Quest for Spiritual Community


Book Description

Many churches recognize the importance of the genuine spiritual hunger in our time and are attempting to bridge the gulf between traditional religious institutions and the contemporary spiritual quest by revitalizing and retooling ancient spiritual practices. This book suggests that it is possible to relish the spiritual quest while honoring tradition and theological inquiry through practices such as spiritual guidance. It presents a sociological analysis of contemporary spirituality, case studies of congregations with spiritual guidance ministries, and reflection on historical practices and Protestant theological roots to explore the strengths and pitfalls of nurturing the contemporary spiritual quest in the average congregation. The resulting vision for congregation-based spiritual guidance incorporates practices that attend to person, community, and mission.




Invitation to Retreat


Book Description

When we choose retreat we make a generous investment in our friendship with Christ. Seasoned spiritual director Ruth Haley Barton gently and eloquently leads us into an exploration of retreat as a key practice that opens us to God, guiding us through seven invitations to retreat. You will discover how to say yes to God's winsome invitation to greater freedom and surrender.




A Guide to Christian Spiritual Formation


Book Description

Evan Howard, a noted authority on Christian spirituality, provides a holistic, accessible, and informed introduction to Christian spiritual formation written from a broadly evangelical perspective. Howard joins Scripture with themes of community, spirit, formation, and mission in a single integrative guide. The book includes helpful features such as figures, charts, chapter overviews, and formation-focused questions. Its evangelical-ecumenical and global perspectives will appeal to a wide audience. Resources for professors and students are available through Baker Academic's Textbook eSources.




Natural Spirituality


Book Description

In this revised edition of Natural Spirituality: A Handbook for Jungian Inner Work in Spiritual Community, Joyce Rockwood Hudson moves Jungian dream work from the professional world of the analyst’s office into the everyday world of spiritual seekers in local community, both inside and outside the institutions of traditional religion. For those willing to meet the divine in the natural flow of life, this book offers an opportunity to embark upon the spiritual path of individuation, whether traveling alone or with the support of a group. With clarity and simplicity Joyce Hudson puts into her reader’s hands the tools for inner work that Carl Jung offered to spiritual seekers everywhere. JOYCE ROCKWOOD HUDSON Joyce Rockwood Hudson has taught the principles of Jungian inner work to church and community dream groups for almost three decades. Since its original publication, her book Natural Spirituality has been a handbook for dream groups across the U.S. and abroad. She is on the faculty of the Haden Institute, where she teaches in the Dream Leader Training Program and helps oversee the annual Summer Dream and Spirituality Conference. The author of seven books, her literary prizes include Holland’s prestigious Silver Pencil award, an American Library Association Notable Book award, and Georgia Writer of the Year in Fiction.




A Field Guide for Genuine Community


Book Description

"We all know a church is supposed to be a community. In A Field Guide for Genuine Community, Ben Connelly shows that the biblical model is the family of God. The church isn't a collection of strangers. God wants you to find a unified, purposeful household where you truly belong"--




Spiritual Practices in Community


Book Description

Diana Shiflett has spent years leading groups of all descriptions in spiritual practices, and in this personal, hands-on guide, she walks us through a wide array—from communal silence and Scripture meditation to active prayer and corporate discernment. Offering step-by-step instructions, this resource will show you how spiritual practices can become life-giving resources in your ministry setting for years to come.




Guide to Spiritual L. A.


Book Description

Los Angeles is the World Center of Spiritual Awakening Los Angeles has long been known for its cultural diversity, and this new book by 4-time author Catherine Auman reveals a surprisingly rich and wide-ranging spiritual history that goes far beyond the stereotypical "new age" image evoked when most people think about the City of Angels. Easy-to-read, the book is packed with stunning colorful photos of the many locations connected with the spiritual movements, gurus, cults, authors, preachers and teachers who originated in L.A. Auman's latest work unveils a side of the city previously unknown even to most Angelenos. Would you like to learn why Hollywood is considered a spiritual vortex? Did you know that the entire Pentecostal movement was born when the front porch of a little house in Echo Park collapsed in 1906? Or that one of the men who founded Pasadena's Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) was expelled for dabbling in the occult? Rich with detail and birthed from years of research, this book manages to both inform and entertain the reader, page by page. Guide to Spiritual L.A. isn't just educational or entertaining, it makes you want to get out and tour. Auman's book is peppered with city trips as well as Day Trips: tours of the various sites of spiritual significance located across L. A. and even as far as the Desert, Santa Barbara, Ojai and the Southland. Readers can get lost in L.A.'s spiritual history for an hour, a day, or a weekend. Take your time, Los Angeles isn't going anywhere. Sit back in your favorite chair or head out on the road, spiritual L.A. awaits. Buy this book NOW and learn why L.A. is the Spiritual Capital of the World. Pick up your copy today by clicking the BUY NOW button at the top of this page!




Spiritual Classics


Book Description

The Brightest Lights of the Christian Tradition St. Augustine, Thomas Merton, Fredrick Buechner, Evelyn Underhill, A.W. Tozer, G.K. Chesterton, Thomas More, Martin Luther King, Jr., Amy Carmichael, Simone Weil, Pierre Teilhard de Chardin, Hildegard of Bingen, John Milton, Dorothy Day, Leo Tolstoy, Gerard Manley Hopkins, and more. . . From nearly two thousand years of Christian writing comes Spiritual Classcs,fifty–two selections complete with a profile of each author, guided meditations for group and individual use, and reflections containing questions and exercises. Editors Richard Foster and Emilie Griffith offer their expertise by selecting inspirational writings and including their own commentary and recommendations for further guided reading and exploration.