Be Equipped to Interact More Fruitfully and Thoughtfully with Muslims The Quran with Christian Commentary offers a unique introduction to the primary religious text of Islam. Alongside a precise modern English translation of the Quran, author Gordon D. Nickel provides in-text notes to explain the meaning of various surahs (chapters) and ayat (verses), their interpretive history and significance in Muslim thought, and similarities and differences when compared to biblical passages. Additional articles on important topics are written by an international team of today's leading experts including: Abraham in the Quran by George Bristow Early Christian Exegesis of the Quran by J. Scott Bridger Tampering with the Pre-Islamic Scriptures by Gordon Nickel Salvation in the Quran by Peter Riddell Fighting and Killing in the Quran by Ayman S. Ibrahim Creation in the Quran by Jon Hoover Calling to Islam (da'wa) by Matthew Kuiper Apocryphal Details in Quranic Stories by Mateen Elass The Death of Jesus in the Quran by Gordon Nickel Son of God in the Quran by Gordon Nickel Jihad in the Quran by David Cook Moses in the Quran by Gordon Nickel Manuscripts of the Quran by Daniel A. Brubaker Women in the Quran by Linda Darwish The Place of the Scale(s) in the Reckoning by Daniel A. Brubaker Divine Punishment of Unbelievers in This World by David Marshall Shi'ite Interpretation of the Quran by Linda Darwish The Language of Love in the Quran by Gordon Nickel Allah in the Quran by Mark Anderson Eschatology in the Quran by David Cook Factual, respectful of Muslims, and insightful on issues about which Muslims and Christians disagree, The Quran with Christian Commentary equips Christians to interact more fruitfully with Muslim believers. Professors and students in courses on Islam and the Quran will find this to be an invaluable resource, as will pastors and missionaries who minister among Muslims. Written at a readable level, any Christian who wants to learn more about Islam and the Quran will find it to be a rich and informative introduction.

A practical guidebook that helps readers align with God's desire to cross cultures and reach all nations.

Many Christians experience a stirring in their souls after short mission trips or global conferences, or as they interact with the increasingly diverse sets of people moving into their neighborhoods, workplaces, and schools. But most don't know how to build intentional relationships with people from different backgrounds.

Across the Street and Around the World offers an answer to those Christians wondering, Is it possible to engage with people of other cultures right now, in my everyday world-or even beyond? Step by step, it helps them see how to prepare their souls, reshape their worldviews, and redesign their patterns of life to become the sort of people who can represent Jesus across cultural lines and take part in God's plans for their neighborhoods, their cities, and the world.

This book is a study of seven autobiographies by women who defied the domestic ideology of nineteenth-century America by serving as itinerant preachers. Literally and culturally homeless, all of them used their autobiographies to construct, from an array of materials, plausible identities as women and Christians in an age that found them hard to understand.

How can Christians witness to the complexity of our world? Gregg Okesson shows that local congregations are the primary means of public witness in and for the world. As Christians move back and forth between their churches and their neighborhoods, workplaces, and other public spaces, they weave a thick gospel witness. This introduction to public missiology explains how local congregations can thicken their witness in the public realms where they live, work, and play. Real-life examples from around the world help readers envision approaches to public witness and social change.

Presents a unique contemporary Eucharist that remains similar to the liturgy celebrated in a Celi De community in the early ninth century. Following the classic shape of the Eucharist--Entrance, The Ministry of the Word, The Peace, The Offertory, The Holy Communion, and the Dismissal--this service draws together texts from Scripture, mainstream Irish, Scottish, and Welsh traditions, and contemporary Celtic spirituality to create a remarkably original service that encourages fresh appreciation of the Eucharist. Easily adaptable to formal or informal settings, this book can be used inconjunction with modern lectionary cycles.

"Imperial Fault Lines" tells the history of Christian missionary encounters with non-Christians in a part of the world where there were no Christians at all until the advent of British imperial rule in the early nineteenth century. As British and American missionaries spread out from Delhi into the heartland of Punjab, their preconceived ideas about Hinduism and Islam broke down rapidly as they established institutions requiring the close cooperation of Indians. Two-thirds of the foreign missionaries who entered the Punjab were women, and issues of gender as well as race were central dilemmas in a cultural encounter that featured numerous irresolvable conflicts. The missionaries' commitment to Christian universalism clashed with the visible realities of their imperial privileges. Although determined to build multiracial institutions based on spiritual equality, missionaries were the beneficiaries of an imperial racial hierarchy. Their social encounters with Indians were exceedingly complex, involving intimacy and affection as well as affronts and betrayals.
Missionaries were compelled to react to circumstances not of their own making, and were forced to negotiate and compromise with Indian Christians, government officials, Indian critics of the missionary movement, and the many non-Christian students, patients, and staff at large and influential missionary schools, colleges, and hospitals. In villages, university-educated clergymen who had hoped to convert the Hindu and Muslim elite found themselves in the surprising position of advocating the rights of stigmatized and oppressed rural laborers. The history of elite institution-building took surprising turns during the rise of the national movement, as missionaries struggled with the conflict between their own transparent entanglement with imperialism and their attempts to foster new forms of indigenous Christianity that would outlive British imperial rule.

* Offers readers a way to find their place in God's story * A creative invitation to those who are on the margins of the church Recent research in the sociology of religion indicates that around one in five Americans are religiously "liminal," that is, they are on the fence about affiliating with a faith or a congregation. Traveling Home is an invitation to those people who are standing on the edges or just coming into the Church. It makes a case for why Christianity can make a difference by taking the reader on a spiritual journey through the story and ancient wisdom of the Bible. It shows the reader how to find a place within this great cosmic adventure. Why Christianity at all? How do we understand where we fit into a bigger picture? Anyone asking these questions, including people exploring other liturgical traditions, will find this book of interest. It is also a tool for clergy teaching newcomer/inquirer classes.

Readers will find in this book a strong and uplifting argument that the Episcopal Church's theology, sacramental ministry, and commitment to social justice have an essential role to play in mainline Christianity and in the public square. This book will help readers to understand that what it means to be an Episcopalian and how evangelism is a fruit of that identity, not a mere marketing strategy or an end in itself. This book is an approachable and inspiring presentation of the theological rationale and resource for sharing the faith as well as an argument that sharing the faith increases our own. It addresses basic questions that are buzzing in the church today and lays out a series of stories from faith communities across the Episcopal Church, both physical and digital ministries. Proceeds from this book will go to Sandy Hook Promise, the non-profit organization doing the brave work of the Newtown Families Against Gun Violence.

"Here at last is the text that many college teachers of Chinese, Asian, and world history have been waiting for: an accessible collection of primary sources on the life of the Italian Jesuit Matteo Ricci and the Catholic mission that he helped establish in China. Ricci's missionary career indeed constituted a key moment in modern history, for it was through his examples and recommendations that the Jesuits in China collectively adopted an accommodative approach to Chinese culture and embarked on various projects of cultural translation that resulted in the first wave of sustained interactions between Chinese and European civilizations. Instructors and students alike will benefit greatly from Hsia's lucid introduction, which sets Ricci's life story against the broader background of Portuguese Asia, Catholic renewal, and late Ming China; the pithy, informative introductory statements preceding each document; a chronological chart of major relevant events; and an excellent annotated bibliography of primary and secondary sources in multiple languages. This is a very affordable text produced at the highest academic standards." Qiong Zhang, Associate Professor of History, Wake Forest University

Mission is contrived from and performed over lived contexts, but the visions that guide and drive mission are oftentimes blinded by power, position, protection, and plenitude. This collection visits those matters with queering attention to the shadows empires cast over the contexts of mission, and to the collusion and complicity of Christians and churches with empires past (as in the case of Rome) and present (as in the case of the United States of America). In the interests of those in mission fields who survived, but continue to agonize under the burdens of empires, the contributors to this work dare to re-vision the course and cause of mission. Writing from minoritized settings in Africa, Asia, the Americas, and Oceania, the authors interweave the principles and practices of mission with the opportunities in decolonial theology and hermeneutics, minoritized and migrant Christologies, repatriation and the courage to get up and get out, indigenous insights and wisdom, mission archives, stories of resistance and endurance in zones of contact and violence, restless souls and returning spirits, and life-centered spiritual (en)countering. In Mission and Context as with previous volumes in this series-empires do not have the final word, nor the final world.

At the age of only twenty, Walter Medhurst set sail in August 1816 from London, aboard the General Graham, bound for Malacca to establish a printing facility for the London Missionary Society. Thereby began a career as missionary, adventurer, printer, writer, translator, teacher and nineteenth-century pioneer to China. The adventure begins in Madras, where Walter meets and falls in love with his wife Elizabeth and together they move on to Malacca, Penang and Batavia, preparing for the day when China opens up to the 'foreign devils' so that he can take the Christian message to the heart of the Celestial Empire. Following the First Opium War and the signing of the Treaty of Nanking, Medhurst took the opportunity in 1843 to set up the LMS mission centre in Shanghai. From this base he built churches, schools, a printing works and a hospital (now a major Shanghai hospital). During the time of the Taiping Rebellion, Walter maintained contact with the rebel leaders and he became a leading source of information in Britain and America about the situation in China. In the years between 1847 and 1850, he led the team that translated the Bible into Chinese. Encapsulated within this life is the whole history of the nineteenth-century integration of the West and the Orient - from a new, shared religious belief to common trade and enterprise. This is a true story of love, adventure, dedication and tragedy, set during a time of great turmoil, and one that changed the course of history.

"Few books have had as great an impact on the cause of world evangelization in our generation as Robert Coleman's The Master Plan of Evangelism."--Billy Graham It all started when Jesus called a few men to follow him and share God's message with their neighbors. We are called to do the same. But evangelism can be difficult--even intimidating. With all the evangelism resources available, where should you turn to find advice on how to share the Good News with others? Robert E. Coleman says the answers aren't found in TV evangelism, easy-evangelism guidebooks, or the latest marketing techniques. Rather, he looks to the Bible, to the ultimate example found in Jesus Christ. For more than forty years this classic, biblical look at evangelism has challenged and instructed over three million readers. Now repackaged for a new generation, The Master Plan of Evangelism is as fresh and relevant as ever. Join the movement and discover how you can minister to the people God brings into your life.

From the late 1960s until the mid-1980s, the influence of Marxist ideas expanded in sub-Saharan Africa. The Catholic Church saw this influence as likely to affect the accomplishment of its mission, and its pastoral efforts accordingly sought to deal with the Marxist thrust. In the late 1980s, Marxist influence in Africa declined sharply as Marxist political dominance became less intense. Nevertheless, the Church's encounter with Afrcian Marxism constituted an important chapter in both secular and ecclesiastical history. Finding a Social Voice records and analyzes the significant elements of this encounter. Father McKenna's book investigates how postcolonial African regimes under varying degree of Marxist influence have interacted with the Catholic Church, and studies how the Chruch has grown through its response to that interaction. The book contributes greatly to the virtually unexplored topic of church-state interaction in contemporary Africa. McKenna's claim that the Catholic Chruch's response to Marxism was a "part of its coming to maturity," part of its bringing its social perspective to bear on the processes of political, economic, and social modernization through which traditional cultures were passing, is an important contribution to the more recent literature on the emergence of "civil society" in Sub-Saharan Africa. The text also provides an introduction to post-Vatican II understandings of ecclesiastical activity in Africa. It reviews the theory and practice of Marxism as developed by Marx, Engels, Lenin, and the leaders of Soviet Russia and other Communist countries. It then presents an overview of the ways in which Marxist influence worked in Africa and a similar overviewof how the Church functioned and was affected by that influence. Finally, the book offers case-studies on the interaction of Marxism and the Church in four diverse Africa countries: Mozambique, Madagascar, Zimbabwe, and Zambia. The introductory chapters make this book accessible to the general reader; the book as a whole is an enrichment of our understanding of contemporary Africa.

Settlements were a distinctive aspect of late-Victorian church life in which individual philanthropic Christians were encouraged to live and work in communities amongst the poor and set an example for the underprivileged through their own actions. Often overlooked by historians, settlements are of great value in understanding the values and culture of the 19th century.
Settlement missions were first conceived when Samuel Barnett, the incumbent of St Jude's, Whitechapel, in the East End of London, sought to introduce them as a major aspect of Victorian church life. Barnett argued that settlers should be incorporated into London communities that suffered from squalor and poverty to live and work alongside the poor, to demonstrate their Christian faith and attempt to enhance social conditions from the inside. His first recruits were Oxford undergraduates and when Toynbee Hall was founded in Oxford in 1884, his radical vision of adapting Christian morality towards tackling social deprivation had begun. By the end of the Victorian era more than fifty similar institutions had been created.
Whilst few settlements lasted beyond the Victorian period, by injecting Christian ethics into trade unions, local government and the community, they had a huge impact which is still felt in the way these organisations operate today.

From the late 1960s until the mid-1980s, the influence of Marxist ideas expanded in sub-Saharan Africa. The Catholic Church saw this influence as likely to affect the accomplishment of its mission, and its pastoral efforts accordingly sought to deal with the Marxist thrust. In the late 1980s, Marxist influence in Africa declined sharply as Marxist political dominance became less intense. Nevertheless, the Church's encounter with Afrcian Marxism constituted an important chapter in both secular and ecclesiastical history. Finding a Social Voice records and analyzes the significant elements of this encounter. Father McKenna's book investigates how postcolonial African regimes under varying degree of Marxist influence have interacted with the Catholic Church, and studies how the Chruch has grown through its response to that interaction. The book contributes greatly to the virtually unexplored topic of church-state interaction in contemporary Africa. McKenna's claim that the Catholic Chruch's response to Marxism was a "part of its coming to maturity," part of its bringing its social perspective to bear on the processes of political, economic, and social modernization through which traditional cultures were passing, is an important contribution to the more recent literature on the emergence of "civil society" in Sub-Saharan Africa. The text also provides an introduction to post-Vatican II understandings of ecclesiastical activity in Africa. It reviews the theory and practice of Marxism as developed by Marx, Engels, Lenin, and the leaders of Soviet Russia and other Communist countries. It then presents an overview of the ways in which Marxist influence worked in Africa and a similar overviewof how the Church functioned and was affected by that influence. Finally, the book offers case-studies on the interaction of Marxism and the Church in four diverse Africa countries: Mozambique, Madagascar, Zimbabwe, and Zambia. The introductory chapters make this book accessible to the general reader; the book as a whole is an enrichment of our understanding of contemporary Africa.

Patronage governs many relationships in Majority World cultures. But regrettably, Western theologians and missionaries rarely notice this prominent cultural reality. Patronage-a reciprocal relationship between social unequals-is a central part of global cultures and the biblical story of God's mission. Misunderstanding patronage creates problems not only for Westerners ministering in other cultures, but also for contemporary people reading the Bible. If we ignore the concepts of patronage in biblical cultures, we will misinterpret Yahweh's relationship with Israel and miss some of the meaning in Jesus' parables and Paul's letters. Understanding patronage will illuminate theological concepts such as faith, grace, and salvation. Jayson Georges, coauthor of Ministering in Honor-Shame Cultures, now brings his ministry experience and biblical insights to bear on the topic of patronage. With sections on cultural issues, biblical models, theological concepts, and missional implications, this resource will serve not only ministry practitioners but also anyone who studies Scripture and worships God.

An updated account of the inspiring and influential life of Dr. Billy Graham When the hijacked planes slammed into the World Trade Center and the Pentagon on September 11, 2001, President Bush immediately proclaimed a National Day of Prayer and Remembrance. For the interfaith, interdenominational service at the Washington National Cathedral he chose Billy Graham to give the address. At that terrible hour no other clergyman, whatever his office, could so aptly bring the Word of God to America---and a watching world. At eighty-four, Billy Graham remains one of the most respected people in the world today. He has addressed over eighty-two million people face to face and at least one billion people through television, radio, and satellite. Yet he is far more than an evangelist of integrity and vision; he is a Christian statesman whose profound influence on the growth and depth of Christianity across the world cannot be overestimated. This official biography of Dr. Graham is based on his private files, correspondence, and interviews, as well as the author s widespread research. * Written by John Pollock, Dr. Graham s official biographer * Parts one and two (1918 to 1978), based on Pollock s authorized biographies, have been abridged and contain new material * Part three (1978 to 1983) deals at length with Dr. Graham s controversial visit to Moscow, which can now be seen as a factor in the fall of communism * Part four (1984 to 2003) updates the story to recent events, including the horrors of September 11 and the honorary knighthood Dr. Graham received from the Queen of England in December 2001 * 8-page section of black-and-white photos new to this book"

A meeting in a restaurant in Eastern Europe is suddenly interrupted by secret police. Public artworks are installed in a Guatemalan town to confront injustice perpetrated by gangs and government. A ministry begins in the Solomon Islands where none existed before. All this is the work of students, young people the very age the disciples were when Jesus entrusted his ministry to them. Drawing together incredible stories from every region of the globe - from North America to Romania, from movements with official recognition to those persecuted to the point of being driven underground - Campus Lights bears witness to the way that student mission is flourishing around the world today. In his journalistic, engaging style, Luke Cawley recounts how students are taking risks to share their faith, continuing the legacy of Jesus' young disciples as they went out into the world and changed nations. Far more than a book on student mission, Campus Lights will inspire all leaders, encouraging them to take risks for the kingdom in their own context, and showing how students and young people can be catalysts for change in our world.

The life and times of C. S. Lewis's modern spiritual classic Mere Christianity, C. S. Lewis's eloquent defense of the Christian faith, originated as a series of BBC radio talks broadcast during the dark days of World War Two. Here is the story of the extraordinary life and afterlife of this influential and inspiring book. George Marsden describes how Lewis gradually went from being an atheist to a committed Anglican-famously converting to Christianity in 1931 after conversing into the night with his friends J. R. R. Tolkien and Hugh Dyson-and how his plainspoken case for Christianity went on to become one of the most beloved spiritual books of all time.

WARNING: This is not just another book on evangelism. It s a simple idea of evangelism through friendship first, and the opportunities to share your faith that follow. It will bring friendships you already have to a new levels, and create opportunities for new, authentic friendships with those you will eventually meet. OUT: Evangelism as sales pitch, as conquest, as warfare, as ultimatum, as threat, as proof, as argument, as entertainment, as show, as monologue, as something you have to do. IN: Disciple-making as conversation, as friendship, as influence, as invitation, as companionship, as challenge, as opportunity, as conversation, as dance, as something you get to do. You re more ready for this than you realize, and so are your friends "

In "Confident Faith," Mark Mittelberg assures Christians that we "can" be confident in our beliefs. There's no reason to be timid about what we believe, because our beliefs can stand up to the test. Truth isn't dependent on how a person feels or one's own point of view, as so many assert. On the contrary, we can determine truth through our five senses, and that truth reliably points to a deeper and unseen reality. Mark walks readers through twenty arrows that point towards Christian beliefs: from the intricate design of the universe to archaeological proofs, from the consistent testimony of changed lives to the reliability of the ancient documents of the Bible. After studying these arrows, you'll put this book down with a renewed confidence in what you believe and why it matters for eternity.

This collection of essays by eminent anthropologists, missiologists and historians explores the hitherto neglected topic of women missionaries and the effect of Christian missionary activity upon women. The book consists of two parts. The first part looks at nineteenth-century women missionaries as presented in literature, at the backgrounds and experience of women in the mission field and at the attitudes of missionary societies towards their female workers. The fascinating debates are very relevant to the ordination of women issue of today. Although they are traditionally presented as wives and support workers, it becomes apparent that, on the contrary, women missionaries often played a culturally important role. The second and longer section asks whether women missionaries are indeed a special case, and provides some fascinating studies from both historical and contemporary material of the impact of Christian missions on women. Of particular value is the perspective of those who were themselves objects of missionary activity and who reflected upon this experience. Women actively absorbed and adapted the teachings of the Christian missionaries, and Western models are seen to be utilised and developed in sometimes unexpected ways.

This collection of essays by eminent anthropologists, missiologists and historians explores the hitherto neglected topic of women missionaries and the effect of Christian missionary activity upon women. The book consists of two parts. The first part looks at nineteenth-century women missionaries as presented in literature, at the backgrounds and experience of women in the mission field and at the attitudes of missionary societies towards their female workers. The fascinating debates are very relevant to the ordination of women issue of today. Although they are traditionally presented as wives and support workers, it becomes apparent that, on the contrary, women missionaries often played a culturally important role. The second and longer section asks whether women missionaries are indeed a special case, and provides some fascinating studies from both historical and contemporary material of the impact of Christian missions on women. Of particular value is the perspective of those who were themselves objects of missionary activity and who reflected upon this experience. Women actively absorbed and adapted the teachings of the Christian missionaries, and Western models are seen to be utilised and developed in sometimes unexpected ways.

Children have always been close to Jesus' heart. As his followers, it's our responsibility to protect, nurture, and pass our faith to children. In Small Matters: Why Children Are Such a Big Deal, authors Greg Nettle and Jimmy Mellado offer a model of discipleship that encourages parents to raise up the next generation to be deeply committed to and in love with Jesus. Ministry pioneer D. L. Moody once said that if he could relive his life, he would devote his entire ministry to reaching children for God. What Moody understood was that, by investing in them, the potential for effective change in a child's life is huge. When we awaken to the fact that children between the ages of four and fourteen are the most likely to make a decision to follow Jesus, and that the discipleship that children receive forms their future, it may give you an idea of the importance of ministering the young. Greg and Jimmy challenge the typical church models of youth discipleship and offer ways to shift into a more effective and more biblical method that begins by empowering parents in their homes and works outward: Discipling children in the home. Discipling children in the church. Discipling children in the community. Now more than ever churches have to invest in the cause of children through advocacy, sponsorship, and children's ministries-all of which need to be committed to holistic child development. Small Matters will transform the way we view children, invest in them, reach out to them, teach them and, ultimately, empower them to be disciples of Jesus. "This is a book about small matters, which are really large matters... God has used the small things of this world to do his work, and he continues to do this today. In Jesus' kingdom, the first are last and the least are the greatest, the servants are the heroes and the small are the biggest winners of all." John Ortberg, author and pastor.