The Sacred Art of Soul Making


Book Description

"Deep within each of us dwells the source of peace, purpose, and love. Yet we live in the chaotic dissonance of the superficial layers of our hearts and minds. A sea of the most precious spiritual energies surrounds us, inside and out, yet our thirst remains unquenched, our souls malnourished and unformed." (from the Introduction). Bridging East and West, "The Sacred Art of Soul Making" addresses the central questions of spiritual practice with the depth and subtlety they require and with unexpected clarity. As Westerners raised in Christianity or Judaism progress in their Eastern practices, they often find themselves drawn back toward their own religious roots and the search for the Divinity. They may rediscover their need for a personal relationship with the Divine, for the practice of prayer, openness to conscience and the understanding of will found in the monotheistic religions. Many people have not engaged Eastern meditative practices out of devotion to their own religion. Those may well find the inner work forms of presence and meditation, stripped of cultural trappings, to be important adjuncts to the practice of prayer, helping open the way to the sacred depths sought in Western religions. This authentic, substantive, and multi-faceted spirituality for our time begins where we are and ultimately takes us beyond consciousness, toward the abode of the sacred. That sacredness can touch and transform each of us, if we make the necessary, devoted effort. This book helps make that possible.




Preaching from the Soul


Book Description

Careful biblical interpretation; insights into contemporary life; polished delivery; humorous anecdotes; these are the building blocks of preaching that genuinely reach people. Right? Wrong, says Ellsworth Kalas. We have all encountered preachers who seem to know all the fine points of exegesis and inflection, yet whose sermons leave us surprisingly unmoved, aware that we were in the presence of good speaking, but not great preaching. The difference, Kalas reminds us, lies in that hard-to-describe, yet essential quality known as soul. Soul is the collection of those perspectives and convictions that matter most to the preacher. Soul preaching means offering one's particular ideas, attitudes, and convictions fully to the congregation. When one preaches with soul, one engages the biblical text with the core of one's values and beliefs. Soul preaching is, in other words, simply giving the whole self to the task of proclamation. While the concept may sound simple, the reality is anything but. In the clear, insightful style for which he is known, Kalas takes readers on a path of discovery, introducing them to the unique gifts that they can bring to preaching, and the best way to engage those gifts in preparing and delivering the sermon.




Phenomenology of Life - From the Animal Soul to the Human Mind


Book Description

Transcendental phenomenology presumed to have overcome the classic mind-body dichotomy in terms of consciousness. Should we indeed dissolve the specificity of human consciousness by explaining human experience in its multiple sense-giving modalities through the physiological functions of the brain? The present collection of studies addresses this crucial question challenging such "naturalizing" reductionism from multiple angles.




The Sabbath Soul


Book Description

Enter into the mystery of the Sabbath, into the wonder and light of the seventh day. "We live in a world dominated by speed and distraction, with demands for our attention at every turn.... We frequently forget the restorative blessing of stillness, our desperate need for rest ... a rest that brings us back to the center of existence, a calm that allows us to reconnect with the divine breath at the soul of All." —from the Introduction Enrich your spiritual experience of Shabbat by exploring the writings of mystical masters of Hasidism. Drawing from some of the earliest teachings in the family of the Ba'al Shem Tov through late nineteenth-century Poland and the homilies of the Sefat 'Emet, Eitan Fishbane evokes the Sabbath experience—from candle lighting and donning white clothing to the Friday night Kiddush and the act of sacred eating. Fishbane also translates and interprets a wide range of Hasidic sources previously unavailable in English that reflect the spiritual transformation that takes place on the seventh day—one that can shift your awareness into the realm that is all soul. Personal prayers of the Bratzlav (Breslov) Hasidic tradition express the spiritual dimension of Shabbat in the language of devotional and individual yearning.




Super Evil Emperor


Book Description

He was unbridled as he slashed his sword through the heavens!He exuded an evil aura, and his eyes flashed like lightning across the nine heavens.He was free and unfettered, with beauties as numerous as the clouds and flowers surrounding him.He was tyrannical, and wherever he passed, not a single blade of grass would remain!Evil Emperor Hengkong, Tremor of Eternity!This was the most powerful, top quality evil cultivator!







Signifying Pain


Book Description

A deeply personal yet universal work, Signifying Pain applies the principles of therapeutic writing to such painful life experiences as mental illness, suicide, racism, domestic abuse, and even genocide. Probing deep into the bedrock of literary imagination, Judith Harris traces the odyssey of a diverse group of writers—John Keats, Derek Walcott, Jane Kenyon, Michael S. Harper, Robert Lowell, and Ai, as well as student writers—who have used their writing to work through and past such personal traumas. Drawing on her own experience as a poet and teacher, Harris shows how the process can be long and arduous, but that when exercised within the spirit of one's own personal compassion, the results can be limitless. Signifying Pain will be of interest not only to teachers of creative and therapeutic writing, but also to those with a critical interest in autobiographical or confessional writing more generally.







Sex on Saturday Night


Book Description

Relationships always begin with high vitality, the “vroom-vroom” of attraction and intimacy. But, often, that vroom-vroom subsides, societal expectations persist, life events happen, and partners are left wondering where the intimacy went and why their relationship seems so unfulfilling. Patricia Hayes Smith, in her book, Sex on Saturday Night: The Art of Intimacy, tackles this issue by looking at how behavior contributes to the vitality of a relationship and how partners interact. She delves into why partners behave the way they do; moreover, why YOU behave the way to do. Is your partner full of Warrior or Wildman archetypal energy? Are you in your mental, Achieving Self, and suppressing your Loving Self? Are you in love with being in love? What distractions has your partner created to avoid intimacy? Is your partner in male energy today? Learn about all these aspects of Self and what those aspects mean to a relationship. In Sex on Saturday Night: The Art of Intimacy, learn what steps you can take to understand yourself, remove thoughts and feelings that are at the root of dysfunction, and, thus, revitalize your relationship. In addition, you are given doable suggestions on how to maintain a healthy and vital relationship. A must read if you are ready to put the intimacy back into your relationship!




The Divine Mercy Image Explained


Book Description

From experts to beginners, this new booklet by author Fr. Michael Gaitley, MIC, is an engaging read that reveals hidden gems and highlights inspiring truths about the Divine Mercy Image. It covers the great grace and key elements of the Image with remarkable depth and clarity. Also includes instructions on how to enthrone the image in your home, an enthronement prayer, and two bonus appendices.




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