes at night.Who wouldn't be afraid of . . . Santa Claus?!?Nothing says Christmas quite like innocent children shrieking with terror as a stranger dressed in red drags them kicking and screaming onto his lap. Now this time-honored rite of passage is celebrated with a hilarious collection of more than two hundred and fifty priceless photos of kids' traumatic trips to Santa's workshop. Scared of Santa offers a cornucopia of photographic funnies—from sixty-year-old family heirlooms to last year's howlers—along with delightful commentary on those unforgettable childhood visits to scary ol' Saint Nick.
Scared to Death
by Debby GiustiAn unexpected phone call from a frantic, estranged friend sent scientist Kate Murphy to a rural town in Georgia. But neither woman made the meeting. Kate's friend died mysteriously. And Kate herself was trapped in a horrific accident until rescued by Nolan Price, her friend's handsome boss. And the widowed single father might know more about secrets and lies than he was telling. Offered refuge in his house--which happened to be in the dark woods that so scared her friend--Kate sought the truth. But what she found would shock her--and her faith--to the core.
Scarlet: The King Raven Trilogy - Book 2 (The King Raven Trilogy #2)
by Stephen R. LawheadAfter losing everything he owns, forester Will Scarlet embarks on a search for none other than King Raven, whose exploits have already become legendary. After fulfilling his quest--and proving himself a skilled and loyal companion--Will joins the heroic archer and his men.Now, however, Will is in prison for a crime he did not commit. His sentence is death by hanging--unless he delivers King Raven and his band of cohorts. That, of course, he will never do. Wales is slowly falling under the control of the invading Normans, and King William the Red has given his ruthless barons control of the land. In desperation, the people turn to King Raven and his men for justice and survival in the face of the ever-growing onslaught. From deep in the forest they form a daring plan for deliverance, knowing that failure means death for them all. Scarlet continues Stephen R. Lawhead's riveting saga that began with the novel Hood, which relocated the legend of Robin Hood to the Welsh countryside and its dark forests. Steeped in Celtic mythology and the political intrigue of medieval Britain, Lawhead's trilogy conjures up an ancient past and holds a mirror to contemporary realities. Prepare for an epic tale that dares to shatter everything you thought you knew about Robin Hood.
The Scarlet Letter
by Nathaniel HawthorneNathaniel Hawthorne’s masterpiece: A searing portrait of sin and redemption in Puritan New England When Hester Prynne, a young Puritan woman in seventeenth-century Boston, becomes pregnant out of wedlock, the unforgiving society in which she lives judges her harshly. Sentenced to wear a scarlet A emblazoned on her dress, Hester raises her daughter, Pearl, on the outskirts of town—an exile meant to cause her shame for the remainder of her life. In refusing to name Pearl’s father, Hester seeks to protect the minister Arthur Dimmesdale from sharing her fate. As the years pass, Dimmesdale grows weaker, eroded by his guilt, while Hester finds renewal in a defiant reclamation of her strength and identity. Their diverging paths lead to a searing final scene that stands among the most powerful in American literature. This ebook has been professionally proofread to ensure accuracy and readability on all devices.
The Scarlet Letter: Kaplan Sat Score Raising Classic (Clydesdale Classics)
by Nathaniel HawthornePackaged in handsome and affordable trade editions, Clydesdale Classics is a new series of essential works made available again. The series features literary phenomena with influence and themes so great that, after their publication, they changed literature forever. From the musings of literary geniuses like Mark Twain in The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn to the striking personal narrative of Harriet Jacobs in Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl, this new series is a comprehensive collection of our history through the words of the exceptional few.The magnum opus of revered writer Nathaniel Hawthorne, The Scarlet Letter is arguably one of the greatest novels written during the nineteenth century. It is the story of Hester Prynne-a young woman accused of, tried for, and publicly punished for adultery. Set during the seventeenth century in Boston, she receives harsh ridicule from the radical Puritan community for her actions. From the affair she conceives a child, and struggles to rebuild her life and her reputation. Throughout the book Hawthorne explores controversial themes of sexuality, romance, guilt, shame, infidelity-all of which are still pertinent topics more than 150 years after its initial publication.The Scarlet Letter is a timeless story of morality, legality, struggle, and shame in a world that was so intolerant of the very things that make us human.
The Scarlet Letter (Ignatius Critical Editions)
by Nathaniel Hawthorne Mary R. Reichardt Joseph PearceThe Scarlet Letter is one of American literature's greatest tragedies. The Scarlet Letter presents a profound meditation on the nature of sin, repentance, and redemption, and on how such Christian concepts may be integrated into American democracy.
The Scarlet Letter and other Writings: Authoritative Texts, Contexts, Criticism (A Norton critical edition)
by Nathaniel Hawthorne Leland S. PersonNathaniel Hawthorne's most widely read novel 'The Scarlet Letter' is accompanied here by five short prose works - 'Mrs Hutchinson,' 'Endicott and the Red Cross,' 'Young Goodman Brown,' 'The Minister's Black Veil' and 'The Birth-mark' - that closely relate to the 1850 novel.
Scarlet Pimpernel of the Vatican
by J. P. GallagherA different World War II story, about the Vatican's Msgr. Hugh O'Flaherty's real-life efforts to hide and help thousands of Allied escaped prisoners of war throughout the war. Undercover, he formed an organization to rescue and help escaped prisoners of war maintain their freedom from the Nazis. With the help of many Italians, religious, and diplomats stationed in Rome, he secretly worked throughout the entire war. His unstinting charity endears him to all, and saved the lives of thousands.
The Scarlet Thread
by Francine RiversWhen Sierra discovers her young ancestor's handcrafted quilt and reads her journal, she finds that their lives are very similar. By following her ancestor's example, she learns to surrender to God's sovereignty and unconditional love.
The Scarlet Trefoil (Tahn #2)
by Leisha Kelly"IT'S LIKE A DREAM— The life we have now. Like a dream corriE Tr^e/* ( reed FROM A life OF darkness, Tahn Dorn finds God’s J ~ grace toward him a comfort he has never known before. He has put away his painful past and is looking forward to a bright, peaceful future with his bride-to-be. But the past returns to haunt him, threatening to ruin all that he loves. On the eve of their blessed union, Lady Netta’s gilded carriage is attacked by a team of rogue bandits hired by the ruthless Baron Lionell Trent. Despite the baron’s noble talk and pretended peace, Tahn is lured into a trap that will secure Lionell’s hold on the House of Trent. Can Tahn free his true love? Or will his dream be forever lost?
Scarlett Says
by Julie L. CannonFor 30-year-old literature lover Joan Meeler, there is no heroine so admirable as Gone With the Wind's Scarlett O'Hara. Joan, with her quiet nature and love of good food, falls shockingly short of Scarlett's outspoken passion, strength, and 17-inch waist. Yet as the secret hostess of an advice blog called Scarlett Says, she discovers she's quite adept at dispensing advice in Scarlett's devil-may-care tone. Joan is happy to live vicariously . . . until she meets Charles, a Christian and faithful Scarlett Says reader, who suddenly has Joan dreaming of something more. Since Scarlett has never let her down, Joan digs deeper and deeper into her heroine's mind, searching for something to calm her rising insecurities. But her search falls short, and Joan realizes that she must look within herself--and to God--to uncover the inner confidence she never knew she possessed.
Scarlett Says
by Julie L. CannonFor 30-year-old literature lover Joan Meeler, there is no heroine so admirable as Gone With the Wind's Scarlett O'Hara. Joan, with her quiet nature and love of good food, falls shockingly short of Scarlett's outspoken passion, strength, and 17-inch waist. Yet as the secret hostess of an advice blog called Scarlett Says, she discovers she's quite adept at dispensing advice in Scarlett's devil-may-care tone.Joan is happy to live vicariously . . . until she meets Charles, a Christian and faithful Scarlett Says reader, who suddenly has Joan dreaming of something more. Since Scarlett has never let her down, Joan digs deeper and deeper into her heroine's mind, searching for something to calm her rising insecurities. But her search falls short, and Joan realizes that she must look within herself--and to God--to uncover the inner confidence she never knew she possessed.
Scarred: The True Story of How I Escaped NXIVM, the Cult That Bound My Life
by Sarah EdmondsonAs seen in the HBO docuseries THE VOW: The shocking and subversive memoir of a 12-year-NXIVM-member-turned-whistleblower, and her inspiring true story of abuse, escape, and redemption."'Master, would you brand me? It would be an honor.' From the second I climb onto the table, acutely aware that I am lying in the sweat of my sisters, I will have blocked that out. Lying there completely naked, I am at my most vulnerable but determined to prove my strength. I try to keep my legs closed as my body wills itself to protect my most private area. . . . I tell myself: I am a warrior. I birthed a human. I can handle pain. But nothing could have ever prepared me for the feel of this fire on my skin."Scarred is Sarah Edmondson's compelling memoir of her recruitment into the NXIVM cult, the 12 years she spent within the organization (during which she enrolled over 2,000 members and entered DOS—NXIVM's "secret sisterhood"), her breaking point, and her harrowing fight to get out, to expose Keith Raniere and the leadership, to help others, and to heal. Complete with personal photographs, Scarred is also an eye-opening story about abuses of power, female trust and friendship, and how sometimes the search to be "better" can override everything else.• In the tradition of Unorthodox by Deborah Feldman, Escape by Carolyn Jessop, and Troublemaker by Leah Remini• This tell-all follows Sarah from the moment she takes her first NXIVM seminar, to the invitation she accepts from her best friend, Lauren Salzman, into DOS, to her journey toward become a key witness in the federal case against its founders• Evokes questions about friendship, ethics, good and evil, making it a brilliant selection for book clubsAudio edition read by the author.
Scarred by Struggle, Transformed by Hope
by Joan ChittisterEveryone goes through times of pain and sorrow, depression and darkness, stress and suffering. It is in the necessary struggles of life, however, that we stretch our souls and gain new insights enabling us to go on. Building on the biblical story of Jacob wrestling with God and on the story of her own battle with life-changing disappointment, Sister Joan Chittister deftly explores the landscape of suffering and hope, considering along the way such wide-ranging topics as consumerism, technology, grief, the role of women in the Catholic Church, and the events of September 11, 2001. We struggle, she says, against change, isolation, darkness, fear, powerlessness, vulnerability, exhaustion, and scarring; and while these struggles sometimes seem insurmountable, we can emerge from them with the gifts of conversion, detachment, faith, courage, surrender, limitations, endurance, transformation, and (perhaps most important) hope. Each of these struggles and gifts is discussed in a chapter of its own. Meant to help readers cope with their own suffering and disappointment, Scarred by Struggle, Transformed by Hope is, in Chittister's words, "an anatomy of struggle and an account of the way hope grows in us, despite our moments of darkness, regardless of our regular bouts of depression. It is an invitation to look again at the struggles of life in order that we might remember how to recognize new life in our souls the next time our hearts turn again to clay." Neither a self-help manual nor a book offering pat answers, but supremely practical and relevant, Chittister's Scarred by Struggle, Transformed by Hope will richly reward those readers seeking solace in the empathic, wise, and accessible meditations of a fellow struggler.
Scarred Faith
by Josh Ross Ian Morgan CronIn an original and thought-provoking work, Pastor Josh Ross invites us to enter into the suffering around us--and to embrace our scars and God's restoring work.While many books declare God a great liberator, Pastor Josh Ross reminds us that He is also a God who enters into the sufferings of the world, bringing the message of hope that many need in their darkest hours. Scarred Faith meditates on this profound idea, showing how the doubts and pain within us can actually aid deep faith. Faith can be stirred within the walls of church buildings, but it is formed and nourished in the waiting rooms of hospitals, while holding kids affected by AIDS, and when being forced to venture outside one's social comforts. Deep faith is scarred faith--the story of scripture depicts a rended world in which God works to repair our brokenness. As Pastor Ross reminds us, often what we need isn't a God who will deliver us from a pit as much as a God who will get down into a pit with us. In Scarred Faith, he offers an unforgettable message: Grief opens us up to the greater suffering around us, allowing participation in God's story of restoration. It is this partnership that makes our doubts and pain allies of deep faith, opening our hearts to allow redemption in spite of all the questioning. Reflective and heartfelt, this contemplation of social justice and the opportunity offered by suffering will change the way many Christians view themselves and their world.