http://www.nnseek.com/e/talk.religion.spirituality/ Posts for talk.religion.spirituality Tue, 29 Apr 2008 18:18:49 PDT http://www.nnseek.com/ http://www.nnseek.com/img/64.png 64 64 NNSeek http://www.nnseek.com/e/talk.religion.spirituality/the_war_against_iraqi_women_100120906t.html http://www.nnseek.com/e/talk.religion.spirituality/the_war_against_iraqi_women_100120906t.html www.project-syndicate.org). -- Shalom/Salaam/Pax! Rowland Croucher http://jmm.aaa.net.au/ (20,000 articles 4000 humor) Blogs - http://rowlandsblogs.blogspot.com/ Justice for Dawn Rowan - http://dawnrowansaga.blogspot.com/ Funny Jokes and Pics - http://funnyjokesnpics.blogspot.com/

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]]> Tue, 29 Apr 2008 18:18:49 PDT http://www.nnseek.com/e/talk.religion.spirituality/the_best_books_you_ve_ever_read_98918986t.html http://www.nnseek.com/e/talk.religion.spirituality/the_best_books_you_ve_ever_read_98918986t.html http://jmm.aaa.net.au/articles/8073.htm . 1. THE BIBLE. As a youngster I was captivated by the wonderful stories of God’s grace in the Bible (KJV), and also its magnificent poetry (eg. Isaiah 40, which as a teenager I learned off by heart). I knew more about ‘dispensational prophecy’ than the apostles did, and read the Bible through several times. (The most readable recent translation: Eugene Peterson’s The Message. The best for study and corporate worship: the NRSV.) 2. ADVENTURE STORIES – especially R M Ballantyne’s; and the William, Biggles and Deerfoot books - gave me as a child a love of reading for pleasure. 3. THE KNEELING CHRISTIAN (by ‘An Unknown Christian’) instilled in me the conviction that genuine Christian commitment is nothing if not fervent. BIOGRAPHIES – of people like George Muller, William Carey, Hudson Taylor, C H Spurgeon and the Ecuador Martyrs – inspired me in my formative years to ‘be the best I can be’ for God and others. 4. C S LEWIS (especially Mere Christianity) and JOHN STOTT (Basic Christianity) were helpful in my accepting orthodox Christian tenets as ‘believable’. 6. MILLAR’S SCM COMMENTARY ON LUKE and (later) WALTER BRUEGGEMANN’S ON THE PSALMS (among others, eg, Abraham Heschel) encouraged me to believe that expounding the Scriptures can be instructive, and interesting and challenging. 7. W E SANGSTER’S sermons, books on homiletics, and magnum opus The Pure in Heart (on spirituality) were wonderful ‘integrative’ elements in my formation as a young pastor. Two decades later Richard Foster’s Celebration of Discipline and later again his Streams of Living Water helped in the quest for an overview of historical/ecumenical spirituality. 7. I got JOHN CLAYPOOL’S sermons once a month by mail for many years, and stopped everything to read them: he’s still the best ‘writing preacher’ in the English language, I reckon. His Tracks of a Fellow Struggler – sermons on Job while his 9 year old daughter Laura Lue was dying of leukemia – has comforted many in their grief. Following Claypool, I think Barbara Brown Taylor’s sermons delight me the most. 8. Three Catholic authors who have enriched/inspired: THOMAS MERTON (his best - New Seeds of Contemplation), DOM HELDER CAMARA (especially A Thousand Reasons for Living), and HENRI NOUWEN (start with either The Wounded Healer or Creative Ministry). 9. My favourite contemporary author is RICHARD ROHR. Start (slowly) with his latest book Things Hidden: Scripture as Spirituality, then Everything Belongs: the Gift of Contemplative Prayer. 10. For young/new Christians no one beats BRIAN McLAREN. His best, I think, is A Generous Orthodoxy. For those enquiring about Christianity give them Finding Faith: A Search for What is Real. 11. Interfaith? Remember the dictum ascribed to Zwi Werblowsky: ‘There are some things about a given religion which can only be understood from inside and some things about the same religion which can only be understood from outside.’ Now here’s a surprise choice perhaps: begin with KHALED HOSSEINI’S The Kite Runner. It gives us brilliant insights into the lives of Muslim families in Afghanistan (and should help soften some of our bigotry about Islam). 12. The number one issue in western theology is the current ‘Jesus Quest’. Conservatives will like CRAIG EVANS’ Fabricating Jesus (2007) or BEN WITHERINGTON’S What Have they done With Jesus? (2006), but I would suggest that a wider stance should be explored – most easily with the dialogues TOM WRIGHT had with MARCUS BORG on The Meaning of Jesus (2000) and JOHN DOMINIC CROSSAN on The Resurrection of Jesus (2006). 13. Christianity and Social Justice? Start with JIM WALLIS’S Seven Ways to Change the World (2008). 14. Finally, anything by EUGENE PETERSON is excellent (though there’s quite a bit of repetition in his various writings). His Take and Read: Spiritual Reading, an Annotated List is a good guide, and his recent books on Spiritual Theology – Christ Plays in Ten Thousand Places (2005) and The Jesus Way (2007) – are an excellent summary/miscellany of his ideas. Ponder: ‘Beware of the man of one book’ (Thomas Aquinas). ‘The failure to read good books both enfeebles the vision and strengthens our most fatal tendency - the belief that the here and now is all there is.’ (Allan Bloom ). In another article I’ll look at best/favourite blogs and websites. Rowland Croucher April 2008 -- Shalom/Salaam/Pax! Rowland Croucher http://jmm.aaa.net.au/ (20,000 articles 4000 humor) Blogs - http://rowlandsblogs.blogspot.com/ Justice for Dawn Rowan - http://dawnrowansaga.blogspot.com/ Funny Jokes and Pics - http://funnyjokesnpics.blogspot.com/

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]]> Sat, 19 Apr 2008 18:25:59 PDT http://www.nnseek.com/e/talk.religion.spirituality/homosexuality_an_imaginary_interview_with_jesus_98740810t.html http://www.nnseek.com/e/talk.religion.spirituality/homosexuality_an_imaginary_interview_with_jesus_98740810t.html http://jmm.aaa.net.au/articles/12135.htm -- Shalom/Salaam/Pax! Rowland Croucher http://jmm.aaa.net.au/ (20,000 articles 4000 humor) Blogs - http://rowlandsblogs.blogspot.com/ Justice for Dawn Rowan - http://dawnrowansaga.blogspot.com/ Funny Jokes and Pics - http://funnyjokesnpics.blogspot.com/

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]]> Fri, 18 Apr 2008 02:49:48 PDT http://www.nnseek.com/e/talk.religion.spirituality/history_s_worst_decisions_and_greatest_scandals_97538378t.html http://www.nnseek.com/e/talk.religion.spirituality/history_s_worst_decisions_and_greatest_scandals_97538378t.html http://jmm.aaa.net.au/ (20,000 articles 4000 humor) Blogs - http://rowlandsblogs.blogspot.com/ Justice for Dawn Rowan - http://dawnrowansaga.blogspot.com/ Funny Jokes and Pics - http://funnyjokesnpics.blogspot.com/

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]]> Mon, 07 Apr 2008 18:19:12 PDT http://www.nnseek.com/e/talk.religion.spirituality/truth_is_what_people_kill_each_other_for_94881098t.html http://www.nnseek.com/e/talk.religion.spirituality/truth_is_what_people_kill_each_other_for_94881098t.html http://jmm.aaa.net.au/articles/2975.htm -- Shalom/Salaam/Pax! Rowland Croucher http://jmm.aaa.net.au/ (20,000 articles 4000 humor) Blogs - http://rowlandsblogs.blogspot.com/ Justice for Dawn Rowan - http://dawnrowansaga.blogspot.com/ Funny Jokes and Pics - http://funnyjokesnpics.blogspot.com/

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]]> Wed, 12 Mar 2008 14:50:22 PDT http://www.nnseek.com/e/talk.religion.spirituality/the_use_and_abuse_of_power_94101578t.html http://www.nnseek.com/e/talk.religion.spirituality/the_use_and_abuse_of_power_94101578t.html http://jmm.aaa.net.au [1] http://jmm.aaa.net.au/articles/4728.htm [2] http://jmm.aaa.net.au/articles/8195.htm -- Shalom/Salaam/Pax! Rowland Croucher http://jmm.aaa.net.au/ (20,000 articles 4000 humor) Blogs - http://rowlandsblogs.blogspot.com/ Justice for Dawn Rowan - http://dawnrowansaga.blogspot.com/ Funny Jokes and Pics - http://funnyjokesnpics.blogspot.com/

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]]> Wed, 05 Mar 2008 16:04:30 PST http://www.nnseek.com/e/talk.religion.spirituality/pray_for_the_world_91315530t.html http://www.nnseek.com/e/talk.religion.spirituality/pray_for_the_world_91315530t.html http://www.ausprayernet.org.au/ -- Shalom/Salaam/Pax! Rowland Croucher http://jmm.aaa.net.au/ (20,000 articles 4000 humor) Blogs - http://rowlandsblogs.blogspot.com/ Justice for Dawn Rowan - http://dawnrowansaga.blogspot.com/ Funny Jokes and Pics - http://funnyjokesnpics.blogspot.com/

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]]> Sun, 10 Feb 2008 17:17:12 PST http://www.nnseek.com/e/talk.religion.spirituality/christian_leader_s_survival_guide_90640970t.html http://www.nnseek.com/e/talk.religion.spirituality/christian_leader_s_survival_guide_90640970t.html http://jmm.aaa.net.au/articles/8658.htm Cliff Powell and Graham Barker, Unloading the Overload: Stress Management for Christians, Sydney: Strand Publishing, 1998. ‘Do Yourself a Favour – Encourage your Pastor’ - http://jmm.aaa.net.au/articles/8384.htm Rowland Croucher (ed.) Still Waters, Deep Waters: Meditations and Prayers for Enrichment, A Garden of Solitude: Meditations and Prayers for Encouragement (Albatross / Lion). 50 ARTICLES ON STRESS - http://jmm.aaa.net.au/catalog/keyword/s-17.htm 20+ ARTICLES ON BURNOUT - http://jmm.aaa.net.au/catalog/keyword/b-11.htm Stress and Burnout in Ministry - http://jmm.aaa.net.au/articles/8200.htm Does Ministry Fuel Addictive Behaviour? http://jmm.aaa.net.au/articles/18859.htm 360 Degree Leadership (Bill Hybels) - http://jmm.aaa.net.au/articles/8448.htm Good-To-Great Companies http://jmm.aaa.net.au/articles/8727.htm 1266 articles on Leadership and Practical Theology - http://jmm.aaa.net.au/catalog/section/lt1.htm 127 articles on ex-pastors - http://jmm.aaa.net.au/catalog/section/xp1.htm Shalom/Salaam/Pax! Rowland Croucher http://jmm.aaa.net.au/ (20,000 articles 4000 humor) Blogs - http://rowlandsblogs.blogspot.com/ Justice for Dawn Rowan - http://dawnrowansaga.blogspot.com/ Funny Jokes and Pics - http://funnyjokesnpics.blogspot.com/

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]]> Mon, 04 Feb 2008 01:24:47 PST http://www.nnseek.com/e/talk.religion.spirituality/world_hunger_some_graphic_statistics_and_images_89540426t.html http://www.nnseek.com/e/talk.religion.spirituality/world_hunger_some_graphic_statistics_and_images_89540426t.html For pictures of these families, visit http://1monthanswerstotoughquestions.blogspot.com/2008/01/world-hunger-what-to-do... or http://tinyurl.com/343bn7 -- Shalom/Salaam/Pax! Rowland Croucher http://jmm.aaa.net.au/ (20,000 articles 4000 humor) Blogs - http://rowlandsblogs.blogspot.com/ Justice for Dawn Rowan - http://dawnrowansaga.blogspot.com/ Funny Jokes and Pics - http://funnyjokesnpics.blogspot.com/

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]]> Mon, 21 Jan 2008 17:43:28 PST http://www.nnseek.com/e/talk.religion.spirituality/new_gnostic_yahoo_group_89288778t.html http://www.nnseek.com/e/talk.religion.spirituality/new_gnostic_yahoo_group_89288778t.html http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Lectorium_Rosicrucianum/ With best regards D.Wood

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