In this deeply felt book, nine American writers and thinkers from different points of the religious compass discuss how their work is nourished by spiritual concerns. Diana Ackerman explains why she calls herself a messenger of wonder and how, in her observations of the natural world, there is a form of beholding that is a kind of prayer. David Bradley recalls how his inheritance as the son, grandson and great-grandson of black preachers has enabled him, at considerable pain, to be touched by the word. Frederick Buechner makes an intensely personal journey to his roots as a novelist: In fiction, as in faith, something outside ourselves is breathed into us if we're open enough to inhale it. Allen Ginsberg describes how his poetry is grounded in the Buddhist idea of renunciation of hand-me-down conceptions and the meditative practice of letting go of thoughts. Mary Gordon retraces an odyssey in which the religious beliefs and forms of a Catholic girlhood turned out to be as useful as a wiretap to the grown-up novelist. Patricia Hampl describes how the writing of Virgin Time took her on a series of pilgrimages to explore the contemplative life. Hillel Levine tells of his search for the mystery of goodness, exemplified by a Japanese diplomat in Lithuania who saved thousands of Jews on the eve of World War II. Hugh Nissenson explains how his work as a Jewish writer has been animated by a sense of the holy and shaped by the poetry, drama and narrative of the King James Bible. Jaroslav Pelikan revisits three religious writers--Augustine, Newman, and Boethius--whose influence on other religious writers over the centuries has never gone out of fashion. Together, as William Zinsser notes in his introduction, these writers are on a pilgrimage to find the source of their faith as individuals and their strength as artists.

Walks groups through an evangelistic method that respects the unique relationships they have with their coworkers, clients or customers.

Sin and the Church: Perspectives and Principles for Powerful Christian Living is a timely message for today. This book is born out of Crystal Scott's own personal Christian experience and journey, and is a reflection of God's grace, patience, and providence; she discloses that while forever a work-in-progress, she has received revelation and understanding through her relationship with God that affords her the opportunity to enlighten others as she has been enlightened. WHAT YOU DON'T KNOW CAN HURT...! As related to the issue of Sin and the Church, I consider this more than a mere cliché: what you don't know can indeed hurt you; and this hurt is more and more apparent in the Church, which is the body of Christ (His believers and followers). There is a rapid increase of spiritual decline in the Church that is quite alarming and its impact is far-reaching. All too often there seems to be very little difference between Church people and those who do not claim to be followers of Christ. I contend, without apology, that there is an expectation of the Church that God has, which is not being carried out as it should be. In the face of what seems gloom and doom for the Church, God raises a word of enlightenment and encouragement. God knows there are some who are innocently led astray by erroneous doctrine and confused, and He cares. He also cares about those who innocently or deceptively lead others astray and He offers grace, forgiveness, and restoration to the repentant heart. Included in this book are the following: * True Christian Doctrine * Lifestyles that are not indicative of Christianity and holiness * Essential keys for powerful Christian living * Statistical Data * Personal testimonies and interviews * and much more SIN and the CHURCH: PERSPECTIVES and PRINCIPLES for POWERFUL CHRISTIAN LIVING...GOOD NEWS in confusing and troubled times!

Through extensive neighborhood interviews and a compelling assessment of the problems of unraveling communities in urban America, Harold McDougall reveals how, in sections of Baltimore, a "New Community" is developing. Relying more on vernacular culture, personal networking, and mutual support than on private wealth or public subsidy, the communities of black Baltimore provide an example of self-help and civic action that could and should be occurring in other inner-city areas. In this political history of Old West Baltimore, McDougall describes how "base communities"—small peer groups that share similar views, circumstances, and objectives—have helped neighborhoods respond to the failure of both government and the market to create conditions for a decent quality of life for all. Arguing for the primacy of church leadership within the black community, the author describes how these small, flexible groups are creating the foundation of what he calls a New Community, where community-spirited organizers, clergy, public interest advocates, business people, and government workers interact and build relationships through which Baltimore's urban agenda is being developed.

Fear vs. Faith is a journey into the two forces that govern our universe, one positive the other negative. The controlling factor for these powers lies within you and I, fear and faith; the force of destruction vs. the power of creation. Including a powerful look into two of the most influential men of all time.

A new examination of how and why American religious parents seek to pass on religion to their children The most important influence shaping the religious and spiritual lives of children, youth, and teenagers is their parents. A myriad of studies show that the parents of American youth play the leading role in shaping the character of their religious and spiritual lives, even well after they leave home and often for the rest of their lives. We know a lot about the importance of parents in faith transmission. However we know much less about the actual beliefs, feelings, and activities of the parents themselves, what Christian Smith and Amy Adamczyk call the "intergenerational transmission of religious faith and practice." To address that gap, this book reports the findings of a new national study of religious parents in the United States. The findings and conclusions in Handing Down the Faith are based on 215 in-depth, personal interviews with religious parents from many traditions and different parts of the country, and sophisticated analyses of two nationally representative surveys of American parents about their religious parenting. Handing Down the Faith explores the background beliefs informing how and why religious parents seek to pass on religion to their children; examines how parenting styles interact with parent religiousness to shape effective religious transmission; shows how parents have been influenced by their experiences as children influenced by their own parents; reveals how religious parents view their congregations and what they most seek out in a local church, synagogue, temple, or mosque; explores the experiences and outlooks of immigrant parents including Latino Catholics, East Asian Buddhists, South Asian Muslims, and Indian Hindus. Smith and Adamczyk step back to consider how American religion has transformed over the last 100 years and to explain why parents today shoulder such a huge responsibility in transmitting religious faith and practice to their children. The book is rich in empirical evidence and unique in many of the topics it explores and explains, providing a variety of sometimes counterintuitive findings that will interest scholars of religion, social scientists interested in the family, parenting, and socialization; clergy and religious educators and leaders; and religious parents themselves.