Ancient Spirituality

The ancient Hebrew prophet Daniel lived in the fifth century BC and accurately predicted the history of the nation of Israel from 536 BC to AD 1948. Commentary from the ancient rabbis and the first century church reveals how the messianic rabbis and the disciples of the apostles interpreted his prophecies.

In a time of loneliness and isolation, social rupture and alienation, what will it take to mend our broken hearts and rebuild our society? Sharon Brous—a leading American rabbi—makes the case that the spiritual work of our time, as instinctual as it is counter-cultural, is to find our way to one other in celebration, in sorrow, and in solidarity. To show up for each other in moments of joy and pain, vulnerability and possibility, to invest in relationships of shared purpose and build communities of care.

In this book, Fr. Stavros Akrotirianakis, a longtime parish priest, offers reflections on the text of the Divine Liturgy of St. John Chrysostom to help listeners learn to pray the Liturgy and to understand and appreciate the mystery that unfolds each time it is celebrated.

It's completely understandable if you're in the dark about alchemy. It has been practiced around the world and linked to various religious rites, scientific experiments, and, of course, magic - a series of beliefs and disciplines that defy categorization and definition. The Complete Idiot's Guide to Alchemy demystifies this ancient art with an easy-to-comprehend overview of its history, philosophies, and practices.

Since the advent of the internet, it has become increasingly obvious that our society suffers from a pornography problem—and Orthodox Christians are no exception. While many practical resources are available to help those who struggle with pornography use, these fail to address the problem at its deeper, spiritual root.

Dan Allender's lyrical book about the Sabbath expels the myriad myths about this "day of rest," starting with the one that paints the Sabbath as a day of forced quiet, spiritual exercises, and religious devotion and attendance. This, he says, is at odds with the ancient tradition of Sabbath as a day of delight for both body and soul. Instead, the only way we can make use of the Sabbath is to see God's original intent for the day with new eyes. In Sabbath, Allender builds a case for delight by looking at this day as a festival that celebrates God's re-creative, redemptive love.

I and II Kings provide a record of Israel's history from the beginning of the movement to place Solomon on David's throne through the end of the reign of Zedekiah, Judah's last king. There are great lessons to be learned from Israel's desire to be "like those around us" and its consequences.

Is it possible that a place called Lemuria existed? What about the missing continent of MU? What does being a Lemurian actually mean for you today? The answer to these questions and more is revealed in this book.

Malevolent spirits haunt the many burial mounds and earthworks in the Ohio Valley. The Book of Enoch foretold that the spirits of the giant race born from the unholy union of women and fallen angels (aliens) would remain earthbound. The burial mounds were portals that connected the living with the dead. These ethereal spirits manifest as fairies, shadow people, and cryptids. Herein are first-hand accounts of people who have witnessed paranormal activity and these entities at burial mounds and earthworks sites in the Ohio Valley.

Rumi's Spiritual Verses is the greatest mystical poem in Islamic culture - and of all time. Rumi examines our human separation from reality, love, and truth. He shows how love - neither erotic nor sentimental but divine, by which the universe is held together - enlightens ignorance and dissolves suffering. The first book of the Masnavi is the key to the whole work: It takes off from simple, amusing tales into realms unimaginable, but wholly familiar to the human heart.

This book begins with King Solomon's reign and ends just before Jesus' birth, but don't expect to hear an historical record as in a textbook. This is history read as God's master plan, and He knows exactly what He's doing.

Prophets and Kings is volume two of a five-volume set that covers human history from the beginning of our time and on into the future.

People all around the world have grappled with the story of Atlantis for millennia, and Visions of Atlantis attempts to sort fact from fiction, providing a unique and compelling glimpse into what might have been.

There are few things more in common across cultures than the belief in ghosts. Ghosts inhabit something of the very essence of what it is to be human. Whether we personally 'believe' or not, we are all aware of ghosts and the rich mythologies and rituals surrounding them. They have inspired, fascinated and frightened us for centuries - yet most of us are only familiar with the vengeful apparitions of Shakespeare, or the ghastly spectres haunting the pages of 19th-century Gothic literature. But their origins are much, much older.

In The Power of Ho'oponopono, new thought author Craig Beck gives you a brief introduction and grounding in this life changing style of meditation. By implementing the easy to follow steps in this book you can affect positive change in your own life and also in the lives of all those that you love.

In response to popular demand, Patrick Henry Reardon explores redemption and salvation through the lens of Scripture, patristics, and liturgics, as well as through history, philosophy, language, literature, and psychology. He brings all these perspectives together to show how the whole of Christ’s work—from Incarnation to Ascension—accomplishes the “at-one-ment” of God with man.

Thomas à Kempis' collection of meditative writings from the Bretheren of the Common Life is the most widely read book in the world after the Bible. The reflective devotions have been a heartening friend to great men such as Thomas More, St. Ignatius Loyola, Thomas Merton, Pope John Paul I, and John Wesley. Learning to live live Jesus is the central task that A. Kempis explores in this classic devotional. This book provides comfort and counsel to every person who seeks to live a more connected and whole life.

How the Bible Actually Works makes clear that there is no one right way to read or listen to the Bible. Moving us beyond the damaging idea that “being right” is the most important measure of faith, Enns’ freeing approach to Bible study helps us to instead focus on pursuing enlightenment and building our relationship with God - which is exactly what the Bible was designed to do.

Jesus taught his followers that it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter heaven. Yet by the fall of Rome, the church was becoming rich beyond measure. Through the Eye of a Needle is a sweeping intellectual and social history of the vexing problem of wealth in Christianity in the waning days of the Roman Empire, written by the world's foremost scholar of late antiquity.

When the Emperor Constantine converted to Christianity in 368 AD, he changed the course of European history in ways that continue to have repercussions to the present day. Adopting those aspects of the religion that suited his purposes, he turned Rome on a course from the relatively open, tolerant, and pluralistic civilization of the Hellenistic world, towards a culture that was based on the rule of fixed authority, whether that of the Bible, or the writings of Ptolemy in astronomy and of Galen and Hippocrates in medicine.

Part history, part theology, part devotional, The Story of Jesus explores the complete life and teachings of our Lord from before his conception in the womb of Mary until his ascension. Revered 20th-century Egyptian elder and scholar Matthew the Poor wrote many volumes on the subject of Christ's significance, life, and teaching, which translator James Helmy has distilled into one book that will make an essential addition to every Christian's audiobook library.