John S. Strong unravels the storm of influences shaping the received narratives of two iconic sacred objects.Bodily relics such as hairs, teeth, fingernails, pieces of bone—supposedly from the Buddha himself—have long served as objects of veneration for many Buddhists. Unsurprisingly, when Western colonial powers subjugated populations in South Asia, they used, manipulated, redefined, and even destroyed these objects to exert control.In The Buddha’s Too...

Renunciation is a core value in the Buddhist tradition, but Buddhism is not necessarily austere. Jewels—along with heavenly flowers, rays of rainbow light, and dazzling deities—shape the literature and the material reality of the tradition. They decorate temples, fill reliquaries, are used as metaphors, and sprout out of imagined Buddha fields. Moreover, jewels reflect a particular type of currency often used to make the Buddhist world go round: merit in exchange for wealth. Regardless of ...

Over the past two decades, the organization and provision of air traffic control (ATC) services has been dramatically transformed. Privatization and commercialization of air navigation has become commonplace. Far-reaching reforms, under a variety of organizational structures and aviation settings, have occurred across the world, most notably in Canada, Britain, Australia, New Zealand, and South Africa. In contrast, innovations have lagged behind in other countries - including the United St...

"Open Strong is a must-read for any business owner preparing to open a brick-and-mortar location-and a proven launchpad for entrepreneurs ready to turn their ideas into thriving businesses."-Larry Feldman, Serial Entrepreneur and Former CEO of SUBWAY Development of WashingtonThe wrong lease can ruin a great business. The right one can power years of success.Cut through the confusion, jargon, and guesswork that sink too many great b...

What if the most powerful leader in the room was the one no one noticed?We've been sold a lie about leadership that it belongs to the loudest voice, the biggest personality, the person commanding the spotlight. But real leadership has never lived there. It happens in the shadows, in the quiet moments, in the steady presence of someone who lifts others higher than they lift themselves.Invisible Leadership is a radical reimagining of what it means to lead in a world drowning ...

For many, the Christian life looks like this: You call out to God. Your problems get worse. You suffer and wait. Nothing changes. Author John S. Dickerson knows the feeling. A rare health condition drove him to examine the Bible's claim that "when I am weak, then I am strong." As a journalist, Dickerson has seen severe human suffering. As a pastor, he has comforted others through unimaginable grief. He wrote I Am Strong to give understanding, hope, and strength to the hurting....

Spiritual warfare is a divisive subject for today’s church. Some Christians focus solely on the immediate world around them, living as if there’s no spiritual opposition to God’s people and His kingdom. Others take an aggressive stance, where confronting the enemy becomes a constant pursuit in their lives.John MacArthur believes the truth is found between these extremes. Standing Strong offers a balanced, biblically sound approach to spiritual warfare in the life of a beli...

Every week a terrorist attack, riot, or political scandal makes the headlines—and we feel the world around us shaking again. We struggle to separate truth from biased statements and hope from naïveté. We wonder how we got here and where these uncertain days will take us.One of the world’s top investigative reporters, John S. Dickerson, addresses this post-truth, post-Christian society in Hope of Nations.Hope of Nations shows us how and why the world is cha...

Longtime Washington, D.C. health journalist John-Manuel Andriote didn’t expect to mark the twenty-fifth year of the HIV-AIDS epidemic in 2006 by coming out in the Washington Post about his own recent HIV diagnosis. For twenty years he had reported on the epidemic as an HIV-negative gay man, as AIDS killed many of his friends and roused gay Americans to action against a government that preferred to ignore their existence. Eight little words from his doctor, "I have bad news on the HIV test,...

Have you ever looked into the faces of the people who call you "mom" and wondered what in the world you got yourself into?If you're like many Christian moms today, you've been reading the headlines and watching the rapid-fire changes in our culture with frustration and fear. Let's face it: Moms today are facing questions that previous generations didn't even see coming, and even our right to determine what is best for our own children is under fire. Popular speaker ...

Updated and revised! An essential guide to healthy aging for men.In A Man's Guide to Healthy Aging, Edward H. Thompson, Jr., and Lenard W. Kaye explore the new and evolving landscape of men's health over their adult lives. They present a positive outlook on aging, viewing it as an opportunity for continued growth, vitality, and personal agency. Offering an overview of issues and concerns, the authors encourage men to take charge of their health and wellnes...

In this new novel, the first by a black woman ever to win the coveted Prix Goncourt, Marie NDiaye creates a luminous narrative triptych as harrowing as it is beautiful.This is the story of three women who say no: Norah, a French-born lawyer who finds herself in Senegal, summoned by her estranged, tyrannical father to save another victim of his paternity; Fanta, who leaves a modest but contented life as a teacher in Dakar to follow her white boyfriend back to France, where his delus...