Showing results by narrator "Adriel Brandt" in All Categories

Scottish reformer John Knox taught that Mass was an idolatrous practice. In 1550, the Roman Catholic church brought a charge against him for this controversial position. He defended this belief in front of the council of the North, stating, “I do affirm the Mass to be, and at all times to have been, idolatry and abomination before God.” His thorough, scriptural argument was so convincing that he was allowed to continue his preaching unhindered. 

The Biblical Psalms in the familiar language of the King James Bible performed with clarity and poetic substance. Feel the psalmists' anger, fear, despair, and love in this beautiful and unique audio collection.

The Silver Chair by C.S. Lewis was the fourth published of the seven novels that make up The Chronicles of Narnia (1950-1956), but is marked volume six in those editions that are sequenced according to the Narnian chronology. The story takes place decades after The Voyage of the Dawn Treader, when Aslan summons Eustace Scrubb and his classmate Jill Pole to help in the quest of finding the missing Prince Rillian, son and heir of King Caspian. After a journey filled with many dangers, they confront the witch who must be defeated in order to save Prince Rillian’s life.

Flatland, first published in 1884, is classic work of satire. The full title, Flatland: A Romance of Many Dimensions, reveals the story's most compelling characteristic, its discussion of multiple dimensions. It is this fascinating examination which has contributed to Flatland's enduring popularity.

 Making the Man Who Can by Wallace D. Wattles, republished after Wattles' death as How to Promote Yourself, is a classic work of wisdom and a masterpiece of motivation. Wattles maintains that the source of all success is the spirit of faith and goodwill. Based on the concept of a powerful life, he discusses the source of power, the business attitude, thoughts that build, how to develop yourself, and how to promote yourself. 

Horatius Bonar’s exegesis of the Old Testament is a voluminous work of 84 chapters. It deals with passages from the Book of Genesis to the Book of Malachi, covering themes like sin, despair, holiness, blessing, and deliverance.

The way of Cain, Horatius Bonar explains, leads to a barren world marked by the way of blood. Bonar details the haunted life lead by Cain once he had poisoned it with the murder of his brother. How despair, banishment, and fruitfulness would enter the lives of those who reject the right choices, as defined by the Bible, first given to them.

Parzival is a medieval epic poem written by the knight-poet Wolfram von Eschenbach. It is divided into 16 books, each composed of several 30-line stanzas of rhyming couplets. Regarded as one of the literary masterpieces of the Middle Ages, the romantic poem commonly dated to the early part of the 13th century. The verse narrative focuses on the Arthurian hero Parzival and his long quest for the Holy Grail after his initial failure to achieve it.

The Last Battle by C.S. Lewis is the final novel in the Narnia series. The story is set some 2500 Narnian years since the creation of the world as told in The Magician's Nephew. A false Aslan is set up in the borderlands, and conflict ensues between true and false Narnians and between Narnia and Calormen, whose people worship the malevolent Tash.

"How to Get What You Want" is an essay by the motivational author Wallace D Wattles. Wattles explains that getting what you want is success, and success is an effect that results from the application of a cause. Success is essentially the same in all spheres; the only difference is in the things that successful people want, but not in the nature or cause of success. Success is attainment, whether it results in the attainment of health, wealth, or position. 

The Spiritual Exercises of Ignatius of Loyola are a set of Christian prayers and meditations written by Saint Ignatius of Loyola, a 16th-century Spanish priest, theologian, and founder of the Society of Jesus. The work is divided into four thematic "weeks" of variable length, designed to assist the worshiper in acts of devotion.

Theodore Roosevelt began this 1899 speech with his thesis: “I wish to preach, not the doctrine of ignoble ease, but the doctrine of the strenuous life.” He discusses how the many hardships of his life shaped him for the better. Roosevelt believed that if Americans wished to succeed in the world, they would need to embrace the virtue of hard work. He applied this same belief to foreign affairs, stating that America must establish itself as a powerful military force and exert this power when necessary.

Ivan Sergeyevich Turgenev (1818-1883) was a Russian author, translator, and popularizer of Russian literature in the West. "Mumu" is about Gerasim, a deaf-mute serf whose life of poverty is brought into sharp relief by his love for a dog he rescues from drowning. His wealthy old mistress sees the dog Mumu and wants it but Mumu bares her teeth at her, and tragedy follows. 

Wolfram von Eschenbach, a knight and a poet from 13th century Germany, is the author of this Arthurian romance. Parzival is the revival and completion of a narrative left incomplete by its initiator Chrétien de Troyes. It follows Parzival from his boyhood and career as a knight at the court of King Arthur to his ultimate achievement as King of the Temple of the Grail. This is both a tale of chivalry, and an epic quest for spiritual insight, as the hero Parzival must overcome his pride, and learn to be humble before he can finally win the Holy Grail.

In 1919, the Republican senator Henry Cabot Lodge gave a speech opposing The Treaty of Versailles and the US joining the League of Nations without reservations. The failure of the Treaty, opposed by Lodge mainly because it would mean the US would be obligated to go to war without the approval of congress if the League saw fit, and his victory over President Woodrow Wilson, is considered by many to be the highlight of Lodge’s political career.

During a long and illustrious career, William H. Taft served as governor, secretary of war, president, and chief justice. In Taft's inaugural address, key issues in the US at the beginning of the 20th century, including international and domestic affairs, tax and commerce, war, immigration, infrastructure, and more are discussed.

Two days before the US entered WWI on April 6, 1917, Senator Robert La Follette (R-Wis.) defended the right to free speech in times of war in a three-hour senate address. La Follette supported the constitutional right to free speech on ethical, historical, and textual grounds. He speculated that the cause of the war was imperial ambition and commercial rivalry between the European powers, and was proved correct by later historical research in government archives.

Jules Verne’s masterpiece, The Mysterious Island, is a fascinating story of five men and a dog who escape the American Civil War in a hot air balloon. A storm takes them far away and they land on an unknown island. One adventure follows another as they cope with pirate attacks and active volcanoes. After receiving a message in a bottle, they rescue another castaway on Tabor Island. In crisis situations, they are assisted by an unseen helper who once supplies medicine and another time beats back the pirates.

The Testament of Solomon was originally written in Greek, and scholars date it to the end of the first century, but it includes material dated to an earlier period. The text contains various theological and magical themes found in Christianity and Judaism, and Greek and Egyptian mythology. It contains passages on medical alchemy and incorporates astrological concepts. Most of it consists of Solomon's interviews with demons, including figures otherwise known as the Titan Kronos, Lilith, Hecate, and Medusa.

James Petigru Boyce (1827 - 1888) was the founding President of Southern Baptist Theological Seminary and also served as its first professor of Theology. His Abstract of Systematic Theology is a practical textbook for pastors and students. A philosophical introduction on the science of theology is followed by 16 chapters devoted to the study of God. Boyce then proceeds to creation, providence, the fall of man, Christology, salvation, sanctification, and eschatology.