Books published by Resource Publications (CA)

Eugene Friends of Jung is a non-profit educational organization dedicated to the evolution of consciousness, to the pursuit of meaning in life through psychological insight and creative expression, and to the continuing education for the human spirit through psychology, spirituality, and the arts and humanities.EFJ works to fulfill its mission of expanding the relationships between the Depth Psychology of C. G. Jung, art, nature, and humanity through lectures, seminars, and film discussions that bridge cultures.

Description:If you find books such as Richard Dawkins'' The God Delusion compelling but your faith heritage is also important to you, this book shows how you can affirm both. Taking a cue from Marcus Borg''s contention that ""scriptural literalism"" is for many people a major impediment to authentic spirituality, Carl Jech describes how all religion can and should be much more explicit about its symbolic, metaphorical, and artistic nature. With a particular focus on mortality and the relationship of humans to eternity, the book affirms a postmodern understanding of ""God"" as ultimate eternal Mystery and of spirituality as an artistic, (w)holistic, visionary, and creative process of becoming at home in the universe as it really is with all its joys and sorrows. Religion as Art Form is a must-read for those who think of themselves as spiritual but not religious.Endorsements:""If you''re looking for a way to make sense of your life and your world, but you don''t get much (or any) satisfaction from slick, glib, outdated, unworkable, arrogant, or cocksure religious ''answers,'' this is your book. If you''re looking for trustworthy answers that don''t demean, insult, or ridicule, this book is a good place to start. . . . By the time you finish this book, you''ll find there are no supernatural, sacred cows left in the corral. What you will find is a new way of thinking about language and life.""--Michael Luther Sherer, editor emeritus of the MetroLutheran""Critical issues central to the purpose of religion are woven in an intricate tapestry that utilizes every conceivable strand of expressive art available to elucidate the topics addressed. The style of writing itself is reflective of an art form, as ideas flood each page in a stream of consciousness, expressive of the dynamic, progressive posture that permeates each page. Readers seeking an alternative approach for expressing and experiencing their spirituality will find this book scintillating and stimulating.""--Robert H. Albers, Distinguished Visiting Professor of Pastoral Theology, United Theological Seminary of the Twin Cities""Separating God from the sterile options between theism and atheism and seeing God as a verb to be lived, not a noun to be believed, are the themes of this book. Religion as Art Form is both groundbreaking and riveting.""--John Shelby Spong, author of The Fourth GospelAbout the Contributor(s):Carl L. Jech (ThM, Harvard) is Instructor in Humanities at DeAnza College in Silicon Valley. He has served as parish pastor and college chaplain in Michigan, Wisconsin, and California, and has taught at other colleges in the San Francisco Bay Area.

Description:The poems in this collection are offered along two related lines. In the first part of the book the poems and etchings coalesce to form what the author calls a family portrait of grace and faith, representing the fruit of a process of biblical study and reflection, which will be of interest to both the lay person and pastor in his or her preparations for teaching and preaching. In the second section of the book the author provides a variety of poems disclosing the dynamics of life in its multiplicity of patterns and expressions. Together the two sections seek to express the grace of God in the commonalities of life.About the Contributor(s):Albert J.D. Walsh is pastor of Heidelberg United Church of Christ in Hatfield, Pennsylvania. He is the author of Reflections on Death and Grief and United and Uniting. Patrick Lee Walsh is a freelance artist specializing in both landscapes and abstract forms. Patrick studied at the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts in Philadelphia, and has exhibited his abstract paintings with the prestigious National Academy of Design Museum in New York City.

Description:Fostering faith in children is a shared privilege and responsibility of parents, godparents, and the church community. We promise our children at baptism that we will support them in their faith formation--in the formation of their relationship with God. We need to take this promise seriously. This book is intended to be an accessible and helpful resource for parents and other adults who seek to foster children''s faith.This book succinctly explores many ways we can support children''s faith formation, including our day-to-day interactions with children, the images of God we share with them, how we pray together, the rituals we create, service opportunities we provide, music we share together, the stories we tell and listen to, our celebration of the sacraments, and more. While this book has a distinctly Roman Catholic orientation, much of the content will be relevant for a wider Christian audience.Lastly, but perhaps most importantly, this book is rooted in the conviction that the God we seek relationship with and that we hope to foster our children''s relationship with is one who is infinitely loving, welcoming, and always yearning for deeper connection with us. Endorsements:""Jeanne Hall offers her readers a feast of possible ways to nurture and nourish their children''s faith experience through concrete and multidimensional practices rooted in Catholic tradition as well as provocative questions. I highly recommend this book for anyone who takes the spiritual lives of children seriously."" -Christine Valters Paintnerauthor of The Artist''s Rule: Nurturing Your Creative Spirit with Monastic Wisdom""Jeanne Hall couples her enthusiasm for childhood education with her passion for spirituality in creating a handbook for parents desirous of enhancing their children''s faith-life. Jeanne Hall offers guiding principles gleaned from childhood developmental theories. She suggests age-appropriate activities for families to do throughout the liturgical year. She compiles in one place devotional practices that have shaped Christian spirituality for centuries. Jeanne Hall has created a handy resource guide that should be offered to every family in parishes today.""-Valerie LesniakSeattle University, School of Theology and Ministry""Jeanne Hall has written a wonderful resource for parents seeking to form their children in faith. The text is inviting and reflective, and abounds in thoughtful and faith-filled suggestions for ways to pass on faith to children. The book is more than a guide for parents; it also invites parents themselves to grow in their own faith so that they can pass on what they themselves are living. I welcome this new resource for parents and am already planning to make it available to our community.""-Victoria RiesSt. Catherine of Siena ParishSeattle, Washington About the Contributor(s):Jeanne Hall is Pastoral Assistant for Faith Formation at St. Catherine of Siena Church in Seattle. She received her Masters of Arts in Transforming Spirituality from the School of Theology and Ministry at Seattle University.

Description:Martha Gatkuoch is a young Sudanese woman who lived through unthinkable trauma. She was a child when her idyllic rural village in Southern Sudan was attacked. She and her brothers were separated from their parents in a heartbreaking journey that took them from their homeland to a refugee camp in Uganda, and then through a difficult journey in the American foster care system. Against all odds, Martha has maintained a resilient peace. In this touching memoir, Martha shares the difficulties and joys of her adventures as a Sudanese woman forging her new life. Martha can recite her lineage twelve generations back, remembering hundreds of years of peace isolated from the rest of the world along the Nile River. Martha''s adoptive father, Brett Bymaster, traces the history of Sudan through the eyes of Martha''s forefathers, in an attempt to explain Martha''s experience in the broader global context. For centuries the impenetrable Sudd, the Sudanese swampland, held back Arab Islamic militants. When the British conquered the Sudd, the floodgates of war broke open. The civil war recently ended and Southern Sudan gained independence. With Martha''s generation of resilient Sudanese nationals, there is again hope for peace and tranquility.About the Contributor(s):Martha Gatkuoch lives with her adoptive parents, Brett and Angie Bymaster, in San Jose, California, along with her brothers. She attends De Anza Community College, where she runs cross country and track. Brett Bymaster is a Silicon Valley electrical engineer who enjoys watching Martha run and seeing her brothers play soccer.

Description:These reflections, based on the seven last words of Jesus from the cross (including an Easter message) invite readers to contemplate the spiritual, theological, and biblical significance of the death and resurrection of Jesus. These meditations, which combine theological reflection, biblical interpretation, and spiritual application, provide Christians with a good resource for group study and personal growth in Christian discipleship during Lent and Holy Week. Pastors, teachers, Christian leaders, or anyone charged with the responsibility and privilege of presenting sermons, homilies, Bible lessons, or devotional talks during Lent and Holy Week will find rich material in these pages to spark the imagination. About the Contributor(s):Chuck Queen (MDiv, DMin) is a progressive Christian thinker and minister best known in his local community for ""A Fresh Perspective,"" a column he writes biweekly for the Frankfort State Journal on issues of faith and spirituality. He is also the author of A Faith Worth Living: The Dynamics of an Inclusive Gospel.

This book is a picture of prison life from the inside. It illustrates prison life as, at turns, exciting, surprising, distressing and, often, amusing. Each day is different, and anyone who walks through a prison gate had better be alert. It tells of the small human dramas that play out daily among staff, prisoners, and others who enter this gated world. It calls the reader to see that justice begins by seeing each person, staff or prisoner, as an individual with his or her own story. The passion of the author is to portray prison life as continuous with life in broader society. In prisons, we meet the same cast of characters, the same temptations, the same dangers, and the same rewards as on the outside. Rather than regarding prisons as separate worlds, we should regard them as extensions of the society in which we live.This is important because there is a continuous flow between prisons and the broader society. Those who go to prison usually return to society. Understanding how prisons work will help us as we consider how to reintegrate former prisoners into our society. As the author argues, this is difficult but important work.""Here is a prison warden''s official story about what it is like . . . deal[ing] constructively with every sort of prisoner in the state correctional system . . . Adria Libolt''s story is an engaging inside look at what that means, how that goes, what can be done, and how this one lithesome lady did it for decades with grace and good humor. This narrative . . . is a rewarding surprise that restores one''s faith in humankind.""--J. Harold EllensFounding editor of The Journal of Psychology and ChristianityAuthor of Honest Faith for Our Time""Adria [Libolt] . . . has been able to . . . listen to inmates, prison employees and family members . . . Each portrayal in this book reveals some truths that could only be discovered and described by someone with [Libolt''s] insights and writing ability . . . The United States has a huge prison population, much larger in proportion than other nations. We need to understand the . . . factors contributing to this situation. [Libolt] makes a significant contribution to our learning about the penal system."" --Lois A. BaderExecutive director, Capital Area Literacy CoalitionAuthor of Bader Reading and Language Inventory ""An intelligent, perceptive, and honest rendering of prisons and prisoners that will promote a more objective and clear understanding of the criminal justice system and encourage a more humane society. Each gripping chapter blends and compares criminal elements with Ms. Libolt''s truthful observations about her own life and contributions. The general public and criminal justice employees and students should read this.""--Tekla Dennison MillerFormer Michigan warden Author of The Warden Wore Pink""Adria Libolt tells compassionate, tough stories about young people in reform schools and adults in maximum-security prisons. She layers each story with nuance, irony, and breadth to show why she feels it is a thin line between a prisoner and the rest of us. Even as she acknowledges the dangers, she feels safer in prison than outside. This book will complicate your perspective on prisoners and the prison system."" --Linda R. PeckhamAuthor of The Pocket Hotline for Writers""Adria Libolt offers an insightful, compelling perspective on the myriad of issues surrounding our country''s corrections systems. This ''inside'' look at prison life would be extremely valuable to anyone in a position like mine that requires us to not only take a critical, thoughtful look at what''s happening in our corrections system, but to make policy decisions that will have far-reaching consequences for the state and for the employees and prisoners closest to those systems.""--Joan Bauer LegislatorMichigan House of RepresentativesAdria L. Libolt worked as a deputy warden in the Michigan Department of Corrections for over twenty years in prisons with both male and femal