The Plant Messiah


Book Description

Passionate, forthright and enthusiastic, Carlos Magdalena is a world-renowned horticulturist - known both for his charisma and his conservation work. The Plant Messiah follows Carlos' dreams and disappointments; from his days as a school boy in the death throes of General Franco's Fascist dictatorship, to his advent as The Plant Messiah at the forefront of conservation, backed by the reputation and resources of The Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew and enthused by the potential that lies beyond. The book discloses for the first time the details behind his 'codebreaking' exploits and the secret stories behind his work; his genius, lateral thinking and steadfast belief that everything is possible.




We Have Found the Messiah


Book Description

Ben F. Meyer once wrote, "Radical developments generally take place not by someone's seeing something new but by his seeing everything in a new way." This book is Michael Vicko Zolondek's attempt to bring Meyer's words to fruition. For more than two hundred years, scholars have been debating whether the historical Jesus took up the role of Davidic Messiah. In this book, Zolondek addresses this long-standing question in a fresh and unique way. He challenges a generation of scholarship by arguing that the manner in which it has gone about answering the Davidic messianic question is significantly problematic when considered in the light of Jesus' cultural context and the messianism of his day. This cultural context and messianism then forms the basis for Zolondek's fresh approach to the Davidic messianic question, which he ultimately answers in the affirmative. In this book, readers will not only be exposed to more than forty years of research on the Davidic messianic question, but they will come away with a unique understanding of what it means to be a Davidic Messiah and what it would have looked like for Jesus to have taken up that role.




The Language of Plants


Book Description

The eighteenth-century naturalist Erasmus Darwin (grandfather of Charles) argued that plants are animate, living beings and attributed them sensation, movement, and a certain degree of mental activity, emphasizing the continuity between humankind and plant existence. Two centuries later, the understanding of plants as active and communicative organisms has reemerged in such diverse fields as plant neurobiology, philosophical posthumanism, and ecocriticism. The Language of Plants brings together groundbreaking essays from across the disciplines to foster a dialogue between the biological sciences and the humanities and to reconsider our relation to the vegetal world in new ethical and political terms. Viewing plants as sophisticated information-processing organisms with complex communication strategies (they can sense and respond to environmental cues and play an active role in their own survival and reproduction through chemical languages) radically transforms our notion of plants as unresponsive beings, ready to be instrumentally appropriated. By providing multifaceted understandings of plants, informed by the latest developments in evolutionary ecology, the philosophy of biology, and ecocritical theory, The Language of Plants promotes the freedom of imagination necessary for a new ecological awareness and more sustainable interactions with diverse life forms. Contributors: Joni Adamson, Arizona State U; Nancy E. Baker, Sarah Lawrence College; Karen L. F. Houle, U of Guelph; Luce Irigaray, Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique, Paris; Erin James, U of Idaho; Richard Karban, U of California at Davis; André Kessler, Cornell U; Isabel Kranz, U of Vienna; Michael Marder, U of the Basque Country (UPV-EHU); Timothy Morton, Rice U; Christian Nansen, U of California at Davis; Robert A. Raguso, Cornell U; Catriona Sandilands, York U.




Messiah in the Feasts of Israel


Book Description

Messiah in the Feasts of Israel is a fantastic book that explains the feasts, festivals, and holy days of the Bible. From the Passover, the Feast of Tabernacles, and the Day of Atonement, to the symbolism of Pentecost, Firstfruits, and more, this Christian overview gives insights on how God's redemptive plan is unveiled through the Old Testament feasts, and how their symbolism is fulfilled in the Messiah. Messiah in the Feasts of Israel also discusses the prophetic purposes of the feasts of Israel from a Christian viewpoint. It explains how the Jewish feasts are symbolic of Jesus as the great high priest and perfect sacrificial lamb. Each Feast and Holy Day of the Bible Explained Hundreds of years before Jesus' birth, specific feasts were set up by God to prepare the way for the coming Messiah. Enjoy having key information on each feast at your fingertips, including: Quick overview on its background and customs.Symbolic meaning, showing how it points to the coming Messiah, Jesus Christ.Prophetic importance, including its Old Testament reference and New Testament fulfillment.Present-day application (includes questions that are perfect for individual or group use.) Find out how Jesus used the feasts of Israel to reveal his identity. Messiah in the Feasts of Israel will enrich your understanding of Jesus by explaining the customs and practices of New Testament times. It will help you imagine the crowds in Jerusalem during Jesus' time, especially during the pilgrimage feasts that brought all Jewish men to the Temple. Learn About All 9 Feasts of the Bible: SabbathThe Feast of PassoverFirst fruitsThe Feast of PentecostRosh Hashanah (The Feast of Trumpets)Yom Kippur (The Day of Atonement)The Feast of BoothsHanukkah (The Feast of Dedication)Purim Best for individual use, discipleship, small group or Sunday school class, Christian school, homeschoolers, new believers' class, support groups, prayer circles, church libraries, and more!




Brilliant Green


Book Description

In this book, a leading plant scientist offers a new understanding of the botanical world and a passionate argument for intelligent plant life. Are plants intelligent? Can they solve problems, communicate, and navigate their surroundings? For centuries, philosophers and scientists have argued that plants are unthinking and inert, yet discoveries over the past fifty years have challenged this idea, shedding new light on the complex interior lives of plants. In Brilliant Green, leading scientist Stefano Mancuso presents a new paradigm in our understanding of the vegetal world. He argues that plants process information, sleep, remember, and signal to one another-showing that, far from passive machines, plants are intelligent and aware. Part botany lesson, part manifesto, Brilliant Green is an engaging and passionate examination of the inner workings of the plant kingdom.--




King and Messiah as Son of God


Book Description

This book traces the history of the idea that the king and later the messiah is Son of God, from its origins in ancient Near Eastern royal ideology to its Christian appropriation in the New Testament. Both highly regarded scholars, Adela Yarbro Collins and John J. Collins argue that Jesus was called “the Son of God” precisely because he was believed to be the messianic king. This belief and tradition, they contend, led to the identification of Jesus as preexistent, personified Wisdom, or a heavenly being in the New Testament canon. However, the titles Jesus is given are historical titles tracing back to Egyptian New Kingdom ideology. Therefore the title “Son of God” is likely solely messianic and not literal. King and Messiah as Son of God is distinctive in its range, spanning both Testaments and informed by ancient Near Eastern literature and Jewish noncanonical literature.




In Defense of Plants


Book Description

The Study of Plants in a Whole New Light “Matt Candeias succeeds in evoking the wonder of plants with wit and wisdom.” ―James T. Costa, PhD, executive director, Highlands Biological Station and author of Darwin's Backyard #1 New Release in Nature & Ecology, Plants, Botany, Horticulture, Trees, Biological Sciences, and Nature Writing & Essays In his debut book, internationally-recognized blogger and podcaster Matt Candeias celebrates the nature of plants and the extraordinary world of plant organisms. A botanist’s defense. Since his early days of plant restoration, this amateur plant scientist has been enchanted with flora and the greater environmental ecology of the planet. Now, he looks at the study of plants through the lens of his ever-growing houseplant collection. Using gardening, houseplants, and examples of plants around you, In Defense of Plants changes your relationship with the world from the comfort of your windowsill. The ruthless, horny, and wonderful nature of plants. Understand how plants evolve and live on Earth with a never-before-seen look into their daily drama. Inside, Candeias explores the incredible ways plants live, fight, have sex, and conquer new territory. Whether a blossoming botanist or a professional plant scientist, In Defense of Plants is for anyone who sees plants as more than just static backdrops to more charismatic life forms. In this easily accessible introduction to the incredible world of plants, you’ll find: • Fantastic botanical histories and plant symbolism • Passionate stories of flora diversity and scientific names of plant organisms • Personal tales of plantsman discovery through the study of plants If you enjoyed books like The Botany of Desire, What a Plant Knows, or The Soul of an Octopus, then you’ll love In Defense of Plants.




The Rabbi who Found Messiah


Book Description

Investigates the story of the 108-year-old Jewish rabbi who proclaimed he knew the name of the real Messiah, cryptically sealed it in a message, and ordered it not be revealed until one year after his death.




Milton's Messiah


Book Description

Milton's Messiah provides the first comprehensive book-length analysis of the nature and significance of the Son of God in Milton's poetry and theology. It argues for a radical reassessment of Milton's doctrine of the atonement and its importance for understanding his poetics.




Mystics and Messiahs


Book Description

In this full-length account of cults and anti-cult scares in American history, Jenkins gives accurate historical perspective and shows how many of today's mainstream religions were originally regarded as cults.