Download or read book Superchurch written by Jonathan J. Edwards and published by MSU Press. This book was released on 2015-04-01 with total page 412 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Christian Fundamentalism is a doctrine and a discourse in tension. Fundamentalists describe themselves as both marginal and a majority. They announce the imminent end of the world while building massive megachurches and political lobbying organizations. They speak of the need for purity and separation from the outside world while continually innovating in their search for more effective and persuasive ways to communicate with and convert outsiders. To many outsiders, Fundamentalist speech seems contradictory, irrational, intolerant, and dangerously antidemocratic. To understand the complexity of Fundamentalism, we have to look inside the tensions and the paradoxes. We have to take seriously the ways in which Fundamentalists describe themselves to themselves, and to do that, we must begin by exploring the central role of “the church” in Fundamentalist rhetoric and politics. Drawing on five fascinating case studies, Superchurch blends a complex yet readable treatment of rhetorical and political theory with a sophisticated approach to Fundamentalism that neither dismisses its appeal nor glosses over its irresolvable tensions. Edwards challenges theories of rhetoric, counterpublics, deliberation, and civility while offering critical new insights into the evolution and continuing influence of one of the most significant cultural and political movements of the past century.

Download or read book Too Great a Temptation written by Joel C. Gregory and published by Summit Publishing Group. This book was released on 1994 with total page 362 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Dr. Gregory goes behind the scenes to reveal the inside story on the inner politics, corruption of character, power struggles and hypocracy that have existed in super churches hiding behind the claims of being houses of God.

Download or read book About Face written by John O'Loughlin and published by John O'Loughlin. This book was released on 2022-02-26 with total page 270 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:  Much of the material included in each superbook (of supernotational aphorisms/maxims) in this volume is, of course, complementary, since their author's structural and thematic integrity has remained fairly consistent throughout. But if that were only the case he could have settled for one such superbook instead of two, the latter of which gradually emerged in its own right with a thematic and stylistic integrity of its own that, in many instances, not only went beyond but corrected and even contradicted some of the material already broached, thereby justifying its inclusion as a separate superbook that, nonetheless, was not unrelated, in most respects, to its predecessor. Some incidental material in the four supernotebooks of the first superbook and two of the second was not used or could not, for various reasons, be used, but what has been extracted from them has undergone sufficient rewriting and revision, not to say expansion, as to justify the concept of 'superbook', the intent of which is to draw a firm line under the biconical criteria which characterize not only this volume but other recent titles by John O'Loughlin, and all in the interests of a fresh approach to both logic and civilization that should enhance, rather than diminish, the capacity of the human mind to embrace morality and the complexities of moral issues to a degree and in a way arguably never before broached in the history of serious theoretical, or philosophical, endeavour. Every light of faith is dogged by a shadow of doubt, and it would be strange to the point of absurd if that were not the case with John O'Loughlin, even here in what should be a definitive account of his philosophical evolution. But such a shadow is actually complementary to the light and in no way a hindrance to the faith but, rather, a means of questioning and modifying one's approach to it so that the end-product, if end-product there be, will serve to enhance one's concept of truth and make one's faith in it all the more justifiably credible.– A Centretruths editorial

Download or read book The Best is Yet to Come written by Charles Caldwell Ryrie and published by Moody Publishers. This book was released on 1981 with total page 148 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

Download or read book Last W rites written by John O'Loughlin and published by Centretruths Digital Media. This book was released on 2022-04-17 with total page 172 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: As suggested by the pun-like title, LAST (W)RITES is both a bringing to a conclusion of certain previous theories by John O'Loughlin, self-taught philosopher and literary writer, which here attain to a well-nigh definitive presentation, and a ceremonial conclusion to certain lifestyles which this book is intended to assist kill off in the interests of what it calls a Superchristian dispensation commensurate with Social Transcendentalism and, hence, with an antithesis to all that, in contemporary terms, is effectively Superheathen, though the term 'secular', not least in relation to 'feminism' is of course more germane.

Download or read book PreachersNSneakers written by Ben Kirby and published by Thomas Nelson. This book was released on 2021-04-27 with total page 253 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Founder of the phenomenon social media account PreachersNSneakers tackles how faith, capitalism, consumerism, and (wannabe) celebrity have collided and asks both believers and nonbelievers alike: how much is too much? What started as a joke account on Instagram has turned into a movement. Through this provocative project, the founder of PreachersNSneakers is helping thousands of Jesus followers wrestle with the inevitable dilemmas created by our Western culture obsessed with image and entertainment. In PreachersNSneakers: Authenticity in an Age of For-Profit Faith and (Wannabe) Celebrities, Ben Kirby approaches many of the difficult questions plaguing countless Christians’ minds, presenting experiences and input from both sides of difficult questions, such as: Should pastors grow wealthy off of religion, and can their churches ever be too large? Do we really believe that divine blessings are monetary, or is that just religious wallpaper to hide our own greed? Is there space in Christendom for celebrities like Kanye and Bieber to exist without distorting the good news? What about this: Is it wrong for someone—even wrong for author Ben Kirby—to call out faith leaders online and leverage “cancel culture” to affect change? PreachersNSneakers will navigate these challenging questions and many more with humor, wit, candor, and a few never-before-published hijinks. Each chapter will explore the various sides of the debate, holding space for us to make up our own minds. This book is not about finding the perfect, “right” way to do something, but instead learning how to articulate what we believe, why we believe it, and what to do when we want to stand up against cultural norms. This book will doubtlessly become a staple for church small groups, college ministries, and book clubs, emboldening struggling believers who want to live a more genuine faith. After all, the Lord works in mysterious colorways.

Download or read book Better Together written by Jim Tomberlin and published by John Wiley & Sons. This book was released on 2012-04-24 with total page 277 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Thousands of Protestant churches are perplexed by plateaued or declining attendance, while other congregations nearby thrive. Is there a way for them to combine forces, drawing on both their strengths, in ways that also increase their missional impact? Church merger consultant Jim Tomberlin, with co-writer Warren Bird, makes the case that mergers today work best not with two struggling churches but with a vital, momentum-filled lead church partnering with a joining church. In this new book, they provide a complete, practical, hands-on guide for church leaders of both struggling and vibrant churches so that they can understand the issues, develop strategies, and execute a variety of forms of merger for church expansion and renewal to reinvigorate declining churches and give them a "second life."

Download or read book The World Council of Churches and the Catholic Church written by John J. McDonnell and published by New York ; Toronto : E. Mellen Press. This book was released on 1985 with total page 490 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: An analytical history of the ecumenical movement in the 20th century that focuses on the incidence of convergence and divergence between the Roman Catholic Church and the World Council of Churches. The text has detailed expositions of the assemblies and councils that have served as the milestones of ecumenism. Also included is a 20-page bibliography.

Download or read book The Disciple Making Pastor written by Bill Hull and published by Baker Books. This book was released on 2007-10-01 with total page 320 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Christ commanded the church to make disciples, to produce people who love and obey God, bear fruit, and live with joy. The crisis at the heart of the church is that we often pay lip service to making disciples, but we seldom put much effort behind doing it. For the pastor who is ready to put words into action, The Disciple-Making Pastor offers the inspiration and practical know-how to do so. Bill Hull shows pastors the obstacles they will face, what disciples really look like, the pastor's role in producing them, and the practices that lead to positive change. He also offers a six-step coaching process to help new disciples grow in commitment and obedience and practical ideas to integrate disciple making into the fabric of the church.

Download or read book Fashion Merchandising Fads written by Frank Hoffmann and published by Routledge. This book was released on 2014-06-23 with total page 336 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Fads by nature and by definition are hard to capture, yet Hoffmann and Bailey have captured over one hundred of the passing fashion fancies and merchandising miracles during America’s short history in their latest collection of fads, Fashion & Merchandising Fads. Life devoid of fads is impossible to imagine, and the fads that do enter our lives become vehicles for amusement upon retrospection. How long any fad stays in vogue is anybody’s guess, but Hoffmann and Bailey have again found those fads that somehow took root and flourished, if only for a short period of time, in America. Concise entries describe each fad from its beginning to its demise and its devout followers. Readers are sure to recognize many of the trends and fads collected in Fashion & Merchandising Fads. A browse through the contents will have readers smiling as they remember Alex, Stroh’s Beer-Drinking Dog and “Baby On Board” Stickers Barbie Dolls and Celebrity Perfumes Convertibles, Digital Watches, and Drive-In Banking Garfield, G. I. Joe, and Handbags for Men Knickers and Matchbox Cars The Model T and the Mustang Paper Dolls and Rubik’s Cube Silly Putty, the Slinky, and Synthetics in Clothes Top Hats, the Trilby, and Twiggy VCRs, Yuppies, and Zubaz Each fad featured in Fashion & Merchandising Fads is examined thoroughly and concisely by the authors. They look at the historical setting, how the trend became popular, and the people most fascinated and involved with the trend. References follow each entry to make further reading on each fad a relatively easy task for those intrigued by fads. As fads enter and encompass society for a period of time, this collection of fads, arranged alphabetically, is sure to captivate readers from beginning to end, or, in a world of fads, from the A-2 Flight Jacket to the Zipper.

Download or read book Eastern Orthodox Encounters of Identity and Otherness written by A. Krawchuk and published by Springer. This book was released on 2014-01-16 with total page 439 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: From diverse international and multi-disciplinary perspectives, the contributors to this volume analyze the experiences, challenges and responses of Orthodox Churches to the foundational transformations associated with the dissolution of the USSR.

Download or read book To the Right written by Jerome L. Himmelstein and published by Univ of California Press. This book was released on 2023-04-28 with total page 303 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In this timely book, Jerome Himmelstein offers a new interpretation of the growth of conservatism in American politics. Tracing the New Right of the 1970s and 1980s back to the Old Right of the 1950s, Himmelstein provides an interpretive map of the political landscape over the past decades, showing how conservatives ascended to power by reconstructing their ideology and building an independent movement. This title is part of UC Press's Voices Revived program, which commemorates University of California Press's mission to seek out and cultivate the brightest minds and give them voice, reach, and impact. Drawing on a backlist dating to 1893, Voices Revived makes high-quality, peer-reviewed scholarship accessible once again using print-on-demand technology. This title was originally published in 1990. In this timely book, Jerome Himmelstein offers a new interpretation of the growth of conservatism in American politics. Tracing the New Right of the 1970s and 1980s back to the Old Right of the 1950s, Himmelstein provides an interpretive map of the politi

Download or read book Taking a Stand written by Jared N. Champion and published by Univ. Press of Mississippi. This book was released on 2021-11-15 with total page 296 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Contributions by Jared N. Champion, Miriam M. Chirico, Thomas Clark, David R. Dewberry, Christopher J. Gilbert, David Gillota, Kathryn Kein, Rob King, Rebecca Krefting, Peter C. Kunze, Linda Mizejewski, Aviva Orenstein, Raúl Pérez, Philip Scepanski, Susan Seizer, Monique Taylor, Ila Tyagi, and Timothy J. Viator Stand-up comedians have a long history of walking a careful line between serious and playful engagement with social issues: Lenny Bruce questioned the symbolic valence of racial slurs, Dick Gregory took time away from the stage to speak alongside Martin Luther King Jr., and—more recently—Tig Notaro challenged popular notions of damaged or abject bodies. Stand-up comedians deploy humor to open up difficult topics for broader examination, which only underscores the social and cultural importance of their work. Taking a Stand: Contemporary US Stand-Up Comedians as Public Intellectuals draws together essays that contribute to the analysis of the stand-up comedian as public intellectual since the 1980s. The chapters explore stand-up comedians as contributors to and shapers of public discourse via their live performances, podcasts, social media presence, and political activism. Each chapter highlights a stand-up comedian and their ongoing discussion of a cultural issue or expression of a political ideology/standpoint: Lisa Lampanelli’s use of problematic postracial humor, Aziz Ansari’s merging of sociology and technology, or Maria Bamford’s emphasis on mental health, to name just a few. Taking a Stand offers a starting point for understanding the work stand-up comedians do as well as its reach beyond the stage. Comedians influence discourse, perspectives, even public policy on myriad issues, and this book sets out to take those jokes seriously.

Download or read book The Encyclopedia of Politics and Religion written by Robert Wuthnow and published by Routledge. This book was released on 2013-12-04 with total page 800 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Containing over 200 articles from prominent scholars, The Encyclopedia of Politics and Religion examines ways in which politics and religion have combined to affect social attitudes, spark collective action and influence policy over the last two hundred years. With a focus that covers broad themes like millenarian movements and pluralism, and a scope that takes in religious and political systems throughout the world, the Encyclopedia is essential for its contemporary as well as historical coverage. Special Features: * Encompasses religions, individuals, geographical regions, institutions and events * Describes the history of relations between religion and politics * Longer articles contain brief bibliographies * Attractively designed and produced The Encyclopedia of Politics and Religion will be invaluable for any library, public and academic, which serves those interested in politics, sociology, religious studies, international affairs and history. Contents include: ^ Abortion * Algeria * Anabaptists * China * Christian Democracy * Ethnic Cleansing * Gandhi * Israel * Italy * Jesuits * Jihad * Just War * Missionaries * Moral Majority * Muslim Brethren * Temperance Movements * Unification Church * War * Zionism

Download or read book Balanced Church Growth written by Ebbie C. Smith and published by B&H Publishing Group. This book was released on 1984 with total page 182 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

Download or read book Celebrating a Century of Ecumenism written by John A. Radano and published by Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing. This book was released on 2012-04-30 with total page 357 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Modern ecumenism traces its roots back to the 1910 World Missionary Conference in Edinburgh. Celebrating a Century of Ecumenism brings readers up to date on one hundred years of global dialogue between many different church traditions, including Anglican, Lutheran, Methodist, Roman Catholic, Pentecostal, Evangelical, Orthodox, Baptist, Disciples of Christ, Oriental Orthodox, and more. Eighteen essays by authors representing a wide spectrum of denominational interests outline the achievements of this movement toward unity. The first part of the book focuses on multilateral dialogue that involved a variety of churches attempting to delineate common ground, with considerable progress reported. The second part describes bilateral discussions between two churches or groups of churches. Celebrating a Century of Ecumenism is one small marker along the way to the unity that many Christians desire, and the report it provides will encourage those involved in ecumenical discussions. Contributors: S. Wesley Ariarajah Peter C. Bouteneff Ralph Del Colle Lorelei F. Fuchs Donna Geernaert Jeffrey Gros Helmut Harder William Henn Margaret O'Gara John A. Radano Cecil M. Robeck Jr. Ronald G. Roberson William G. Rusch Mary Tanner Geoffrey Wainwright Jared Wicks Susan K. Wood

Download or read book 2012 and the End of Institutional Evil written by Herbert Stollorz and published by Faith in Future Foundation. This book was released on 2008-09-17 with total page 210 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: 2012 and the End of Institutional Evil is an edited digest of Herbert R. Stollorz' two books, Apocalypse Prophesied and Mystery of Tammuz 17. Its 209 pages provide the core discoveries and reasoning found in the 1,000+ pages of those two books. A projected calendar of events describes the key players in the biblical Last Days: Satan, Antichrist, and the Mahdi. The books use science and mathematics to uncover extraordinary information in the Bible that theologians routinely miss. This unique approach presents a revolutionary new way of looking at the universe. The first book focused on Godâs Plan for Humanity from before time into eternity. The second book detailed Herbert R. Stollorzâ research methodology and thinking in an expanded discussion of the Last Days and the book of Revelation. His third book, Asteroid Answers to Ancient Calendar Mysteries, presents a hypothesis that explains why confirmation to the dating of key events in Bible prophecy may be found in the calendars and clocks of ancient cultures located around the world. It also explains other ancient mysteries by resolving apparent discrepancies between science and the Bible.