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Mother Emanuel : Two Centuries of Race, Resistance, and Forgiveness in One Charleston Church by Kevin SackFew people beyond South Carolina’s Lowcountry knew of Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church in Charleston—Mother Emanuel—before the night of June 17, 2015, when a twenty-one-year-old white supremacist walked into Bible study and slaughtered the church’s charismatic pastor and eight other worshippers. Although the shooter had targeted Mother Emanuel—the first A.M.E. church in the South—to agitate racial strife, he did not anticipate the aftermath: an outpouring of forgiveness from the victims’ families and a reckoning with the divisions of caste that have afflicted Charleston and the South since the earliest days of European settlement. Mother Emanuel explores the fascinating history that brought the church to that moment and the depth of the desecration committed in its fellowship hall. It reveals how African Methodism was cultivated from the harshest American soil, and how Black suffering shaped forgiveness into both a religious practice and a survival tool. Kevin Sack, who has written about race in his native South for more than four decades, uses the church to trace the long arc of Black life in the city where nearly half of enslaved Africans disembarked in North America and where the Civil War began. Through the microcosm of one congregation, he explores the development of a unique practice of Christianity, from its daring breakaway from white churches in 1817, through the traumas of Civil War and Reconstruction, to its critical role in the Civil Rights Movement and beyond. At its core, Mother Emanuel is an epic tale of perseverance, not just of a congregation but of a people who withstood enslavement, Jim Crow, and all manner of violence with an unbending faith.
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Light of the Mind, Light of the World : Illuminating Science Through Faith by Spencer A. KlavanFor centuries, a grim anti-human outlook has taken hold of the public imagination, teaching us all to view ourselves as random products of a cruel and uncaring natural world. Today, from apocalyptic environmentalism to twisted eugenics and dystopian bionic augmentation, movements are rising around the world to dispense with humanity or subordinate it to a pitiless mechanical logic. For many, it has come to seem as if the human spirit is obsolete, religious faith is illusory, and mankind is destined to be extinguished or surpassed. Some might even see the end of humanity as a good thing. But that is not our future. Light of the Mind, Light of the World tells a daring new story about how we got here, and how we can chart a better path forward. Surveying the history of science and faith from the astronomers of Babylon to the quantum physicists of postwar Europe and America, classicist and scholar Spencer A. Klavan argues that science itself is leading us not away from God but back to him, and to the ancient faith that places the human soul at the center of the universe. Reconciling the discoveries of science with the truths of the Bible, Klavan shows how the search for knowledge of the natural world can help illuminate the glories of its Creator, and how the latest developments in physics can help shatter the illusion of materialism.
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The Road to Wisdom : On Truth, Science, Faith, and Trust by Francis S. CollinsAs the COVID-19 pandemic revealed, we have become not just a hyper-partisan society but also a deeply cynical one, distrustful of traditional sources of knowledge and wisdom. Skepticism about vaccines led to the needless deaths of at least 230,000 Americans. “Do your own research” is now a rallying cry in many online rabbit holes. Yet experts can make mistakes, and institutions can lose their moral compass. So how can we navigate through all this? In The Road to Wisdom, Francis Collins reminds us of the four core sources of judgement and clear thinking: truth, science, faith, and trust. Drawing on his work from the Human Genome Project and heading the National Institutes of Health, as well as on ethics, philosophy, and Christian theology, Collins makes a robust, thoughtful case for each of these sources—their reliability, and their limits. Ultimately, he shows how they work together, not separately—and certainly not in conflict. It is only when we relink these four foundations of wisdom that we can begin to discern the best path forward in life.
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The Dragon's Prophecy : Israel, the Dark Resurrection, and the End of Days by Jonathan CahnIs there more to the world than meets our eyes - another realm that's transforming our world at this very moment? Is there an ancient vision that unlocks what is really happening to our world and what is yet to come? A dangerous force from ancient times that is now operating in the world and determining the course of world events? Did a three-thousand-year old mystery actually foretell the invasion of Israel by Hamas down to the year - and even the exact date? Is there a secret to the Book of Revelation that actually reveals what is taking place right now?
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| Separation of Church and Hate: A Sane Person's Guide to Taking Back the Good... by John FugelsangIn the spirit of George Carlin and Christopher Hitchens, the son of a former Catholic nun and a Franciscan brother delivers a deeply irreverent and biblically correct takedown of far-right Christian hatred—a book for believers, atheists, agnostics, and anyone who'll ever have to deal with a Christian nationalist. For more than two centuries, the United States Constitution has given us the right to a society where church and state exist independently. But Christianity has been hijacked by far-right groups and politicians who seek to impose their narrow views on government, often to justify oppressive and unequal policies. The extremists who weaponize the Bible for earthly power aren't actually on the side of Jesus—and historically they never have been. How do we fight back against those acting—literally—in bad faith? Comedian and broadcaster John Fugelsang finally offers the answers. In this informative, perspective-shifting book, Fugelsang takes readers through common fundamentalist arguments on abortion, immigration, LGBTQ rights, and more—exposing their hypocrisy and inaccuracy through scripture, common sense, and deeply inappropriate humor. It offers practical tips on how to debate your loved one, coworker, or neighbor on the issues that divide us using that Bible they claim to follow. But Fugelsang's message is about more than just taking down hypocrites. It's about fighting for the love, mercy, and service that are supposed to make up the heart of Christianity. Told with Fugelsang's trademark blend of radical honesty, comedy, and deep political and religious knowledge, Separation of Church and Hate is the book every American needs today. It's a rallying cry for compassion and clarity for anyone of any faith who's sick of religion being used as a cloaking device for hate. |
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| I Just Wish I Had a Bigger Kitchen and Other Lies I Think Will Make Me Happy by Kate StricklerIn a social media saturated world where it's all too easy to believe we'd be happy "if only," popular mentor of moms offers practical advice, tips, and her trademark philosophy of home to help you identify and dismantle the 10 most common lies about time, friends, money, and home life-- to truly enjoy the life you already have. |
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Contact your librarian for more great books!
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The Public Library
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Albuquerque, New Mexico 87102
505-768-5141abqlibrary.org |
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