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Spirituality and Religion September 2018
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| In Search of Wisdom: A Monk, a Philosopher, and a Psychiatrist on What Matters Most by Matthieu Ricard, Christophe Andre, and Alexandre JollienThe premise: What happens when a monk, a shrink, and a philosopher walk into a (proverbial) bar? If they're as well-educated and observant as the three authors of this book, expect an expansive discussion of many of the issues at the core of happiness, enlightenment, and life itself.
What sets it apart: While other books have presented interfaith and interdisciplinary dialogues about spiritual issues, the has a warmth, intimacy, and frankness to that is only possible because of the authors' many years of close friendship. |
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How to be a Perfect Christian: Your Comprehensive Guide to Flawless Spiritual Living
by Llc Babylon Bee
Written in the trademark style of The Babylon Bee, this book humorously satirizes cultural Christianity while peppering in subtle challenges to the reader. Through humor and sarcasm (and a handy meter to rank your "holiness" as you progress through the book), readers will be called to find a more biblical understanding of the Christian faith, all while poking fun at the quirks of the modern, American Christian community.
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Legendary Ladies: 50 Goddesses to Empower and Inspire You
by Ann Shen
Goddesses from our past are celebrated in this lushly illustrated book by Ann Shen, the author and artist who created Bad Girls Throughout History. Explore the feminine divine and feel empowered: Legendary goddesses and powerful deities are celebrated in gorgeous artwork and enlightening essays.
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Come Matter Here: Your Invitation to be Here in a Getting There World
by Hannah Brencher
Hannah Brencher, TED Talk speaker and founder of The World Needs More Love Letters, thought Atlanta was her destination. Yet even after she arrived, she found herself in the same old chase for the next best thing…somewhere else. And it left her in a state of anxiety and deep depression. Our hyper-connected era has led us to believe life should be a highlight reel—where what matters most is perfect beauty, instant success, and ready applause. Yet, as Hannah learned, nothing about faith, relationships, or character is instant. So she took up a new mantra: be where your feet are. Give yourself a permission slip to stop chasing the next big thing, and come matter here. Engage the process as much as you trust the God who lovingly leads you.
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Joey: How a Blind Rescue Horse Helped Others Learn to See
by Jennifer Marshall Bleakley
Presents the story of an abandoned Appaloosa who was rescued by the owners of Hope Reins, a ranch dedicated to helping abused children care for animals and describes the inspiration the horse provided to the staff and children who cared for him.
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Great Muslims of the West: Makers of Western Islam
by Muhammad Mojlum Khan
Muslims have lived in the “West” for hundreds of years, yet the lives of all but a few are little known. In this illuminating work, Muhammad Mojlum Khan sets out to change this by revealing the lives and impact of over fifty significant Muslims, from the founder of Muslim Spain in the eighth century to Muhammad Ali today. This extraordinary book features biographies on the enslaved African Prince Ayuba Sulaiman Diallo, who was put to work in the tobacco fields of Maryland; Alexander Russell Webb, the voice of Muslims in Victorian America; and W.D. Muhammad, Elijah Muhammad’s son, who converted the Nation of Islam’s followers to an authentic version of Islam.
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Godless Citizens in a Godly Republic: Atheists in American Public Life
by R. Laurence Moore
Two Cornell University professors examine the stigma that has caused atheists to be marginalized by First Amendment protections, the dramatic rise of atheism in America and the inherent prejudices of a non-secular Constitution that accepts religion as proof of integrity.
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Zen in the Age of Anxiety: Wisdom for Navigating our Modern Lives
by Tim Burkett
Written in the style of an owner’s manual, a guide to being human, Burkett focuses on areas of pain and anxiety as they tend to manifest for modern people: feelings of unworthiness, and issues surrounding sex, money, failure, and even death. Providing wisdom from Zen (channeled through his many experiences as a psychotherapist) and using language and metaphors from popular culture, he takes anxiety and teaches us to turn those fears into the building blocks of a fulfilling life.
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| Inspired: Slaying Giants, Walking on Water, and Loving the Bible Again by Rachel Held EvansWhat it is: an eloquent analysis of the Bible as a work of literature.
What sets it apart: Rachel Held Evans admirably analyzes the Bible without getting too caught up in literalism: the "literal truth" of biblical stories is less important to her than the lessons they hold.
Why you might like it: The author's esteem for and admiration of her subject is palpable, which makes for a compelling balance of historical context and personal reflection. |
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Evolutions: Fifteen Myths that Explain Our World
by Oren Solomon Harman
A lyrical exploration of how modern science illuminates what it means to be human shares the latest understandings about the birth of the universe and the evolution of the mind to create new mythologies connecting science to our existential questions.
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| Costly Grace: An Evangelical Minister's Rediscovery of Faith, Hope, and Love by Robert SchenckWhat it's about: the thought-provoking story of one man, his three conversions, and the multitude of lessons he learned over the course of a life and career at the fraught intersection of politics and religion.
Why it matters: Although the author had a role in ushering in the very atmosphere of politicized Christianity he condemns in the book, he also unequivocally takes responsibility for his past while advocating for a return to faith for its own sake.
Reviewers say: "This powerful book is a universal call for a change of heart in both the political and sacred realms" (Publishers Weekly). |
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| The Chosen Wars: How Judaism Became an American Religion by Steven R. WeismanWhat it is: an engaging, richly detailed journey through the history of Judaism in America, from the first arrivals in colonial New Amsterdam through the turn of the 20th century.
Don't miss: the special attention Weisman pays to how America and Judaism influenced each other, such as the economic consequences of Jewish and Christian communities observing the Sabbath on different days of the week and the roles that Jews played on both sides of the Civil War.
Did you know? The first Jewish congregation formed in what would later become the United States dates back to 1654. |
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| Everything Happens for a Reason: And Other Lies I've Loved by Kate BowlerWhat it's about: In her previous book Blessed, Kate Bowler explored the history and theology of the Prosperity Gospel. It's in this same context that she reflects on her diagnosis, at age 35, of Stage IV cancer, and how her impending mortality has affected her own faith.
Read it for: the seemingly effortless way that Bowler weaves her brand of warm, candid humor throughout a book that is as funny as it is bleak and as erudite as it is intimate. |
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| Daring to Hope: Finding God's Goodness in the Broken and the Beautiful by Katie Davis MajorsWhat it is: Katie Davis Majors's second account of her life and missionary work in Uganda (following Kisses from Katie), this time focusing on how the return of one of her adopted children to their biological mother prompted her to begin questioning God for the first time.
Further reading: Kathryn Joyce's The Child Catchers explores the flawed management of many international "orphan" adoptions, which can lead to heartbreaking situations like the one Majors went through. |
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| Martin Luther: The Man Who Rediscovered God and Changed the World by Eric MetaxasWhat it's about: Published to mark the Protestant Reformation's 500th anniversary, this fast-paced, accessible biography explores Martin Luther as a religious reformer but also as a human being.
Reviewers say: “a masterful portrait of a seminal figure" (Booklist).
Don't miss: Eric Metaxas's biographies of other pivotal figures in European Christianity, such as Amazing Grace (about William Wilberforce) and Bonhoeffer: Pastor, Martyr, Prophet, Spy. |
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| How to Be a Muslim: An American Story by Haroon MoghulWhat it is: In this informed, touching, and funny memoir, Haroon Moghul explains how in advocating for his fellow Muslims, he was pushed to reexamine his somewhat estranged relationship with God and with his Pakistani heritage.
What happens: After the 9/11 attacks politicized Muslim identity in America, Moghul found himself pushed into the spotlight and became, as he jokes, a "professional Muslim."
What sets it apart: The author meditates on some of his mental health struggles within the context of his religion, offering a welcome foray into a sometimes taboo topic. |
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| Higher is Waiting by Tyler PerryWhat it's about: Successful film director and actor Tyler Perry reflects on the people and places of his youth and how they shaped his current faith, his drive to achieve, and his creativity. The lives he describes have more than their fair share of pain and sorrow, but their trials taught a young Perry how to rely on God when dealing with his own challenges.
Read it for: the unexpected yet deeply moving discussion of Perry's relationship with the natural world and the peace he has learned to find in it. |
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Contact your librarian for more great books!
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