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Skulls to the Living, Bread to the Dead: The Day of the Dead in Mexico and Beyond
by Stanley H. Brandes<p>Each October, as the Day of the Dead draws near, Mexican markets overflow with decorated breads, fanciful paper cutouts, and whimsical toy skulls and skeletons. To honor deceased relatives, Mexicans decorate graves and erect home altars. Drawing on a rich array of historical and ethnographic evidence, this volume reveals the origin and changing character of this celebrated holiday. It explores the emergence of the Day of the Dead as a symbol of Mexican and Mexican-American national identity. <p>Skulls to the Living, Bread to the Dead poses a serious challenge to the widespread stereotype of the morbid Mexican, unafraid of death, and obsessed with dying. In fact, the Day of the Dead, as shown here, is a powerful affirmation of life and creativity. Beautifully illustrated, this book is essential for anyone interested in Mexican culture, art, and folklore, as well as contemporary globalization and identity formation.</p>
Skunk Girl
by Sheba KarimNina Khan is not just the only Asian or Muslim student in her small-town high school in upstate New York, she also faces the legacy of her "Supernerd" older sister, body hair, and the pain of having a crush when her parents forbid her to date.
Sky Above, Earth Below: Spiritual Practice in Nature
by John P. MiltonA renowned spiritual teacher guides you on a sacred passage into the temple of nature in this simple yet profound meditation guide. Since the 1940's, meditation master and vision-quest leader John P. Milton has led over 10,000 vision quests into the wilds of Colorado, the Himalayas, Bali, the Arctic, Mexico, and other powerful sites around the world. Now this pathfinder guides readers back to the wilderness within themselves, to discover how they are connected to the vast and wondrous mystery of nature. In Sky Above, Earth Below, Milton shares his Twelve Principles of Natural Liberation, then walks readers through the practice of relaxation, presence, cultivating universal energy, and more. &“Written out of boundless reverence for the Earth and life itself, [Milton] transfers the wisdom of Taoism into simple terms accessible to all readers regardless of personal background&” (Midwest Book Review).
Sky Above, Great Wind: The Life and Poetry of Zen Master Ryokan
by Kazuaki TanahashiRyokan (1758-1831) is, along with Dogen and Hakuin, one of the three giants of Zen in Japan. But unlike his two renowned colleagues, Ryokan was a societal dropout, living mostly as a hermit and a beggar. He was never head of a monastery or temple. He liked playing with children. He had no dharma heir. Even so, people recognized the depth of his realization, and he was sought out by people of all walks of life for the teaching to be experienced in just being around him. His poetry and art were wildly popular even in his lifetime. He is now regarded as one of the greatest poets of the Edo Period, along with Basho, Buson, and Issa. He was also a master artist-calligrapher with a very distinctive style, due mostly to his unique and irrepressible spirit, but also because he was so poor he didn't usually have materials: his distinctive thin line was due to the fact that he often used twigs rather than the brushes he couldn't afford. He was said to practice his brushwork with his fingers in the air when he didn't have any paper. There are hilarious stories about how people tried to trick him into doing art for them, and about how he frustrated their attempts. As an old man, he fell in love with a young Zen nun who also became his student. His affection for her colors the mature poems of his late period. This collection contains more than 140 of Ryokan's poems, with selections of his art, and of the very funny anecdotes about him.
Sky and Sea (God's Creation Series)
by Michael Carroll Caroline Carroll Travis KingAnd God said, "Let there be a huge space between the waters…" And that's exactly what happened…God called the huge space "sky." -Genesis 1:6-8 (NIrV) In Sky & Sea, kids explore the water cycle of our very wet planet-the vast seas below and the great ocean of air swirling above them, with its clouds full of rain and snow. From dramatic storms and crashing lightning to the aurora borealis and shimmering rainbows, amateur scientists learn how air and water work together to make this planet livable, in kid-friendly language and concepts. Add drawings, photos, and fun facts, and kids see God's wonderful blueprint for life in the vastness of the sea and sky.
The Sky Beneath My Feet
by Lisa SamsonBeing married to a saint isn't what it's cracked up to be. Beth's husband won't be joining the family on vacation at the beach this year. He's not even joining them in the house. Instead, Rick has holed up alone in the backyard shed. Nobody knows exactly what he's up to. Maybe he's immersing himself in prayer. Maybe he's lost his mind. Maybe he's even the modern-day prophet or the saint the neighborhood artist imagines him to be. But while "St. Rick" waits for an epiphany, Beth will have to figure out what to do with herself and their teenage sons, possibly for the rest of her life. What happens next is both uproarious and bittersweet: a peace march turns violent, her son is caught with drugs, and she embarks on an ambitious road trip that turns into something nearly surreal. Will Beth rediscover the idealistic woman she used to be, once upon a time? Can her marriage survive Rick's backyard vigil? Will anything ever be the same? And should it be? Truthful, comic, heartbreaking, and magical in the very best sense of the word, The Sky Beneath My Feet gently tears the veil off our egos and expectations to reveal the throbbing, redemptive, and achingly beautiful life beyond and within us."The Sky Beneath My Feet is bright but unassuming. The protagonist totally enchants both one's spirit and one's mind with her shrewd insights and gentle humility. This is Samson at her best!" --Phyllis Tickle, author of Emergence Christianity
Sky Burial
by XinranIn 2002 Xinran's Good Women of China became an international bestseller, revealing startling new truths about Chinese life to the West. Now she returns with an epic story of love, friendship, courage and sacrifice set in Chinese-occupied Tibet. Based on a true story, Xinran's extraordinary second book takes the reader right to the hidden heart of one of the world's most mysterious and inaccessible countries. In March 1958, Shu Wen learns that her husband, an idealistic army doctor, has died while serving in Tibet. Determined to find out what happened to him, she courageously sets off to join his regiment. But to her horror, instead of finding a Tibetan people happily welcoming their Chinese "liberators" as she expected, she walks into a bloody conflict, with the Chinese subject to terrifying attacks from Tibetan guerrillas. It seems that her husband may have died as a result of this clash of cultures, this disastrous misunderstanding. But before she can know his fate, she is taken hostage and embarks on a life-changing journey through the Tibetan countryside -- a journey that will last twenty years and lead her to a deep appreciation of Tibet in all its beauty and brutality. Sadly, when she finally discovers the truth about her husband, she must carry her knowledge back to a China that, in her absence, has experienced the Cultural Revolution and changed beyond recognition. . .
Sky Dharma: The Foundations of the Namchö Treasure Teaching
by Karma Chagme Rigdzin Kunzang SherabThe inspiring life story of Tertön Migyur Dorje, who revealed a new cycle of Tibetan Buddhist teachings, together with a commentary on the preliminary practices written by his main student. Tertön Migyur Dorje revealed the Namchö treasure teachings while in a three-year retreat that began when he was only thirteen. The Great Compassionate One (Avalokiteshvara) and Guru Rinpoche (Padmasambhava) appeared to him in pure visionary experience and gave him these teachings. Migyur Dorje then dictated them to his teacher Karma Chagme. The Namchö treasures later became the main teachings and practices of the Palyul lineage, and these teachings continue to be presented in Palyul monasteries and retreat centers throughout Asia, North America, and Europe. This book brings together two texts that have inspired countless practitioners in this lineage. The first text tells the life story of Migyur Dorje. It was composed by Karma Chagme, the master who first recognized the seven-year-old Migyur Dorje as an exceptional tulku and tertön and who was responsible for preparing him to be a major treasure revealer. The second text is a commentary on the Namchö preliminary practices. Written by Rigdzin Kunzang Sherab, Migyur Dorje&’s main student and the first throne holder of the Palyul lineage, it explains the foundational practices that should be completed before pursuing more advanced ones: the four contemplations that turn the mind to dharma and the fivefold practice of taking refuge, arousing bodhichitta, mandala offering, Vajrasattva purification, and Guru Yoga.
A Sky Full of Song
by Susan Lynn MeyerThis heartwarming, beautifully written middle-grade historicalnovel about an untold American frontier story is destined to be a cherished classic. North Dakota, 1905 After fleeing persecution in the Russian Empire, eleven-year-old Shoshana and her family, Jewish immigrants, start a new life on the prairie. Shoshana takes fierce joy in the wild beauty of the plains and the thrill of forging a new, American identity. But it&’s not as simple for her older sister, Libke, who misses their Ukrainian village and doesn&’t pick up English as quickly or make new friends as easily. Desperate to fit in, Shoshana finds herself hiding her Jewish identity in the face of prejudice, just as Libke insists they preserve it. For the first time, Shoshana is at odds with her beloved sister, and has to look deep inside herself to realize that her family&’s difference is their greatest strength. By listening to the music that&’s lived in her heart all along, Shoshana finds new meaning in the Jewish expression all beginnings are difficult, as well as in the resilience and traditions her people have brought all the way to the North Dakota prairie.
Sky Full of Stars: Learning to Surrender to God's Perfect Plans
by Meg AppersonDo you trust God? Meg Apperson grew up having a relationship with Jesus and would say she had trusted God her entire life. But when her daughter Avery—a miracle in so many ways—was born with a syndrome of severe birth defects, Meg began to fully understand what it really means to trust Jesus with everything. In this tender memoir, full of gut-wrenching emotion, you&’ll hear a mother&’s personal story of fighting for her child, her family, and even herself as she grapples with the weight of failure—of letting down everyone around her and feeling let down by God. But in the midst of the fight, through heavy grief, she not only discovers her own voice—she discovers that God is good and God is faithful. If you have ever experienced grief, suffering, or pain … If God has ever asked you to surrender more than you thought possible … If you&’ve ever questioned how God is at work in the darkness … A Sky Full of Stars is for you. This book will show you that when everything is dark around you, goodness can be found in the suffering. Reading it will help you discover new ways to rely on God&’s trustworthiness.
Sky High Faith
by Ken GaubLiving life with a positive outlook is a chore for some of us. We want success and happiness, but attaining it requires us to scramble over the sharp rocks of disillusionment and dodge boulders made of setbacks. Now, Ken Gaub has written a book that will catapult you above the mountaintop. Sky High Faith outlines 20 Success Secrets for achieving success in this life. They're "secrets" because so few apply them! Practical and inspirational tips for strengthening relationships, motivating yourself and others in business, and personal peace are offered in a unique style that can only be Ken Gaub. The author's exuberance, wit, and drive to succeed in life will drag you out of the valley to a place where your goals are waiting for a mountaintop experience. This book will refresh you in a truly special way, high above the resting place of failure.
The Sky Is Falling, the Church Is Dying, and Other False Alarms
by Ted A. CampbellIs there only doom and gloom for the future of mainline Christianity? Or is it that the current sense of decline and malaise is only a mirage or the result of exaggerations by persons both within but also without these churches? Is the church threatened or are we on the precipice of new opportunities? While there has been some helpful work on the state of the church, others have uncritically parroted claims about decline and linked these claims with notions that the decline is due to relentless theological liberalism. The tragedy for churches is that many pastors now feel decline is inevitable and they are blind to the strengths that they do have. In this book, Ted Campbell begins with an accounting of the Church's great treasure, the Gospel, and how mainline churches continue to minister in line with many thoughtful traditions. Tradition isn't just "frozen success," it also holds keys to faith's relevance for the world today. Campbell continues to show how mainline churches came to understand themselves as mainline and how the media continues to misunderstand them. The book concludes with practices that will help churches build up the larger Christian community while reaching out to new constituencies.
The Sky Is Not Falling: Living Fearlessly in These Turbulent Times
by Charles ColsonChuck Colson equips readers to live fearlessly, with confidence in God's love and ultimate power, in the midst of an increasingly godless world.Yes, the world is an increasingly godless place. And it's never been as pronounced as it is in this era of 24-hour news cycles. From nasty political power struggles to raunchy reality TV, everywhere we look there is evidence of our culture's steep decline. But it's no time for Christians to cower in fear. In The Sky Is Not Falling, bestselling author Chuck Colson equips readers with the truth about the most difficult cultural and moral issues of our day and brings clarity and sanity to a world that seems to have gone mad. His message is that Christians must be informed of the truth of today's confusing social and political issues so that we can live with the confidence and certainty that God has the future in his hands. Every concerned Christian needs to arm themselves with the profound insights in The Sky is Not Falling.
A Sky of Infinite Blue: A Japanese Immigrant's Search for Home and Self
by Kyomi O'ConnorGold Medal in Women’s Literature, Next Generation Indie Book Award “Beautiful Story of endurance and hope, reminding women to seek the same. Wonderful cover design and layout. The author's ability to inspire readers is exceptional.”—Tisha Martin, Next Generation Indie Book Award JudgeFrom an early age, Kyomi’s life was filled with emotional difficulties—an adulterous father, an overreliant mother, and a dismissive extended family. In an effort to escape the darkness of her existence in Japan, Kyomi moved to the States in February 1990 to start a new life as a researcher working at NIH in Bethesda, MD. Soon, she fell in love with her husband-to-be: Patrick, a warm, charismatic British cancer researcher whose unconditional love and support helped her begin to heal the traumas of her past. Eventually, their journey together led them to change their careers and move to San Diego, CA, where they dedicated themselves to a Buddhism practice that changed both their lives—aiding them in their spiritual growth and in realizing their desire to help others. Then Patrick was diagnosed with stage IV metastatic melanoma in the brain—and, after a fierce, three-year-long battle against his cancer, died on July 4, 2016. Devastated, Kyomi spent a year lost in grief. But when she one day began to write, she discovered that doing so allowed her to uncover truths about herself, her life history, and her relationship with Patrick. In the process, she surfaced many old, unhealed wounds—but ultimately writing became her daily spiritual practice, and many truths emerged out of the darkness. After many years of struggle and searching, Kyomi finally found the love and light that had existed within her all along.
Sky Shamans of Mongolia
by Kevin TurnerPart travelogue, part experiential spiritual memoir, Kevin Turner takes us to visit with authentic shamans in the steppes and urban centers of modern-day Mongolia. Along the way, the author, a practicing shaman himself, tells of spontaneous medical diagnoses, all-night shamanic ceremonies, and miraculous healings, all welling from a rich culture in which divination, soul-retrieval, and spirit depossession are a part of everyday life. Shamanism, described in the 1950s by Mircea Eliade as "archaic techniques of ecstasy," is alive and well in Mongolia as a means of accessing "nonordinary realities" and the spirit world. After centuries of suppression by Buddhist and then Communist political powers, it is exploding in popularity in Mongolia. Turner gives compelling accounts of healings and rituals he witnesses among Darkhad, Buryat, and Khalkh shamans, and goes on to provide us with his insights into a universal shamanism, principles that lie at the heart of shamanic traditions worldwide. This astounding, inspiring book will appeal to shamans and shamanic therapists, students of Mongolian culture and comparative religion, and fans of off-grid travel memoirs.
A Sky Without Stars
by Linda S. ClareFrankie Chasing Bear is caught between cultures. She wants to raise her son Harold to revere his Lakota heritage, but she knows he will need to learn the white man's ways to succeed. After the untimely death of her husband, Frankie joins the U.S. Government's Relocation Program and moves to Arizona. There she begins sewing a Lakota Star pattern quilt for Harold with tribal wisdom sung, sewn, and prayed into it. A bed without a quilt is like a sky without stars, but neither the quilt--nor her new life--comes easily to Frankie. Nick Vandergriff, for instance, is the last man Frankie wants to trust. He's half-Lakota but Christian, and Frankie can see no good coming from that faith after her own parents were forced to convert at an Indian school. Can Nick convince Frankie that white men and Christians aren't all bad? And will Frankie learn that love is the most important ingredient--for her son's quilt and life itself?
A Sky Without Stars
by Linda S. ClareFrankie Chasing Bear is caught between cultures. She wants to raise her son Harold to revere his Lakota heritage, but she knows he will need to learn the white man's ways to succeed. After the untimely death of her husband, Frankie joins the U.S. Government's Relocation Program and moves to Arizona. There she begins sewing a Lakota Star pattern quilt for Harold with tribal wisdom sung, sewn, and prayed into it.A bed without a quilt is like a sky without stars, but neither the quilt--nor her new life--comes easily to Frankie. Nick Vandergriff, for instance, is the last man Frankie wants to trust. He's half-Lakota but Christian, and Frankie can see no good coming from that faith after her own parents were forced to convert at an Indian school. Can Nick convince Frankie that white men and Christians aren't all bad? And will Frankie learn that love is the most important ingredient--for her son's quilt and life itself?
Sky Zone
by Creston MapesA rally for a controversial presidential candidate.A terrorist threat.A nightmare of cataclysmic proportions. Jack and Pamela Crittendon have hit the breaking point. After months out of work as a reporter, Jack is playing Mr. Mom and working part-time at Festival Arena with his survivalist friend Brian Shakespeare. Meanwhile, Pamela has gone back to work full-time while eight months pregnant. Having her recently widowed mother on hand isn't making matters any easier.With financial pressures boiling, Jack reports for duty at a rally for controversial presidential candidate Martin Sterling where he expects a mindless night on the job. But when Homeland Security picks up intel about a potential terrorist threat, Jack and Shakespeare are thrust into a life-or-death battle to save their own lives--and the lives of thousands of innocent people.This third book in The Crittendon Files reminds us of the power of family, friendships and faith--and why we are never in as much control as we think.
“Skygirl On Cloud 9”
by Sharon Birlson Kirkham"Skygirl On Cloud 9" is an entertaining narrative of the amazing globe-trekking adventures of fllight attendant Sharon Birlson Kirkham. Each amusing account recalls one of the exciting opportunities Sharon and her husband Cary have experienced through-out her career, and since. While she says they've done their best to see as much as possible, "the world is a really big place. There are hundreds more trips to be taken and stories to be written, 'but' there are only 365 days in a year...."
Skywatchers: A Revised And Updated Version Of Skywatchers Of Ancient Mexico
by Anthony F. AveniSkywatchers of Ancient Mexico helped establish the field of archaeoastronomy, and it remains the standard introduction to this subject. Combining basic astronomy with archaeological and ethnological data, it presented a readable and entertaining synthesis of all that was known of ancient astronomy in the western hemisphere as of 1980.
Slandering the Jew: Sexuality and Difference in Early Christian Texts (Divinations: Rereading Late Ancient Religion)
by Susanna DrakeAs Christian leaders in the first through fifth centuries embraced ascetic interpretations of the Bible and practices of sexual renunciation, sexual slander—such as the accusations Paul leveled against wayward Gentiles in the New Testament—played a pivotal role in the formation of early Christian identity. In particular, the imagined construct of the lascivious, literal-minded Jew served as a convenient foil to the chaste Christian ideal. Susanna Drake examines representations of Jewish sexuality in early Christian writings that use accusations of carnality, fleshliness, bestiality, and licentiousness as strategies to differentiate the "spiritual" Christian from the "carnal" Jew. Church fathers such as Justin Martyr, Hippolytus of Rome, Origen of Alexandria, and John Chrysostom portrayed Jewish men variously as dangerously hypersexual, at times literally seducing virtuous Christians into heresy, or as weak and effeminate, unable to control bodily impulses or govern their wives.As Drake shows, these carnal caricatures served not only to emphasize religious difference between Christians and Jews but also to justify increased legal constraints and violent acts against Jews as the interests of Christian leaders began to dovetail with the interests of the empire. Placing Christian representations of Jews at the root of the destruction of synagogues and mobbing of Jewish communities in the late fourth and early fifth centuries, Slandering the Jew casts new light on the intersections of sexuality, violence, representation, and religious identity.
Slandering the Sacred: Blasphemy Law and Religious Affect in Colonial India (Class 200: New Studies in Religion)
by J. Barton ScottA history of global secularism and political feeling through colonial blasphemy law. Why is religion today so often associated with giving and taking offense? To answer this question, Slandering the Sacred invites us to consider how colonial infrastructures shaped our globalized world. Through the origin and afterlives of a 1927 British imperial law (Section 295A of the Indian Penal Code), J. Barton Scott weaves a globe-trotting narrative about secularism, empire, insult, and outrage. Decentering white martyrs to free thought, his story calls for new histories of blasphemy that return these thinkers to their imperial context, dismantle the cultural boundaries of the West, and transgress the borders between the secular and the sacred as well as the public and the private.
Slap Your Sides
by M. E. KerrWorld War II comes to a small Pennsylvania town in this thought-provoking novel about a peace-loving Quaker family War may be raging in Europe, but in Sweet Creek, Pennsylvania, peace is being waged. Bud Shoemaker is vehemently opposed to the war when he registers for the draft as a conscientious objector. No one except his Quaker family shares Bud&’s pacifist views—although his thirteen-year-old brother, Jubal, wonders what kind of Quaker he&’ll be when it comes time for him to enlist. Jubal loves and believes in his brother, even if the whole town—including Daria Daniel, the girl Jubal secretly loves—doesn&’t.With everyone calling Bud a coward, Jubal&’s family is slowly being torn apart. But when an unexpected, vicious act forces Jubal to grapple with man&’s penchant for violence, he has to grow up fast in a community in which killing becomes the measure of a man.Slap Your Sides is a riveting tale of courage and conscience that delivers a timeless, universal message about what makes a hero and what it really means to be a patriot.This ebook features an illustrated personal history of M. E. Kerr including rare images from the author&’s collection.
Slaughter of the Innocents: Abortion, Birth Control, & Divorce in Light of Science, Law & Theology
by John Warwick MontgomeryDr. Montgomery examines some of the most tragic and divisive issues facing Christians today—abortion, divorce, and birth control. Drawing from a wealth of knowledge and reflection on the moral, ethical, theological, medical, and legal aspects of his topics, Dr. Montgomery sheds new and invaluable light on the issues.
A Slaughtered Lamb: Revelation and the Apocalyptic Response to Evil and Suffering
by Gregory StevensonAn introduction to the literary and theological message of Revelation using the topics of evil and suffering as a conceptual organizer, which provides readers an immediate connection between this ancient text and their lives.Although often read as a book of strange visions about the end of time, the book of Revelation is actually one of the most relevant books in the Bible for Christian faith in the twenty-first century. Evil and suffering are an unavoidable component of human experience and they generate a host of questions by those seeking to be faithful in the midst of such experiences. Why do Christians suffer? How are we to understand God's sovereignty in a world of injustice, violence, and opposition? What is the appropriate response of faith to such a world?In A SLAUGHTERED LAMB, Greg Stevenson argues that the book of Revelation addresses such questions and the tension that is created between our faith and our experiences of evil and suffering. Revelation is a book that reminds us that God is faithful to his creation, that challenges us to take up the call for faithful witness in a hostile world, and that reveals to us that God's primary response to evil and suffering is to meet us in the form of a slaughtered lamb.A rich resource for pastors and ministry leaders as well as an accessible introduction to Revelation for the average reader.