Fortress Presss Foundations for Learning series prepares students for academic success through compelling resources that kick-start their educational journey into professional Christian ministry. In Exploring Practices of Ministry, Pamela Cooper-White and Michael Cooper-White share insights from their extensive experience as parish ministers, church agency executives, and seminary educators in diverse multicultural and international contexts. Pamela, an Episcopal priest wh...

I APPROACH Thy Altar.... Stay! Let me break away! Level stones of marble, brazen lights, Linen spread, flowers on the shelves and heights— I bow down, I kneel ... And far away, where the sun sets, would reel! For from forth Thy altar Thou Strikest on me now, Strikest on me, firm and warm to thrill, With the charm of one whose touch could kill; Giving me desire Toward substance, yet for flight the lightning’s fire. So, if close a lover kneels, Praying close, one feels All the body’s flow of...

COOP. Say the name to a Lakers fan and after a guaranteed smile, a list of superlatives is sure to follow. The GOAT of NBA perimeter defenders. Five-time NBA champion. The quintessential glue guy. The graceful and thunderous finisher on a patented "Coop-A-Loop" alley-oop from teammate Magic Johnson. But more than anything when describing Michael Cooper, the conclusion is a player who was the ultimate teammate and winner, always willing to sacrifice for the greater good to make sure Showtim...

In a world where every ping, scroll, and notification is vying for your attention, the ability to focus is no longer just a skill-it's a superpower.The Art of Deep Work - How to Focus in a World Full of Distractions is your essential guide to reclaiming your mind, mastering your attention, and doing the kind of work that matters. Whether you're a student, entrepreneur, creator, or professional, this book will help you break free from digital noise and redis...

Many people will agree that we are living in a world in which many people seem to be experiencing an identity crisis. To complicate the matter, this identity crisis has found its way into the Lord's Church. The question must be asked, "What does it mean to be and live as a Christian?" At the center of our Christian experience, we discover that our union with the Crucified and Risen Jesus shapes our identity and our spiritual formation. Cruciform Identity calls Christians to embrac...

Answering the Call is the story of nineteen Catholic permanent deacons from the Diocese of Savannah (Georgia) whose lives underwent profound transformations as they embarked upon a journey of self-discovery which revealed to them both the awesome power of God and the holiness of everyday life. When these deacons, who come from vastly different spiritual, professional, and educational backgrounds, responded to God's call, they soon became aware of the profound impact their decision would ma...

Michael Cooper was compulsively drawn to perilous places. It nearly got him killed over a half-dozen times.In its action-packed, often-comical pages, Miscalculated Risks recounts how Cooper's increasingly dangerous ventures far into wilderness landed him in dire situations: Mortally wounded in a Mexican jungle, twenty roadless miles from the nearest medical facility. Half-drowned and severely hypothermic on an isolated Oregon river, shooting sixty-nine mil...

Composer, pianist, teacher, and social-justice activist Margaret Bonds fought against racism, sexism, and economic injustice throughout her career, amassing a portfolio of social-justice compositions unrivalled in eloquence and originality which challenged longstanding barriers between Black and White, male and female, popular and classical. During her lifetime the political economy of music publishing consigned most of her music to manuscript dissemination, and since her death -- despite ...

Michael 'Mini' Cooper knew he was different from an early age. Fiercely independent, he challenged injustice and questioned what he perceived to be the irrational belief systems of both parents and teachers alike. But no one wanted to listen and they didn't want him heard. After several failed attempts at beating him into submission, he fought back with devastating consequences. Michael Cooper didn't always know the truth but he understood the lie. Some have described him as a warrior of j...

Library Journal praises the book as "an excellent one-volume ready reference resource for students, researchers, and others interested in music history."Historical Dictionary of Romantic Music, Second Edition covers the persons, ideas, practices, and works that made up the worlds of Western music during the long 19th century (ca. 1780–1918). It’s the first book to recognize that Romantic music was very nearly a global phenomenon. I...

In her lifetime, African American composer Margaret Bonds was classical music's most intrepid social-justice activist. Furthermore, her Montgomery Variations (1964) and setting of W.E.B. Du Bois's iconic Civil Rights Credo (1965-67) were the musical summits of her activism. These works fell into obscurity after Bonds's death, but were recovered and published in 2020. Since widely performed, they are finally gaining a recognition long denied. This incisive book situates The Montgomery Varia...

It is said that by thought, we attract the thing. By taking action, we receive the thing. We decide what our thoughts should be. As a man thinks in his heart, so is he (Prov. 23:7). The book encourages us to think using the mind of God (Phil 2:5). Thinking with the mind of God makes success inevitable because God knows all things. The book encourages readers to let go of many things, including the past. But to never give up on the power of believing in oneself. Readers are encouraged to al...