Sociology Religion

Conquerors, Brides, and Concubines investigates the political and cultural significance of marriages and other sexual encounters between Christians and Muslims in the Iberian Peninsula, from the Islamic conquest in the early eighth century to the end of Muslim rule in 1492. Interfaith liaisons carried powerful resonances, as such unions could function as a tool of diplomacy, the catalyst for conversion, or potent psychological propaganda.

Taking America Back for God points to the phenomenon of "Christian nationalism," the belief that the United States is - and should be - a Christian nation. At its heart, Christian nationalism demands that we must preserve a particular kind of social order, an order in which everyone - Christians and non-Christians, native-born and immigrants, whites and minorities, men and women - recognizes their "proper" place in society.

Discover the fascinating work of Caryll Houselander, a lay Catholic artist, mystic, religious writer, and poet in this thought-provoking book. Exploring the concept of guilt in the context of man's relationship with Christ, she reveals how breakdowns in this relationship manifest as psychological disfunction, and argues that only through suffering can we achieve sanity and become whole.

By the numbers, the American church enjoys the resources to profoundly impact the Kingdom. But despite the rapid growth of these evangelical movements, the church in the West is in decline. A growing schism has emerged between the movement with a strong emphasis on attracting people and the more missional communities that focus on releasing people into ministry. Hugh Halter and Matt Smay bring fresh encouragement to church leaders and invite them to move beyond the attractional-missional divide by utilizing the best insights from both perspectives.

For at least the last fifty thousand years, and probably much longer, people have practiced religion. Yet little attention has been given, either by believers or atheists, to the question of whether this universal human behavior might have an evolutionary basis. Did religion evolve, in other words, because it helped people in early societies survive?

Sports is a religion. No, really. From pilgrimages and cathedrals, gods and fallen angels, holy wars and holy ghosts, organized sports has every aspect of an organized faith. In fact, it might be even better: all it takes to believe is to stand and cheer. Nobody knows this better than the preeminent sports documentarian Gotham Chopra, who just so happens to be the son of world-renowned spiritualist Deepak Chopra. While his father taught him to find faith through prayer, Gotham felt pulled towards the Boston Garden and Larry Bird instead.

Here is a revolutionary perspective on the relationship between religion and science that builds a bridge between people of all beliefs.

In Our Endangered Values, Carter offers a personal consideration of "moral values" as they relate to the important issues of the day. He puts forward a passionate defense of separation of church and state, and a strong warning of where the country is heading as the lines between politics and rigid religious fundamentalism are blurred.

The 1980s saw the peak of a moral panic over fantasy role-playing games such as Dungeons and Dragons. A coalition of moral entrepreneurs that included representatives from the Christian Right, the field of psychology, and law enforcement claimed that these games were not only psychologically dangerous but an occult religion masquerading as a game. Dangerous Games explores both the history and the sociological significance of this panic.

Through in-depth conversations with spiritually fluid people, renowned scholar Duane Bidwell explores how people come to claim and be claimed by multiple religious traditions, how spiritually fluid people engage radically opposed truth claims, and what this growing population tells us about change within our communities.

Chicken Soup for the Teenage Soul II offers more inspiring stories to help you master the game we call life. Today's teens have ever more issues and social pressures to juggle than young adults just 20 years ago. This book, like its predecessor, can be your guide, a beacon in the darkness, a safe haven in a storm, a warm hug in the cold and a respite from loneliness. There's no preaching as to what you should and shouldn't do. Instead, this book is full of teens sharing their experiences.

A movement is rumbling through the body of Christ - a revolutionary army of people giving hope to a hurting world through practical, personal acts of service. In Servolution, Dino Rizzo shares the story of his relentless pursuit of ways to bless the lost, poor, and hurting people of his community in Jesus' name. You'll be amazed and inspired by the incredible ways God has used Healing Place Church to meet the needs of thousands of people.

Whether you’re a non-believer interested in activism or a religious fundamentalist who wants to learn about the “other side”, Atheist Answers is perfect for you. The book contains hundreds of questions frequently asked of atheists, as well as answers from an atheist author and seasoned heathen.

We live in a distracted, secular age. These two trends define life in Western society today. We are increasingly addicted to habits - and devices - that distract and "buffer" us from substantive reflection and deep engagement with the world. And we live in what Canadian philosopher Charles Taylor calls "a secular age" - an age in which all beliefs are equally viable and real transcendence is less and less plausible. Drawing on Taylor's work, Alan Noble describes how these realities shape our thinking and affect our daily lives.

In his most important book yet, widely acclaimed author and speaker Brian McLaren proposes a new faith alternative, one built on "benevolence and solidarity rather than rivalry and hostility." This way of being Christian is strong but doesn't strong-arm anyone, going beyond mere tolerance to vigorous hospitality toward, interest in, and collaboration with the other. Blending history, narrative, and brilliant insight, McLaren shows readers step-by-step how to reclaim this strong-benevolent faith.

While patriarchy and misogyny are problems everywhere, they take on a particularly pernicious form in Christian churches, where those with power have been insisting, since many decades before #MeToo, that this sexually dysfunctional environment is, in fact, exactly how God wants it to be. #ChurchToo turns over the rocks of the church's sexual dysfunction, revealing just what makes sexualized violence in religious contexts both ubiquitous and uniquely traumatizing.

Despite Jesus' prayer that all Christians "be one", divisions have been epidemic in the body of Christ from the beginning to the present. We cluster in theological groups, gender groups, age groups, ethnic groups, educational, and economic groups. We criticize freely those who disagree with us, don't look like us, don't act like us, and don't even like what we like. With a personal touch and the trained eye of a social psychologist, Cleveland brings to bear the latest studies and research on the unseen dynamics at work that tend to separate us from others.

Nos anos 1970, os evangélicos representavam apenas 5% dos brasileiros; hoje, são um terço da população adulta do país e, segundo estatísticos, superarão os católicos na próxima década. Mais importante do que a magnitude dos números é o que isto representa: pretos e pardos pobres convertidos ao protestantismo ascendem socialmente, e hoje estão presentes no próprio Estado.

On January 18th, 1989, Don Piper died in a car accident. Ninety minutes later, after a preacher prayed over him, Piper came back to life with an extraordinary story. He'd been to heaven. So began the phenomenon of 90 Minutes in Heaven.

Esta obra es una especie de diccionario, o audiolibro de consulta para que, quien sufra de un malestar o enfermedad cualquiera, pueda averiguar de una manera sencilla y rápida la causa profunda de su problema. La medicina tradicional sigue creyendo que la enfermedad es un obstáculo para la felicidad del ser humano, por ello lucha contra ella, tratando los síntomas sin atacar su causa profunda no orgánica.