In matters of faith we generally accept what parents, Sunday school teachers, friends or ministers tell us. That was certainly the story of my youth and early years in the ministry. Given the fact that such matters are non-scientific and un-testable by traditional scientific means and that there is a wide range of Christian beliefs it is perfectly understandable that people are either puzzled or uninterested when trying to make sense of it all.Ghosties & Ghoulies peels awa...

The Problem of God explores answers to the most difficult questions raised against Christianity.A skeptic who became a Christian and then a pastor, author Mark Clark grew up in an atheistic home. After his father's death, he began a skeptical search for truth through the fields of science, philosophy, and history, eventually finding answers in the last place he expected: Christianity.In a winsome, persuasive, and humble voice, ...

The award-winning author of Grateful goes beyond the culture wars to offer a refreshing take on the comprehensive, multi-faceted nature of Jesus, keeping his teachings relevant and alive in our daily lives.How can you still be a Christian?This is the most common question Diana Butler Bass is asked today. It is a question that many believers ponder as they wrestle with disappointment and disillusionment in their church and its leadership. B...

From the man who became Pope Francis, Jorge Mario Bergoglio shares his thoughts on religion, reason, and the challenges the world faces in the 21st century with Abraham Skorka, a rabbi and biophysicist.For years Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio, archbishop of Argentina, and Rabbi Abraham Skorka were tenacious promoters of interreligious dialogues on faith and reason. They both sought to build bridges among Catholicism, Judaism, and the world at large. On Heaven and E...

A confession and manifesto from a senior leader in the emerging church movement. A Generous Orthodoxy calls for a radical, Christ-centered orthodoxy of faith and practice in a missional, generous spirit. Brian McLaren argues for a post-liberal, post-conservative, post-protestant convergence, which will stimulate lively interest and global conversation among thoughtful Christians from all traditions.In a sweeping exploration of belief, author Brian McLaren takes us across the landscape of f...

Legendary Harvard religion scholar Harvey Cox offers up a new interpretation of the history and future of religion. Cox identifies three fundamental shifts over the last 2,000 years of church history:The Age of Faith was when the early church was more concerned with following Jesus' teachings than enforcing what to believe about Jesus.The Age of Belief marks a significant shift-between the fourth and twentieth centuries-when the church focused on orthodoxy and right beliefs...

A theologian advocates for the Catholic Church through this exploration of its teachings and controversies."An important book and a spectacular public service. It opens a window onto the Catholic faith and will open the minds of believers and skeptics alike." —Pulitzer Prize winner Peggy NoonanThe Catholic Church may be the most controversial institution in the world. Some find its teachings inexplicable, puzzling, even cruel. In this incis...

Dan Browns staggering bestseller, The Da Vinci Code has sold over 80 million copies since it was released in 2003. Expediently classified as a work of fiction, Brown nevertheless intimates that his book is about historical fact and about a conspiracy by mainstream Christian leaders to suppress the truth about the origins of the faith, its development over the centuries, and its central figure . . . the Galilean Jesus Christ! Everything the world has been taught about traditional Christiani...

At a time when Christianity is flourishing in the Southern hemisphere but declining in much of the West, this Very Short Introduction offers an important overview of the world's largest religion. Exploring the cultural and institutional dimensions of Christianity, and tracing its course over two millennia, Linda Woodhead provides a fresh, lively, and candid portrait of Christianity's past and present. Addressing topics including the competition for power between different forms of...

**A NEW YORK TIMES NOTABLE BOOK OF THE YEARFrom the New York Times-bestselling author of The Cloister Walk, a book about Christianity, spirituality, and rediscovered faith.**Struggling with her return to the Christian church after many years away, Kathleen Norris found it was the language of Christianity that most distanced her from faith. Words like "judgment," "faith," "dogma," "salvation," "sinner"—even "Christ"—formed what she called her "scar...