Books published by Plough Publishing House

Can beauty save the world?These days criticism of art--whether visual, musical, or literary--is often marked by a suspicion of beauty. What happened to the belief that the creativity of the artist reflects the creativity of the Maker of heaven and earth, and that art can therefore be a channel for divine truth? Anyone who has joined with others to sing Bach's Saint Matthew Passion or stood before a painting by Raphael or Chagall can attest to this. At such moments, art binds people together. This issue of Plough focuses on art that leads to such community: through theater, painting, music, and the objects and architecture of everyday life. And while art fosters community, building community is itself a work of creativity.Also in this issue: original poetry by Cozine Welch Jr.; reviews of new books by Eliza Griswold, Alissa Quart, Eugene Vodolazkin, and Nathan Englander; and art by Denis Brown, JR, Valérie Jardin, Isaiah King, Isaiah Tanenbaum, George Makary, Oriol Malet, Alex Nwokolo, Ashik and Jenelle Mohan, Raphael, Aaron Douglas, Winslow Homer, Vincent van Gogh, Wassily Kandinsky, and Jason Landsel. Plough 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.

What we want for schools reveals what we value as a society."What's the point of school?" Parents have a stock set of responses, but the question remains unsettled, even two centuries after the Prussians invented compulsory education. The Prussian idea of what a school is for - to mold the populace to serve the state - seems unacceptable today. In vogue, instead, are slogans like "acquiring marketable skills" and "realizing your full potential." These ideas powerfully shape our culture. Ultimately, they boil down to pursuing one supreme value: individual success in a competitive world.Schools are a mirror of our society as a whole; what we want for schools makes plain what and whom we value in our common life. In the Christian tradition, the life of discipleship is also a school. In this educational community, under the instruction of our one Teacher, we learn not to seek empowerment, but to find strength in weakness; not to out-achieve others, but to serve them; not to pursue our passion, but to obey a call.Also in this issue: poetry by Christian Wiman; reviews of new books by Robert Macfarlane, Jackie Morris, Francisco Cantú, Leif Enger, Carol Anderson, Stephanie Land, and Susan Wise Bauer; and art by Margaret McWethy, Albrecht Dürer, Raphael, Gérard David, Jackie Morris, Gustaf Tenggren, Sergey Dushkin, Anja Percival, Dmitry Samofalov, Christoph Wetzel, Sherrie York, Cathleen Rehfield, Pawel Kuczynski, and Jason Landsel.Plough 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.

End each day of the year peacefully by turning to God with a prayer and a Bible passage.We want to turn to God at the end of each day, but often don't find the words to express our deepest feelings and longing. This collection of prayers is one of the few daily devotionals especially intended for use in the evening.Blumhardt's words bespeak a certainty in God's nearness. The peace that flows from them comes from an unshakeable conviction that God's kingdom is indeed on the way. In stormy and challenging times like our own, most of us need this reassurance frequently, if not daily.

How do you follow Jesus without burning out?Gold Medal Winner, 2018 Illumination Book Awards, Enduring Light"e;This thoughtful collection of Day's reflections incorporates abundant material for contemplation, all drawn from her extensive writings ... [which] reveal Day's signature honesty and frequent humor in addressing her hopes and fears and the sources of her inspiration.... This welcome compilation provides a window into the fundamental beliefs that undergirded Day's life of faith."e; --Publishers Weekly, starred review In this guidebook Dorothy Day offers hard-earned wisdom and practical advice gained through decades of seeking to know Jesus and to follow his example and teachings in her own life.Unlike larger collections and biographies, which cover her radical views, exceptional deeds, and amazing life story, this book focuses on a more personal dimension of her life: Where did she receive strength to stay true to her God-given calling despite her own doubts and inadequacies and the demands of an activist life? What was the unquenchable wellspring of her deep faith and her love for humanity?

These sixty short daily reflections, each based on a verse from the Bible, will guide a believer facing serious sickness-and his or her family-to a rock-solid faith and trust in the will of God. With confidence in the healing power of God and the possibility of miracles, the Blumhardts, a father-son team of pastors renowned for their healing ministry, point us away from our troubles and toward a Creator who is supremely wise and good and wants the best for each of us.In a world where medical advances seem to promise a cure for everything, it's tempting to believe that we can live free of pain. But we know that even the best medicine cannot extend life forever or solve the riddles of physical and emotional illness. How, then, to respond to the inevitability of suffering? And how to help those who live in fear of disease to conquer their daily worry about their diagnosis? What better place to turn than to these words of comfort and hope drawn from the Word of God?As Rick Warren writes in his foreword, "e;the Blumhardts remind us that physical healing is not God's greatest answer to prayer. ...Whatever circumstance you are facing right now, this book of daily readings will help you focus on a closer relationship with Jesus, our one true spiritual healer."e;

Fifty-two readings on living in intentional Christian community to spark group discussion.Gold Medal Winner, 2017 Illumination Book Awards, Christian LivingSilver Medal Winner, 2017 Benjamin Franklin Award in Religion, Independent Book Publishers AssociationWhy, in an age of connectivity, are our lives more isolated and fragmented than ever? And what can be done about it? The answer lies in the hands of God's people. Increasingly, today's Christians want to be the church, to follow Christ together in daily life. From every corner of society, they are daring to step away from the status quo and respond to Christ's call to share their lives more fully with one another and with others. As they take the plunge, they are discovering the rich, meaningful life that Jesus has in mind for all people, and pointing the church back to its original calling: to be a gathered, united community that demonstrates the transforming love of God.Of course, such a life together with others isn't easy. The selections in this volume are, by and large, written by practitioners-people who have pioneered life in intentional community and have discovered in the nitty-gritty of daily life what it takes to establish, nurture, and sustain a Christian community over the long haul.Whether you have just begun thinking about communal living, are already embarking on sharing life with others, or have been part of a community for many years, the pieces in this collection will encourage, challenge, and strengthen you. The book's fifty-two chapters can be read one a week to ignite meaningful group discussion.Contributors include from John F. Alexander, Eberhard Arnold, J. Heinrich Arnold, Johann Christoph Arnold, Alden Bass, Benedict of Nursia, Christoph Friedrich Blumhardt, Leonardo Boff, Dietrich Bonhoeffer, Joan Chittister, Stephen B. Clark, Andy Crouch, Dorothy Day, Anthony de Mello, Elizabeth Dede, Catherine de Hueck Doherty, Fyodor Dostoyevsky, Jenny Duckworth, Friedrich Foerster, Richard J. Foster, Jodi Garbison, Arthur G. Gish, Helmut Gollwitzer, Adele J Gonzalez, Stanley Hauerwas, Joseph H. Hellerman, Roy Hession, David Janzen, Rufus Jones, Emmanuel Katongole, Arthur Katz, Soren Kierkegaard, C. Norman Kraus, C.S. Lewis, Gerhard Lohfink, Ed Loring, Chiara Lubich, George MacDonald, Thomas Merton, Hal Miller, Jose P. Miranda, Jurgen Moltmann, Charles E. Moore, Henri J. M. Nouwen, Elizabeth O'Connor, John M. Perkins, Eugene H.Peterson, Christine D. Pohl, Chris Rice, Basilea Schlink, Howard A. Snyder, Mother Teresa, Thomas a Kempis, Elton Trueblood, Jean Vanier, and Jonathan Wilson-Hartgrove.

There are children who are slower, who can't run so well, who can say just a few words or none at all. Each of them belongs in our world and enriches it. This delightfully illustrated fairy tale teaches appreciation for children with Down syndrome and other developmental challenges.

The most accessible Kierkegaard reader ever ';In a culture awash in religious silliness, Kierkegaard's bracing metaphors expose our mediocrities and energize us with a clarified sense of what it means to follow Jesus.' Eugene Peterson, author, Subversive Spirituality Provocations contains a little of everything from Kierkegaard's prodigious output: his famously cantankerous (yet wryly humorous) attacks on what he calls the ';mediocre shell' of conventional Christianity, his brilliantly pithy parables, his wise (and witty) sayings. Most significantly, it brings to a new generation a man whose writings pare away the fluff of modern spirituality to reveal the basics of the Christ-centered life: decisiveness, obedience, and recognition of the truth.

Mark Ludy's latest book will appeal to adults and children alike. Digging deeper than the Sunday school tale of cuddly animals on Noah's ark, the story follows the biblical text and illumines Noah's relationship with God, his wife, family, nature, and humanity. Ludy's world-class artwork lets people see, as though for the first time, the beauty within this story - revealing a clearer picture of the nature and character of God and his relationship to humankind. It's immersive and epic in scale and scope. The wordless format invites conversation and storytelling, key building blocks of literacy. And as with his previous books, Ludy's signature mouse Squeakers appears hidden on every page.

There¿s hope for childhood. Despite a perfect storm of hostile forces that are robbing children of a healthy childhood, courageous parents and teachers who know what¿s best for children are turning the tide.Johann Christoph Arnold, whose books on education, parenting, and relationships have helped more than a million readers through life¿s challenges, draws on the stories and voices of parents and educators on the ground, and a wealth of personal experience. He surveys the drastic changes in the lives of children, but also the groundswell of grassroots advocacy and action that he believes will lead to the triumph of common sense and time-tested wisdom.Arnold takes on technology, standardized testing, overstimulation, academic pressure, marketing to children, over-diagnosis and much more, calling on everyone who loves children to combat these threats to childhood and find creative ways to help children flourish. Every parent, teacher, and childcare provider has the power to make a difference, by giving children time to play, access to nature, and personal attention, and most of all, by defending their right to remain children.

A touching story about dementia and the special relationship between grandparents and grandchildren, with full-color illustrations and a read-along audio CD featuring 12 classical pieces of music for children by Georges Bizet and Sergei Prokofiev. Full color. 6 5/16 x 8 1/2.

This extraordinary true story begins with the welcome news of a new member of the Williams family. But the happiness is short-lived, as a hospital scan reveals a lethal skeletal dysplasia. Birth will be fatal. The author and her husband decide to carry the baby to term, having to defend their child's dignity and worth against incomprehension and a

Simone Weil, the great mystic and philosopher for our age, shows where anyone can find God.Why is it that Simone Weil, with her short, troubled life and confounding insights into faith and doubt, continues to speak to today's spiritual seekers? Was it her social radicalism, which led her to renounce privilege? Her ambivalence toward institutional religion? Her combination of philosophical rigor with the ardor of a mystic?Albert Camus called Simone Weil "e;the only great spirit of our time."e; Andre Gide found her "e;the most truly spiritual writer of this century."e; Her intense life and profound writings have influenced people as diverse as T. S. Eliot, Charles De Gaulle, Pope Paul VI, and Adrienne Rich.The body of work she left-most of it published posthumously-is the fruit of an anguished but ultimately luminous spiritual journey.After her untimely death at age thirty-four, Simone Weil quickly achieved legendary status among a whole generation of thinkers. Her radical idealism offered a corrective to consumer culture. But more importantly, she pointed the way, especially for those outside institutional religion, to encounter the love of God - in love to neighbor, love of beauty, and even in suffering.

Raising a child has never been more challenging. If you ever doubt yourself or wonder if it is worth the heartache, read this little book. If you worry that your family will not weather life¿s storms or if you fear losing your children to the prevailing culture, read it again. Why Children Matter offers biblical wisdom and commonsense advice on how to hold a family together and raise children with character.Johann Christoph Arnold, a father, grandfather and pastor, has written eleven books, including three on parenting and children¿s education. As the fabric of family and society is torn apart, this book offers up concrete steps to encourage parents faced with difficult child-rearing decisions.

When Blumhardt, a nineteenth-century pastor from the Black Forest, agreed to counsel a tormented woman in his parish, all hell broke loose - literally. But that was only the beginning of the drama that ensued. Zuendel's account, available here in English for the first time, provides a rare glimpse into how the eternal fight between the forces of good and evil plays itself out in the lives of the most ordinary men and women. More than that, it reminds us that those forces still surround us today, whether we are awake to them or not.

Johann Christoph Arnold tells stories about real men and women dealing with adversity. Their difficulties - which range from extreme to quite ordinary and universal - resonate with readers, offering a challenge, but also comfort and encouragement

This biography examines the forces that shaped the life of Eberhard Arnold and the people he associated with. The author recreates an era where thousands of young men and women in Weimar Germany rejected conventional mores and struck out on a different path.

It is summer, 1940. As Hitler¿s armies turn mainland Europe into a mass graveyard, his feared Luftwaffe rain bombs on England. Meanwhile, amid the green hills of the Cotswolds, a nest of ¿enemy aliens¿ has been discovered: the Bruderhof, a Christian community made up of German, Dutch, and Swiss refugees, and growing numbers of English pacifists.Having fled Nazi Germany to escape persecution, the Bruderhof had at first been welcomed in England. Now, at the height of the Battle of Britain, it is feared. Curfews and travel restrictions are imposed; nasty newspaper articles appear, and local patriots initiate a boycott.Determined to remain together as a witness for peace in a war-torn world, the little group of 300 ¿ half of them babies and young children ¿ looks for a new home. No country in Europe or North America will take them. And so they set off across the submarine-infested Atlantic for the jungles of Paraguay¿In this gripping tale of faith tested by adversity, Emmy Barth lets us hear directly from the mothers, fathers, and children involved through their letters and diaries. Especially eloquent are the voices of the women as they faced both adventure and tragedy.

There¿s a saying that each child is a thought in the mind of God. But even if we believe this, and approach the children entrusted to us with the reverence that such a belief ought to instill, we may often feel helpless ¿ whether in the face of a two-year-old¿s tantrum or a teenager¿s silence. In this little book, two fathers (themselves a father and son) share their thoughts on the essence of bringing up children. What¿s more, the authors are the Blumhardts, whose huge contribution to 20th century theology, especially Karl Barth, is now being more widely recognized.

Though most of Jane Tyson Clement's poems remained hidden in private notebooks during her lifetime, the few that traveled beyond her hands were widely admired and drew critical acclaim. Now, with this first comprehensive anthology of her work, the public can at last discover this gifted poet and give her the audience she deserves.Evoking comparisons to such better-known contemporaries as Jane Kenyon, Wendell Berry, and Denise Levertov, Clement is direct and understated. Even when technically sophisticated, her poetry speaks with a familiar voice and draws on accessible images from the natural world.Still, these are no mere "e;nature poems."e; In exploring the varied emotions of life - of love, longing, and loss; memory, sacrifice, and desire; struggle and frustration, joy and resolve - they reveal the tireless seeking of a generous and honest heart and beckon the reader down new avenues of seeing and hearing.

An account of the Bruderhof community¿s faith and the scriptural basis for its members¿ beliefs and practices.From the New Testament onward, Christians have testified to their faith through the written word. In that tradition, the Bruderhof, an international, intentional Christian community movement, published Foundations of Our Faith and Calling in 2012. It is a public account of the community¿s faith and practice and describes tenets and orders common to all Bruderhof communities. All members took part in drafting, revising, and eventually unanimously approving the text.

An outsider becomes a hero and a boy becomes a man in this classic coming-of-age tale from the heyday of the three-ring circus, by three-time Newbery Honor Book author Eloise Jarvis McGraw.The circus is all young Joe Lang knows. The third generation of a circus family, he becomes a star bareback rider by the time he turns fifteen. But when his father, a lion-tamer, is killed by one of his cats, Joe becomes an orphan and is sent away to a vocational school while the law decides whether or not Mo Shapely, an old clown, is a fit guardian for him. Meanwhile, the circus moves on. Joe escapes from the school and stumbles into the farm life of the Dawson family, who take him in.Mistrustful at first, Joe grows to love farming and his foster family. Faced with prejudice as an outsider in a closely-knit rural community, he closely guards the secret of his past-until the day his extraordinary acrobatic talent is called for to save a life. Joe earns respect, but there is still circus is in his blood, sawdust in his shoes. Will he ever be happy away from his former life with the greatest show on earth?The debut novel of three-time Newbery winner Eloise Jarvis McGraw, Sawdust in His Shoes is reminiscent of Ralph Moody's Little Britches and Man of the Family, Roahl Dahl's Danny the Champion of the World, Sid Fleischman's The Whipping Boy, and Walt Morey's Run Far, Run Fast. Rediscover another great read-aloud treasure from the golden age of the children's novel.

There are children who learn more slowly, who can't run or speak very well. But school would not be half as fun or interesting without them. This delightfully illustrated fairy tale teaches appreciation for children with Down syndrome and other developmental challenges.

Why has God not answered my prayers? What should I be praying for? If everything I prayed for came true, would I be ready?In this spiritual classic, Eberhard Arnold mines the riches of biblical teaching on prayer and the example of Jesus, the Hebrew prophets, and the early Christians to point us back to the prayer that pleases God most - prayer that has the power to transform our lives and our world. In a new reflective response, much-loved author Richard J. Foster relates Arnold's words to our contemporary reality.

"e;I wouldn't trade my life for anyone else's. If I could choose not to have cancer, and continue my life as it was, I wouldn't do it."e; - Matt Gauger.You're twenty-two, in love, and just starting a career. The last thing you're worried about is the purpose of life (whatever that means) and when you're going to die. If you think about such things, you certainly don't talk about them. With his sociable personality and love of music and basketball, Matt had plenty of friends but didn't really stand out from the crowd. Then, a month before his wedding, he was diagnosed with cancer. Six months later he was dead. But Six Months to Live isn't really about dying. It's the story of how Matt and his family and friends struggled to accept his suffering, and how it changed each of them. It's about facing (rather than avoiding) life's most important questions, and - instead of going through the motions - living life to the full.

In this groundbreaking book, Arnold, a pastor for over forty years, provides fresh biblical insights into critical issues including the sacredness of sex, the struggle against temptation, the decision to remain single or to marry, child rearing, homosexuality, divorce and remarriage. Sex, God, and Marriage offers healing to anyone who has known discouragement or failure ¿ and hope to anyone who is willing to take a bold new look at a topic of universal interest and concern.Unlike the vast majority of marriage books, Sex, God, and Marriage digs deeper than the usual issues and goes to the root: our relationship with God, and the defining power of that relationship over all others in our lives.

"[An] earnest take on Luther’s life, wonderfully rendered through paintings and collages that dip into the biography at critical moments. YA and adult readers alike will find this work intriguing and informative." —Library Journal, Starred ReviewGold Medal Winner, 2018 IPPY Book of the Year Award, Independent PublishersGold Medal Winner, 2017 Indies Awards, Foreword Reviews MagazineDelve into the life of reformer Martin Luther in graphic novel format.Five hundred years ago a brash young monk single-handedly confronted the most powerful institutions of his day. His bold stand sparked the Protestant Reformation and marked one of the great turning points in history.Martin Luther, a spiritual and historical giant, is loved and hated to this day—and for good reason. The anniversary of the revolution he helped start has produced a spate of doorstop-sized biographies. Luckily, today there exists a more accessible format that does justice to such a colorful, complex character and his tumultuous life and times – the graphic novel.In a world of grinding poverty, plague, and religious superstitions, a child of laborers distinguishes himself at university – until a lightning-bolt conversion lands him in a monastery. There his personal battles with disillusionment and doubt culminate in a cry for freedom. The rest is the stuff of history and legend: Luther’s revolt against Rome with the nailing of ninety-five theses to the church door in Wittenberg; his time spent incognito at Wartburg Castle, where he famously throws an inkpot at the devil; his seditious translation and publication of the Bible in the language of the people; his scandalous marriage to former nun Katharina von Bora; and, in later years, his ugly tirades against peasants, Anabaptists, and Jews.Each chapter of Luther’s life comes vividly to life thanks to cutting-edge graphic techniques, meticulous historical research, and compelling writing. This could be the biggest breakthrough for Martin Luther since the Gutenberg press.With its splendid color and unvarnished narrative, this is surely the most successful graphic biography ever. --Georg Howahl, WAZ

In a society uprooted by two world wars, industrialization, and dehumanizing technology, a revolutionary farmer turns to poetry to reconnect his people to the land and one another.A farmer, poet, activist, pastor, and mystic, Britts (1917-1949) has been called a British Wendell Berry. His story is no romantic agrarian elegy, but a life lived in the thick of history. As his country plunged headlong into World War II, he joined an international pacifist community, the Bruderhof, and was soon forced to leave Europe for South America.Amidst these great upheavals, his response - to root himself in faith, to dedicate himself to building community, to restore the land he farmed, and to use his gift with words to turn people from their madness - speaks forcefully into our time. In an age still wracked by racism, nationalism, materialism, and ecological devastation, the life he chose and the poetry he composed remain a prophetic challenge.

In this time-honored manifesto, Arnold and Merton add their voices to the vital discussion of what real community is all about: love, joy, unity, and the great "e;adventure of faith"e; shared with others along the way. Neither writer describes (or prescribes) community here, but they do provide a vision to guide our search.