In the wake of the 2016 election, Lyz Lenz watched as her country and her marriage were torn apart by the competing forces of faith and politics. A mother of two, a Christian, and a lifelong resident of middle America, Lenz was bewildered by the pain and loss around her--the empty churches and the broken hearts. What was happening to faith in the heartland?<br /><br />From drugstores in Sydney, Iowa, to skeet shooting in rural Illinois, to the mega churches of Minneapolis, Lenz set out to discover the changing forces of faith and tradition in God's country. Part journalism, part memoir, <i>God Land</i> is a journey into the heart of a deeply divided America. Lenz visits places of worship across the heartland and speaks to the everyday people who often struggle to keep their churches afloat and to cope in a land of instability. Through a thoughtful interrogation of the effects of faith and religion on our lives, our relationships, and our country, <i>God Land</i> investigates whether our divides can ever be bridged and if America can ever come together.

This guide helps readers who have rejected rigid religious upbringings find new independence and self-love. Learn to accept conflicted feelings and choose a healthy reality. Learn to live in the here and now.

Before he began his recent travels, it seemed to Phil Zuckerman as if humans all over the globe were "getting religion" - praising deities, performing holy rites, and soberly defending the world from sin. But most residents of Denmark and Sweden, he found, don't worship any god at all, don't pray, and don't give much credence to religious dogma of any kind. Instead of being bastions of sin and corruption, however, as the Christian Right has suggested a godless society would be, these countries are filled with residents who score at the very top of the "happiness index" and enjoy their healthy societies, which boast some of the lowest rates of violent crime in the world (along with some of the lowest levels of corruption), excellent educational systems, strong economies, well-supported arts, free health care, egalitarian social policies, outstanding bike paths, and great beer. Zuckerman formally interviewed nearly 150 Danes and Swedes of all ages and educational backgrounds over the course of fourteen months, beginning in 2005. He was particularly interested in the worldviews of people who live their lives without religious orientation. How do they think about and cope with death? Are they worried about an afterlife? What he found is that nearly all of his interviewees live their lives without much fear of the Grim Reaper or worries about the hereafter. This led him to wonder how and why it is that certain societies are nonreligious in a world that seems to be marked by increasing religiosity. Drawing on prominent sociological theories and his own extensive research, Zuckerman ventures some interesting answers. This fascinating approach directly counters the claims of outspoken, conservative American Christians who argue that a society without God would be hell on earth. It is crucial, Zuckerman believes, for Americans to know that "society without God is not only possible, but it can be quite civil and pleasant."

.◆西方传统中最有天赋、最有原创性和最具煽动性的文学批评家、当代文学批评领军人物 哈罗德•布鲁姆诺顿演讲精华结集
.◆明快流畅、深入浅出的布鲁姆读本
.◆信仰与文学，经典与焦虑
兼具《西方正典》与《影响的焦虑》双重视角，简笔勾勒西方文学文化史
在基督教与犹太教信仰的大背景下，布鲁姆主要从三个角度评论，即对前人的继承，作家所独有的原创性以及对后人的影响。书中评述了西方文学传统中影响巨大的作家、作品：从希伯来《圣经》写起，到弗洛伊德、贝克特等现代派作家为止，他重读了荷马、但丁、莎士比亚、弥尔顿、布莱克、华兹华斯、卡夫卡等重要作家。同时，他在描绘文学发展的框架中，对信仰与文学之间的关系作出了极富启发性的阐释：文学在人性的立场上与神学及宗教抗衡，才能使人的创造力与神的创造力颉颃。

What happens when you deconstruct your faith? Aside from all the theological messiness it brings, deconstruction brings with it a lot of personal trauma. Friends and family often distance themselves. Your church sometimes removes you from the pews. And often, you are left with nothing more than rubble where a seemingly unmovable building once stood. Enter Michelle Collins' debut book, Into the The Mental and Emotional Aftermath of Spiritual Deconstruction . Far from a "how-to" guide, this book is much more "pastoral" in that it allows the reader to check in with a fellow spiritual sojourner so that, by the end of its pages, they can say "me too."

H ope for spiritual refugees, church burnouts, and freedom seekers.<br /> <br />After years of participating in a comfortable faith tradition, many find themselves in a spiritual wilderness, feeling disillusioned with church, longing for more freedom and less religion in their lives. If that describes you, you’re in good company. Countless men and women are in the middle of a shifting faith—and aren’t sure where to turn. <br /> <br />But losing beliefs doesn’t mean you have to lose your faith. Pastor, friend, and spiritual director Kathy Escobar has journeyed with many who have experienced significant shifts in the faith they once considered unchangeable. Through their stories and her own, Kathy has discovered that growth and change are natural parts of life in our relationship with God.<br /><br />Filled with honest stories and practical insights, Faith Shift gives language to what many experience as their faith evolves. With an inviting blend of vulnerability and hope, it addresses the losses that come with spiritual shifts and offers tangible practices for rebuilding a free and authentic faith after it unravels.  <br /> <br />Includes personal reflection and group discussion questions at the end of each chapter.

Many Christians mistakenly believe that their only choice is either to reconcile themselves to a fundamentalist reading of scripture (a "literal-factual" approach) or to simply reject the Bible as something that could bring meaning and value into their lives. In Reading the Bible Again for the First Time , Marcus Borg shows how instead we can freshly appreciate all the essential elements of the Old and New Testaments—from Genesis to Revelation—in a way that can open up a new world of intelligent faith. In Reading the Bible Again for the First Time , Borg reveals how it is possible to reconcile a scientific and critical way of thinking with our deepest spiritual needs, leading to an insightful experience of ancient text. This unique book invites every reader—whatever his or her religious background—to engage the Bible, to wrestle with its meaning, to explore its mysteries, and to understand its relevance. Reading the Bible Again for the First Time shows us how to encounter the Bible in a fresh, new way that rejects the limits of simple literalism and opens up the rich possibility of living a life of authentic faith.

Heaven's Gate, a secretive group of celibate "monks" awaiting pickup by a UFO, captured intense public attention in 1997 when its members committed collective suicide. As a way of understanding such perplexing events, many have seen those who join cults as needy, lost souls, unable to think for themselves. This book, a compelling look at the cult phenomenon written for a wide audience, dispels such simple formulations by explaining how normal, intelligent people can give up years of their lives—and sometimes their very lives—to groups and beliefs that appear bizarre and irrational. Looking closely at Heaven's Gate and at the Democratic Workers Party, a radical political group of the 1970s and 1980s, Janja Lalich gives us a rare insider's look at these two cults and advances a new theoretical framework that will reshape our understanding of those who join such groups.<br /><br />Lalich's fascinating discussion includes her in-depth interviews with cult devotees as well as reflections gained from her own experience as a high-ranking member of the Democratic Workers Party. Incorporating classical sociological concepts such as "charisma" and "commitment" with more recent work on the social psychology of influence and control, she develops a new approach for understanding how charismatic cult leaders are able to dominate their devotees. She shows how members are led into a state of "bounded choice," in which they make seemingly irrational decisions within a context that makes perfect sense to them and is, in fact, consistent with their highest aspirations.<br /><br />In addition to illuminating the cult phenomenon in the United States and around the world, this important book also addresses our pressing need to know more about the mentality of those true believers who take extreme or violent measures in the name of a cause.

Dr. Jacob Bronowski, in his book and PBS documentary series entitled "The Ascent of Man" spoke of unhealthy religion when he stood before the ashes of his relatives at the Auschwitz crematorium. He said, "This is how men behave when they believe they have absolute knowledge." People seek simple answers and absolute knowledge, but anyone or any religion that claims absolute knowledge or absolute and infallible religious sources and tells people what to think, is a clear carrier and manifestation of unhealthy religion. Is "Healthy Religion" an oxymoron or is it achievable in one's life? This research-based document provides you with the means for identifying what is healthy and what is unhealthy in religion. You may be surprised to discover that what you believe and the manner in which you practice your religion may be more a function of your personality than of your religion in the way in which your personality attaches itself and expresses itself in your religion. Literal, dogmatic religious postures of fundamental and evangelical groups are manifestations of close-minded authoritarianism. They also reflect militant, and extremist dictates for one to follow. The manipulation and mind-control methods of fear, guilt, and shame, used with people to secure membership and provide group consensus in belief, violate the very essence of religion and the basic foundations of what is "Healthy Religion". Certain attributes of healthy personality produce healthy religion, and healthy religion promotes healthy personality. You will uncover the ingredients and characteristics of both in this book!

Most Evangelical Christians earnestly strive to worship the God of Love and Truth. But a belief that the Bible is literally perfect puts them in the odd position of defending falsehood, bigotry, and even violence. What do Evangelicals believe? And how do these beliefs subvert humanity’s shared moral values, including the compassionate ministry of Jesus in the New Testament? Trusting Doubt provides a clear picture of this variant of Christianity, which has risen to political prominence and now threatens individual rights and collective stability. Raised in a staunch fundamentalist family and educated at Wheaton College—home of the Billy Graham Center for Evangelicalism—Valerie Tarico speaks as a former “insider.” Trusting Doubt offers alternative biblical explanations that are compatible with contemporary Christianity. Gratefully, Tarico’s unique voice as a former Evangelical provides a scholarly yet accessible path away from faulty fundamentalism and toward Christian clarity—a path based on logic, love, and the quest for spiritual truth.

A myriad of excellent authors have been joining ranks to help deconverted Christians make sense of their new-found identities. With “Songs of the Deconverted” Etchison adds to that phalanx with a fiction entry. <br /><br />The five short stories in “Songs of the Deconverted,” chronicle the story of Andy’s deconversion from Christianity, and how it changes his approach to life. Each of the five stories can stand alone, but together they create a character arch that provides a broad perspective on this burgeoning topic. The stories are sometimes brutal, and focus on raw experiences that shape a man’s psyche, especially that of a man whose entire worldview has been turned upside-down.<br /><br />Praise for “Songs of the Deconverted”:<br /><br />- The Ascent. “Love, love, love it. It gave me goosebumps and teary eyes.” –Savah<br />- Toil. "With issues of faith and doubt draping the background, and a Pink Floyd fueled shark hunt propelling us along, Jim Etchison's Toil treats us to a visceral and terse examination of the Wounded Animal lurking in the heart of men." - Benjamin Boyce at benartboy.wordpress.com<br />- Façades. “The attention to authenticity allow for the wilder elements of the story to really shine. … [This] will stick with you, promise.” –Naj<br /><br />"Etchison is profound without preaching. His examples from nature are perfectly placed and juxtaposed with the human story. Here's the thing with moral fiction, and let there be no doubt that what he's writing is moral fiction of a high order - it's easy to differentiate the contrived from the observed. Etchison observes without contrivance." – Stephen “Esses” Brown<br /><br />The Afterward is by Marlene Winell, PhD, author of Leaving the Fold. She is based in Berkeley, CA where she is busy consulting, training, writing, speaking, and film-making. Find out more at: marlenewinell.net, and journeyfree.org.

<em>By now I expected to be a seasoned parish minister, wearing black clergy shirts grown gray from frequent washing. I expected to love the children who hung on my legs after Sunday morning services until they grew up and had children of their own. I even expected to be buried wearing the same red vestments in which I was ordained.</em><br /><br />Today those vestments are hanging in the sacristy of an Anglican church in Kenya, my church pension is frozen, and I am as likely to spend Sunday mornings with friendly Quakers, Presbyterians, or Congregationalists as I am with the Episcopalians who remain my closest kin. Some-times I even keep the Sabbath with a cup of steaming Assam tea on my front porch, watching towhees vie for the highest perch in the poplar tree while God watches me. These days I earn my living teaching school, not leading worship, and while I still dream of opening a small restaurant in Clarkesville or volunteering at an eye clinic in Nepal, there is no guarantee that I will not run off with the circus before I am through. This is not the life I planned, or the life I recommend to others. But it is the life that has turned out to be mine, and the central revelation in it for me -- that the call to serve God is first and last the call to be fully human -- seems important enough to witness to on paper. This book is my attempt to do that.<br /><br />After nine years serving on the staff of a big urban church in Atlanta, Barbara Brown Taylor arrives in rural Clarkesville, Georgia (population 1,500), following her dream to become the pastor of her own small congregation. The adjustment from city life to country dweller is something of a shock -- Taylor is one of the only professional women in the community -- but small-town life offers many of its own unique joys. Taylor has five successful years that see significant growth in the church she serves, but ultimately she finds herself experiencing "compassion fatigue" and wonders what exactly God has called her to do. She realizes that in order to keep her faith she may have to leave.<br /><br />Taylor describes a rich spiritual journey in which God has given her more questions than answers. As she becomes part of the flock instead of the shepherd, she describes her poignant and sincere struggle to regain her footing in the world without her defining collar. Taylor's realization that this may in fact be God's surprising path for her leads her to a refreshing search to find Him in new places. <em>Leaving Church</em> will remind even the most skeptical among us that life is about both disappointment and hope -- and ultimately, renewal.