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Combining her storytelling skills with theological insights and reflections, Bondi here tells the story of the stray cat Nick, who wheedled his way into her family's life, home, and heart. At first almost nothing but a pathetic bag of torn, matted bones, Nick arrived unexpectedly but quickly won their hearts. Under the care of a vet and the Bondis, he regained his health while receiving a home and much affection. His coming and going, his health and its decline, his insanity and death are gently told. Nick's presence prompts Bondi to reflect on the unexpected way grace comes into our lives and how we push away the Other, be it stranger, one who is sick, or a person of different orientations and beliefs. She also comments on evil and mental illness; on suffering and the atonement; on the unexpected nature of love; on the training of the heart and mind and the discipline of the Christian life for dealing with otherness; on the pervasive and persistent nature of sin; and, on the nature of embodiment, mortality, and loss.
Being a Christian means learning to love with God's love. But God's love is not a warm feeling in the pit of the stomach. It has definite characteristics we learn in the course of our life, in the behavior and teaching of the early monastics, as we ponder over what we can say about God as God deals with us, and finally, as we model our own lives on what we have learned.
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Benedict in the World presents biographical sketches of nineteen men and women who were oblates of the Order of St. Benedict, that is, members of the Benedictine family of a given monastery who lived in the world, observing the Rule of St. Benedict as they raised families and pursued professions and careers. Dorothy Day, Rumer Godden, Jacques and Raïssa Maritain, Walker Percy, H. A. Reinhold, and Elena Cornaro are among the oblate subjects of this book.
Prayer is an integral aspect of the love of God and neighbor, which to many is the ultimate goal of a fulfilling Christian life. However, many want to find a way to pray but are unable to understand or justify prayer theologically. Still others believe that God will not support them in the midst of cosmic hurt. This book addresses these concerns.
From the Introduction, by Caroline Walker Bynum: The opportunity to rethink and republish several of my early articles in combination with a new essay on the thirteenth century has led me to consider the continuity-both of argument and of approach-that underlies them. In one sense, their interrelationship is obvious. The first two address a question that was more in the forefront of scholarship a dozen years ago than it is today: the question of differences among religious orders. These two essays set out a method of reading texts for imagery and borrowings as well as for spiritual teaching in order to determine whether individuals who live in different institutional settings hold differing ...
Reminiscent of the writings of Augustine, Teresa, and Thomas Merton, this volume is a book of honest pain and honest joy in the presence of God.
Insider twentysomething Christian journalist Brett McCracken has grown up in the evangelical Christian subculture and observed the recent shift away from the "stained glass and steeples" old guard of traditional Christianity to a more unorthodox, stylized 21st-century church. This change raises a big issue for the church in our postmodern world: the question of cool. The question is whether or not Christianity can be, should be, or is, in fact, cool. This probing book is about an emerging category of Christians McCracken calls "Christian hipsters"--the unlikely fusion of the American obsessions with worldly "cool" and otherworldly religion--an analysis of what they're about, why they exist, and what it all means for Christianity and the church's relevancy and hipness in today's youth-oriented culture.
"Everybody knows that dogs are especially good at blessing others as well as asking others to bless them." -Roberta Bondi, "Introduction" Jack the Scottie tells you about his day with poems for every activity from breakfast to going to sleep. Jack's blessings lead us through each moment of the day: the walk, the leash, the treats, the lap, the dog park (and even the not-so-enjoyable bath). The book features original drawings of Jack, drawn by his companion and co-author of the book, Beth A. Richardson. Jack's Book of Blessings is a companion book to Richardson's book of Celtic blessings, Christ Before Me, Christ Within Me. Jack's poems follow the classic Celtic form of prayer -- "Bless to Me...