Books published by Plough Publishing House

When we read the book of nature, what do we read there? ¿All things bright and beautiful, all creatures great and small, all things wise and wonderful, the Lord God made them all,¿ says a well-known hymn. This issue of Plough celebrates the creatures of our planet ¿ plant, animal, and human ¿ and the implications of humankind¿s relationship to nature.But if nature can be read as a book that reveals the wisdom of its Creator, it also reveals things less lovely than stars and singing birds ¿ a world of desperate competition for survival, mass extinctions, and deadly viruses. Is such a world a convincing argument for the Creator¿s goodness? Turns out Christians and skeptics alike have been asking such questions since long before Darwin added a twist.Are we moderns out of practice at reading the book of nature? And if we forget how, will we fail to read human nature as well ¿ what rights or purposes our Creator may have endowed us with? What then is there to limit the bounds of technological manipulation of humankind?This issue of Plough explores these and other fascinating questions about the natural world and our place in it.In this issue:- Sussex farmer Adam Nicholson evokes centuries of handwork that shaped the landscape of the Weald.- Gracy Olmstead revisits the land her forebears farmed in Idaho.- Ian Marcus Corbin tries walking phoneless to better note the beauty of the natural world.- Amish farmer John Kempf, a leader in regenerative agriculture, foresees a healthier future for farming.- Leah Libresco Sargeant offers a feminist critique of society¿s war on women¿s bodies.- Iván Bernal Marín visits Panama City¿s traditional fishermen.- Maureen Swinger recalls to triumphs of second grade in forest school.- Edmund Waldstein questions head transplants and the limits of medical science.- Kelsey Osgood says it¿s natural to fear death, and to transcend that fear through faith.- Tim Maendel lifts the veil on urban beekeeping along the Manhattan skyline.You¿ll also find:- An essay by Christian Wiman on the poetry of doubt and faith- New poems by Alfred Nicol- A profile of Amazon activist nun Dorothy Stang- An appreciation of Keith Green¿s songs- Insights on creation from Blaise Pascal, Julian of Norwich, Francis of Assisi, Mechthild of Magdeburg, Christopher Smart, Augustine of Hippo, The Book of Job, and Sadhu Sundar Singh- Reviews of The Opening of the American Mind, and Kazuo Ishigurös Klara and the SunPlough Quarterly features stories, ideas, and culture for people eager to put their faith into action. Each issue brings you in-depth articles, interviews, poetry, book reviews, and art to help you put Jesus¿ message into practice and find common cause with others.

How did violence become OK? And is there any way back?At some point between George Floyd¿s killing on May 25 and the invasion of the US Capitol on January 6, Americäs consensus against political violence crumbled. Before 2020, almost everyone agreed that it should be out of bounds. Now, many are ready to justify such violence ¿ at least when it is their side breaking windows or battling police officers. Something significant seems to have slipped. Is there any way back?As Christians, we need to consider what guilt we bear, with the rise of a decidedly unchristian ¿Christian nationalism¿ that historically has deep roots in American Christian culture. But shouldn¿t we also be asking ourselves what a truly Christian stance might look like, one that reflects Jesus¿ blessings on the peacemakers, the merciful, and the meek?Oscar Romero, when accused of preaching revolutionary violence, responded: ¿We have never preached violence, except the violence of love, which left Christ nailed to a cross.¿ If we take Jesus¿ example and his call to nonviolence at face value, we¿re left with all kinds of interesting questions: What about policing? What about the military? What about participating in government? This issue of Plough addresses some of these questions and explores what a life lived according to love rather than violence might look like.In this issue:- Anthony M. Barr revisits James Baldwin¿s advice about undoing racism.- Gracy Olmstead describes welcoming the baby she did not expect during a pandemic.- Patrick Tomassi debates nonviolence with Portland¿s anarchists and Proud Boys.- Scott Beauchamp advises on what not to ask war veterans.- Rachel Pieh Jones reveals what Muslims have taught her about prayer.- Eberhard Arnold argues that Christian nonviolence is more than pacifism.- Stanley Hauerwas presents a vision of church you¿ve never seen in practice.- Andrea Grosso Ciponte graphically portrays the White Rose student resistance to Nazism.- Zito Madu illuminates rap¿s role in escaping the violence of poverty.- Springs Toledo recounts his boxing match with an undefeated professional.You¿ll also find:- An interview with poet Rhina P. Espaillat- New poems by Catherine Tufariello- Profiles of Anabaptist leader Felix Manz and community founder Lore Weber- Reviews of Marly Youmans¿s Charis in the World of Wonders, Judith D. Schwartz¿s The Reindeer Chronicles, Chris Lombardi¿s I Ain¿t Marching Anymore, and Martín Espadäs FloatersPlough Quarterly features stories, ideas, and culture for people eager to put their faith into action. Each issue brings you in-depth articles, interviews, poetry, book reviews, and art to help you put Jesus¿ message into practice and find common cause with others.

A veces sensible, a veces provocativo, pero siempre alentador, Arnold guía a los lectores a llevar una vida a semejanza de Cristo, en medio de las presiones y tensiones de la vida moderna. Tal vez lo más difícil de seguir a Cristo es convertir nuestras buenas intenciones en hechos. Cristo nos llama y anhelamos responder a su llamado, pero una y otra vez fallamos en nuestra determinación. ¿Es posible el discipulado hoy?Muchas selecciones en este libro ofrecen respuestas a necesidades o problemas específicos. Otras abordan temas más amplios como el sufrimiento en el mundo, la salvación y la venida del reino de Dios. Pero todas están llenas de convicción y compasión, dando nueva esperanza a los que se encuentran solos o desanimados en la búsqueda diaria de seguir a Cristo.

In Why Forgive? Arnold lets the untidy experiences of ordinary people speak for themselves--people who have earned the right to talk about forgiving.Some of these stories deal with violent crime, betrayal, abuse, hate, gang warfare, and genocide. Others address everyday hurts: the wounds caused by backbiting, gossip, conflicts in the home, and tensions in the workplace. The book also tackles what can be the biggest challenge: forgiving ourselves.These people, who have overcome the cancer of bitterness and hatred, can help you unleash the healing power of forgiveness in your own life.Why Forgive? these stories and decide for yourself.

How did earliest Christians receive and understand the teaching of Jesus and the apostles? These writings, among the earliest used in training new disciples, show a clear, vibrant, practical faith concerned with all aspects of discipleship in daily life¿vocation, morality, family life, social justice, the sacraments, prophesy, citizenship, and leadership.For the most part, these writings have remained buried in academia, analyzed by scholars but seldom used for building up the church community. Now, at a time when Christians of every persuasion are seeking clarity by returning to the roots of their faith, these simple, direct teachings shed light on what it means to be a follower of Christ in any time or place.The Didache, an anonymous work composed in the late first century AD, was lost for centuries before being rediscovered in 1873. The Shepherd was written by a former slave named Hermas in the second century AD or possibly even earlier.

The summer of 2020 has shown us how much we all depend on one another. Whatever else they do, pandemics show us we are not alone. Covid-19 is proof that, yes, there is such a thing as society; the disease has spread precisely because we aren¿t autonomous individuals disconnected from each other, but rather all belong to one great body of humanity. The pain inflicted by the pandemic is far from equally distributed. Yet it reveals ever more clearly how much we all depend on one another, and how urgently necessary it is for us to bear one another¿s burdens.It¿s a good time, then, to talk about solidarity. The more so because it¿s a theme that¿s also raised by this year¿s other major development, the international protests for racial justice following George Floyd¿s death. The protests, too, raised the question of solidarity in guilt, even guilt across generations. By taking up our common guilt with all humanity, we come into solidarity with the one who bears it and redeems it all. In Christ, sins are forgiven, guilt abolished, and a new way of living together becomes possible. This solidarity in forgiveness gives rise to a life of love.This issue of Plough explores what solidarity means, and what it looks like to live it out today, whether in Uganda, Bolivia, or South Korea, in an urban church, a Bruderhof, or a convent.

“Clarence Jordan spoke with an unwavering prophetic voice. He firmly rejected materialism, militarism, and racism as obstacles to authentic faith… He was a fearless and innovative defender of human rights.” —President Jimmy CarterOn 440 depleted acres in Sumter County, Georgia, a young Baptist preacher and farmer named Clarence Jordan gathered a few families and set out to show that Jesus intended more than spiritual fellowship. Like the first Christians, they would share their land, money, and possessions. Working together to rejuvenate the soil and the local economy, they would demonstrate racial and social justice with their lives.Black and white community members eating together at the same table scandalized local Christians, drew the ire of the KKK, and led to drive-by shootings, a firebombing, and an economic boycott.This bold experiment in nonviolence, economic justice, and sustainable agriculture was deeply rooted in Clarence Jordan’s understanding of the person and teachings of Jesus, which stood in stark contrast to the hypocrisy of churches that blessed wars, justified wealth disparity, and enforced racial segregation. “You can’t put Christianity into practice,” Jordan wrote, “You can’t make it work. As desperately as it is needed in this poor, broken world, it is not a philosophy of life to be ‘tried.’ Nor is it a social or ethical ideal which has tantalized humankind with the possibility of attainment. For Christianity is not a system you work – it is a Person who works you.”This selection from his talks and writings introduces Clarence Jordan’s radically biblical vision to a new generation of peacemakers, community builders, and activists.

No matter who wins the next election, Caesar will remain Caesar, doing some good and some bad. But Christians report to a different king.This issue starts with a provocation. In his opening letter, editor Peter Mommsen suggests Christians are too excited about the wrong politics: ¿Questions of public justice should matter deeply to Christians. We dare not be indifferent about securing healthcare for all and ending interventionist wars; we must seek to reduce abortions and strengthen families. When an election comes, we should pray and then, perhaps, lend our support to a candidate we judge may, on balance, advance social righteousness. But if the early Christians and the Anabaptists are right, this isn¿t the politics that matters most. And so, as a matter of faithfulness, we should question how much it deserves of our passion and time. Our allegiance belongs elsewhere.¿In contrast to an election campaign, this politics may feel grittier and less glamorous. This issue of Plough Quarterly explores what this alternate vision of faithful Christian witness in the political sphere might look like.Yoüll find articles on:What two leading political theorists of left and right agree onWhat persecution taught Anabaptists about politicsThe Bruderhof¿s interactions with the stateTolstoy¿s case against making war more humaneHow some Christians read Romans 13 under fascism

Communal music has the power to shape a soul and a society.In many places today, a culture of singing and making music remains robust, despite pressure from the commercial music industry. Or it was until the Covid pandemic hit and we glimpsed what a world without communal music-making could be like. According to Plato, virtuous music is vital for building a virtuous community. Jewish and Christian traditions take this insight even further: good communal music shapes and builds up the people of God. So how can we choose good music and avoid the bad? The sheer ubiquity of music available for consumption – its presence as a near-constant soundtrack to our daily lives – poses a hazard. Digital music on tap is a temptation to chronic distraction of the soul, to a habit of superficiality and non-attention. Fortunately, the remedy is straightforward: spend less time consuming prepackaged tunes and more time making music. This will be doubly rewarding if done with others – singing with one’s family, singing in church, playing in a string quartet, starting a regular jam session. If personal media players tend to cut us off from the physical presence of others, sharing in good music together breaks the spell of isolation and disembodiment. It builds friendship and community.On this theme:- Maureen Swinger’s amateur choir sings Bach’s Saint Matthew Passion.- Stephen Michael Newby says Black spirituals aren’t just for Black people. - Mary Townsend finds Dolly Parton magnificent, but would Aristotle? - Phil Christman finds catharsis in the YouTube comments of eighties songs. - Ben Crosby says congregational singing should be unabashedly weird to visitors.- Joseph Julián González draws on ancient Nahua poets in his music.- Christopher Tin explains why he weaves so many historical influences into his music.- Seven musicians talk about making your own music in schools, churches, prisons, backyards, or children’s bedrooms: Nathan Schram, Esther Keiderling, Norann Voll, Chaka Watch Ngwenya, Eileen Maendel, Adora Wong, and Brittany Petruzzi.Also in the issue: Exclusive excerpts from forthcoming books by Eugene Vodolazkin and Esther Maria Magnis- Thoughts on music from Augustine, Gregory of Nyssa, Hildegard of Bingen, Martin Luther, and Eberhard Arnold- Catholics and Anabaptists unite to commemorate the Radical Reformation- New poems by Jacqueline Saphra- A profile of Argentinian singer Mercedes Sosa.- Reviews of Kate Clifford Larson’s Walk with Me, Rowan Williams’s Shakeshafte, and Sam Quinones’s The Least of UsPlough Quarterly features stories, ideas, and culture for people eager to apply their faith to the challenges we face. Each issue includes in-depth articles, interviews, poetry, book reviews, and art.

"A fresh twist on 24 classics, these visual interpretations by comic artist Julian Peters will change the way you see the world"--

From the winner of Russias biggest literary prizes, a richly layered novel in which a celebrated guitarist robbed of his talent by Parkinsons disease seeks other paths to immortality: by authorizing a biography and by mentoring a thirteen-year-old virtuoso battling cancer.This personal story of a lifetime quest for meaning will resonate with readers of Dostoyevsky, Tolstoy, Umberto Eco, and Solzhenitsyn. Expanding the literary universe spun in his earlier novels, Vodolazkin explores music and fame, belonging and purpose, time and eternity. At the stunning finale of Brisbane, all the carefully knit stitches unravel into a riddle: Whose story is it the subjects or the writers? Are art and love really no match for death? Is Brisbane, the city of our dreams, our only hope for the future?

Where is God when your loved one gets cancer? The easy answers are all wrong.With or Without Me is an unsparing and eloquent critique of religion. Yet Esther Maria Magniss frustration is merely the beginning of a tortuous journey toward faith one punctuated by personal losses retold with bluntness and immediacy. If God is love, she writes, then its a kind of loveI do not understand. She dares to believe anyway, although her questioning wont let up. She fiercely dismantles both the clichs shes heard in church and the endless philosophizing of her parents generation.Magnis knows believing in God is anything but easy. Because he allows people to suffer. Because hes invisible. And silent. I think we miss God, she writes. I would never want to persuade anyone or put myself above atheists. I know there are good reasons not to believe. But sometimes I think most people are just sad that hes not there.With or Without Me is a book for everyone believer or unbeliever, Christian or atheist who refuses to surrender to the idea that there are easy answers to the big questions in life.

From the stirring foreword by Henri Nouwen to the last page of Romero's text, this powerful volume of eloquent, simple meditations never wastes a word. Yet the real depth of Romero's message lies not in his words themselves, poetic as they are. It lies in the life they give witness to: the hard life of a man who was martyred for his faith.

El temor a los accidentes o a las acciones terroristas, a la enfermedad o la muerte, a la soledad o el dolor por la muerte de un ser querido . . . Si es usted como la mayoría de la gente, quizá esas ansiedades le estén privando de una paz que debería ser suya. En No tengas miedo, Arnold, un curtido asesor pastoral, que ha acompañado a muchas personas hasta el umbral de la muerte, narra cómo hombres, mujeres y niños corrientes encuentran la fortaleza para superar sus más grandes temores. Salpicado de anécdotas de maestros tan sabios como Tolstoi, Dickens y Dorothy Day, las palabras de Arnold ofrecen la seguridad de que, incluso en una época de ansiedad, se puede vivir la vida plenamente y salir al encuentro de la muerte con total seguridad en sí mismo.

"This anthology provides the best introduction to the core beliefs and foundational principles of Anabaptism"--

A colorful history of lives rescued on New York City's infamous boulevard of broken dreams.The Bowery has long been one of New York City's most notorious streets, a magnet for gangsters, hucksters, and hobos. And despite sweeping changes, it is still all too often the end of the road for troubled war veterans, drug addicts, the mentally ill, the formerly incarcerated, and others generally down on their luck. Against this backdrop, for 140 years, Christians of every stripe have been coming together at the Bowery Mission to offer hearty meals, hot showers, clean beds, warm clothes - and, for thousands of homeless over the years, the help they need to get off the streets and back on their feet.Jason Storbakken, a recent Bowery director, retraces that colorful history and profiles some of the illustrious characters that have made the Bowery an iconic New York institution. His book offers a lens through which to better understand the changing faces of homelessness, of American Christianity, and of New York City itself - all of which converge daily at the Bowery Mission's red doors.

Twenty of the best Christmas stories of all time are collected in one handsomely illustrated anthology. Selected for their literary quality and spiritual integrity, these time-honored favorites will resonate with readers year after year.