First, there has often been a tendency toward a false and unbiblical specialization, so that spiritual power came to be seen as limited to certain people, rather than all Christians, and to certain places, rather than anywhere God's people are present. "They," the saints as special people, are obviously the gifted and anointed ones, and "we," the rest of us who are not so gifted and anointed, can then delegate our responsibility to them, with relief.
Read moreThe great challenge, says Neuhaus, is the reconstruction of a public philosophy that can undergird American life and America's ambiguous place in the world. To be truly democratic and to endure, such a public philosophy must be grounded in values that are based on Judeo-Christian religion.
Read moreMark Quay, rector of an Anglican parish and a teacher at the Anglican Studies program at Beeson Divinity School in Birmingham, has attacked this problem head on in his book A Minister's Manual for Spiritual Warfare. He is concerned to assist pastors and other ministers help their parishioners find freedom from demonic oppression.
Read moreIn Part Two the author asks how Christians should think and act when the "assumption of a Christian basis for our common life is being challenged and rejected?" (p51).
Read moreSo writes Christian scholar and Islamic expert Dr. Patrick Sookhdeo in his new book, which reveals the historic antecedents to the present Islamic State and its growing influence around the world.
Read moreThis is, as the description says, an appreciative biography, written by someone who knows Packer and who has long been an admirer. In that way it is quite typical of other biographies of still-living individuals--it describes the subject's life and influence, but without much emphasis on his weaknesses.
Ryken dedicates the book's opening pages to explaining why he wrote this book and why he did so in the way he did.
Read moreThe author quickly dismisses the myths surrounding the origins of the church during the reign of Henry VIII and his wifely problems, arguing that the Church of England goes all the way back to Jesus Christ and the apostles. "The most ancient form of Christianity in Britain is not Roman Catholicism, but 'Celtic' Christianity," argues Collins.
Read moreThis is a memoir but it is more than that. Lewis was sent hither and yon by the State Department with a family (which eventually broke up under the pressure) at all times witnessing to his Christian faith and Anglican heritage. This could be described as "narrative theology," something unique in that he is telling the story through his rough and tumble diplomatic life.
Read moreIn preparation for this book, Dr. Brittain visited the two resulting dioceses from the 2008 split. He made five visits between summer 2009 and spring 2013. While he visited many churches and interviewed many people, his primary research centered on four congregations -- two remaining in the Episcopal Church and two joining the new Anglican Church in North America (ACNA).
Read moreThe book concludes with an outstanding peroration:
Read more