The Catholic anthropologist René Girard (1923–2015) has emerged as one of the most important thinkers of the past century. His sweeping mimetic theory changed the landscape of both the social sciences and Christian theology. And with the rise of social media, political polarization, and globalized conflict, Girard’s ideas have only proven increasingly prophetic with every passing year. But where to begin with this “new Darwin of the human sciences”? His massive body of work remains daunting and disorienting, and secondary literature either academic in tone or limited in scope. General readers—if Girard shows up on their radar at all—face a high barrier of entry to understanding his theory and applying it to daily life. I Came to Cast Fire offers a timely solution: a comprehensive but accessible introduction to the thought of René Girard. In short and digestible chapters, Fr. Elias Carr takes readers through the basics of mimetic theory and how it plays out through history—from the violent origins of religion and culture to the radical revelation that unfolds in Christ—weaving in compelling personal anecdotes along the way. The perfect first step for those new to Girard, I Came to Cast Fire will not only inspire readers to see the world in a new light—the fire of the Paraclete proclaiming the innocence of the victim—but more importantly, to enter into it. Read more

The landmark exploration of the ancient worship of the Great Goddess and the eventual supression of women's rites.In the beginning, God was a woman…How did the shift from matriarchy to patriarchy come about? In fascinating detail, Merlin Stone tells us the story of the Goddess who reigned supreme in the Near and Middle East. Under her reign, societal roles differed markedly from those in patriarchal Judeo-Christian cultures: women bought and sold property, traded in the marketplace, and inherited title and land from their mothers. Documenting the wholesale rewriting of myth and religious dogmas, Merlin Stone describes an ancient conspiracy in which the Goddess was reimagined as a wanton, depraved figure, a characterization confirmed and perpetuated by one of modern culture's best-known legends—that of the fall of Adam and Eve. Insightful and thought-provoking, this is essential reading for anyone interested in the origin of current gender roles and in rediscovering women's power.This audiobook is expertly read by Jo Anna Perrin, and was produced and published by Echo Point Books & Media, an independent bookseller in Brattleboro, Vermont. Audio engineering by Matthew Kulewicz, MPSE.Copyright (C) 1976 by Merlin Stone (P) (2024) EPBM. Read more

Both astonishing and prophetic, The Abolition of Man remains one of C. S. Lewis's most controversial works. Lewis sets out to persuade his audience of the ongoing importance and relevance of universal objective values, such as courage and honor, and the foundational necessity of natural law. He also makes a cogent case that a retreat from these pillars of our educational system, even if in the name of "scientism", would be catastrophic. National Review lists it as number seven on their "100 Best Nonfiction Books of the 20th Century". Read more

USA Today BestsellerChristianity Today 2022 Book Award Finalist (History & Biography)Foreword INDIES 2021 Finalist for Religion"A powerful work of skillful research and personal insight."--Publishers WeeklyBiblical womanhood--the belief that God designed women to be submissive wives, virtuous mothers, and joyful homemakers--pervades North American Christianity. From choices about careers to roles in local churches to relationship dynamics, this belief shapes the everyday lives of evangelical women. Yet biblical womanhood isn't biblical, says Baylor University historian Beth Allison Barr. It arose from a series of clearly definable historical moments.This book moves the conversation about biblical womanhood beyond Greek grammar and into the realm of church history--ancient, medieval, and modern--to show that this belief is not divinely ordained but a product of human civilization that continues to creep into the church. Barr's historical insights provide context for contemporary teachings about women's roles in the church and help move the conversation forward.Interweaving her story as a Baptist pastor's wife, Barr sheds light on the #ChurchToo movement and abuse scandals in Southern Baptist circles and the broader evangelical world, helping readers understand why biblical womanhood is more about human power structures than the message of Christ. Read more

If God is in control of everything, does that mean the Christian can sit back and not bother to evangelize? Or does active evangelism simply imply that God is not sovereign at all? J.I. Packer shows in this classic study how false both these attitudes are. In a careful review of the biblical evidence, he shows how a right understanding of God's sovereignty is not so much a barrier to evangelism as an incentive and powerful support for it. Read more

The swooning Victorian ladies and the 1950s housewives genuinely needed to be liberated. That much is indisputable. So, First-Wave feminists held rallies for women's suffrage. Second-Wave feminists marched for Prohibition, jobs, and abortion. Today, Third-Wave feminists stand firmly for nobody's quite sure what. But modern women -- who use psychotherapeutic antidepressants at a rate never before seen in history -- need liberating now more than ever. The truth is, feminists don't know what liberation is. They have led us into a very boring dead end.Eve in Exile sets aside all stereotypes of mid-century housewives, of China-doll femininity, of Victorians fainting, of women not allowed to think for themselves or talk to the men about anything interesting or important. It dismisses the pencil-skirted and stiletto-heeled executives of TV, the outspoken feminists freed from all that hinders them, the brave career women in charge of their own destinies. Once those fictionalized stereotypes are out of the way -- whether they're things that make you gag or things you think look pretty fun -- Christians can focus on real women. What did God make real women for?This book is published by Canon Press. At Canon Press, we’re gospel outfitters: no matter who you are or what you do, you’re called to be increasing in Biblical faithfulness. That’s because Jesus’s death and resurrection changed everything: All of Christ, for all of life, for all the world. As the wisest man said, “Go, eat your bread with joy, and drink your wine with a merry heart; for God has already accepted your works” (Eccl. 9:7).We believe reformation and revival start from faith in the Lord with joyful obedience to the Bible, and that is what makes everyday tasks significant and transforms culture. Because of these beliefs, we offer books on Christian living, encouragement, contentment, raising kids, healthy marriages, educational choices, classical education, homeschooling, politics, government, feminism, identity, manhood, womanhood, singleness, virtue, and so much more. Read more

Here, archaeologically documented,is the story of the religion of the Goddess. Under her, women’s roles were far more prominent than in patriarchal Judeo-Christian cultures. Stone describes this ancient system and, with its disintegration, the decline in women’s status. Read more

Internationally renowned Biblical scholar Michael Waldstein offers a new critical translation of Pope John Paul IIs talks on the Theology of the Body, presenting his magnificent vision of the human person with meticulous scholarship and profound insight. A Preface by Cardinal Schönborn, a Foreword by Christopher West, a comprehensive index of words and phrases, a Scriptural index, and a reference table for other versions of the papal texts are included. Recipient of a CPA Award! Read more

Dissolve the distractions of ego to find our authentic selves in GodIn his bestselling book Falling Upward, Richard Rohr talked about ego (or the False Self) and how it gets in the way of spiritual maturity. But if there's a False Self, is there also a True Self? What is it? How is it found? Why does it matter? And what does it have to do with the spiritual journey? This book likens True Self to a diamond, buried deep within us, formed under the intense pressure of our lives, that must be searched for, uncovered, separated from all the debris of ego that surrounds it. In a sense True Self must, like Jesus, be resurrected, and that process is not resuscitation but transformation.Shows how to navigate spiritually difficult terrain with clear vision and tools to uncover our True SelvesWritten by Father Richard Rohr, the bestselling author of Falling UpwardExamines the fundamental issues of who we are and helps us on our path of spiritual maturityImmortal Diamond (whose title is taken from a line in a Gerard Manley Hopkins poem) explores the deepest questions of identity, spirituality, and meaning in Richard Rohr's inimitable style. Read more

God Made Boys and Girls helps children understand that their gender is a gift from the God who made them and loves them. The story begins as the girls and boys at Grace Christian School are discussing if boys will always be boys and girls will always be girls. Their teacher explains that God gives each of us the gift of being male or female before we are born, and that you continue to be a boy or a girl whether you like to climb trees or play house, play tag or color pictures, cause a ruckus or sit quietly. In a world where there is so much confusion about gender and identity, pastor and best-selling author Marty Machowski shares the simple, clear truth that all of us are made in God's image as either male or female and what God made is very good! Included at the back of the book is a special section just for parents and caregivers that gives biblical guidance and help as they have this important conversation with their children. Read more

Rene Girard holds up the gospels as a mirror to reflect our broken humanity and, in the same frame, they reveal the new reality that can make us whole. Like Simone Weil, Girard looks at the Bible as a map of human behavior, and sees Jesus Christ as its compass, pointing us in the right direction regardless of where we start. The title echoes Jesus' words (Luke 10:18): I saw Satan falling like lightning from heaven. Girard persuades the reader that even as our world grows increasingly violent the power of the Christ is so great that the evils of scapegoating and sacrifice are being defeated even now. A new community, God's nonviolent kingdom, is being realized. Read more

Critical theory has many faces; its complexities and nuances present a challenge to those seeking to engage with its thought. In order to understand critical theory today, we must first understand its origins, its development, and its consequences. To Change All Worlds: Critical Theory from Marx to Marcuse by Carl R. Trueman is an accessible introduction to the history and development of critical theory. From Hegel and Marx, to Korsch and Lukács, to the Frankfurt School, to Wilhelm Reich and Herbert Marcuse—Trueman focuses on the key figures of critical theory, positioning them within their historical context and tracing the development of critical theory through its various movements, evolutions, nuances, and consequences. Read more

Y’all Version Bible (YALL) is a new translation with the goal of reclaiming the Bible as an ancient text written not just for you, the individual, but for y’all, the community of faith in the one true God, whose name is YHWH.FormatThis Complete Bible (Old and New Testament) is 7.5pt font in black and white: headings and y'all are in gray.Translation FeaturesThe People of God (y’all) - YALL highlights all the places where the original Hebrew or Greek text uses a plural form of the word "you" using the word "y’all." This helps avoid individualist readings of scripture and makes it clear which passages are directed at individuals and which are directed to the collective people of God.The Name of God (YHWH) - YALL also translates the divine name of God as YHWH rather than the traditional LORD. Most English readers do not know that the word "Lord" (meaning "master") is different from the capitalized "LORD" (God's name). Using the four capital letters YHWH clearly distinguishes it from Lord, but also retains the honor due to God's covenant name.The Word of God - YALL leans in more word-for-word and less dynamic direction, attempting to highlight much of the underlying language, but also reordering the words to make sense in English grammar. This also includes alternative translations for some words such as adelphoi as “siblings,” basileia as “empire,” and kardiognōstēs as “heart-knower.”Example PassagesSo God created humankind as ʜɪꜱ own image. As the image of God ʜᴇ created them;male and female ʜᴇ created them. God blessed them, and God said to them, “Y’all are to be fruitful and multiply. Y’all are to fill the earth and subdue it.” Gen 1:26–27“For I know the plans I have for y’all,” declares YHWH, “plans for prosperity not disaster, to give y’all hope and a future.” Jer 29:11“Therefore, y’all are to go and make disciples of all ethnic groups, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.” Matt 28:19Peace I leave with y’all. My peace I give to y’all. John 14:27Don’t y’all know that y’all are God’s temple and that the Spirit of God dwells in y’all? 1 Cor 3:16I, Jesus, have sent my angel to give this testimony to y’all for the churches. Revelation 22:16 Read more

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C.S. Lewis’s Classic Work that Is Number 7 on National Review’s List of “100 Best Nonfiction Books of the Twentieth Century”In The Abolition of Man, C.S. Lewis sets out to persuade his audience of the importance and relevance of universal values such as courage and honor in contemporary society. Both astonishing and prophetic, The Abolition of Man is one of the most debated of Lewis’s extraordinary works.  Read more

The bestselling author of Misquoting Jesus, one of the most renowned and controversial Bible scholars in the world today examines oral tradition and its role in shaping the stories about Jesus we encounter in the New Testament—and ultimately in our understanding of Christianity.Throughout much of human history, our most important stories were passed down orally—including the stories about Jesus before they became written down in the Gospels. In this fascinating and deeply researched work, leading Bible scholar Bart D. Ehrman investigates the role oral history has played in the New Testament—how the telling of these stories not only spread Jesus’ message but helped shape it.A master explainer of Christian history, texts, and traditions, Ehrman draws on a range of disciplines, including psychology and anthropology, to examine the role of memory in the creation of the Gospels. Explaining how oral tradition evolves based on the latest scientific research, he demonstrates how the act of telling and retelling impacts the story, the storyteller, and the listener—crucial insights that challenge our typical historical understanding of the silent period between when Jesus lived and died and when his stories began to be written down.As he did in his previous books on religious scholarship, debates on New Testament authorship, and the existence of Jesus of Nazareth, Ehrman combines his deep knowledge and meticulous scholarship in a compelling and eye-opening narrative that will change the way we read and think about these sacred texts. Read more

The problem of Eden is much worse than you thought, but the solution is much better than you could have ever imagined. Between Two Trees reveals that the real tragedy of Eden is a union with death, a union that produces division and despair. Life isn't lived under Eden's tree of life or beneath the healing leaves of the tree in the New Jerusalem. It is lived between them. And between these two trees, life is hard. In spite of this tragedy, Between Two Trees will challenge you to embrace hope, love, and the beauty of reconciliation at the true tree of life: the cross of Calvary. By exploring the problem of Eden and the power of the cross, Shane Wood calls us to walk on a path to transformation, a path to union with God. The book s journey ends under the shade of the tree of life in the New Jerusalem with God s unfinished creation now complete. Yes, Eden, but more importantly, you. The unfinished creation in us. If you doubt it's possible for one image to tell the whole story from Genesis to Revelation, then you need to read Shane Wood's masterful Between Two Trees. There isn't another book that comes close to it, both in its pioneering methodology and in its brilliance of presentation. I found myself completely absorbed and provoked by my own missed readings of the Scriptures. Leonard Sweet, Charles Wesley Distinguished Professor of Doctoral Studies, Evangelical Seminary Through theological reflection poised with poetic flare, Shane Wood admirably explores the trials and triumphs of a world united to death yet wooed by a tender father to return home. This book challenges our understanding of the problem of Eden and enhances the revelation of the depths of God's solution in Jesus union with God. Reading Between Two Trees, you will be deeply enriched, tenderly called, and masterfully guided into the transformative power of the incarnate Christ. Fr. Richard Rohr, founder of the Center for Action and Contemplation and best-selling author of Everything Belongs and Falling UpwardA professor of mine once told me I could not understand either the apostle Paul or the Bible until I understood the potency of death. He said Paul was a 'thanatologist,' which means one who studies death. That professor was right, but very few until Shane Wood's excellent, playful, and poetic exploration of the Bible's thanatology have let the specter of death emerge in furious force in their theology. Between Two Trees is a splendid entrance into the heart of Christian theology. Scot McKnight, Julius R. Mantey Professor of New Testament, Northern Seminary, and author of The King Jesus GospelThe Bible tells a huge story, one big enough to embrace, empower, and transform everyone's story. This book unpacks that huge story as well as any I have ever read. I am so grateful to Shane Wood for giving the church such an insightful and helpful way to understand God's big story. Between Two Trees will help us grasp a better narrative and help us transform our own stories into better tales of redemption. Rick Atchley, Senior Teaching Minister, The Hills Church, North Richland Hills, TX The Bible opens with a tree, and it closes with a tree. In between, we find an epic tale of God's love for us. Shane Wood knows the metanarrative of Scripture like few others, but what is more important is that he lives its principles every day. He trusts the author who writes the story and the gardener who cares for his creation. Be sure to read Between Two Trees and nurture the fruit within. Kyle Idleman, author of Not a Fan and Don t Give Up Read more

Why chasing after expressive individualism, experiences, and desires always fails to deliver on its promise of happiness.Today we are told to be true to ourselves, look within for answers, and follow our hearts. But when we put our own happiness first, we experience record-breaking levels of aimlessness, loneliness, depression, and anxiety. Self-centeredness always fails to deliver the fulfillment we're seeking.In Don't Follow Your Heart, Thaddeus Williams debunks the "ten commandments of self-worship," which include popular propaganda, like:#liveyourbestlife: Thou shalt always act in accord with your chief end—to glorify and enjoy yourself forever.#followyourheart: Thou shalt obey your emotions at all costs.#yolo: Thou shalt pursue the rush of boundary-free experience.Williams builds a case that this type of self-worship is not authentic, satisfying, or edgy. Instead, its rehashing what is literally humanity's oldest lie. He calls on a new generation of mavericks and renegades, heretics who refuse to march in unison with the self-obsessed herd. With a fascinating blend of theology, philosophy, science, psychology, and pop culture, Williams points us to a life beyond self-defeating dogmas to a more meaningful life centered on Someone infinitely more interesting, satisfying, and awesome than ourselves.Featuring stories from Carl Trueman, Joni Eareckson Tada, J.P, Moreland, Josh McDowell, Alisa Childers, and more."Following the herd is leading our generation off a cliff. Maybe a little heresy can do us a lot of good." —Collin Hansen Read more

Fresh translation of a classic treatise on Christian belief In the spirit of C. S. Lewis's Mere Christianity, this book by eminent Calvinist thinker J. H. Bavinck offers a compact and compelling treatise on Christian belief. Addressing big questions that haunt every thinking human being — Why are we here? Where do we come from? What is our destiny? How should we live? — Bavinck's Riddle of Life also explores such essential topics as sin and salvation, Jesus the Redeemer, faith and idolatry, God's great plan for creation, and the ultimate purpose behind our lives. This lucid new translation by Bert Hielema of a classic text will make Bavinck's profound reflections on faith and the meaning of human life accessible to a new generation of seekers. Read more

The doctrine of the imago Dei, that human beings are created in the “image and likeness of God,” is an endlessly fascinating topic. Not only is it a central doctrine to Christian life and practice but also touches, perhaps even helps to form, every other doctrine of the Christian faith in one way or another. We do not think about God, in a Christian sense, as any other than the God who creates humanity in God’s image. However, many of the details of this claim and what it means for human beings are left undefined by Hebrew and Christian Scriptures and it is not even mentioned in the creeds. This space leaves room for exploration. So the quest for what it means for human beings to be made in the image and likeness of God has never ceased to occupy theologians, clerics, and the laity alike. In this Companion, Peppiatt charts the developments of the doctrine through the ages, summarizing each position and perspective up to the modern day. This volume offers a compact but rich overview of the various ways in which this doctrine has been and is understood as well as pointing readers to further questions for consideration. Read more