Religion And The Dramatisation Of Life

What is medieval religious drama, and what function does it serve in negotiating between the domains of theology and popular life? This book aims to answer these questions by studying three sets of these dramas from Germany, France, England, and Spain: 10th-century Easter plays, 12th-century Adam plays, and 15th- and 16th-century Passion plays.

NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • From the author of Relationship Goals . . . Will you be remembered as a person who claimed to follow God but liked to play it safe? Or as a person who lived your life out on the limb and trusted God enough to live in crazy faith? Noah looked crazy when he started building the ark . . . until it started raining. It was crazy for Moses to lead a nation of people into the desert away from Egypt . . . until the Red Sea parted. It was crazy to believe that a fourteen-year-old virgin would give birth to the Son of God . . . until Mary held Jesus in her arms. There are many things that seem normal or average today that at one point in time seemed absolutely crazy. Smartphones, Wi-Fi, and even the electric light bulb were all groundbreaking, history-making inventions that started out as crazy ideas. Our see-it-to-believe-it generation tends to have a hard time exercising true faith—one that steps out, takes action, and sees mountain-moving results. Many of us would rather play it safe and stand on the sidelines, but it’s crazy faith that helps us see God move and reveals His promises. In Crazy Faith, Pastor Michael Todd shows us how to step out in faith and dive into the purposeful life of trusting God for the impossible. Even if you have to start with baby faith or maybe faith, you can become empowered to let go of your lazy faith, trust God through your hazy faith, and learn to live a lifestyle of crazy faith. With powerful stories of modern-day faith warriors who take their cues from biblical heroes, Michael Todd equips you to • believe for the impossible • choose hope over fear • be alert to the voice of God • cope with loss and doubt • develop a deeper level of trust in God • speak faith-filled declarations • inspire crazy faith in others God’s not looking for somebody to give Him all the reasons why His plans can’t happen. He’s looking for somebody to believe they will happen. In fact, He has so much He wants to do through you. The question is, Are you crazy enough to believe it?

A no-nonsense guide to the evolution of meditation, mindfulness, and enlightenment in modern-day society—from their religious origins in the East to their more secular incarnations in the West Evolving Dharma is the definitive guide to the meditation revolution. Fearless, unorthodox, and irreverent scholar and activist Jay Michaelson shows how meditation and mindfulness have moved from ashrams and self-help groups to classrooms and hospitals, and offers unusually straight talk about the “Big E”— enlightenment. Michaelson introduces us to maverick brain hackers, postmodern Buddhist monks, and cutting-edge neuroscientists and shares his own stories of months-long silent retreats, powerful mystical experiences, and many pitfalls along the way. Evolving Dharma is a must-read for the next-generation meditator, the spiritually cynical, and the curious adventurer in all of us.

You probably know him for preaching the sermon “Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God”—but Jonathan Edwards had much more to say about the Christian life. The central figure in New England’s first Great Awakening, Edwards offers a detailed description of the signs—true and false—of conversion, while highlighting the role truly balanced emotions play within the Christian life. He takes a long, hard look at the evidence of true saving faith—the fruit that comes from living like Christ. This newly-typeset edition of Religious Affections is updated and abridged for ease of reading.

SCRIPTURE BROUGHT TO LIFE Can drama play a starring role in revitalizing the church and helping people to see the relevance of Scripture to their lives in the twenty-first century? Dr. Wanda Vassallo shouts a resounding "yes!" Her firm response is based on many years of directing drama in the church and is backed by her scientifically-conducted research on the subject. This book explores God's origin of dramatic approaches in communicating with humans. This is followed by examples of the way the prophets and Jesus continued this method during His earthly ministry and the dramatic approaches used in Jewish and Christian worship through the centuries. Also covered are the beginning of world drama and the importance of avoiding the mistakes that were made when drama began to be used in the church. Careful description is given of 11 genres of drama-everything from the full-length production to a "dramatic moment." She explains how to work each one seamlessly into a church service or related venue, such as a seminar. A sample script of each genre is provided. Examples of the impact of drama on members of the congregation and on the lives of those who participate in the productions are cited. The last chapter is devoted to the results of Wanda's dissertation study and other related studies on the subject.

This book discusses the ways in which early modern hagiographic sources can be used to study lived religion and everyday life from the fifteenth to the seventeenth century. For several decades, saints’ lives, other spiritual biographies, miracle narratives, canonisation processes, iconography, and dramas, have been widely utilised in studies on medieval religious practices and social history. This fruitful material has however been overlooked in studies of the early modern period, despite the fact that it witnessed an unprecedented growth in the volume of hagiographic material. The contributors to this volume address this, and illuminate how early modern hagiographic material can be used for the study of topics such as religious life, the social history of medicine, survival strategies, domestic violence, and the religious experience of slaves.