Download or read book Jesus and the Gang written by Jon Wolseth and published by University of Arizona Press. This book was released on 2011-02-15 with total page 174 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In urban Honduras, gun violence and assault form the pulsing backdrop of everyday life. This book examines the ways that young men and women in working-class neighborhoods of El Progreso, Honduras, understand and respond to gang and gun violence in their communities. Because residents rely on gangs and Catholic and Evangelical Protestant churches to mediate violence in their neighborhoods, these institutions form the fabric of society. While only a small fraction of youths in a neighborhood are active members of a gang, most young men must learn the styles, ways of communicating, and local geography of gangs in order to survive. Due to the absence of gang prevention programs sponsored by the government or outside non-governmental organizations, Catholic and Pentecostal churches have developed their own ways to confront gang violence in their communities. Youths who participate in church organizations do so not only to alter and improve their communities but also to gain emotional and institutional support. Offering firsthand accounts of these youths and how they make use of religious discourse, narrative practices, or the inscription of tattooed images and words on the body to navigate dangerous social settings, Jesus and the Gang is an unflinching look at how these young men turn away from perpetuating the cycle of violence and how Christianity serves a society where belonging is surviving. This book will appeal to readers with an interest in Latin American studies, urban anthropology, and youth studies. With its focus on the lives of young men and women, it’s also a compelling read for anyone interested in the plight of urban youth trying to escape the gang life.
Download or read book Was Jesus a Gang Member written by Andre Lee and published by CreateSpace. This book was released on 2015-01-25 with total page 410 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Isaiah 5:4 the vineyard 2014.... red summer 1921 blue summer 2014. Are the police the new centurion soldiers? Was Jesus a gang member? Are angles real? part one the book that fell from Heaven. Is Heaven a real place?
Download or read book The Shot Caller written by Casey Diaz and published by HarperChristian + ORM. This book was released on 2019-04-02 with total page 224 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: When you feel like you've made too many missteps to go forward, how do you find the strength to carry on? Join Casey Diaz as he tells the remarkable story of God's heart for second chances. The son of El Salvadorian immigrants, Casey Diaz was brought to Los Angeles at the age of two. An abusive, impoverished family life propelled Casey into the Rockwood Street Locos gang at just eleven years old. Casey was willing to do anything to be number one, but years of chasing rival gang members led to a dramatic ambush and arrest by the LAPD. By age sixteen, Casey was sentenced to more than twelve years in solitary confinement in California's toughest prison as one of the state's most violent offenders. He thought his life was over--but as the days in solitary wore on, Casey realized someone else was calling the shots. What happened next can only be described as a miracle. Join Casey as he shares how we can all: Embrace the incredible gift of God's redeeming love Change our lives for the better Find our God-given purpose A visceral insider's look at the violent world of gangs and prison life, The Shot Caller is a remarkable demonstration of God's reckless, unending grace, and desire to reach even the worst of sinners--no matter where they are. Praise for The Shot Caller: "When I read about the life of Casey Diaz, I see so much of my own life. This is a story of a tough young man who lost his way, and of a loving God who never forgot him, no matter where he was. I know you will be inspired by Casey's story. I hope you, too, will surrender to the love of Jesus Christ." --Nicky Cruz, bestselling author of Run Baby Run
Download or read book Jesus and John Wayne How White Evangelicals Corrupted a Faith and Fractured a Nation written by Kristin Kobes Du Mez and published by Liveright Publishing. This book was released on 2020-06-23 with total page 384 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER The “paradigm-influencing” book (Christianity Today) that is fundamentally transforming our understanding of white evangelicalism in America. Jesus and John Wayne is a sweeping, revisionist history of the last seventy-five years of white evangelicalism, revealing how evangelicals have worked to replace the Jesus of the Gospels with an idol of rugged masculinity and Christian nationalism—or in the words of one modern chaplain, with “a spiritual badass.” As acclaimed scholar Kristin Du Mez explains, the key to understanding this transformation is to recognize the centrality of popular culture in contemporary American evangelicalism. Many of today’s evangelicals might not be theologically astute, but they know their VeggieTales, they’ve read John Eldredge’s Wild at Heart, and they learned about purity before they learned about sex—and they have a silver ring to prove it. Evangelical books, films, music, clothing, and merchandise shape the beliefs of millions. And evangelical culture is teeming with muscular heroes—mythical warriors and rugged soldiers, men like Oliver North, Ronald Reagan, Mel Gibson, and the Duck Dynasty clan, who assert white masculine power in defense of “Christian America.” Chief among these evangelical legends is John Wayne, an icon of a lost time when men were uncowed by political correctness, unafraid to tell it like it was, and did what needed to be done. Challenging the commonly held assumption that the “moral majority” backed Donald Trump in 2016 and 2020 for purely pragmatic reasons, Du Mez reveals that Trump in fact represented the fulfillment, rather than the betrayal, of white evangelicals’ most deeply held values: patriarchy, authoritarian rule, aggressive foreign policy, fear of Islam, ambivalence toward #MeToo, and opposition to Black Lives Matter and the LGBTQ community. A much-needed reexamination of perhaps the most influential subculture in this country, Jesus and John Wayne shows that, far from adhering to biblical principles, modern white evangelicals have remade their faith, with enduring consequences for all Americans.
Download or read book Gangster to God written by Timothy Rau and published by WestBow Press. This book was released on 2021-01-08 with total page 58 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Gangster to God is an incredible true life story and testimony of Love and Grace, filled with incredible miracles only God could have set in motion. After enduring years of tragedy, drug addiction and finally a life sentence in prison, suicide seemed the only option for this man when God intervened and through overwhelming odds, his life was turned around and completely changed forever by The Love Of Jesus Christ.
Download or read book Beyond the Gang written by Mike Lutz and published by Independently Published. This book was released on 2019-04 with total page 126 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Gabriel Nieves', nicknamed Grim by his California gang members, shares the powerful story of redemption, salvation and transformation. Gabriel's story is a powerful testament to the glorious and transformative power of Jesus Christ. A criminal, drug user, drunkard, and gang member, who is facing the possibility of life without parole. But all that changed when he finally met Jesus and accepted Him as his Savior. Gabriel Nieves left his gang and life of crime to start a ministry that impacts people today through music. His story proves that God can reach anyone with the good news of Jesus Christ.
Download or read book Jesus on Death Row written by Prof. Mark Osler and published by Abingdon Press. This book was released on 2010-09-01 with total page 210 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: What does the most infamous criminal proceeding in history--the trial of Jesus of Nazareth--have to tell us about capital punishment in the United States? Jesus Christ was a prisoner on death row. If that statement surprises you, consider this fact: of all the roles that Jesus played--preacher, teacher, healer, mentor, friend--none features as prominently in the gospels as this one, a criminal indicted and convicted of a capital offense. Now consider another fact: the arrest, trial, and execution of Jesus bear remarkable similarities to the American criminal justice system, especially in capital cases. From the use of paid informants to the conflicting testimony of witnesses to the denial of clemency, the elements in the story of Jesus' trial mirror the most common components in capital cases today. Finally, consider a question: How might we see capital punishment in this country differently if we realized that the system used to condemn the Son of God to death so closely resembles the system we use in capital cases today? Should the experience of Jesus' trial, conviction, and execution give us pause as we take similar steps to place individuals on death row today? These are the questions posed by this surprising, challenging, and enlightening book
Download or read book Tony Evans Book of Illustrations written by Tony Evans and published by Moody Publishers. This book was released on 2009-01-01 with total page 384 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Picture this: it’s Saturday afternoon, and you’re putting the finishing touches on tomorrow’s sermon. You’ve been thinking, researching, and praying about this message all week, and thankfully, feel prepared. That is, except for one small detail—you aren’t sure how to begin. For more than 30 years, Tony Evans has been connecting with audiences around the world. Now his tools are available for you. Don’t leave your listeners to connect the dots. Let Tony Evans’ Book of Illustrations help you illustrate your point in a way they can’t forget.
Download or read book God s Gangs written by Edward Flores and published by NYU Press. This book was released on 2014 with total page 244 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Winner, 2014 Distinguished Contribution to Research Award presented by the Latina/o Sociology Section of the American Sociological Association Los Angeles is the epicenter of the American gang problem. Rituals and customs from Los Angeles’ eastside gangs, including hand signals, graffiti, and clothing styles, have spread to small towns and big cities alike. Many see the problem with gangs as related to urban marginality—for a Latino immigrant population struggling with poverty and social integration, gangs offer a close-knit community. Yet, as Edward Orozco Flores argues in God’s Gangs, gang members can be successfully redirected out of gangs through efforts that change the context in which they find themselves, as well as their notions of what it means to be a man. Flores here illuminates how Latino men recover from gang life through involvement in urban, faith-based organizations. Drawing on participant observation and interviews with Homeboy Industries, a Jesuit-founded non-profit that is one of the largest gang intervention programs in the country, and with Victory Outreach, a Pentecostal ministry with over 600 chapters, Flores demonstrates that organizations such as these facilitate recovery from gang life by enabling gang members to reinvent themselves as family men and as members of their community. The book offers a window into the process of redefining masculinity. As Flores convincingly shows, gang members are not trapped in a cycle of poverty and marginality. With the help of urban ministries, such men construct a reformed barrio masculinity to distance themselves from gang life.
Download or read book Out of the Black Shadows written by Stephen Lungu and published by Monarch Books. This book was released on 2001 with total page 257 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Stephen Lungu was the oldest son of a teenage mother, married off by her parents to a much older man and living near Salisbury, Rhodesia (now Zimbabwe). When he was three his mother ran away, leaving him and his younger brother and sister in the reluctant care of an aunt. By 11 Stephen too had run away, preferring life on the streets. He slept under bridges and scavenged from white folks' dustbins. As a teenager he was recruited into an urban gangs, the Black Shadows, which burgled and mugged with a half-focused dream of revolution. When an evangelist came to town, Stephen was sent to fire bomb the event, carrying his bag of bombs and mingling with the crowd. Instead he stayed to listen ... Today Stephen is Africa's Billy Graham, an international evangelist who regularly speaks in UK, US and Europe.
Download or read book Run Baby Run 16pt Large Print Edition written by Nicky Cruz and published by . This book was released on 2017-03-14 with total page 536 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: One of the most influential Christian books of modern times, with over 12 million copies sold worldwide. The book is being re-issued with a compelling foreword by Tim Dilena to emphasize its relevance today. Nicky Cruz's powerful story of redemption, salvation and transformation is a powerful testament to the glorious transformative power of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. A vicious fighter, criminal, drug user, drunkard and thief he was the leader of one of New York City's most violent gangs, the Mau Mau. But all that changed when he met David Wilkerson, author of The Cross and the Switchblade, who refused to give up on Nicky Cruz. When he finally met Jesus and accepted Him as his Savior, Nicky Cruz left his violent life and gang to start a ministry that impacts young people today. His story proves that anyone can be reached with the gospel of Christ. ''The story of Nicky Cruz is remarkable. It has all the elements of tragedy, violence and intrigue - plus the greatest of all ingredients: the power of the Gospel of Jesus Christ.
Download or read book Black and Free written by Tom Skinner and published by Xulon Press. This book was released on 2005-03 with total page 194 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Timeless classic on the depths of God¿s love. Must read for every black to grasp their history and potential and every white seeking sensitivity toward their African-American brothers and sisters.
Download or read book Jesus and Gin written by Barry Hankins and published by St. Martin's Press. This book was released on 2010-08-03 with total page 256 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Jesus and Gin is a rollicking tour of the roaring twenties and the barn- burning preachers who led the temperance movement—the anti-abortion crusade of the Jazz Age. Along the way, we meet a host of colorful characters: a Baptist minister who commits adultery in the White House; media star preachers caught in massive scandals; a presidential election hinging on a religious issue; and fundamentalists and liberals slugging it out in the culture war of the day. The religious roar of that decade was a prologue to the last three decades. With the religious right in disarray today after its long ascendancy, Jesus and Gin is a timely look at a parallel age when preachers held sway and politicians answered to the pulpit.
Download or read book Homies and Hermanos written by Robert Brenneman and published by OUP USA. This book was released on 2012 with total page 309 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Using the tools of sociological theory, Robert Brenneman seeks to discover why a pot-smoking, gun-wielding "homie" gang member would want to trade in la vida loca for a Bible and the buttoned-down lifestyle of an evangelical hermano (brother in Christ) - and to what extent this strategy works for the many youth who have tried it.
Download or read book Jesus Religion written by Jefferson Bethke and published by HarperChristian + ORM. This book was released on 2013-10-14 with total page 241 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Abandon dead, dry, religious rule-keeping and embrace the promise of being truly known and deeply loved. Jefferson Bethke burst into the cultural conversation with a passionate, provocative poem titled "Why I Hate Religion, But Love Jesus." The 4-minute video became an overnight sensation, with 7 million YouTube views in its first 48 hours (and 23+ million in a year). Bethke's message clearly struck a chord with believers and nonbelievers alike, triggering an avalanche of responses running the gamut from encouraged to enraged. In his New York Times bestseller Jesus > Religion, Bethke unpacks similar contrasts that he drew in the poem--highlighting the difference between teeth gritting and grace, law and love, performance and peace, despair, and hope. With refreshing candor, he delves into the motivation behind his message, beginning with the unvarnished tale of his own plunge from the pinnacle of a works-based, fake-smile existence that sapped his strength and led him down a path of destructive behavior. Along the way, Bethke gives you the tools you need to: Humbly and prayerfully open your mind Understand Jesus for all that he is View the church from a brand-new perspective Bethke is quick to acknowledge that he's not a pastor or theologian, but simply an ordinary, twenty-something who cried out for a life greater than the one for which he had settled. On this journey, Bethke discovered the real Jesus, who beckoned him with love beyond the props of false religion. Praise for Jesus > Religion: "Jeff's book will make you stop and listen to a voice in your heart that may have been drowned out by the noise of religion. Listen to that voice, then follow it--right to the feet of Jesus." --Bob Goff, author of New York Times bestsellers Love Does and Everybody, Always "The book you hold in your hands is Donald Miller's Blue Like Jazz meets C. S. Lewis's Mere Christianity meets Augustine's Confessions. This book is going to awaken an entire generation to Jesus and His grace." --Derwin L. Gray, lead pastor of Transformation Church, author of Limitless Life: Breaking Free from the Labels That Hold You Back
Download or read book Left for Dead Faith Family the Mob written by R K Jensen and published by Aaron Communications III. This book was released on 2005-12-15 with total page 602 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The riveting true story that has touched hearts World Wide about two brothers raised by the Mafia in a life of gangs, drugs, bank heists, and murder. Follow their struggle to escape the trappings of mafia life- Only a True Miracle of God can save them. A story of great tragedy, and Miraculous Triumph. A powerful story of struggle, defeat, & ultimate triumph. Dennis Mansfield, CBS TV Commentator
Download or read book I Stand with Christ written by Zhang Rongliang and published by Whitaker House. This book was released on 2015-07-01 with total page 240 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: "My name is Zhang Rongliang, and I am an unashamed follower of Jesus Christ.…It is considered quite dangerous to reveal the contents of this book, but these are stories that need to be told for God’s glory and for the encouragement of the church.” So begins this extraordinary first-person account by the prominent leader of one of the largest underground churches in China. A former Communist Party member, Zhang took a stand for Christ and was targeted for prison, work camps, and torture, all the while helping to build a network of millions of faithful believers. Spanning the time of Mao’s regime to today, Zhang testifies of God’s supernatural movements, of the sacrifice of countless Christians who loved and served Christ—regardless of the cost—and of the exciting new vision among believers in China to reach not only the Chinese but the entire world with the gospel.
