Songs from the Womb


Book Description

Just as Women Who Run with the Wolves helped women to reassert themselves, Benig Mauger shows that it is necessary for women to assert themselves and their genuine needs which are repressed by the technology surrounding the birth process. In a groundbreaking and highly readable book, Mauger places birth and life in the womb as a formative soul experience creating patterns we carry with us into later life. She argues that there is a "loss of soul" encountered by many due to our modern medicalized way of birth which strips nature of its spiritual dimension. Drawing on her work as a Jungian psychotherapist, she takes the reader into the therapy room to witness the healing of birth wounds. Based on her experiences as a birth teacher, therapist, and mother, the author writes about the joys and pains of giving birth and being born through real life/birth stories. The technology of medicine and its patriarchal establishment imbues women with a sanitized, pain-free birthing philosophy. Here are stories of joyful anticipation in pregnancy. The Wounded Mother is an archetypal energy in us, and this book suggests that we may need to question certain aspects of modern birth practices, to strive for a more holistic approach to pregnancy and birth so as to heal soul wounds that have become so prevalent today.




Windows to the Womb


Book Description

A pioneering birth psychologist combines a lifetime’s worth of research with new findings to provide a fascinating look inside the minds of unborn children In the past, the invisible physical processes of fetal development were mysterious and largely unexplainable. But thanks to breakthroughs in embryology, interuterine photography, ultrasound, and other sensitive instruments of measurement, we can now make systematic observations inside the womb—and can see that fetuses are fully sentient, aware beings. In this new climate of appreciation for the surprising dimensions of fetal behavior, sensitivity, and intelligence, Windows to the Womb brings a host of new information to light about the transformative journey each one of us undergoes in the womb. Birth psychologist Dr. David Chamberlain describes the amazing construction of our physical bodies—the "ultimate architecture"—and draws parallels with the expansion of our minds as our brains and senses develop and grow. He also details new discoveries in embryonic and fetal research that support his own findings on the impact of the mother's emotional and physical state during pregnancy; the importance of bonding at the earliest stages; and the steps that expectant parents can take to ensure the most nurturing start in life for their children.




He Knows My Name (The Worship Series)


Book Description

Each chapter is based on phrases from the worship song "He Knows My Name" and communicates the wonder of how God knows each of us in an unspeakably intimate way. Emphasis is on the love of God toward us and the significance of God calling us His children. He knows us, loves us, sympathizes with us, listens to us, has a future for us, forgives us, and delights in us. The chapters end with a prayer acknowledging these truths, promoting worship and gratitude to the Father. Personal testimonies are included from people around the world who have been touched by the Father's love through the words to the song "He Knows My Name."




Juniper


Book Description

A micro-preemie fights for survival in this extraordinary and gorgeously told memoir by her parents, both award-winning journalists. Juniper French was born four months early, at 23 weeks' gestation. She weighed 1 pound, 4 ounces, and her twiggy body was the length of a Barbie doll. Her head was smaller than a tennis ball, her skin was nearly translucent, and through her chest you could see her flickering heart. Babies like Juniper, born at the edge of viability, trigger the question: Which is the greater act of love -- to save her, or to let her go? Kelley and Thomas French chose to fight for Juniper's life, and this is their incredible tale. In one exquisite memoir, the authors explore the border between what is possible and what is right. They marvel at the science that conceived and sustained their daughter and the love that made the difference. They probe the bond between a mother and a baby, between a husband and a wife. They trace the journey of their family from its fragile beginning to the miraculous survival of their now thriving daughter.




Songs for a Saviour's Birth


Book Description

Most of us are on the lookout for something fresh and different as we approach Advent and Christmas. How can we fully appreciate the familiar truths, treasuring yet again the good news and joy of the season? What will really make our hearts sing? Look no further. In this sure-footed, yet conversational and down-to-earth, little volume, William Philip looks at the 'songs' of key characters in the Christmas story: Elizabeth (joy for the hearers) Mary (joy for the humble) Zechariah (joy for the helpless) The Shepherds (joy for the heavens) Simeon and Anna (joy for the hopeful) This is a book to engage heart and head, as it moves between key passages from Luke’s Gospel, from the song of the heavily pregnant to the song of a humble peasant, from the song of the helpless priest to the song of the heavenly proclaimers, and finally to the song of the hopeful 'pensioners'. The author concludes, 'Countless people throughout the centuries have… joined the chorus of praise and proclamation, singing the song of the Saviour with Simeon and Anna, Zechariah and Elizabeth, Mary and all the host of heaven. My hope is that your voice is already part of that wonderful refrain. But if not, then my prayer is that this Christmas is the time to do what these others have done and embrace the Saviour for yourself.' 'Takes the reader, with accuracy and deep devotion, from these wonderful songs of Scripture, to know, with new adoration, the Christ who was born' - Peter Dickson 'Inspiring and informative... Written not just for those who have found their Christian faith, but also for those who are still seeking and exploring. A great read for Advent.' - Clare Hendry 'A wonderful exploration of the Bible's own "Christmas carols". Saints, sceptics, seekers and Scrooges will find fuel here to warm the heart.' - Jonty Rhodes 'The cardiologist (or physician) who became a pastor has written a book to make our hearts sing... It has something striking in it for preachers, congregations and visitors alike.' - Rico Tice




The Song of Fourteen Songs


Book Description

A persuasive account, in brief compass, of the dramatic flow of the Song of Songs. Many sensitive observations on the imagery of the songs are presented in the form of a running commentary. The author offers his own original verse translation of the fourteen poems.




Healing Songs


Book Description

While the first healers were musicians who relied on rhythm and song to help cure the sick, over time Western thinkers and doctors lost touch with these traditions. In the West, for almost two millennia, the roles of the healer and the musician have been strictly separated. Until recently, that is. Over the past few decades there has been a resurgence of interest in healing music. In the midst of this nascent revival, Ted Gioia, a musician, composer, and widely praised author, offers the first detailed exploration of the uses of music for curative purposes from ancient times to the present. Gioia’s inquiry into the restorative powers of sound moves effortlessly from the history of shamanism to the role of Orpheus as a mythical figure linking Eastern and Western ideas about therapeutic music, and from Native American healing ceremonies to what clinical studies can reveal about the efficacy of contemporary methods of sonic healing. Gioia considers a broad range of therapies, providing a thoughtful, impartial guide to their histories and claims, their successes and failures. He examines a host of New Age practices, including toning, Cymatics, drumming circles, and the Tomatis method. And he explores how the medical establishment has begun to recognize and incorporate the therapeutic power of song. Acknowledging that the drumming circle will not—and should not—replace the emergency room, nor the shaman the cardiologist, Gioia suggests that the most promising path is one in which both the latest medical science and music—with its capacity to transform attitudes and bring people together—are brought to bear on the multifaceted healing process. In Healing Songs, as in its companion volume Work Songs, Gioia moves beyond studies of music centered on specific performers, time periods, or genres to illuminate how music enters into and transforms the experiences of everyday life.




Songs Ascending Vol. 1


Book Description

A beautiful, poetic translation of the Book of Psalms, Songs Ascending includes textual commentary and insights into the translation process, illuminating the choices of the original composers and the choices facing us in the 21st century as we try to make each psalm our own. The spiritual commentary asks: To what events, struggles, and triumphs in our lives might this psalm speak? How might this psalm articulate an aspect of our own sacred existence, or how might it help us celebrate a special day in our lives? How might it provide comfort when we are bereft and most in need of consolation, or how might it help us provide comfort for someone else? Songs Ascending explores all this and more, engaging the reader in dialogue that will inform and inspire.




Mama's Belly


Book Description

A little girl expresses curiosity and excitement for the coming birth of her baby sister while her parents tenderly reassure her of love's ability to expand with their growing family in this ode to motherhood and celebration of sibling love. Full color.




The Erotic Muse


Book Description

If you've ever wanted to know the "correct" words to "Roll Me Over," or wondered where the melody of "Sweet Betsy from Pike" came from, this book can answer your questions. Extensively revised and including forty more songs than its predecessor, this new edition of The Erotic Muse is a unique scholarly collection of bawdy or forbidden American folksongs. Ed Cray presents the full texts of some 125 songs, with melodies for most of them and detailed annotations for all. His lively commentary places the songs in historical, social, and, where appropriate, psychological context.