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Spirituality and Religion January 2023 |
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| Reflections on the Sunday Gospel: How to More Fully Live Out Your Relationship With God by Pope FrancisWhat it is: an inspiring collection of sermons built around the liturgical calendar that emphasize reconnecting with scripture and the early church leaders on a regular basis in order to deepen your connection to God.
Read it for: the uplifting tone and straightforward, approachable writing style.
Don't miss: the discussions of lesser-known figures like St. Irenaeus and the wisdom to be gained from their stories. |
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| Beyond Welcome: Centering Immigrants in Our Christian Response to Immigration by Karen GonzálezWhat it's about: the Christian case for welcoming immigrants, explored through the teachings of Jesus and the author's own experiences as an immigrant and advocate for immigrants.
Topics discussed: Jesus and hospitality; assimilation as a myth; and movement as a fact of human civilization.
Reviewers say: Thanks to "strong storytelling skills" Beyond Welcome effectively "challenges readers to rethink their understanding of immigrants" (Library Journal). |
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God is here : Reimagining the Divine by Toba SpitzerWhat it is: From the Hebrew Bible, Rabbi Toba Spitzer shares a rich variety of metaphors - among them, Water, Voice, Fire, and Cloud - to help readers experience holiness in their daily lives and to guide them in challenging times. How it's organized: Each chapter contains insights from the Bible and teachings from Judaism and other spiritual traditions, accompanied by suggestions for practice to bring alive each of the God metaphors. Reviewers say: Booklist says, "...Rabbi Spitzer offers a deceptively simple approach to finding the spiritual in everyday life. While she founds much of her insight on the the first five books of the Hebrew Bible...Spitzer makes it clear that her writings are non-ecumenical, applicable to any human searching for a higher spirit as a life guide." |
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| Heretic by Jeanna KadlecWhat it is: a thoughtful and compelling memoir of trauma and rebirth that explores issues like identity, indoctrination, and the ways evangelical Christianity affects American society.
Read it for: author Jeanna Kadlec's candid reflections on growing up evangelical in the Midwest, her dysfunctional marriage to a pastor's son, and her struggles to reconcile the shame she felt as a queer woman with her church's teachings about unconditional love.
Reviewers say: Heretic is "a poignant story of being born again in a secular world" (Publishers Weekly). |
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| American Caliph: The True Story of a Muslim Mystic, a Hollywood Epic, and the 1977 Siege... by Shahan MuftiWhat it's about: the politically and religiously motivated hostage crisis that shut down Washington, D.C. f or 3 days in 1977, from its origins to its fallout.
The forces behind it: conflicts between the Nation of Islam and other groups in the Black Muslim movement; the assassination of Malcolm X; the 1973 Hanafi Massacre, in which 2 adults and 5 children were killed.
Awards: One of Publishers Weekly's Best Nonfiction Books of 2022 and winner of the J. Anthony Lukas Work-in-Progress Award in 2020. |
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| The White Mosque: A Memoir by Sofia SamatarNo, not those: The titular house of worship probably isn't one you've heard of, such as the Ottoman-built mosques in Nazareth and Acre, the former state mosque of Malaysia, or the 8th-century mosque in Ramla, Israel. Instead, The White Mosque described here was a small church, built in what is now Uzbekistan in 1884 in the style of a mosque.
Who built it: the followers of Prussian-born minister Claas Epp Jr., who came to Russia during a period when the Tsarist government allowed Mennonite settlement. Epp's leadership was controversial and divisive, but members of the community lived and worshipped in the area until Soviet collectivization in 1935.
About the author: Sofia Samatar is a writer best known for her fantasy and speculative fiction, including the novel A Stranger in Olondria. In The White Mosque, she chronicles the community's history and reflects on her identity as the descendant of both Swiss-German Mennonites and Somali Muslims. |
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| To Sanctify the World: The Vital Legacy of Vatican II by George WeigelWhat it is: a well-researched but accessible analysis of the Second Vatican Council -- how it started, controversial topics addressed, key players, and fallout for the modern Catholic Church.
Don't miss: the effort author George Weigel makes to place the Council in the context of World War II and the Cold War.
Reviewers say: To Sanctify the World is a "fluid reevaluation of Vatican II's origins and impact" (Publishers Weekly). |
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For personalized reading recommendations from Durham County librarians, try My Next 5! Simply complete an online form to tell us a little about what genres, books, and authors you like (or dislike). A DCL librarian will review your submission and reply with a list of the next five books you should read -- all ages of readers welcome!
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Want to keep up-to-date on new books at the library? on everything from Horror to Home & Garden! |
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NoveList Plus is a comprehensive database of fiction and nonfiction titles for all ages, including recommendations, articles, and lists for your fiction and nonfiction needs. DCL cardholders can access NoveList Plus from any computer. |
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Check out the library's top ten checkouts! Lists include top tens for adult fiction and nonfiction, movies, young adults fiction, picture books and kids' fiction. |
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