Religion

_________________Includes a foreword by STEPHEN FRY'A classic for our time...And all time.' - Michael Shermer'The words of Hitchens, Dawkins, Harris and Dennett are needed more than ever.

Reconstruction of the life of St Paul, paints a picture of the world in which he preached his revolutionary message and explains the significance of his lasting impact

Dive into the ghostly world of the supernatural with America's leading paranormal investigatorInside, paranormal investigator, star, and executive producer of The Travel Channel's hit series, Ghost Adventures and founder of the award-winning Haunted Museum (Las Vegas' most popular attraction), Zak Bagans takes readers on an exciting journey into the supernatural world. With insider information on the history of ghost-hunting to learning about ghosts with all kinds of temperaments, Ghost-Hunting For Dummies is peppered with true accounts and stories from Bagans' famous cases and investigations.Featuring expert advice on picking a haunted location, setting up cameras, and dealing with unwieldy ghosts, this book shows how today's investigators use the tools of modern science to study a wide range of paranormal activity.* Take an exciting adventure into the supernatural world* Explore haunted sites* Get messages from beyond the grave* Read true accounts from famous cases and investigationsIf you're one of the countless fans of Ghost Adventures itching to get off the couch and track some spirits on your own, this book provides everything you need to know to conduct a successful paranormal investigation.

 This book takes readers on a journey to understand what it means to be beautiful. True Beauty is to be felt with all of our senses and incites us towards growth and self-actualization. This beauty can be found within the Divine teachings of the Quran and Prophetic traditions, which present alternatives to dominant beauty narratives, by emphasizing on our inner wellbeing as a tool to improve our outer appearances.  Within the Islamic tradition, beauty blooms in the same garden as justice, health and love and acts as a repellent to the wasps of decadence, immorality and mental enslavement. With God’s Permission, this work will aid readers in the cultivation of beauty in all actions whether it is in spending, consuming, grooming and loving. To exercise our agency in defining and creating beauty for ourselves liberates us from our self imposed enslavement.  That is why we say be beautiful (Fee Sabililah) for the sake of God because it is only under His Guidance that we can truly experience beauty in all of its splendor, health and glory.  

Border Districts, purportedly the Australian master Gerald Murnane's final work of fiction, is a hypnotic, precise, self-lacerating `report' on a life led as an avid reader, fumbling lover, `student of mental imagery', and devout believer in the luminescence of memory and of literature.

Experience a new level of visual comfort for your study of God's Word with Thomas Nelson's NKJV Giant Print Center-Column Reference Bible. The exclusive Thomas Nelson NKJV Comfort Print typeface in a giant-print format makes reading a pleasure, and the generous cross-reference system in the center column is the perfect study companion.

Rev. James A. Solomon is the President of Jesus People''s Revival Ministries Inc., as well as the General Overseer and Senior Pastor of Jesus Family Chapel, with 28 branches in Nigeria, the United Kingdom and several other countries. The international headquarters for both ministries is based in Atlanta, Georgia, in the United States of America.Rev. Solomon is a man who is truly gifted with an extraordinary anointing on the subject of Spiritual Warfare, Healing and Deliverance. In his efforts to serve the body of Christ beyond his own ministries, he also serves as director for the West African Regional Directorate of the International Accelerated Missions (I.A.M.), a network of missionary churches based in New York.Rev. Solomon started from very humble beginnings in his native country of Nigeria, West Africa, way back in the 1980s. With his team of ministers and due to popular demand, he has taken the revelation of Spiritual Warfare and Deliverance to massive venues such as the stadium domes in the major cities of Nigeria. He has also conducted a series of conferences, and organizes quarterly Deliverance Night Services in the United Kingdom, Europe, Canada, Japan and all over the United States. Many have received freedom from satanic bondage and oppression at these quarterly deliverance services. He is in high demand as a guest minister in many crusades and conferences.He currently resides in Atlanta, Georgia with his family. He is married to Rev. Mrs. Florence A. James and they are blessed with 4 children

Lost Islamic History by Firas Alkhateeb is a captivating journey into the rich and complex past of Islam. Published in 2017 by C Hurst & Co Publishers Ltd, this book delves into the forgotten stories and significant moments of Islamic civilization. Alkhateeb, a renowned historian, beautifully encapsulates the essence of Islamic history that has been lost or overlooked in modern narratives. The book is a must-read for those interested in understanding the profound impact of Islam on world history. Exploring various aspects including science, politics, and culture, it provides a comprehensive view of Islamic history. Don't miss out on this insightful read from C Hurst & Co Publishers Ltd.

The ESV Illuminated Bible, Art Journaling Edition places the full ESV text alongside over 500 elegantly hand-lettered gold ink illustrations by renowned artist Dana Tanamachi.

A fully illustrated and systematic survey of the mythology, iconography and worship of the mysterious and awe-inspiring deities that dominated Egyptian religion from early pharaonic times to the Roman period.

The Picatrix is the most famous grimoire of astrological magic and one of the most important works of medieval and Renaissance magic. With all four books, the complete text, in one volume, translated and annotated by the noted scholars, magicians and astrologers John Michael Greer and Christopher Warnock, Picatrix takes its rightful place as an essential occult text for modern esotericists. The Illustrated Picatrix contains over 120 illustrations, with images of the 7 planets and 28 Mansions of the Moon by Nigel Jackson as well as images of the 36 decans and 12 signs by Renaissance artists. This is an authentic ancient magical text, lucidly translated and fully annotated with over 400 footnotes.

New York Times Best Seller! 1500 5-Star Reviews! From the author that brought you NEW YORK TIMES best selling books The Harbinger, The Mystery of the Shemitah, and The Paradigm selling over 3 MILLION copies Imagine if you discovered a treasure chest in which were hidden ancient mysteries, revelations from heaven, secrets of the ages, the answers to man's most enduring, age-old questions, and the hidden keys that can transform your life to joy, success, and blessing...This is The Book of Mysteries.

From the author of Blue Like Jazz comes a story about finding the keys to a healthy relationship and discovering they are also the keys to a healthy family, a healthy career, and a healthy mind. And it all feels like a conversation with the best kind of friend: smart, funny, true, important. Scary Close is Donald Miller at his best.

A luxury, keep-sake edition of an ancient Chinese scripture This ancient text, fundamental to Taoism, has become a source of inspiration and guidance for millions in modern society.

Place the word Tao Into your heart. Use no other words. The Tao is constantly moving, the path that all life and the whole universe takes. There is nothing that is not part of it?harmonious living is to know and to move with the Tao?it is a way of life, the natural order of things, a force that flows through all life.365 Tao is a contemporary book of meditations on what it means to be wholly a part of the Taoist way, and thus to be completely in harmony with oneself and the surrounding world.Deng Ming-Dao is the author of eight books, including The Living I Ching, Chronicles of Tao, Everyday Tao, and Scholar Warrior. His books have been translated into fifteen languages. He studied qigong, philosophy, meditation, and internal martial arts with Taoist master Kwan Saihung for thirteen years, and with two other masters before that.

The complete biblical historical fiction compilation by the New York Times bestselling author of Redeeming Love and A Voice in the Wind.The Bible is filled with inspiring stories of unlikely candidates God chose to change eternity. This bestselling compilation in one volume contains five novellas about such people―women in the family tree of Jesus Christ.Tamar. Rahab. Ruth. Bathsheba. Mary.Each was faced with extraordinary―even scandalous―challenges. But they had courage. They lived daring lives. Sometimes they made mistakes―big mistakes. And yet God, in His infinite mercy and grace, used them to bring forth the Christ, the Savior of the world. Their stories still hold great meaning and inspiration for us today.Tamar risked her life and reputation to be the woman she was called to be. See how the Lord uses our circumstances and our steps toward Him, however faltering, to fulfill His plan.Rahab was exploited by men who saw only her beauty, yet she held fast to her faith in God and was rewarded. Discover how God seeks and finds those whose hearts are tender toward Him, no matter how far away they are.Ruth's loyalty, especially toward her mother-in-law Naomi, helped her persevere in the face of tragedy, and God gave her a second chance at love. Be encouraged that God will provide even when all hope seems lost.Bathsheba's scandalous affair with David did not end in one night. Learn that God is willing to restore and redeem those lost in the depths of despair who call out to Him.Mary is one of the most revered women in history. But first, she was an ordinary woman striving to please God in the same way women still do today. When God spoke, Mary responded in obedience which changed the world forever.Each novella includes an in-depth Bible study perfect for personal reflection or group discussion.Watch these five women in the Bible come to life and learn from their examples of hope, faith, love, and obedience.

Mary Magdalene is one of the most influential symbols in the history of Christianity—yet, if you look in the Bible, you’ll find only a handful of verses that speak of her. How did she become such a compelling saint in the face of such paltry evidence? In her effort to answer that question, Cynthia Bourgeault examines the Bible, church tradition, art, legend, and newly discovered texts to see what’s there. She then applies her own reasoning and intuition, informed by the wisdom of the ages-old Christian contemplative tradition. What emerges is a radical view of Mary Magdalene as Jesus’s most important disciple, the one he considered to understand his teaching best. That teaching was characterized by a nondualistic approach to the world and by a deep understanding of the value of the feminine. Cynthia shows how an understanding of Mary Magdalene can revitalize contemporary Christianity, how Christians and others can, through her, find their way to Jesus’s original teachings and apply them to their modern lives.

The Goetia is the most famous grimoire after the Key of Solomon. This volume contains a transcription of a hitherto unpublished manuscript of the Lemegeton which includes four whole grimoires: Liber Malorum Spituum seu Goetia; Theurgia-Goetia; Ars Paulina (Books 1 & 2); Ars Almadel. This was owned by Dr Thomas Rudd, a practising scholar-magician of the early seventeenth century. There are many editions of the Goetia, of which the most definitive is that of Joseph Peterson, but here we are interested in how the Goetia was actually used by practising magicians in the 16th and 17th century, before the knowledge of practical magic faded into obscurity. To evoke the 72 demons listed here without the ability to bind them would be foolhardy indeed. It was well known in times past that invocatio and ligatio, or binding, was a key part of evocation, but in the modern editions of the Goetia this key technique is expressed in just one word ''Shemhamaphorash'', and its use is not explained. This volume explains how the 72 angels of the Shem ha-Mephorash are used to bind the spirits, and the correct procedure for safely invoking them using special seals incorporating the necessary controlling angel, whose name is also engraved on the breastplate and Brass Vessel.

Now available in paperback: The Great Transformation is nothing less than a global account of the time when religion was born. 'A remarkable history... fascinating and highly readable... profoundly relevant.' Julie Wheelwright, Independent

In How on Earth Did Jesus Become a God? Larry Hurtado investigates the intense devotion to Jesus that emerged with surprising speed after his death. Reverence for Jesus among early Christians, notes Hurtado, included both grand claims about Jesus' significance and a pattern of devotional practices that effectively treated him as divine. This book argues that whatever one makes of such devotion to Jesus, the subject deserves serious historical consideration.Mapping out the lively current debate about Jesus, Hurtado explains the evidence, issues, and positions at stake. He goes on to treat the opposition to -- and severe costs of -- worshiping Jesus, the history of incorporating such devotion into Jewish monotheism, and the role of religious experience in Christianity's development out of Judaism. The follow-up to Hurtado's award-winningLord Jesus Christ (2003), this book provides compelling answers to queries about the development of the church's belief in the divinity of Jesus.

This modern spiritual classic highlights a trick we play on ourselves and offers a brighter reality: liberation by letting go of the self rather than working to improve it The Tibetan meditation master Chögyam Trungpa calls attention to the commonest pitfall to which every aspirant on the spiritual path falls prey: what he calls spiritual materialism. "The problem is that ego can convert anything to its own use," he says, "even spirituality." The universal tendency is to see spirituality as a process of self-improvement-the impulse to develop and refine the ego when the ego is, by nature, essentially empty.Trungpa's incisive, compassionate teachings serve to wake us up from these false comforts. Featuring a new foreward by his son and lineage holder, Cutting Through Spiritual Materialism has resonated with students for nearly thirty years-and remains as fresh as ever today.

Over the past twenty-five years A. H. Almaas-widely recognized as a leader in integrating spirituality and psychology-has been developing and teaching the Diamond Approach, a spiritual path that integrates the insights of Sufism, Buddhism, Gurdjieff, and other wisdom traditions with modern psychology. In this new work, Almaas uses the metaphor of a "spacecruiser" to describe a method of exploring the immediacy of personal experience-a way of investigating our moment-by-moment feelings, thoughts, reactions, and behaviors through a process of open-ended questioning. The method is called the practice of inquiry, and Spacecruiser Inquiry reveals what it means to engage with this practice as a spiritual path: its principles, challenges, and rewards. The author explores basic elements of inquiry, including the open-ended attitude, the focus on direct knowledge, the experience of not-knowing, and the process of questioning. He describes the experience of "Diamond Guidance"-the inner wisdom that emerges from our true nature-and how it can be realized and applied. In this process Almaas looks at many of the essential forms of Diamond Guidance, including knowing, clarity, truth, love, intelligence, compassion, curiosity, courage, and determination. Also included are exercises and questions and answers from the original talks by Almaas on which the book is based.

Massmarket edition of this spiritual guide to making the most of life, through bad times as well as good, from bestselling author Pema Choedroen. This accessible book has been on the US bestseller lists consistently for four years now.

In The Gateless Gate, one of modern Zen Buddhism''s uniquely influential masters offers classic commentaries on the Mumonkan, one of Zen''s greatest collections of teaching stories. This translation was compiled with the Western reader in mind, and includes Koan Yamada''s clear and penetrating comments on each case. Yamada played a seminal role in bringing Zen Buddhism to the West from Japan, going on to be the head of the Sanbo Kyodan Zen Community.The Gateless Gate would be invaluable if only for the translation and commentary alone, yet it''s loaded with extra material and is a fantastic resource to keep close by: An in-depth Introduction to the History of Zen Practice Lineage charts Japanese-to-Chinese and Chinese-to-Japanese conversion charts for personal names, place names, and names of writings Plus front- and back-matter from ancient and modern figures: Mumon, Shuan, Kubota Ji''un, Taizan Maezumi, Hugo Enomiya-Lasalle, and Yamada Roshi''s son, Masamichi Yamada. A wonderful inspiration for the koan practitioner, and for those with a general interest in Zen Buddhism.

Dating for around 300 BC, this is an early work of the Chinese school of philosophy called Taoism. It offers a complete view of the cosmos and how human beings should respond to it. It has mystical insight into the nature of things and forms a basis for a humane morality and political utopia.