Holy Bible - The New Revised Standard Version - Catholic Edition

$16.00 NZD

Category: Religion | Reading Level: very good

Nelson's unique Fan-Tab Index Reference System helps you find the books of the Bible in an instant. This edition contains the New Revised Standard Version of the Bible, including the Deuterocanonical books. The New Revised Standard Version, Catholic Edition is a clear, vivid, and accurate translation of the Bible that today's Catholics can use with confidence. ...Show more

Brand Luther: 1517, Printing, and the Making of the Reformation by Andrew Pettegree

$20.00 NZD

Category: Europe | Reading Level: very good

A revolutionary look at Martin Luther, the Reformation, and the birth of publishing, on the eve of the Reformation s 500th anniversary When Martin Luther posted his theses on the door of the Wittenberg church in 1517, protesting corrupt practices, he was virtually unknown. Within months, his ideas spre ad across Germany, then all of Europe; within years, their author was not just famous, but infamous, responsible for catalyzing the violent wave of religious reform that would come to be known as the Protestant Reformation and engulfing Europe in decades of bloody war. Luther came of age with the printing press, and the path to glory of neither one was obvious to the casual observer of the time. Printing was, and is, a risky business the questions were how to know how much to print and how to get there before the competition. Pettegree illustrates Luther's great gifts not simply as a theologian, but as a communicator, indeed, as the world's first mass-media figure, its first "brand." He recognized in printing the power of pamphlets, written in the colloquial German of everyday people, to win the battle of ideas. But that wasn't enough not just words, but the medium itself was the message. Fatefully, Luther had a partner in the form of artist and businessman Lucas Cranach, who together with Wittenberg s printers created the distinctive look of Luther's pamphlets. Together, Luther and Cranach created a product that spread like wildfire it was both incredibly successful and widely imitated. Soon Germany was overwhelmed by a blizzard of pamphlets, with Wittenberg at its heart; the Reformation itself would blaze on for more than a hundred years. Publishing in advance of the Reformation s 500th anniversary, "Brand Luther" fuses the history of religion, of printing, and of capitalism the literal marketplace of ideas into one enthralling story, revolutionizing our understanding of one of the pivotal figures and eras in human history." ...Show more

The God Delusion by Richard Dawkins

$12.00 NZD

Category: Religion | Reading Level: very good

"The God Delusion" caused a sensation when it was published in 2006. Within weeks it became the most hotly debated topic, with Dawkins himself branded as either saint or sinner for presenting his hard-hitting, impassioned rebuttal of religion of all types. His argument could hardly be more topical. Whil e Europe is becoming increasingly secularized, the rise of religious fundamentalism, whether in the Middle East or Middle America, is dramatically and dangerously dividing opinion around the world. In America, and elsewhere, a vigorous dispute between 'intelligent design' and Darwinism is seriously undermining and restricting the teaching of science. In many countries religious dogma from medieval times still serves to abuse basic human rights such as women's and gay rights. And all from a belief in a God whose existence lacks evidence of any kind. Dawkins attacks God in all his forms. He eviscerates the major arguments for religion and demonstrates the supreme improbability of a supreme being. He shows how religion fuels war, foments bigotry and abuses children. "The God Delusion" is a brilliantly argued, fascinating polemic that will be required reading for anyone interested in this most emotional and important subject. ...Show more

Faza'il-e-a'maal - Revised Translation of Tableeghi Nisaab

$20.00 NZD

Category: Religion | Reading Level: good-very good

The Intrareligious Dialogue by Ramon Panikkar

$14.00 NZD

Category: Religion | Reading Level: very good

A revised and expanded edition of a classic volume by one of the giants in his field, Raimon Panikkar, this significant volume discusses faith and belief in multireligious experience, with emphasis on understanding one's own religion and tradition before attempting to understand someone else's. Panikkar begins by pointing out the prevailing attitudes and critical models for attaining a pluralism standing "between unrelated plurality and a monolithic unity." For the author this is a pluralism which "takes our factual situation as real and affirms that in the actual polarities of our human experience we find our real being." He describes an intrareligious dialogue in which faith is not confused with belief, in which religious encounter must be a truly religious one, and in which the participants overcome temptation to defend themselves. The major religions of the world and particularly the Christian, Hindu and Buddhist traditions are seen as the response to the human predicament, "that Man is a being not yet finished, a reality unachieved, growing, becoming, on the way, a pilgrim." It means for each person to "touch the shore of nothingness provided he does not rest in that non-existing place. It means to develop all the human potentialities, provided these are not artificially concocted dreams. It means finally to know and accept the human predicament and, at the same time, to recognize that this very human predicament carries with it the constant overcoming of all that Man is now." ...Show more

Hitler's Pope: The Secret History of Pius XII by John Cornwell

$14.00 NZD

Category: Religion | Reading Level: good-very good

The "explosive" ("The New York Times") bestseller--now with a new introduction by the author When "Hitler's Pope," the shocking story of Pope Pius XII that "redefined the history of the twentieth century" ("The Washington Post" ) was originally published, it sparked a firestorm of controversy both insi de and outside the Catholic Church. Now, award-winning journalist John Cornwell has revisited this seminal work of history with a new introduction that both answers his critics and reaffirms his overall thesis that Pius XII, now scheduled to be canonized by the Vatican, weakened the Catholic Church with his endorsement of Hitler--and sealed the fate of the Jews in Europe. ...Show more

The Celestine Prophecy by James Redfield

$10.00 NZD

Category: Religion | Reading Level: very good

THE #1 BESTSELLING INTERNATIONAL PHENOMENON - NOW WITH A NEW PREFACE You have never read a book like this before--a book that comes along once in a lifetime to change lives forever. In the rain forests of Peru, an ancient manuscript has been discovered. Within its pages are 9 key insights into life itse lf -- insights each human being is predicted to grasp sequentially; one insight, then another, as we move toward a completely spiritual culture on Earth. Drawing on ancient wisdom, it tells you how to make connections among the events happening in your life right now and lets you see what is going to happen to you in the years to come. The story it tells is a gripping one of adventure and discovery, but it is also a guidebook that has the power to crystallize your perceptions of why you are where you are in life and to direct your steps with a new energy and optimism as you head into tomorrow. Praise for The Celestine Prophecy"A gripping adventure story filled with intrigue, suspense, and spiritual revelations." - Commonwealth Journal "A spiritual classic...a book to read and reread, to cherish, and to give to friends." - Joan Borysenko, PhD, author of Fire in the Soul "In his inimitable style of great storytelling, Redfield opens us up to a world of insight, inspiration, synchronicity, and power." - Deepak Chopra ...Show more

Judas - The troubling history of the renegade apostle by Peter Stanford

$14.00 NZD

Category: Religion | Reading Level: near fine

In this fascinating historical and cultural biography, writer and broadcaster Peter Stanford deconstructs that most vilified of Bible characters: Judas Iscariot, who famously betrayed Jesus with a kiss. Beginning with the gospel accounts, Peter explores two thousand years of cultural and theological his tory to investigate how the very name Judas came to be synonymous with betrayal and, ultimately, human evil. But as Peter points out, there has long been a counter-current of thought that suggests that Judas might in fact have been victim of a terrible injustice: central to Jesus' mission was his death and resurrection, and for there to have been a death, there had to be a betrayal. This thankless role fell to Judas; should we in fact be grateful to him for his role in the divine drama of salvation? 'You'll have to decide,' as Bob Dylan sang in the sixties, 'Whether Judas Iscariot had God on his side'. An essential but doomed character in the Passion narrative, and thus the entire story of Christianity, Judas and the betrayal he symbolises continue to play out in much larger cultural histories, speaking as he does to our deepest fears about friendship, betrayal and the problem of evil. Judas: the ultimate traitor, or the ultimate scapegoat? This is a compelling portrait of Christianity's most troubling and mysterious character. ...Show more

Altarity by Mark C. Taylor

$16.00 NZD

Category: Philosophy | Series: Religion and Postmodernism Ser. | Reading Level: very good

Readers familiar with Mark C. Taylor's previous writing will immediately recognize Altarity as a remarkable synthetic project. This work combines the analytic depth and detail of Taylor's earlier studies of Kierkegaard and Hegel with the philosophical and theological scope of his highly acclaimed Erring . In Altarity, Taylor develops a genealogy of otherness and difference that is based on the principle of creative juxtaposition. Rather than relying on a historical or chronological survey of crucial moments in modern philosophical thinking, he explores the complex question of difference through the strategies of contrast, resonance, and design. Taylor brings together the work of thinkers as diverse as Hegel, Heidegger, Merleau-Ponty, Lacan, Bataille, Kristeva, Levinas, Blanchot, Derrida, and Kierkegaard to fashion a broad intellectual scheme. Situated in an interdisciplinary discourse, Altarity signifies a harnessing of continental and American habits of intellectual thought and illustrates the singularity that emerges from such a configuration. As such, the book functions as a mirror of our intellectual moment and offers the academy a rigorous way of acknowledging the limitations of its own interpretive practices. ...Show more

Unapologetic: Why, despite everything, Christianity can still make surprising emotional sense by Francis Spufford

$15.00 NZD

Category: Religion | Reading Level: very good

"Unapologetic" is a brief, witty, personal, sharp-tongued defence of Christian belief, taking on Dawkins' "The God Delusion" and Christopher Hitchens' "God is Not Great". But it isn't an argument that Christianity is true - because how could anyone know that (or indeed its opposite)? It's an argument th at Christianity is recognisable, drawing on the deep and deeply ordinary vocabulary of human feeling, satisfying those who believe in it by offering a ruthlessly realistic account of the bits of our lives advertising agencies prefer to ignore. It's a book for believers who are fed up with being patronised, for non-believers curious about how faith can possibly work in the twenty-first century, and for anyone who feels there is something indefinably wrong, literalistic, anti-imaginative and intolerant about the way the atheist case is now being made. Fresh, provoking and unhampered by niceness, this is the long-awaited riposte to the smug emissaries of New Atheism. ...Show more

The Conference of the Birds by Farid ud-Din Attar

$14.00 NZD

Category: Religion | Series: Ways of Mysticism Ser. | Reading Level: very good

Farid ud-Din Attar (1145/46 - 1221) was a Persian poet, druggist, and social theorist of Sufism, who wrote much of his poetry while treating hundreds of patients a day with his herbal remedies. As a young man he made a pilgrimage to Mecca, and sought wisdom during his travels in Egypt, Damascus and Indi a. His masterpiece, "The Conference of the Birds", has survived centuries because of its captivating poetic style and its symbolic exploration on the true nature of God. This 4500-line poem follows the birds of the world, each of which hold special significance, as they seek out the Simorgh - a mythical Persian bird much like the phoenix - in hopes that he might be their king. The birds must cross seven valleys on their quest, each of which represents various trials that the individual must pass through to realize the true nature of God. Within the overlying allegory, Attar captivates readers with short, charming stories in beautiful and clever language. ...Show more

The Long Snapper - A Second Chance, A Super Bowl, A Lesson for Life by Jeffrey Marx

$12.00 NZD

Category: Religion | Reading Level: very good

Brian Kinchen was a thirty-eight-year-old husband, father of four, and seventh-grade Bible teacher whose professional football career had been over for three years when the New England Patriots called on December 15, 2003. With the Patriots riding a ten-game winning streak and the playoffs only a few we eks away, they needed a fill-in for the obscure but vital job of snapping the ball for their punter and kicker-a long snapper. Brian had received similar invitations to tryouts that yielded only disappointment-the teams always went with a younger guy. But could he really turn away from the chance of a lifetime? The Long Snapper chronicles Brian’s remarkable journey as he and the Patriots seek the ultimate trophy. Unfortunately, the dream come true turns into a personal nightmare as Brian struggles both on and off the field, and the pressure to perform on the biggest stage in professional sports nearly causes him to walk away. Seven weeks after leaving the classroom, however, Brian overcomes his greatest fear and snaps the ball on the historic game-winning field goal with only seconds left in the Super Bowl. As told by Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Jeffrey Marx, The Long Snapper is the story of a man who finally achieves the success he has always wanted. Brian Kinchen’s championship ring is a powerful status symbol for all to see. But his journey forces him to reexamine what really matters, and he realizes the true measure of a man has nothing to do with status: life is not about prestige, it is about passion and purpose. It is about impacting the lives of others. ...Show more