Publisher: Viking
Check Library Catalog Pub Date: 03/07/2013
ISBN-13: 9780670025756
ISBN-10: 0670025755

Beverly Donofrio, a successful author of memoirs and children's books, was living peacefully in Mexico after having returned to the Catholic faith of her youth -- until the night she woke up to find a man holding a knife to her throat. With her sense of spiritual calm and safety shattered by the assault, Donofrio pelted God with furious questions that then led her to re-examine her life and her faith. She sought spiritual recovery on a journey that included visits to five different monasteries as well as daily spiritual reading, meditation, and prayer. Astonished relates an "insightful, candidly unfolding, soul-bearing journey to grace" (Publishers Weekly).

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Publisher: Grand Central Publishing
Check Library Catalog Pub Date: 03/05/2013
ISBN-13: 9781455512423
ISBN-10: 1455512427

In 2000, when author Lauren Drain was 15, her father joined the Westboro Baptist Church in Topeka, Kansas, and brought his wife and daughter to live in the community founded by Fred Phelps. Widely known for its anti-gay demonstrations -- even picketing of U.S. military funerals -- the congregation tried to make the teenaged Drain conform to their beliefs. After she struggled for years to fit in, the sect finally ostracized her and forbade her even to contact her own family. Drain's riveting, informative account of life with the Westboro group explores both the emotional effects of her experience and her search to recover her sense of identity.

Publisher: Dutton
Check Library Catalog Pub Date: 01/24/2013
ISBN-13: 9780525953845
ISBN-10: 0525953841

Though she danced professionally in the 1980s and has been a well-known yoga teacher for years, Cyndi Lee (author of Yoga Body, Buddha Mind) had always hated her body. In May I Be Happy, Lee recounts both her lifelong struggles to achieve self-acceptance and the challenges of family problems in the present. Through these reminiscences, anecdotes about yoga classes, and reflections on Buddhist teachings, Lee traces a pathway to tranquility that will appeal to students of yoga and Buddhism as well as those who have been striving to make peace with their bodies.

Publisher: Tyndale House Publishers
Check Library Catalog Pub Date: 03/01/2013
ISBN-13: 9781414339351
ISBN-10: 1414339356

Clive Staples Lewis, author of the Narnia Chronicles and many books for adults on Christianity, was a mature Oxford don before he became a Christian. In this clear and insightful biography, Alister McGrath traces the details of Lewis' difficult early life, his World War I experience, and his university fellowship, all of which preceded his conversion. He explores how Lewis' friendships influenced his thinking and discusses his theology in light of modern views on the subject. Both the flaws in Lewis' character and the brilliance of his theological writing receive serious and informative treatment in this biography.

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Publisher: Viking
Check Library Catalog Pub Date: 02/21/2013
ISBN-13: 9780670026715
ISBN-10: 0670026719

Journalist John Thavis, whose beat for 30 years was the Vatican, impartially recounts details of events he covered during his service as Rome bureau chief for the Catholic News Service. Though Thavis remains sympathetic to the church, he doesn't back away from scandalous stories such as cover-ups of sexual abuse committed by Catholic priests and the hierarchy's failure to oust an anti-Semitic bishop. He also offers up-close views of matters ranging from the selection of Pope Benedict XVI to the struggle to preserve an ancient cemetery that lay in the path of parking lot construction. This informative and very accessible book will intrigue both faithful Catholics and people with a more secular interest in the Holy City.

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Publisher: Random House
Check Library Catalog Pub Date: 10/01/2001
ISBN-13: 9780553378290
ISBN-10: 0553378295

A powerful spiritual experience can make you feel as if the mundane world no longer matters -- until you inevitably descend from the high. In After the Ecstasy, the Laundry, well-known Buddhist teacher and author Jack Kornfield explains that the fall from the spiritual peak is normal, and that it's day-to-day perseverance that matters most. Drawing on interviews with teachers from different religious backgrounds (not only Buddhist, but Sufi, Catholic, and Jewish practitioners), Kornfield discusses techniques for maintaining a regular practice and learning to accept the imperfections of the world. Newcomers to meditation practice and experienced seekers will all find useful advice and support in this work.

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Publisher: Howard Books
Check Library Catalog Pub Date: 08/16/2011
ISBN-13: 9781451606171
ISBN-10: 1451606176

Former Senator Joe Lieberman is well known for his observance of Orthodox Jewish practices, to which he adhered even when carrying out the business of the U.S. Senate and campaigning for office. In The Gift of Rest, Lieberman carefully and engagingly explains the importance of Sabbath observance, offering both personal anecdotes and historical explanations to make his descriptions accessible and meaningful to any reader. Each chapter concludes with suggestions about how to incorporate aspects of Sabbath observance into a secular life. For more on Sabbath and other Jewish observances, read Lauren Winner's Mudhouse Sabbath, which is also written for readers with a range of beliefs and interests.

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Publisher: Thomas Nelson
Check Library Catalog Pub Date: 04/04/2006
ISBN-13: 9780849913457
ISBN-10: 0849913454

Life often deals crushing blows or hands us overwhelming burdens, as popular evangelical author Max Lucado well knows. In Traveling Light, he uses a study of Psalm 23 to demonstrate that God doesn't expect people to handle such difficulties alone. Applying homey anecdotes and powerful biblical illustrations, Lucado draws readers along the path towards complete trust in God. Though this work, like all of his writing, will appeal mainly to Christians, it offers helpful practices for anyone who is faced with mountainous obstacles or frightening challenges. Publishers Weekly praises Lucado's "profound perspective on life and spirituality."

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Publisher: Harper San Francisco
Check Library Catalog Pub Date: 06/01/2006
ISBN-13: 9780060754730
ISBN-10: 0060754737

Though Catholic theologian and teacher Henri Nouwen didn't publish a book specifically on spiritual direction, this posthumous compilation of extracts from his writings provides insight and instruction on how an ordinary person can find a more fruitful spiritual path. Rather than providing a course for people who want to be spiritual directors, the work addresses common problems that confront the faithful, from how to pray to overcoming fears of a judgmental God. Fans of Nouwen and those who are new to his writing will find enrichment and inspiration in Spiritual Direction.

First Chapter  

Publisher: Harper
Check Library Catalog Pub Date: 01/26/2010
ISBN-13: 9780061628344
ISBN-10: 0061628344

Novelist Dani Shapiro had never developed a consistent spiritual practice in adulthood, but, shocked out of complacency by the early deaths of her parents and her infant son's seizure disorder, Shapiro felt the lack of spiritual foundation in her daily world. Looking for answers that might fill this gap, she began to experiment with a variety of practices, including yoga and Buddhist and Jewish teachings. She enrolled her son in Hebrew school and took part in an inclusive service at Jewish Theological Seminary, wearing her father's prayer garments. Devotion presents her straightforward and engaging process of self-evaluation, which led to insights that will inspire others who have felt too far from God.