Passionate Spirituality


Book Description

"Passionate Spirituality explores the roots and meanings of passion in Western culture, and then examines how passion is expressed in the works of two medieval women mystics - Hildegard of Bingen and Hadewijch of Brabant - and in the lives of contemporary Christians seeking to deepen their own spiritual journeys. Too often, the term "passion' is associated only with steamy films, sexual, sin, and emotional excess - cutting off the breadth of its meaning and expression for positive good. But the great mystics succeed precisely because they hold together both the affective and the intellectual aspects of the spiritual life in creative and convincing ways. Their accounts of their mystical experience are important resources for information and understanding about how to talk about God more formally, and for what it means to be passionately in love with God and the world."--BOOK JACKET.Title Summary field provided by Blackwell North America, Inc. All Rights Reserved




Second Wave Spirituality


Book Description

In his work as a spiritual teacher interacting with seekers and activists from around the world, Chris Saade has witnessed a remarkable recent phenomenon: an emerging wave of spirituality that is socially and globally engaged in the pursuit of justice, earth care, and solidarity. Saade calls this movement "second wave spirituality," and in this book he maps out the cutting-edge ideas that are fueling this burgeoning wave of engaged spirituality. He challenges us to rise to our spiritual task and join the millions of all faiths who are awakening to the suffering and social struggles of all living beings. According to Saade, second wave spirituality holds a vision of the intrinsic values of love: justice, global peace, solidarity, inclusion, democratic freedom, compassion, and reconciliation. Saade explores current trends of thought that are shaking the foundations of our belief systems and propelling us toward an evolutionary leap. We are in the midst of a spiritual renaissance, Saade asserts, a universal reawakening that will steer us away from the abysmal global dangers we are facing. The book also includes a collection of quotations as a resource for those working for peace, justice, and inclusion. By dividing the selections into theme-specific chapters, Saade helps us easily access the wisdom and companionship of other souls committed to our diversity, our oneness, and our pursuit of justice. Contents Foreword by Andrew Harvey Introduction 1. The Emergence of Second Wave Spirituality 2. A Brief Historical Overview of "First Wave" Spirituality 3. Crossing the Threshold 4. The Flowering of the Feminine in Theological and Spiritual Thinking 5. The Great Convergence of Spiritual Development and Action for Peace and Justice 6. The Six Crucial Ideas that Converged and Generated the Global Awakening of Second Wave Spirituality 7. Fourteen Additional Characteristics Essential to Second Wave Spirituality 8. A Response to the Escalating Global Crisis: Love in Action 9. Implications of Second Wave Spirituality for the Individual 10. Practical Suggestions for Spiritual Activism 11. Summary and A Blessing for the Reader 12. Engaged Spirituality and Sacred Activism: Writings and Quotes




Everyday Spirituality


Book Description

Frustrated with traditional approaches to spirituality? Feeling guilty about not following a regimented devotional practice? Wishing there were a way you could embrace God in your everyday life? This book offers a way forward. Rather than prescribe another attempt at daily devotional readings, written prayers and scheduled moments of quiet meditation, Everyday Spirituality expresses the truth that much of what we already do in life is, in fact, spiritual. · Walking· Cooking· Laughing· Sleeping· Moving· Spending· . This book is an accessible introduction to an ancient yet new way of thinking and being in the world. Rather than dividing spiritual life apart from daily life, Everyday Spirituality helps the reader realize that they do as connected to God, the sacred, the holy.




The Passionate Jesus


Book Description

Sometimes what we already "know" about Jesus gets in the way of our really knowing him. Many depictions of Jesus show him as a character who coolly and calmly floats above the grit and grime of human existence. He doesn't hurt, he doesn't fear, he doesn’t laugh and, most tragically, he doesn’t love very passionately. He seems not to feel at all. But a closer look at the Bible reveals something surprisingly different. In this eye-opening spiritual study, Peter Wallace examines Jesus’s actions as well as his teachings to uncover a passionate figure who was involved, present, connected, honest and direct with others. Through Wallace’s deeply personal insights and compelling examples, you will be encouraged to model this passionate Jesus by building personal authenticity in every area of your own life, particularly in your self-acceptance and self-expression, your relationships with others and, above all, your relationship with God.




The Passionate Life


Book Description




A Compass to Fulfillment: Passion and Spirituality in Life and Business


Book Description

“Life is an expression of our mind.” Kazuo Inamori The international bestseller A Compass to Fulfillment is a spiritual business guide particularly relevant to our present day and age. Kazuo Inamori, founder of Kyocera and KDDI, weaves together his Buddhist faith and personal experience to create a life/business philosophy based on the simplest but most profound of human concepts: do the right thing, always. Inamori credits his and his companies’ extraordinary success to the daily practice of this timeless truth. In A Compass to Fulfillment, the author helps you develop your own personal philosophy for success by: Recognizing your deepest desires and using them to create a better reality Informing all decisions with simple truths and principles Elevating your mind and practicing humility Living your life steered by an attitude of selfless service Controlling the trajectory of your life by accepting the “will of the universe” A Compass to Fulfillment is about strategic thinking, but not in the sense of business and management technicalities. It is about, first, understanding yourself, and then using that knowledge to get to the point you want to be— in your career, in your business, and in your life.




Spirituality for the Skeptic


Book Description

By examining the ideas of great thinkers from Kafka to Socrates, this text arrives at an alternative vision of spirituality, one that is non-dogmatic and practical, that should appeal to many seekers looking to make sense of the human condition.




Passion


Book Description

What are you passionate about? Football? Your family? Your job? Your car? Your hobby? And how does that passion show itself? What about your spirituality; are you passionate about your faith? What does that mean? What are the passion killers in your walk with God? In a thoughtful and measured set of notes, Jeff Lucas explores the topic of spiritual passion. He shows how it does not necessarily have anything to do with emotion but everything to do with commitment, reliability, and obedience. Along the way, he describes what passion meant to Jesus and to Paul, and how that might affect what it means to us today. He shares the upsides and the downsides, the joys and the dangers, and how passion can transform us.




Let the Spirit Shape Your Ministries


Book Description

Traditional mainline churches have been in decline for fifty years as their church energy continues to seep away. What are the options to regain vitality? Pastor Luecke thought for years that better administration was the answer. But the problem is deeper. Our Reformation heritage left us with a very weak practical theology of the Holy Spirit, confining him mostly to the Creeds. We don’t have a hands-on understanding of how he makes a difference in church life today. We can find that by appreciating how central the Spirit was to Paul’s leadership. This collection of Reflections comes in two parts. The first highlights how the Spirit works today, based on Paul’s insights. It outlines how personal growth in the Spirit can happen. Church leaders cannot take others to where they personally have not been before. The second part is organized around Martin Luther’s explanation of the four functions of the Holy Spirit. He calls, gathers, enlightens and sanctifies God’s people. The Spirit is the leader of ministry teams. We need to learn how to follow.




Faith and Spirituality in Masters of World Cinema


Book Description

Faith and Spirituality in Masters of World Cinema, Volume II continues the work presented in the first volume of this title, published by Cambridge Scholars Publishing in 2008. It provides informed yet accessible articles that will give readers an introduction to masters of world cinema whose works explore the themes of human spirituality and religious faith. Volume II contains essays dealing with canonical directors notably absent from the first entry of the series (such as Godard and Kurosawa) while also including examinations of contemporary auteurs who are still actively working (for example, Andersson, and von Trier). While retaining a truly international emphasis—it includes essays about directors from the United States, Canada, Iran, Sweden, India, Denmark, Italy, Mexico, Australia, and Japan—Volume II also acts as an important contribution to canon formation, illustrating the complexity and variety in the films of those who are truly the masters of world cinema. Built solidly around close, formal readings of selective films, the essays in Volume II also demonstrate familiarity with film history and bring insight from such varied disciplines as New Testament Studies, Clinical Psychology, Art History, and Medieval History. It also seeks to broaden the understanding of ‘faith’ and ‘spirituality,’ examining how the meaning of such terms changes as the cultures that produce the art that defines them continues to evolve.




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