Liberal Arts For The Christian Life

Comprehensive in scope, this substantial volume was compiled in honor of Leland Ryken and champions the importance of an approach to faith and learning grounded in the Christian liberal arts.

This revised edition of a classic text provides a concise case for the role of the Christian college and its distinctive mission and contribution. Holmes has extensively revised several chapters and included two new chapters: "Liberal Arts as Career Preparation" and "The Marks of an Educated Person."

We live in a wired world where 24/7 digital connectivity is increasingly the norm. Christian megachurch communities often embrace this reality wholeheartedly while more traditional churches often seem hesitant and overwhelmed by the need for an interactive website, a Facebook page and a twitter feed. This book accepts digital connectivity as our reality, but presents a vision of how faith communities can utilize technology to better be the body of Christ to those who are hurting while also helping followers of Christ think critically about the limits of our digital attachments. This book begins with a conversion story of a non-cell phone owning, non-Facebook using religion professor judgmental of the ability of digital tools to enhance relationships. A stage IV cancer diagnosis later, in the midst of being held up by virtual communities of support, a conversion occurs: this religion professor benefits in embodied ways from virtual sources and wants to convert others to the reality that the body of Christ can and does exist virtually and makes embodied difference in the lives of those who are hurting. The book neither uncritically embraces nor rejects the constant digital connectivity present in our lives. Rather it calls on the church to a) recognize ways in which digital social networks already enact the virtual body of Christ; b) tap into and expand how Christ is being experienced virtually; c) embrace thoughtfully the material effects of our new augmented reality, and c) influence utilization of technology that minimizes distraction and maximizes attentiveness toward God and the world God loves.

Christian Liberal Arts articulates the practical, pedagogical, and theological reasons why Christian liberal arts colleges are distinctive in the world of American higher education. Mannoia enumerates the intrinsic and instrumental values of Christian liberal arts, and how both should forcefully shape an institution's goals. He suggests that Christian colleges should strive to help their students go beyond the extremes of dogmatism and skepticism to achieve critical commitment. Colleges must also aid their students to adjust to real world problems without sacrificing academic quality. Mannoia believes that the solution to this challenge must inevitably integrate multiple disciplines, values and learning, and theory with practice, a process from which both faculty and graduates will acquire the capacity to resolve the thorniest dilemmas facing society and the Christian community.

Happiness and Wisdom contributes to ongoing debates about the nature of Augustine's early development, and argues that Augustine's vision of the soul's ascent through the liberal arts is an attractive and basically coherent view of learning, which, while not wholly novel, surpasses both classical and earlier patristic renderings of the aims of education.

We're all going to die. Yet in our medically advanced, technological age, many of us see death as a distant reality--something that happens only at the end of a long life or to other people. In The End of the Christian Life, Todd Billings urges Christians to resist that view. Instead, he calls us to embrace our mortality in our daily life and faith. This is the journey of genuine discipleship, Billings says: following the crucified and resurrected Lord in a world of distraction and false hopes. Drawing on his experience as a professor and father living with incurable cancer, Billings offers a personal yet deeply theological account of the gospel's expansive hope for small, mortal creatures. Artfully weaving rich theology with powerful narrative, Billings writes for church leaders and laypeople alike. Whether we are young or old, reeling from loss or clinging to our own prosperity, this book challenges us to walk a strange but wondrous path: in the midst of joy and lament, to receive mortal limits as a gift, an opportunity to give ourselves over to the Lord of life.

After the Berlin Wall fell, a group of Christian colleges in the U.S seized the opportunity to help build a faith-based university in Moscow. Told by the school's founder and president, this is the story of the rise and fall of the first accredited Christian liberal arts university in Russia's history, offering unique insight on Russia’s post-communist transition and the construction of a cultural-educational bridge between the two superpowers.

Lays out the Christian vision behind a liberal arts education that carefully prepares students to pursue their calling.

I love to read. I hate to read. I don't have time to read. I only read Christian books. I'm not good at reading. There's too much to read. Chances are, you've thought or said one of these exact phrases before because reading is important and in many ways unavoidable. Learn how to better read, what to read, when to read, and why you should read with this helpful guide from accomplished reader Tony Reinke. Offered here is a theology for reading and practical suggestions for reading widely, reading well, and for making it all worthwhile.

Philosophy: A Short, Visual Introduction is the ideal path to understanding the philosophical ideas that influence Christian theology. Scott Paeth’s fast-paced introduction covers the most important movements and thinkers with precision and clarity. The major ideas are creatively illustrated by artist Joseph Novak, whose crisp, modern style brings big concepts to life for readers. The result is an articulate, no-nonsense approach that guides readers from the ideas of ancient philosophers to contemporary thinkers and movements that impact Christians today. Philosophy is part of the Christianity and the Liberal Arts series, which recognizes that many Christians are eager to deepen their understanding of the liberal arts, yet have limited time to do so. By reviewing key fields—philosophy, history, literature, world religions, and the arts—in a concise, creative way, books in the Christianity and the Liberal Arts series will inspire new insights for a new generation of Christian life and ministry.