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Spirituality and Religion March 2017
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| At Home in the World: Stories and Essential Teachings from a Monk's Life by Thich Nhat HanhThe acclaimed Vietnamese Buddhist monk and peace activist Thich Nhat Hanh offers fresh autobiographical inspiration in At Home in the World. Using accounts of five periods his in life to introduce specific spiritual challenges, he provides several short observations under each heading that illustrate his principles of compassion and empathy. Fans of this religious leader and readers new to his work will find thought-provoking guidance for "everyday practice and for social engagement in the world" (Publishers Weekly). |
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Miracles: An Encyclopedia of People, Places, and Supernatural Events from Antiquity to the Present
by Patrick J. Hayes
Miracles give hope to the hopeless and exemplify the intersection of the divine and the mundane. They have shaped world history and continue to influence us through their presence in films, television, novels, and popular culture. This encyclopedia provides a unique resource on the philosophical, historical, religious, and cross-cultural conceptions of miracles that cut across denominational lines.
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The American Miracle: Divine Providence in the Rise of the Republic
by Michael Medved
The history of the United States displays an uncanny pattern: At moments of crisis, when the odds against success seem overwhelming and disaster looks imminent, fate intervenes to provide deliverance and progress. Historians may categorize these incidents as happy accidents, callous crimes, or the product of brilliant leadership, but others have identified this good fortune as a reflection of divine providence. In The American Miracle, bestselling author and radio host Michael Medved recounts some of the most significant events in America’s rise to prosperity and power, from the writing of the Constitution to the Civil War. He reveals a record of improbabilities and amazements. He argues that events unfolded according to a master plan, with destiny playing an unmistakable role in lifting the nation to greatness.
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Pilgrimage: My Search for the Real Pope Francis
by Mark K. Shriver
When author Mark Shriver was asked to write a book about the newly elected Pope, he embarked on a pilgrimage to trace the roots of the Jesuit priest Jorge Mario Bergoglio who became Pope Francis. In this engaging and thoughtful portrait, Shriver recounts interviews with Bergoglio's novice master, Argentinian friends and colleagues, political critics, and poor people with whom Bergoglio kept in touch once he became a cardinal. Confessing his own doubts about the church after his parents' deaths, Shriver also expresses hope for the church's renewal under the new pope. For another accessible biography of Francis, try Austen Ivereigh's The Great Reformer.
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Apostle: Or Bones That Shine Like Fire: Travels Among the Tombs of the Twelve
by Tom Bissell
The story of Twelve Apostles is the story of early Christianity: its competing versions of Jesus’s ministry, its countless schisms, and its ultimate evolution from an obscure Jewish sect to the global faith we know today in all its forms and permutations. In his quest to understand the underpinnings of the world’s largest religion, Tom Bissell embarks on a years-long pilgrimage to the apostles’ supposed tombs, traveling from Jerusalem and Rome to Turkey, Greece, Spain, France, India, and Kyrgyzstan. Along the way, Bissell uncovers the mysterious and often paradoxical lives of these twelve men and how their identities have taken shape over the course of two millennia.
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Jerusalem: City of Longing
by Simon Goldhill
Jerusalem is the site of some of the most famous religious monuments in the world―it is a city where every square mile is layered with historical significance, religious intensity, and extraordinary stories. It is a city rebuilt by each ruling Empire in its own way: the Jews, the Romans, the Christians, the Muslims, and for the past sixty years, the modern Israelis. What makes Jerusalem so unique is the heady mix, in one place, of centuries of passion and scandal, kingdom-threatening wars and petty squabbles, architectural magnificence and bizarre relics, spiritual longing and political cruelty. It is a history marked by three great forces: religion, war, and monumentality. In this book, Simon Goldhill takes on this peculiar archaeology of human imagination, hope, and disaster to provide a tour through the history of this most image-filled and ideology-laden city―from the bedrock of the Old City to the towering roofs of the Holy Sepulchre.
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| Heirs to Forgotten Kingdoms: Journeys into the Disappearing Religions of the Middle East by Gerard RussellThough Islam is the most common religion practiced in the Middle East, there are dozens of others that most Westerners know very little about. In this engaging book, a curious former British diplomat who lived in the area for over a decade provides an accessible introduction to several minor religions that have survived for centuries but are now in danger of extinction. Traveling around the Middle East, Gerard Russell learns about and meets Yazidis, Zoroastrians, Copts, Druze, Samaritans, Kalasha, Mandaeans, Manicheans, and others. For another lighthearted and informative religious tour, try William Dalrymple's From the Holy Mountain, which explores Christian communities in the region. |
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| Mecca: The Sacred City by Ziauddin SardarPakistani-born Londoner Ziauddin Sardar introduces the history of Islam and its cultural influences in this witty and personal study of Mecca. The holiest city for Muslims, who are expected to visit there at least once in their lives, Mecca's primary function as a religious symbol contrasts with the reality that it's a modern city. Recounting intriguing stories about individuals (such as the Dutch spy who was expelled after his false conversion was exposed), warring political factions, and archaeological travesties, Sardar pays tribute to the deep spiritual and historical roots of the site in this "beautifully written and revealing" (Booklist) study. |
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To a Mountain in Tibet
by Colin Thubron
After his mother died, British travel writer and novelist Colin Thubron wanted to go to a place of spiritual significance, though he did not at first think of this journey as a pilgrimage. In To a Mountain in Tibet, Thubron describes his trip to the slopes of Mount Kailas, sacred to Buddhists and Hindus, which is the destination of thousands of pilgrims. As he travels, Thubron meets pilgrims and learns of their devotion, converses with a Tibetan poet and yogi, and begins to understand his own spiritual longings in relation to both the holy sites he visits and the spirituality of others making the same journey. Kirkus Reviews call this a "hauntingly elegiac hybrid of travelogue and memoir."
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Contact your librarian for more great books!
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Michigan City Public Library 100 E. 4th Street Michigan City, Indiana 46360 219-873-3044mclib.org/ |
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