(REVIEW) “The Great Dechurching” is a groundbreaking new book that should redefine how we talk about the reasons behind the decline in American church attendance, even if its proposed solutions miss the forest for the trees.
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(REVIEW) In his new book, “Heartbeat: An American Cardiologist in Kenya,” Dr. David Silverstein, who is Jewish, recounts the highs and lows of being Moi’s personal physician. It meant that he was privy to some of the biggest secrets and decisions ever made in Kenya.
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Disgraced Hillsong founder Brian Houston has announced plans to write a new book sharing his story. Houston resigned from the global megachurch last year for alleged sexual misconduct, but has complained that he was “betrayed,” “lied about” and “defrauded.”
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A new memoir by another child of Jim Bob Duggar contains some stunning revelations about the former “19 Kids and Counting” TV family. According to Jill Duggar Dillard, the fourth-eldest Duggar sibling, her parents treated her worse for exposing their verbal abuse and control than they treated her brother Josh for his pedophilia.
Read MoreThrough 16 days of round-the-clock, continuous worship, participants recalled an extraordinary sense of the nearness of God the Father, Son and Holy Spirit. There was no performance with celebrities or polished musicians and no comfortable, spacious venue. Yet an estimated 50,000 to 70,000 pilgrims came from at least 40 states, 286 campuses, and 40 countries. This work explores a spontaneous revival whose impact through social media continues to reverberate around the world.
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(REVIEW) In less than 40 pages, Margaret Sayers outlines a few helpful remedies for a host of challenges that come with old age, frailty and conditions such as dementia. The recommendations are meant primarily for caregivers or those who often interact with a family member in such conditions, for instance.
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(REVIEW) How have we become like gods? Tracing the story from the Middle Ages, with its philosophical culmination in Nietzsche and modern manifestation in the transhumanist movement and the Kardashians, author Tara Isabella Burton explains how humanity has come to seek flourishing apart from God in her book “Self-Made.”
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The book invites readers to shift their perspective on anxiety from something to be eschewed or suppressed to an occasion for spiritual development and renewal. Chang presents a vision of anxiety grounded in scripture: particularly in the life of Jesus. Chang shows us how we can engage with anxiety as an invitation for growth, rather than as an occasion to perpetuate fear and shame.
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Religion Unplugged contributor Kenneth Ethan Frantz interviewed Schiess about her new book, the role the Bible played in the past and present in American politics, and what it all means ahead of the 2024 presidential election.
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(ANALYSIS) “Book of the Month” is certainly an appropriate label for Russell Moore’s “Losing Our Religion: An Altar Call for Evangelical America,” released July 25 by Sentinel. I am borrowing that label, of course, from that venerable subscription club and corporate partner during The Guy’s days working with the old Time Inc.
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(REVIEW) This book is a valiant attempt to create an ethic of deep listening, empathy and guidelines for spiritual mentorship for those who find themselves marginalized by the religious community. At the same time, the Staffords’ lack of clarity exposes the groundwork to logical fallacies, self-refuting statements and logical circles.
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(ANALYSIS) Joseph Henrich, a professor of human evolutionary biology at Harvard University, has written a theory of how the Western mind and cultures became exceptional. He has coined the acronym WEIRD (for Western, educated, industrialized, rich and democratic) to describe the features of this.
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The artificial intelligence arm of Facebook parent company Meta has turned to widely translated religious texts like the Bible to provide data for its Massively Multilingual Speech project, which aims to expand text-to-speech and speech-to-text technology to underserved languages.
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(REVIEW) The summer is synonymous with reading on the beach or near the pool. So here are three new books to consider adding to your list. While many seek mindless books to indulge in during this time of year, these will make you think and reflect about yourself and the world around you.
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(BOOK EXCERPT) While there were elements of hippie culture in the Jesus Movement, there was also a rejection of the purely hedonistic, live-and-let-live ethos of the 1960s. The 1960s had ended with assassinations, domestic terrorism, massive social unrest, incredible racial tension, and the peak of the Vietnam War. By the time the 1970s rolled around, America was in a dark, foul mood.
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(REVIEW) Few if any 20th century Roman Catholics had a greater impact on Christian spirituality than Thomas Merton, the iconic Trappist monk, mystic and ecumenist. What’s lesser known is the remarkable life of his brother, John Paul, who was almost four years his junior — the subject of “Remembering the Forgotten Merton” William J. Meegan.
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(OPINION) “Creating the Quran” will certainly offend believers in the orthodox view that between 610 and his death in 632, Muhammad, guided by the angel Gabriel, received God’s verbatim words, memorized them, dictated them to scribes and confirmed the entirety of the Quran’s revelations as they exist today.
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Religious studies scholar Bradley Onishi traces the modern history of Christian nationalism and how it relates to current events in his new book “Prepping for War: The Extremist History of White Christian Nationalism — and What Comes Next.” He starts with how a select group of Supreme Court cases led to the creation of the modern religious right and how they moved to support right-wing populist leaders. Onishi connects this history to the Donald Trump presidency and the attempted coup on Jan. 6, 2021.
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The season of Lent begins on Ash Wednesday and lasts about six weeks, culminating with Easter Sunday. It is the day Christians believe Jesus rose from the dead. Ahead of the Lenten season, here are five books about this prayerful season that will prepare Christians for Easter.
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(REVIEW) In his new book coming out in April called “American Ramble,” Neil King Jr. has crafted a travelogue fit for a reporter and a monk, built on paying close attention during a 26-day walk he took to New York City from Washington, D.C. in the spring of 2021.
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