Books published by Cascade Books

More often than not it''s a class in the social sciences that challenges the faith of students, not a class in biology. Does critical understanding of our religious traditions, institutions, and convictions undercut them? Or can a modern social scientific approach deepen faith''s commitments, making us full participants in today''s intellectual culture? In these conversations with eminent sociologists Robert Bellah and Christian Smith, leading scholars probe the religious potential of modern social science--and its theological limits.R. R. Reno has served as the editor of First Things, America''s most influential journal of religion in public life, since 2011. He received his PhD in theology from Yale University and taught theology and ethics at Creighton University in Omaha, Nebraska, for twenty years. He has been published in many academic journals, and his opinion essays have appeared in Commentary, The Washington Post, and other popular outlets. His most recent books include Fighting the Noonday Devil, Sanctified Vision, and a commentary on the book of Genesis.Barbara McClay is Associate Editor at The Hedgehog Review. She has written for a variety of publications and websites, including The American Spectator, The American Conservative, and Fare Forward. Before coming to The Hedgehog Review, she was a Junior Fellow at First Things and interned at The New Atlantis.

Over the last four decades, the focus of M. Douglas Meeks'' work has placed him at the center of many of the most important developments in theological reflection and education. As a political, ecclesial, and metaphorical theologian, Meeks has given witness to the oikonomia of the triune God, the Homemaker who creates the conditions of Home for the whole of creation, in critical conversation with contemporary economic, social, and political theory.The essays of this volume were written to honor Meeks, professor of theology at Vanderbilt Divinity School, by addressing the theme of God''s economy of salvation from biblical, historical, ecclesial, and theological perspectives. In an age of ecological devastation and economic injustice, Meeks teaches us how to place our hope--as disciples of Jesus, as members of local congregations, as stewards of institutional life, and as global citizens--in God''s power for life over death through Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit. These essays will serve to enliven and clarify this hope for the sake of the world God so loves.CONTRIBUTORS: Jurgen Moltmann, Timothy Reinhold Eberhart, Matthew W. Charlton, Walter Brueggemann, Josiah Young, Kendall Soulen, Patout Burns, John Cobb, Michael Welker, Nestor O. Miguez, Charles M. Wood, and Sondra Wheeler.""The faithful life of the church in the world has been Douglas Meeks'' lifelong focus as a theologian. This volume honors that career by gathering essays of his colleagues that probe what faithfulness of the church means in our present globalized economic reality.""--Randy L. Maddox, William Kellon Quick Professor of Wesleyan and Methodist Studies, Duke Divinity School""The quality and range of subjects addressed by the prominent contributors to this Festschrift provide highly interesting reading and render much-deserved tribute to the influence of M. Douglas Meeks as one of America''s foremost theologians in uncovering for the church and contemporary society the biblical significance of economics according to ''the economy of God.''""--Christopher Morse, Dietrich Bonhoeffer Professor Emeritus of Theology and Ethics, Union Theological Seminary""Such a powerful packet of papers--including the prophetic wisdom precisely calibrated for this perilous moment by Cobb and Moltmann--makes for a great tribute to a theologian who early exposed the oikonomia of global devastation.""--Catherine Keller, Professor of Constructive Theology, Drew Theological SchoolJurgen Moltmann is Professor Emeritus of Systematic Theology, Universitat Tubingen.Timothy R. Eberhart is Assistant Professor of Theology and Ecology at Garrett-Evangelical Theological Seminary in Evanston, Illinois, and the Methodist Theological School in Ohio, in Delaware, Ohio.Matthew W. Charlton is a United Methodist pastor in Nashville, Tennessee, and is Adjunct Professor of Religion at Belmont University and Methodist Theological School in Ohio, in Delaware, Ohio.

Karl Barth famously argued that all theology is sermon preparation. But what if all sermon preparation is actually theology? This book pursues a thoroughgoing theological vision for the practice of preaching as a way of doing theology. The idea is not just that homiletics is the realm of theological application. That would leave preaching in the position of simply implementing a theology already arrived at. Instead, the vision in these pages is of a form of theology that begins with preaching itself: its practice, its theories, and its contexts. Homiletical theology is thus a unique way of doing theology--even a constructive theological task in its own right. Homiletician David Schnasa Jacobsen has assembled several of the leading lights of contemporary homiletics to help to see its task ever more deeply as theological, yet in profoundly diverse ways. Along the way, readers will not only discover how homileticians do theology homiletically, but will deepen the way in which they understand their own preaching as a theological task.""With Jacobsen''s unfolding vision of the preparation and practices that the sermon event encompasses, our eyes peer into the many theological challenges and practical wisdom of honed preaching methods and discernment. Thriving between the work of constructive and practical theology, Jacobsen has gathered a handful of prominent homiletics scholars to explore the enterprise of preaching as doing theology that is conversation praxis at its own theological roots. And we learn profoundly from their doing!""--Dale P. Andrews, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN""This book is an invitation to the feast of open-ended, rich theological discourse on homiletics, prepared by seven lead homileticians, with their brilliant theological and homiletical insights. Finally comes this volume, long overdue, an invaluable resource for understanding the theological identity of homiletics from multiple angles. Creative and thought-provoking approaches to understanding homiletical theology, such as the integration of preaching and liturgy, make this book a must for teaching and learning about homiletics.""--Eunjoo Mary Kim, Iliff School of Theology, Denver, CO""In this important book, an all-star cast of homileticians explores a bold claim: preaching does not simply consume or use theology; preaching does theology in its own provisional, conversational mode. From diverse perspectives, the authors examine the constructive, practical, and methodological aspects of a homiletical theology. Along the way, they invite us to new perspectives on the nature of both theology and preaching.""--Charles L. Campbell, Duke Divinity School, Durham, NCDavid Schnasa Jacobsen is Professor of the Practice of Homiletics and Director of the Homiletical Theology Project at Boston University School of Theology, where he leads the PhD concentration in homiletics for BU''s program in practical theology. He is the author of Preaching in the New Creation: The Promise of New Testament Apocalyptic Texts (1999), and co-author of Preaching Luke-Acts (2001) and Kairos Preaching: Speaking Gospel to the Situation (2009).

In The Text in Play, Mike Higton and Rachel Muers conduct a series of experiments in the reading of Scripture. They experiment in the first place with a form of Christian theological exegesis of the Bible that they call ""serious play""--a form of reading beyond the literal sense that is nevertheless serious about the ethical, historical, and textual responsibilities of the reader. They experiment in the second place with the practice called Scriptural Reasoning--in which Jews, Christians, and Muslims read and argue over their respective Scriptures together--and argue that the practice makes deep sense for ""seriously playful"" Christian readers. This constitutes the most detailed and developed account of Scriptural Reasoning yet published.""The Text in Play offers a broad curriculum on how to read Scripture as Scripture--that is, as witness to the living God whose Word lives in a dynamic interchange with its reader. . . . It is a serious, playful read, a book you can read in one entranced sitting or again and again, a book that refreshes itself as you read it because such is the way of the Word.""--Peter Ochs, Professor of Modern Judaic Studies, University of Virginia""Higton and Muers offer imaginative, scholarly, wise, and often exhilarating explorations of Scripture, and they have succeeded brilliantly in sharing, through their delightful, accessible style, a profound understanding of the Bible''s practical implications for the twenty-first century. . . . There is an abundance of new insights and daring ideas, with extensive learning lightly worn, and through it all the attractive, serious play of fine minds and hearts in intensive engagement with deep questions.""--David F. Ford, Professor of Divinity and Director, Cambridge Inter-faith Programme, University of CambridgeMike Higton is Academic Co-Director of the Cambridge Inter-Faith Programme at the University of Cambridge and Senior Lecturer in Theology at the University of Exeter. He is the author of several books, including A Theology of Higher Education (2012), Christian Doctrine (2008), and Difficult Gospel (2004).Rachel Muers is Senior Lecturer in Christian Studies at the University of Leeds. Her publications include Keeping God''s Silence (2004), Living for the Future (2008), and, with David Grumett, Theology on the Menu: Asceticism, Meat and Christian Diet (2010).

Kierkegaard''s Pastoral Dialogues takes a selection of Kierkegaard''s most insightful spiritual writings and transforms them into a series of dialogues between two friends, a believer and a nonbeliever. In this way, some of Kierkegaard''s complex religious thought is made accessible to a wider readership, so as to provide a resource for individual or group study in pastoral, counseling, or spiritual direction contexts. Each dialogue is accompanied by a commentary and questions to help discussion by groups or application by individuals. Finally, there are three responses from, respectively, a philosopher, a theologian, and a hospital chaplain, looking at how the dialogues may be relevant to these different fields of practice.""Kierkegaard is a profound, Socratic, and dialogic thinker. Sometimes this dialogue is implicit in his work, and other times explicit. Kierkegaard''s Pastoral Dialogues offers a way into this thinking that makes the dialogical element both explicit and attentive, relating Kierkegaard''s dialogue with his reader to a contemporary pastoral context. A good book that presents, not learning about, but from Kierkegaard.""--Eberhard Harbsmeier, Professor, Aarhus University ""In these imaginative dialogues, Pattison and Jensen have captured the pith of Kierkegaard''s thinking on matters of life and death. They have done so without bowdlerizing or oversimplifying the texts. It is an achievement in the art of communication that Kierkegaard himself would have smiled upon!""--Gordon Marino, Director of Hong Kierkegaard Library, St. Olaf College""Can Kierkegaard comfort the anguished--acknowledging wounds and also ways to staunch them--through reflection and also through posture and bearing? This book is an utter success in bringing Kierkegaard''s ''Lilies of the Fields and Birds of the Air'' into immediate resonance with believer and nonbeliever alike, addressing aching questions, not as aberrant, but as profoundly and touchingly human. It provides heartfelt pastoral dialogues on sorrow and delight that a reader will find transforming.""--Edward F. Mooney, Professor at Syracuse University""This is a most welcome book, full of fresh and vibrant vistas on faith, prayer, virtue and Christian character. Pattison and Jensen''s adaptation is richly complemented by essays from John Lippit, Simon Podmore, and John McLuckie, who provide helpful and illuminating reflections on Kierkegaard''s extraordinary pastoral wisdom. This is an outstanding book that will both challenge and nourish all who study pastoral theology.""--Martyn Percy, Ripon College CuddesdonGeorge Pattison is Lady Margaret Professor of Divinity at the University of Oxford and has written extensively on Kierkegaard and modern religious thought. His most recent books are Kierkegaard and the Theology of the Nineteenth Century and Kierkegaard and the Quest for Unambiguous Life.Helle Moller Jensen has a doctorate in Systematic Theology from the University of Aarhus. After eleven years of experience as a hospital chaplain, she is currently a parish priest in the Danish People''s Church and is also a military chaplain to the Danish Royal Lifeguards.

This third volume of Sermons by Jonathan Edwards on the Matthean Parables contains a previously unpublished series of sermons by Edwards on Jesus'' Parable of the Net, as found in Matthew 13. Edwards preached these sermons in 1746, after the major phase of the Great Awakening had passed in New England and during the very months he was completing and publishing A Treatise Concerning Religious Affections, his masterful statement on the true and false signs of true grace. Therefore, this series is significant for its place in Edwards'' rich and evolving view of the nature of religious experience. To assist the reader, preceding the series are two introductions that describe Edwards'' preaching style and method, and provide an historical context. Prepared from the original manuscripts by the staff of the Jonathan Edwards Center at Yale University, this series represents a significant addition to the available Edwards corpus that will be of interest to scholars, religious leaders, and general readers.""These sermons give us a window into a crucial moment in Edwards''s career and theological development. Written just as the fervor of the Great Awakening was receding, and as he was composing his study of true and false Christianity--Religious Affections--these searching studies on the Matthean parable of the Net provide scholar and pastor with much theological meat upon which to chew. Minkema and Neele have placed us in their debt.""--Oliver Crisp, coeditor of After Jonathan Edwards""This volume is another contribution to the wonderful project of making the sermons of Edwards, previously virtually unknown, available for a general audience. Edwards''s reflections on the parable of the Net are especially revealing of one lesson he learned from the now-past awakenings--it was almost impossible to distinguish between the truly converted and the seemingly converted.""--George Marsden, author of Jonathan Edwards""It is well known that Edwards experimented with his sermon style, and this collection represents a rich and evocative stage in his work. The various introductions will ensure the reader is in and not out of his or her element. This is a fascinating addition to the published works.""--Michael McClenahan, author of Jonathan Edwards and Justification by Faith""Scholars and lay people alike will find these previously unpublished sermons on the parable of the Net, delivered towards the end of the Great Awakening, a rich resource for learning more about Edwards''s mature view on true religious experience. The introductions help the reader appreciate the historical context and Edwards''s unique style. While this series has been overshadowed in the past by Religious Affections, the reader will value their simplicity, beauty, and enduring biblical truths."" --Karin Spiecker Stetina, author of Jonathan Edwards'' Early Understanding of Religious Experience""Often overlooked, Matthew''s gospel is a resource the church can''t afford to neglect. We can be thankful then to the Jonathan Edwards Center at Yale for publishing for the first time Edwards''s sermons on the parable of the Net. They provide a fine introduction to Edwards''s skills in preaching, and pithy summaries of his theological priorities. We find here the big ideas of the Religious Affections, but preached in direct and simple language.""--Rhys Bezzant, Director of the Jonathan Edwards Center in AustraliaWilson H. Kimnach is the Presidential Professor in the Humanities (Emeritus), Bridgeport University, and General Sermon Editor of The Works of Jonathan Edwards. Kenneth P. Minkema is the Executive Editor and Director of the Jonathan Edwards Center, Yale University, and Research Scholar at Yale Divinity School.Rev. Dr. Adriaan C. Neele is the Associate Editor and Director of the Jonathan Edwards Center, Yale University, Research Scholar at Yale Divinity School, and Professor Extraordinary at the University of the Free State, Bloemfontein, South Africa.

This first volume of Sermons by Jonathan Edwards on the Matthean Parables contains a previously unpublished series by Edwards on Jesus'' Parable of the Wise and Foolish Virgins, as found in Matthew 25. Edwards preached these sermons in 1737-38, in the lull between the Connecticut Valley Revival of 1734-35 and the Great Awakening, which started in Massachusetts in late 1740. Not only does this series have significance for its place in the Protestant evangelical awakening of the eighteenth century, but it is also an important index of Edwards'' developing thought on the nature of sainthood and related topics of theoretical and practical Christianity, particularly in the context of widespread spiritual renewal. To assist the reader, preceding the series are two introductions that describe Edwards'' preaching style and method and provide an historical context for the series itself. Prepared from the original manuscripts by the staff of the Jonathan Edwards Center at Yale University, this series represents a significant addition to the available Edwards corpus that will be of interest to scholars, religious leaders, and general readers.""This is that rare book--for the beginner, the scholar, and the saint: a never-before-published sermon series by the master preacher at the height of his powers edited and introduced by the most knowledgeable of Edwards''s scholars. The beginner here gets the necessary help to start with the text; the scholar will be delighted to fill in more of the crucial years between the Northampton revival and the Great Awakening; the saint will rejoice at the piercing thought and burning passion.""--Stuart PigginDirector, Centre for the History of Christian Thought and Experience, Macquarie University, Sydney, Australia""Any writings of Jonathan Edwards, one of the greatest and most influential of Evangelical theologians, are worthy of careful attention, but these sermons engage with the crucial question of distinguishing a true experience of grace from a hypocritical profession of conversion. They are therefore of central importance for understanding an enduring issue in Evangelical faith and practice.""--David W. Bebbington, PhD, FRHistS, FEcclesHSProfessor of History, University of Stirling, Stirling, ScotlandDr. Wilson H. Kimnach is the Presidential Professor in the Humanities (Emeritus), Bridgeport University, and General Sermon Editor of The Works of Jonathan Edwards. Bryan McCarthy is a former editorial assistant at the Jonathan Edwards Center, Yale University, and is now a doctoral candidate at Oxford University. Dr. Kenneth P. Minkema is the Executive Editor and Director of the Jonathan Edwards Center, Yale University, and Research Scholar at Yale Divinity School. Rev. Dr. Adriaan C. Neele is the Associate Editor and Director of the Jonathan Edwards Center, Yale University, Research Scholar at Yale Divinity School, and Professor Extraordinary at the University of the Free State, Bloemfontein, South Africa.

This second volume of Sermons by Jonathan Edwards on the Matthean Parables contains a previously unpublished series of six sermons by Edwards on Jesus'' parable of the Sower and the Seed, as found in Matthew 13:3-7. Edwards preached these sermons in 1740 immediately following the visit of George Whitefield to Edwards'' church in Northampton, Massachusetts, in October of that year. Not only does this series have a historical significance for its place in the Great Awakening, but it contains important pronouncements on the preacher''s craft and the hearer''s responsibilities. These sermons have been placed in the context of Edwards'' preaching style and method, and framed by historical considerations. Prepared from the original manuscripts by the staff of the Jonathan Edwards Center at Yale University, this series represents a significant addition to the available Edwards corpus that will be of interest to scholars, religious leaders, and general readers.""Two preeminent figures of the Great Awakening--George Whitefield and Jonathan Edwards--came together in Northampton, Massachusetts, in October 1740. In the following month, with Whitefield in mind, Edwards started to discuss the subject of preaching in a series of sermons. Expounding on the parable of the Sower, the sermons are reproduced here with the usual accuracy of the Jonathan Edwards Center at Yale.""--David William Bebbington, University of Stirling ""In the entire history of the church there have been few greater preachers than George Whitefield and Jonathan Edwards. Here we meet both of them in conversation with each other at the height of the Great Awakening . . . Students of the Great Awakening will treasure this documentation of one of the great moments of American history. For students of homiletics, this could become an indispensible source on the art of great preaching."" --Stuart Piggin, Macquarie UniversityKenneth P. Minkema is the Executive Editor and Director of the Jonathan Edwards Center, Yale University, and Research Scholar at Yale Divinity School. Adriaan C. Neele is the Associate Editor and Director of the Jonathan Edwards Center, Yale University, Research Scholar at Yale Divinity School, and Professor Extraordinary at the University of the Free State, Bloemfontein, South Africa.Wilson H. Kimnach is the Presidential Professor in the Humanities (Emeritus), Bridgeport University, and General Sermon Editor of The Works of Jonathan Edwards.

Reading Scripture with a view to hearing its significance and challenge within its original, foreign context is the essence of exegesis and an anchor point for responsible hermeneutics. Reading Scripture alongside others from a significantly different social location also helps us see fresh aspects of the meaning of the text itself, as well as fresh angles on its challenge to Christian discipleship. This innovative commentary by respected New Testament scholar David deSilva is grounded in both approaches: a careful exegesis of Galatians as a basis for discerning the challenge of Scripture in any social location; and a reading of Galatians from the viewpoint of the challenges to living out its message among the churches in Sri Lanka, the result of extensive interaction with Christian leaders in Sri Lanka. Seeing the text afresh from within its ancient context and a different, modern social location will challenge readers in the West to consider once more Paul''s message of transformation through the Spirit, with implications for Western Christians in their own context and in the larger global matrix of the Church universal.""True to the spirit of Paul, David deSilva, in his creative work Global Readings, allows the Christian church to relive Paul''s theology in his Letter to the Galatians and to participate in the challenges faced by the Sri Lankan church today. David''s bold move in the ''Reading with Sri Lankan Christians'' sections of the commentary allows the ancient text to speak across space and time--a sacred task of an apostle.""-K. K. Yeoauthor of The Spirit Hovers: Journeying through Chaos with Prayers""DeSilva''s commentary on Galatians reflects engagement with Galatians scholarship yet remains easy for readers to use. It also reflects both careful consideration of the various historical issues in Galatians and also (albeit less extensively) explicit sensitivity to concrete readings of the text that supplement the usual Western applications.""-Craig Keenerauthor of Romans in the New Covenant Commentary Series""The ''miracle'' of biblical hermeneutics is that Christians around the world understand passages of the Bible differently, yet at the same time manage, without equivocation, to affirm the same gospel. David deSilva shows us one example of this by reporting on his engagement with Sri Lankan Bible students in understanding the book of Galatians. It is a brilliant model of learning from one another and at the same time standing together in the affirmation of scriptural truth.""-Terry C. Muckcoauthor of Christianity Encountering World Religions: The Practice of Mission in the Twenty-First Century David A. deSilva is Trustees'' Distinguished Professor of New Testament and Greek at Ashland Theological Seminary and an ordained minister in the Florida Conference of the United Methodist Church. He is the author of numerous books, including Seeing Things John''s Way: The Rhetoric of the Book of Revelation (2009), An Introduction to the New Testament: Contexts, Methods & Ministry Formation (2004), and Introducing the Apocrypha (2002).

The current popularity of contemplative prayer is not accidental. A twenty-first-century understanding of the human condition has made us suspicious of words and the understanding we craft out of words. Theology generally offers us words that purport to give us a more precise and certain understanding of God, but the mystic has always known that our relationship to God transcends words and the kind of understanding that words produce. The theology of the mystic has always been about understanding our communion with the mystery that is God in order to fall evermore deeply in love with the Divine. That is the ultimate purpose of contemplative prayer, and the purpose of this book is to offer a philosophy and theology of contemplative prayer in the twenty-first century.""Again, James Danaher shows us that the use of the mind and the search for God are not in competition, but in fact enrich and feed one another at very deep levels. How much we need this kind of integration in our culture--where so much religious talk seems divisive and compromised. Contemplative Prayer is not just about divine prayer but about the very quality of human faith and love.""-Richard Rohr, OFMauthor of Everything Belongs and The Naked Now""There is often a wide gulf in academia between the mind and the spirit. Many Christian academics start in the spirit but lose something of their spirituality in the development of their mind. Jim Danaher successfully bridges that gulf in this book on contemplative prayer. Jim''s insights into this marvelous discipline nourish both the mind and the spirit, bringing them together in Holy Communion with the Trinity.""-Ron WalbornDean, Alliance Theological SeminaryJames P. Danaher is Professor of Philosophy and Head of the Philosophy Department at Nyack College, Nyack, New York. He is the author of Jesus after Modernity: A Twenty-First-Century Critique of Our Modern Concept of Truth and the Truth of the Gospel (2011), Eyes That See, Ears ThatHear: Perceiving Jesus in a Postmodern Context (2006), Postmodern Christianity and the Reconstruction of the Christian Mind (2001), and over sixty articles that have appeared in a variety of philosophy and theology journals.

There is a lot of talk these days about how churches need to become more ""missional"" and ""Kingdom-focused""--but what about the families that make up our churches and often reflect the surrounding culture more than the Kingdom of God? Christian families know that God has a better purpose for marriage and family but often don''t have the slightest idea how to get there. And while many books on Christian marriage and family are inwardly focused on simply getting along ""better,"" this book addresses the cultural influences that have taken our focus away from God''s intended purpose for marriage and family and, through analysis and practical suggestions, recalls marriages and families to the purpose for which God intended them in the first place--namely, to serve God''s Kingdom as witnesses to a world desperately seeking deeper purpose and authenticity.""It would be quite wrong to describe what Trevecca Okholm says in Kingdom Family as new or groundbreaking--it just seems that way. She mines our Scriptures and tradition for wisdom on marriage and the family and presents a compelling picture that is so out of step with our conventional wisdom and patterns of living. While there is a prophetic and challenging message, the author delivers this without a sharp edge or accusation, but as an invitation to a better way of life--the way of the Kingdom.""--James C. WilhoitScripture Press Chair of Christian Education, Wheaton CollegeAuthor of Spiritual Formation as if the Church Mattered (2008)""As a seasoned minister of children and families for over twenty years, Trevecca Okholm has faithfully cultivated the practice of practical theology leading to a genuine transformation of the family and the church. Drawing on her wide reading and experience, Okholm invites the readers to re-envision--namely, reflect, remember, recommit, and rehearse--the life of God''s Kingdom intended for the families of God''s people in this world. A splendid and immensely practical work.""--S. Steve KangProfessor of Educational Ministries and Interdisciplinary Studies, Gordon-Conwell Theological SeminaryCoauthor of Teaching the Faith, Forming the Faithful (2009)Trevecca Okholm has been a professional Christian educator for nearly twenty-five years and has served as Minister to Children and Families at St. Andrew''s Presbyterian Church in Newport Beach, California. She is a Certified Christian Educator in the Presbyterian Church (USA) and received her MA in Educational Ministries from Wheaton Graduate School.

The fair and equitable distribution of wealth and the cultivation of proper attitudes toward material goods and economic development concern all religious traditions alike. In so far as the dynamics of the world market or the global economic system transcend the competency and control of any particular religion, dialogue between religions, as well as between religionists and economists becomes both possible and necessary. This volume brings together religious thinkers from various traditions as well as economists to reflect on the possibilities and the challenges of such dialogue.""This book can''t be more relevant because of the subject and the perspective it gives. But more than that, the occasion of its publication is more than opportune, at a moment where economics is the great concern for the whole world and threatens everyday life all around the globe. The relevant contribution religions can bring to that is organized with competence and creativity by Catherine Cornille and Glen Willis. It is mandatory reading for those working with economics and also for those who work with religious social thought of any confession and tradition.""-Maria Clara Bingemer Professor of Systematic TheologyCatholic University of Riode Janeiro, Brazil""At last a book in which scholars of religion and economics reach beyond their respective disciplines to address structural, political, and personal ways to understand and surmount financial hardship at both local and national levels. This collection of essays leads the way for a multidisciplinary dialogue not only on questions of economic development but also on the dangers of free market theism and the value of interrogating the moral underpinnings of market realities.""-Andy RotmanSmith College""This probing study of the interaction between religion and economics is urgently needed. It makes a unique contribution. Not since the work of Max Weber has the question received the intellectual attention it clearly deserves in our world marked by deep inequalities between rich and poor. This book raises challenging questions and proposes stimulating solutions that will demand equally serious exploration in the years ahead.""-David Hollenbach, SJBoston CollegeCatherine Cornille is Associate Professor of Comparative Theology at Boston College. She is author of The Im-Possibility of Interreligious Dialogue (2008), and editor of Song Divine: Christian Commentaries on the Bhagavadgita (2006), Criteria of Discernment in Interreligious Dialogue (Cascade Books, 2009), and Interreligious Hermeneutics (Cascade Books, 2010). She is managing editor of the series Christian Commentaries on Non-Christian Sacred Texts.Glenn Willis is a doctoral candidate in Comparative Theology at Boston College, working in the area of Buddhist-Christian dialogue.

This book is a collection of prayers based on the Old Testament texts--a good resource for worship leaders or generally for those interested in spirituality. The Spirit breathes life into us as we breathe and pray, thus granting us the hope that the Spirit can quicken and transform troubled waters into overflowing streams. This is an invitation to readers to breathe with God''s Spirit despite the unformed abyss, lifeless chaos, and life''s vicissitudes. It is often crisis or weakness that gets us to bend our knees. Through prayer, any dilemma or challenge can become fertile ground for growing in humanity as we journey with God, and consequently sojourn with one another and with creation.""K. K. Yeo brings to the voicing of prayer all the ingredients of faithfulness. He has an attentive ear for the biblical text, in order to notice where we may make poignant contact. He has a keen sensibility for the contemporaneity of ancient possibility. And he has courage for truth-telling right in the face of God. This deeply moving book will matter both to those who lead public prayer and to those who pray as adult believers and seek greater depth in their communion with God.""-Walter BrueggemannProfessor Emeritus of Old TestamentColumbia Theological Seminary""A rich prayer life is vital to a healthy relationship with God. He speaks to us through his Word and we speak to him through prayer. However, often we struggle with prayer. K. K. Yeo guides us through the Scriptures to help us find the words to bring our praises and petitions to God. I highly recommend this excellent work to all who want to deepen their prayer life.""-Tremper Longman IIIRobert H. Gundry Professor of Biblical StudiesWestmont College""There are some books that we read to gain information. And then there are others that encourage us, touch us where we hurt, and offer hope and spiritual healing--The Spirit Hovers is this kind of book. In times of conflict when our human resources are diminished and our wisdom fails to guide, when we do not need more information but long for the presence of God, the poems in this book, drawn from the struggles of Old Testament saints, point us to the God who hears, and cares, and whose love upholds and sustains us. I highly recommend this book for public worship, private devotion, or simply daily reading. You will find comfort and encouragement as these poems guide you to the Source of genuine comfort, unfailing love, and the certainty of God''s promises.""-Donald L. AlexanderProfessor Emeritus of Biblical StudiesBethel University""At the intersection of the strains of life and the hope of the Bible, we pray. K. K. Yeo teaches each of us, and helps us together as a Christian community, to pray through the chaos of our stories as they are woven together with The Story. These are prayers of discovery for traveling down the road, not staying in the monastery, with Scripture open to map the way.""-Gene L. GreenProfessor of New TestamentWheaton CollegeK. K. Yeo is Harry R. Kendall Professor of New Testament Interpretation at Garrett-Evangelical Theological Seminary, Visiting Professor at Peking University (China), and Academic Director of the International Leadership Group. He has lectured not only in Asia but also in Israel, Greece, Turkey, and Australia. Yeo is the author of Musing with Confucius and Paul (Cascade Books, 2008) and a collection of prayers based on New Testament texts, The Spirit Intercedes (Cascade Books, 2009). He lives in Chicago with his wife and children.

In A Faith Not Worth Fighting For, editors Justin Bronson Barringer and Tripp York have assembled a number of essays by pastors, activists, and scholars in order to address the common questions and objections leveled against the Christian practice of nonviolence. Assuming that the command to love one''s enemies is at the heart of the Gospel, these writers carefully, faithfully--and no doubt provocatively--attempt to explain why the nonviolent path of Jesus is an integral aspect of Christian discipleship. By addressing misconceptions about Christian pacifism, as well as real-life violent situations, this book will surely challenge the reader''s basic understanding of what it means to be a follower of Jesus.In this anthology of new essays, theologians reply to such challenges to Christian pacifism as what would you do if someone were attacking a loved one, what about Hitler, and didn''t Jesus chase people from the temple with a whip? By countering common objections to the Christian peace witness, the book endeavors to help both pacifists and nonpacifists alike gain a deeper understanding of how a Christian commitment to nonviolence can be enacted and supported. Especially strong essays include ""What About War and Violence in the Old Testament?"" by Ingrid Lilly (Western Kentucky University) and ""Didn''t Jesus Say He Came Not to Bring Peace, but a Sword?"" by Samuel Wells (Be Not Afraid), which combines a close reading of the biblical text with a contemporary illustration of the difference between appeasement and a principled peace stance. The essays are, on the whole, varied, lively, and thought provoking. The book includes an introduction by Stanley Hauerwas (War and the American Difference) and an afterword by Shane Claiborne (Irresistible Revolution).--Publishers Weekly""Addressing oft-heard questions posed to Christians who refuse to kill, this is a must-read book for all Christians occupying church pews or sitting behind desks in college classrooms. . . . Even if one does not agree with everything written here (and I don''t), A Faith Not Worth Fighting For helpfully clarifies the theology of Christian nonviolence so as to foster further--and hopefully fruitful--conversation.""--Tobias WinrightAssociate Professor of Theological Ethics, Saint Louis University""This book addresses the predictable questions posed to pacifists. Having spoken publicly hundreds of times and in varied contexts on pacifism, I know this. However, having read widely on the subject of the Christian faith and violence, I also know that this book is a rare treat. For it offers mature, carefully considered reflections on this standard set of issues. This is almost unheard of; this book is a valuable resource.""--Mark Thiessen NationProfessor of Theology, Eastern Mennonite University""A Faith Worth Fighting For is much needed. Its essays provide readers with clear thinking and moral seriousness that challenge all followers of Jesus to journey with him in the ways of peace. Just about any possible objection to Christian pacifism is considered--and overcome.""--Ted Grimsrud, Professor of Theology and Peace Studies, Eastern Mennonite UniversityTripp York teaches in the Religious Studies Department at Virginia Wesleyan College in Norfolk, VA. He is the author and editor of numerous books including Third Way Allegiance, Living on Hope While Living in Babylon, and The Devil Wears Nada.Justin Bronson Barringer is a graduate student at Asbury Theological Seminary where he also works for the Office of Global Community Formation. He has been a missionary in China and Greece, worked extensivelyamong homeless people in Nashville, and served at mercy and justice organizations like The Dream Center and Sojourners.

Both engineering and human living take place in a messy world, one chock full of unknowns and contingencies. ""Design reasoning"" is the way engineers cope with real-world contingency. Because of the messiness, books about engineering design cannot have ""ideal solutions"" printed in the back in the same way that mathematics textbooks can. Design reasoning does not produce a single, ideally correct answer to a given problem but rather generates a wide variety of rival solutions that vie against each other for their relative level of ""satisfactoriness."" A reasoning process analogous to design is needed in ethics. Since the realm of interpersonal relations is itself a fluid and highly contingent real-world affair, design reasoning offers the promise of a useful paradigm for ethical reasoning.This volume undertakes two tasks. First, it employs design reasoning to illustrate how technological artifacts can be assessed for their inherent moral properties. Second, it uses the design paradigm as a means for bringing engineering ethics into conversation with Christian theology in order to show how each can be for the other a catalyst for the revolutionary task of living by design.""By Design first draws a parallel between the discipline of engineering and the discipline of ethics by identifying both as areas that (to use the author''s term) are ''messy,'' and hence require the use of heuristics. It is extremely well written, well researched, and well illustrated, with numerous authoritative examples carefully chosen from engineering and religion. I highly recommend this book.""--Billy V. Koen, Professor Emeritus of Mechanical Engineering, The University of Texas at Austin""Kallenberg''s understanding and use of the design process allows readers to embrace problems of increasing ethical density. Not only will this appeal to engineers, but it will guide them toward appreciating all the gray areas in real decision making.""--Andrew P. Murray, Professor of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, University of DaytonBrad J. Kallenberg is Professor of Theology at the University of Dayton in Dayton, Ohio. He is author of Ethics as Grammar (2001), Live to Tell (2002), God and Gadgets (2011), and numerous scholarly articles.

Through the fascinating stories of pioneering ministers, this book reveals a unique picture of progressive changes occurring in the Christian tradition. Meeting challenges and overcoming obstacles, these twelve diverse ministers are changing the church as they take prophetic stands on gender, race, interfaith cooperation, ecology, sexual orientation, economic opportunity, and other social justice issues. Believing in the power of sacred symbolism to shape social reality and to provide a foundation for justice and freedom for all people, these ministers lead worship with inclusive language and imagery for humanity and divinity. They include multicultural female and male images of the Divine. Their stories affirm the connection between this expansive theology and an ethic of justice and equality in human relationships. In working from within to change the church, these ministers have risked censure by denominational authorities, loss of opportunities for promotion to larger congregations or to prestigious denominational positions, and even loss of their jobs. They have found creative ways to balance advocating for change and working to support the church, using their positions as ordained clergy to bring liberating change to the church and the wider culture.""I know of no other book like this. Jann Aldredge-Clanton not only convincingly shows why our language and imagery for God must include the feminine as well as the masculine, but she also shows how such inclusiveness can be introduced and implemented in our churches. And she does it through wonderful real-life stories.Wholeheartedly recommended.""-Letha Dawson ScanzoniEditor of Christian Feminism Todayco-author of All We''re Meant to Be: Biblical Feminism for Today""These are stories that need to be told, that have been waiting to be told, so that women and men embarking on this journey know that others have been there before them, have faced some of the same challenges and struggles, and have found ways to be both faithful and emancipating. But most of all, we need to know these stories so that women''s history in the church is not, once again, lost and forgotten and denied.""-Marjorie Procter-SmithPerkins School of Theologyauthor of The Church in Her House: A Feminist Emancipatory Prayer Book of Christian Communities""What does it mean to transform Christian language for prayer and liturgy to really include female symbols for the divine? This is the question Jann Aldredge-Clanton asked in writing this book. To answer this question she did interviews with twelve innovative ministers from seven denominations. These interviews give compelling testimony of the transformation that happens for religious communities when language for God is really affirmed in both genders.""-Rosemary Radford RuetherClaremont Graduate Universityauthor of Integrating Ecofeminism, Globalization, and World ReligionsJann Aldredge-Clanton, PhD, ordained minister and chaplain, is an adjunct professor at Perkins School of Theology and at Richland Community College in Dallas, Texas. She is the author of numerous books, including Inclusive Hymns for Liberating Christians (2006); Seeking Wisdom: Inclusive Blessings and Prayers for Public Occasions (2010); Praying with Christ-Sophia: Services for Healing and Renewal (2007); and God, a Word for Girls and Boys (2007).

This book has two main theses. First, for the biblical/Christian doctrine of sin the root of the human problem is hardness of heart--the corruption of the core self, of the seat of understanding and will. On the other hand, for an important strand of Greek tragedy the root of human harm-doing is the nonculpable blindness and anxiety of finitude that despite the initial nonculpability lead to evil and suffering. The Hardened Heart shows that these two different interpretations of human existence are amenable to a degree of synthesis that leads to this conclusion: hardness of heart and our ordinary finitude together collude to cause sin in its fullness.The second thesis of this volume is that exegetical studies disclose a deconstructive strand in certain biblical texts that represents the finite world that God created as a source of distress and harm-doing in something like the tragic sense. This subdominant deconstructive position challenges the dominant biblical vision, in which the creation came forth from God''s creative word as good without qualification.""Via''s incisive demonstration of tragic finitude in Jewish and Christian Scripture--showing where it runs alongside the dominant themes of sin and the ''hardened heart''--sharpens and clarifies our awareness of how innocence and suffering mingle with anxiety and moral culpability. His new comparisons of key biblical texts with themes from Greek tragedy lead to a provocative and acute theological account of the origins of evil and the challenges of grace and responsibility.""--Larry D. Bouchard, Professor of Religious Studies, University of Virginia""Through careful exegesis and masterful theological reasoning, Via develops a far more compelling view of the sinful nature of the human condition, both at its heart and in its limitations, than other studies of biblical sin have been able to provide. This book is a superb example of biblical theology done extremely well.""--Mary Ann Tolbert, Professor of Biblical Studies, Pacific School of Religion and the Graduate Theological UnionDan O. Via has taught on the faculties of Wake Forest University, the University of Virginia, and Duke University Divinity School, in which he is now Emeritus Professor of New Testament. He has also been a visiting professor at the University of Zimbabwe and Harvard Divinity School. He is the author of forty articles and ten books, including the groundbreaking The Parables, and has edited another sixteen volumes.

Christian teaching and modern sensibilities both eschew ""nationalism"" as an extreme, fanatical form of patriotism, an excessive or disordered form of an otherwise healthy and proper national identity. But what if the problem of nationalism is something much more fundamental? What if nationalism is actually the process leading to national identity in the first place? And what happens when this process entails selectively appropriating and reinterpreting the Christian tradition for the sake of the envisioned nation? This book takes up these questions within the context of American Christian nationalism. Here, the process of interweaving the Christian narrative with American history and myth is examined in depth through a thorough engagement with scholarship on nationalism and within a framework shaped by contemporary theopolitical studies and the biblical narrative. The study aims to discern how the Christian Scriptures and theological tradition have been used by Christians themselves to further what amounts to an alternative gospel. In so doing this book charts a path for the church to evaluate itself honestly in light of Christ''s lordship, repent, and learn to tell its story more truly. ""It would be hard to overstate the importance of this book. Taking the work of Yoder, Hauerwas, and Cavanaugh a crucial step further, Anderson explores why and how nationalism--particularly in America--is so often bred, nurtured, and promoted as political good news in and by the church itself through distorted readings of the biblical narrative, thereby fundamentally compromising the church''s witness. . . . Churches and Christians in all nations must heed carefully the compelling argument of this book.""--Douglas HarinkProfessor of TheologyThe King''s University College, EdmontonAuthor of Paul, Philosophy, and the Theopolitical Vision (Cascade, 2010)""This is a creative and challenging exploration of the issues, controversies, and challenges that surround questions of Christianity and nationalism. Braden Anderson makes an original and important contribution to debates on whether and how ''being a Christian'' affects other identities, loyalties and priorities. His exploration of Scripture, political theology and contemporary issues makes this a rewarding book for scholars, pastors, and lay leaders.""--Michael L. BuddeProfessor of Catholic Studies and Political Science, Senior Research Scholar, Center for World Catholicism and Intercultural TheologyDePaul University, ChicagoAuthor of The Borders of Baptism (Cascade, 2011)Braden P. Anderson earned his PhD in Theology and Society from the Department of Theology at Marquette University. He also completed previous graduate degrees in theology from Marquette and in political science from the University of Kansas.

The human race, along with the animals and plants that make up the creation of God, face a difficult future due to the multiple ways that the ecosystem on which they all depend is currently under stress. Temperatures are rising along with the oceans. Rain forests are falling along with the polar ice caps. Questions of the environment are now front and center in any catalog of concerns. Those who are called to preach need to include in the subjects of their sermons these environmental issues. Our Bible contains significant resources, often overlooked, as bases on which powerful environmental sermons can be preached. This book introduces the subject of preaching and the environment, offering close looks at important biblical passages that address the cosmos of God, and presenting sample sermons founded on those passages. The book calls for preachers both to name the vast problems we face and to offer the hope of the gospel of God to address them.""This is a ''must have'' book for every preacher who seeks to help congregations towards a faithful understanding of how human beings can join God''s purposes for the created world. John Holbert''s work is comprehensive: from the creation narratives in Genesis through the Prophets and Wisdom Literature to the less-often-considered role of creation in the Letters, Gospels, and Book of Revelation, John offers incisive (and highly quotable) exegesis and epigrammatic sample sermons.""--Ronald J. AllenProfessor of Preaching and New TestamentChristian Theological Seminary""As various pseudo-experts make hay of dubious environmental science, John Holbert offers us reliable and exegetically sound biblical theology in order to help us address a creation that human beings are ''trashing.'' Not just this, but Holbert helps the church address these ecological issues via the faith we preach.""--Rev. David N. Mosser, PhDSenior Pastor of First United Methodist Church of Arlington, Texas and author of Transitions: Leading Churches through Change (2011)""[T]his book . . . changed my thinking about what the Bible says and left me with both help to preach on the subject and the passionate desire to do so!This is a powerful book, the kind that drags you through your resistance and persuades you to enjoy the trip. . . . John Holbert offers fresh exegetical insights, compelling arguments, and examples of the kind of sermons that prime a preacher''s pump. But you will come away from this book with more than good compasses and maps, this is a book filled with hope.""--Jana ChildersProfessor of Homiletics and Speech CommunicationSan Francisco Theological Seminary""What word can preachers bring to human creatures who are putting the earth at risk? Holbert answers the question with incisive biblical interpretation, scientific knowledge, and lively sermons. He dispels the misuse of religious faith to deny or ignore the environmental crisis, and he demonstrates how to preach a scientifically informed faith that honors the Creator by redefining our role as lovers and partners of the natural order. An essential book for preachers now.""--Thomas H. TroegerLantz Professor of Christian CommunicationYale Divinity School & Institute of Sacred MusicJohn C. Holbert is Lois Craddock Perkins Professor of Homiletics at Perkins School of Theology at Southern Methodist University, where he has been a member of the faculty for thirty-two years. He is the author of seven previous books, each having to do with the relationships between the Bible and the work of preaching.

The Gospel of Judas: On a Night with Judas Iscariot presents a fresh translation of the Gospel of Judas, with introduction, commentary, and notes. Originally published with considerable international fanfare in 2006, the Gospel of Judas has prompted a vibrant discussion among scholars and other interested readers about the meaning of the text and the place of Judas Iscariot in the story of Jesus and the history of the church. Meyer, a member of the original research team assembled by the National Geographic Society to edit, translate, and publish the Gospel of Judas and the remaining texts in what is now called Codex Tchacos, here offers an up-to-date and thoroughly accessible translation of the Gospel of Judas, expanded with new fragments of the text and informed by the latest scholarship. He adds reminiscences of the work on the Coptic text when it first was coming to light in 2005 and 2006. This book also includes reflections on the extensive literature, beyond the Gospel of Judas, on the figure of Judas Iscariot, with suggestions for a literary interpretation of Judas--an interpretation that may have a dramatic impact upon our understanding of the role of Judas Iscariot in the story of Jesus''s passion.""Marvin Meyer can justly be considered the premier translator of ancient Gnostic writings in North America and one of the world''s leading experts on the Gospel of Judas. Now he provides a vivid and compelling translation of this most important text along with an insightful introduction and copious notes. Most intriguing of all, he narrates a theatrical engagement with issues that emerge from recent reflections on the world''s most infamous and intriguing ''villain,'' Judas Iscariot. This is intense scholarship and creative imagination at the highest level.""-Bart D. EhrmanUniversity of North Carolina at Chapel Hill""Marvin Meyer has a track record of a series of serious academic publications that are both readable and reliable, which distinguished tradition The Gospel of Judas continues on the same high plane.""-James M. RobinsonClaremont Graduate University""Beginning with the Nag Hammadi library, the Dead Sea Scrolls, and the Gospel of Judas, we have a trinity of essential holy scriptures that radically enrich and alter our knowledge of Judaism, Christianity, and Gnosticism. Now with his definitive version of Judas and its latest fragments, Marvin Meyer bequeaths the world a benevolent Judas. Meyer provides a crisp literary translation and introduction to the fully annotated Judas text--as well as a surprise: ''A Night with Judas Iscariot.'' In his profoundly funny and thoughtful mystery play, Judas stars as the redemptive figure. Hurrah for this revolutionary book with its poetic enlightenment!""-Willis Barnstoneauthor of The Restored New Testament and The Other Bible""In this book Professor Marvin Meyer shares in a very readable way his thoughtful insights into the Coptic Gospel of Judas--a second-century text essential for our understanding of the first steps of Christianity and the gnostic movements--while providing the key to unveil the symbolic contents of this apocryphal gospel. The epilogue--''A Night with Judas Iscariot''--shows well how ancient texts can be communicated meaningfully to a contemporary audience. This is a strong, powerful book that captivates the reader from the first page to the last.""-Madeleine ScopelloCorrespondant de l''Institut de France""No other recent discovery from Christian antiquity has stirred so much debate as the Gospel of Judas. Does it really rehabilitate Judas, or does it place him in the same role of a villain as the gospels in the New Testament? Does this gospel contain ''good news,'' and if so, to whom, or does it only proclaim bad news to Judas and to all of humankind? So much has been written about this text since its publication in 2006 that one might wonder if something substantially new can be added to the discussion any longer. Marvin Meyer''s important new book sh

Should Christianity''s theological face remain largely European and North American in the twenty-first century in the wake of the expansion of Christianity in sub-Saharan Africa, Asia, and Latin America? The question about the ""theological face"" of Christianity cannot be ignored. For too long African, Asian, and Latin American theologians have been left out of mainstream theological discussions. Few standard textbooks on Christian theology acknowledge the unique contributions theologians from these continents have made to global Christianity. Introducing Christian Theologies: Voices from Global Christian Communities is a two-volume textbook that alters the predominantly European and North American ""theological face"" of Christianity by interacting with the voices of the Christian communities from around the globe. Introducing Christian Theologies explores the works of key theologians from across the globe, highlighting their unique contributions to Christian theology and doctrine.""Introducing Christian Theologies Christian Theologies is a feast! It covers the major doctrines well while being clear, accessible, engaging, and attractive. It is careful to describe faithfully differing views, but not too timid to evaluate them. . . . Most of all, it moves thoroughly into the twenty-first century with numerous contemporary theologians and debates and with the rich and exciting flavors of Africa, Asia, and Latin America.""--Timothy Larsen, Wheaton College""Applying the best of contemporary contextualizing methodology, this introduction to Christian theology from a global and ecumenical perspective equips learners to engage a wide variety of perspectives on the major Christian doctrines. . . . Drawing on and interpreting original historical sources in ways today''s learners can understand, Victor Ezigbo provides a comprehensive, truly global perspective on key Christian teachings that has been missing in earlier English-language, introductory theological texts.""--Heather Clements, Azusa Pacific University""By creatively engaging with African, Asian, and Latin American Christian theologians, Ezigbo corrects the ''Euro-American theological face'' of world Christianity in this globally relevant introductory textbook for Christian theology.""--Jayachitra Lalitha, Co-Chair of World Christianity Group, American Academy of Religions""The author, a budding African theologian, brings fresh, robust insights into Christian theology, prioritizing the voices of non-Western theologies in tandem with mainstream theologies, thus bringing them into the global academic limelight. One merit of Introducing Christian Theologies is its pedadogical value and the all-embracing themes and topics. This is a must-read for all those interested in grasping the breadth and richness of the ''theological face'' of global Christianity in the twenty-first century.""--Afe Adogame, The University of Edinburgh, UKVictor I. Ezigbo is Associate Professor of Contextual and Systematic Theology at Bethel University in St. Paul, Minnesota. He is the author of Re-Imagining African Christologies (2010).

Shame has many faces. From the pressing need to avoid ""losing face"" to the urge to scapegoat and blame, from the desire to exclude those who are different to the horrors of ethnic cleansing, from the obsession with body image to the abiding terrors of the abused, shame is a universal phenomenon. It transcends boundaries of time and is evident in diverse cultures across the world. It is, furthermore, found throughout the pages of Scripture, yet in modern theology shame is conspicuous by its absence. This book attempts to redress the balance by exploring the theology of shame, from its inception in the garden of Eden, to the final triumph over shame on the cross. Restoring the Shamed will offer readers the opportunity to think theologically about one of the most urgent, yet strangely secret, issues of contemporary society.""Robin Stockitt''s Restoring the Shamed is a rediscovery of a neglected dimension in the biblical witnesses, making it relevant for today''s most painful human experiences. It offers an abundance of pastoral insights, creative theological explorations, and imaginative suggestions for ecclesial practice. Beginning with . . . the absence of a theology of shame in modern theology, the book becomes a courageous and rewarding journey of theological discovery.""--Christoph SchwobelChair in Systematic TheologyUniversity of Tubingen""This is a passionate book, in all the right senses . . . Reading it will not only help to restore the shamed; it will likely restore a godly passion--and few things are more sorely needed in theology today.""--Jeremy S. BegbieThomas A. Langford Research ProfessorDuke Divinity School""Robin Stockitt has written a powerful and persuasive book that shows the centrality of shame in human experience and in the biblical message. It is the most readable and theologically astute account of Christ''s ministry to the shamed that is available today. This warmly pastoral book contains rich resources to deal with crippling experiences such as being treated as unworthy or unwanted.""--Robert JewettVisiting Professor of New TestamentUniversity of HeidelbergRobin Stockitt is the minister of the Anglican Church in Freiburg, Germany. He is the author of Open to the Spirit: Ignatius of Loyola and John Wimber in Dialogue (2000) and Imagination and the Playfulness of God: The Theological Implications of Samuel Taylor Coleridge''s Definition of the Human Imagination (2011).

Whatever religion may have meant to the boy when he was younger, in the teenage years it takes the form of a personal journey or quest. This journey is related to other aspects of his life and is integral to how he experiences himself and others. The title of this volume--Striking Out--has the connotation of the beginning of a journey that will take the boy in new directions, but it also suggests the baseball metaphor of a batter being called out on strikes. The first sense is positive; the second is negative. Together, they express the anticipatory and hopeful nature of the venture, but also the possibility that the undertaking may evoke feelings of fear, frustration, and failure. By focusing on real-life examples of teenage boys (both historical and contemporary), the book presents five typical manifestations of a boy''s vulnerabilities as he sets forth on the journey: the stumbler, the struggler, the straggler, the straddler, and the stranger. It explores the ways in which these vulnerabilities may contribute in positive ways to his personal growth and his religious maturity.Throughout this book Gordon W. Allport''s classic text The Individual and His Religion draws attention to the claim that a boy''s religious sentiment may play a decisive role in the integration of his personality despite its inevitable disparities and uncertainties, and the real-life examples are presented as evidence that this religious sentiment provides direction and clarity of vision as the boy looks toward the future. ""This book is about the religious journeys of boys. It assumes, correctly, that there is (and should be) a congruity between a boy''s life and his religion. Just as a boy''s life changes, his religiosity changes. Capps writes about these changes by exploring common vulnerabilities that boys face as they strike out on their own journeys. Capps gives us all--and especially teenage boys--hope for the journey.""-Nathan CarlinThe University of Texas Medical School, Houston, Texas ""Capps takes us right to the heart of the religious journey of the adolescent male--a journey marked by stumbling, struggling, straggling, straddling, and being a stranger. He masterfully pulls together a number of strands to tell his story of striking out that is at once deeply perceptive, profoundly human, and richly spiritual . . . This is a simply brilliant exposition of the religious journey of teenage boys.""-Neil Pembroke,University of Queensland""Striking Out is a home run! All five of Capps''s personality types (the stumbler, the struggler, the straggler, the straddler, and the stranger) are in my youth group, so this is a particularly relevant book for me. Capps navigates the vulnerable adolescent journey masterfully, thoughtfully, and faithfully. All those invested in the spiritual journey of teenagers will discover great hope in Striking Out.""-Joshua StewartFirst Presbyterian Church, Fort Worth, Texas""Capps spoke to me personally as a man who had once been a young teenage boy with questions, emotions, and baggage striking out on my own spiritual journey. He speaks to me as a new father, as I imagine my son''s future, with all of his potential and struggles ahead, and my hope to help him keep his eyes on the ball each time he comes to the plate. Capps also speaks to me as a pastor and educator, as I realize the great need of this very specific population in our culture and nation. Striking out is a paradox with which we must each deal in one way or another.""-Grafton T. EliasonCalifornia University of PennsylvaniaDonald Capps (1939-2015) was William Harte Felmeth Professor of Pastoral Theology (Emeritus) and Adjunct Professor at Princeton Theological Seminary. He is the author of Striking Out (Cascade Books, 2011), At Home in the World (Cascade Books, 2013), Still Growing (Cascade Books, 2014), and The Resourceful Self (Cascade Books, 2014). He is coauthor with Nathan Carlin of Living in Limbo (Cascade Books, 2010) and The Gift of