Invisible Companions PDF Download

Author: J. Bradley Wigger
Publisher: Stanford University Press
ISBN: 1503609189
Category : Psychology
Languages : en
Pages : 286

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Book Description
From the US to Nepal, author J. Bradley Wigger travels five countries on three continents to hear children describe their invisible friends—one-hundred-year-old robins and blue dogs, dinosaurs and teapots, pretend families and shape-shifting aliens—companions springing from the deep well of childhood imagination. Drawing on these interviews, as well as a new wave of developmental research, he finds a fluid and flexible quality to the imaginative mind that is central to learning, co-operation, and paradoxically, to real-world rationality. Yet Wigger steps beyond psychological territory to explore the religious significance of the kind of mind that develops relationships with invisible beings. Alongside Cinderella the blue dog, Quack-Quack the duck, and Dino the dinosaur are angels, ancestors, spirits, and gods. What he uncovers is a profound capacity in the religious imagination to see through the surface of reality to more than meets the eye. Punctuated throughout by children's colorful drawings of their see-through interlocutors, the book is highly engaging and alternately endearing, moving, and humorous. Not just for parents or for those who work with children, Invisible Companions will appeal to anyone interested in our mind's creative and spiritual possibilities.

Author: Samuel Wells
Publisher: John Wiley & Sons
ISBN: 0470777230
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 242

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Book Description
We are pleased to annouce that God’s Companions by Samuel Wells has been shortlisted for the 2007 Michael Ramsey Prize for theological writing. www.michaelramseyprize.org.uk Grounded in Samuel Wells’ experience of ordinary lives in poorer neighborhoods, this book presents a striking and imaginative approach to Christian ethics. It argues that Christian ethics is founded on God, on the practices of human community, and on worship, and that ethics is fundamentally a reflection of God's abundance. Wells synthesizes dogmatic, liturgical, ethical, scriptural, and pastoral approaches to theology in order to make a bold claim for the centrality of the local church in theological reflection. He considers the abundance of gifts God gives through the practices of the Church, particularly the Eucharist. His central thesis, which governs his argument throughout, is that God gives his people everything they need to worship him, be his friends, and eat with him. Wells engages with serious scholarly material, yet sets out the issues lucidly for a student audience.

Author: Debra Farrington
Publisher: Paraclete Press
ISBN: 1612611737
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 167

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Book Description
All God's Creatures provides a complete Blessing of the Animals liturgy, as well as other prayers and rituals, for use in church or anywhere that animals are blessed! If you live with a dog, cat, or some other domestic animal, you already know that these treasured creatures are not just pets, but members of the family. Debra K. Farrington, who has lived with animals most of her life, explores the spiritual aspects of our relationships with these beloved friends--from everyday caring for their needs, to marking the extraordinary moments of birth, illness and death. Full of warmth and wisdom, this essential resource includes chapters on: Training and Compassion-and how to balance the two Caring for the Sick--ethical concerns Rest in Peace--rituals, blessings, and more Tell Me Your Name--discerning the personality of your companion “By viewing companion animals as a gift from God rather than objects that do the will of humans, Debra Farrington helps owners realize a greater sense of responsibility toward their own pets, and shows how the humane care and training of their animals leads to a more fulfilling experience for both.” - Barbara Demarest, canine and feline behavior consultant A percentage of the author’s profits on this book will be donated to PAWS of Central Pennsylvania, a no-kill animal rescue and spay/neuter group.

Author: Stephen D. Bryant
Publisher: Companions in Christ
ISBN: 9780835898409
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 0

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Book Description
Companions in Christ is designed to develop you as a leader in guiding the spiritual life of your congregation. This resource gives you an overview of the Christian spiritual life and the practices that help people enter into the formative pattern of Christ's life: a life of prayer, study and service. Help your small-group members move from information (knowledge about) to experience (knowledge of) in the means of grace--ways in which Christ meets people, renews their faith, and deepens their life together in love. This revised Leader's Guide provides detailed guidance for leading a small group through the 28 weekly sessions. The plans have been tested and refined by groups in churches across the country. This books contains all you need, including --the Getting Started Guide, which was formerly a separate piece --a revised plan for a Closing Retreat --Weekly Needs at a Glance --page references for both the comprehensive 1-volume Participant's Book and the new 5-volume series

Author: Wendy Alsup
Publisher: InterVarsity Press
ISBN: 083084385X
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 197

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Book Description
2020 The Gospel Coalition Book Award - Christian Living Have you experienced an ongoing trial that left you wrung out emotionally? Do you feel alone in your pain? Though suffering often leaves us feeling isolated, God invites us into the community of the Trinity and offers us many companions in Scripture. We experience loneliness alongside the exiled Israelites. We journey with David as he pleads to God for rescue. With Asaph we confess our unbelief. With Job we learn to lament. With Mary and Martha we learn to wait. In God's community, there is sweet fellowship, even in the hardest of circumstances. Journey in these pages with Wendy Alsup through her story of suffering, and more importantly, with the God who walks with us in the wilderness. This warm and contemplative book also includes a helpful appendix for those who companion a suffering loved one.

Author: Teresa White
Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing
ISBN: 147298420X
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 225

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Book Description
In these days of pandemic, war and political turbulence, hope can seem to be in short supply. But hope is one of the theological virtues and it is far more profound than mere optimism. Today, pessimism and despair seem all too prevalent. What can we do about the poor and starving, about those who seem to be locked in interminable conflict and families weighed down by the consequences of breakdown? Sister Teresa White's book is an antidote to all this and it is written with beautiful simplicity and directness. There is no hiding behind complicated or technical language. In one of the most forceful chapters in the book, the author shows how hope breeds courage and courage breeds hope. But hope is not a matter of wishful thinking. Drawing on St Augustine, the author shows moreover that hope has two essential components. Not just courage but anger as well. The expression of our anger can lead to greater clarity with our discernment and spiritual perception. Hope too can lead us to understand God's solidarity with us in times of sorrow and struggle. Teresa White in this Lent Book draws on inspiration from writers as diverse as Julian of Norwich and Karl Rahner, Elizabeth Barrett-Browning and Henri Nouwen, but throughout the book there is strong scriptural underpinning which the author uses to great effect.

Author: Neil Philip
Publisher: Penguin
ISBN: 0756642213
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 356

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Book Description
Originally told to explain the mysteries of the world—such as creation, divine will, fertility, death, and love—myths are a major part of many cultures throughout the world, and each area has its own myths. Organized by geographic region, each myth is placed within the civilization’s history and context. The key elements of world mythology, such as the hero, his divine connection, the labyrinth, the initiation, and the transformation,are explored in boxes and features throughout the book. Philip Wilkinson has more than 50 titles to his credit in the fields of mythology, history, and the arts, including DK’s Illustrated Dictionaries of Mythology and Religions. Neil Philip is the author of many books on folklore and mythology, including The Illustrated Book of Myths and Myths and Legends Explained. Synopses of the great myths that have inspired human creativity from antiquity to the present Covers mythology around the globe, from the classic Greek to lesser known Malaysian Catalogs of gods by subject enable comparisons of distant civilizations

Author: David Vincent Meconi
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
ISBN: 1108422519
Category : Philosophy
Languages : en
Pages : 369

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Book Description
Masterfully explains Augustine's major work The City of God book by book through engagement with theology, history and political science.

Author: David G. Benner
Publisher: InterVarsity Press
ISBN: 0830876804
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 242

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Book Description
ECPA Gold Medallion Finalist We need companions on our spiritual journey. The modern world has taught us to value autonomy and individualism. Our churches often see spirituality as personal and private. But we cannot go long in our Christian pilgrimage before realizing that isolation leads to spiritual barrenness. We soon discover that our souls long for accompaniment, intimacy and spiritual friendship. As a result, many Christians today are rediscovering the ancient practice of spiritual direction. In this inviting guide, David G. Benner introduces readers to the riches of spiritual friendship and direction, explaining what they are and how they are practiced. Spiritual direction moves beyond mere moral lifestyle accountability and goes deeper than popular notions of mentoring or discipling. Through prayerful, guided attunement to God's activity, sacred companions provide care for the soul. If we are to experience significant spiritual formation and growth, our souls must be nurtured through spiritual companions. Benner, well-accustomed to God's work through relationships, models the kind of traveling companion who can move us toward deeper intimacy with God.

Author: John Indermark
Publisher:
ISBN: 9780835898782
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 134

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Book Description
Grace is a gift. Even before we recognize its need in our lives, God extends us favor. This 9-week study in the Companions in Christ series explores the Gospel of John and how divine grace is at work in our lives today, just as it was in the lives of biblical characters 2,000 years ago. "God's grace comes to us in the distinctive shape of our personal histories, needs, and possibilities," Indermark writes. "Yet divine grace also reveals the depths of what we share across all boundaries of time and place." Participants in this small-group study will explore the central stories of John, focusing on people who discovered God's grace through their encounters with Jesus. The Way of Grace is a transforming interaction with the events and the characters, a chance to identify with what God provided for these people a provision they could never achieve for themselves.