"Scant decades ago most Westerners agreed that . . . Lifelong monogamy was ideal . . . Mothers should stay home with children . . . premarital sex was to be discouraged . . . Heterosexuality was the unquestioned norm . . . popular culture should not corrupt children. Today not a single one of these expectations is uncontroversial." So writes Rodney Clapp in assessing the status of the family in postmodern Western society. In response many evangelicals have been quick to defend the so-called traditional family, assuming that it exemplifies the biblical model. Clapp challenges that assumption, arguing that the "traditional" family is a reflection more of the nineteenth-century middle-class family than of any family one can find in Scripture. At the same time, he recognizes that many modern and postmodern options are not acceptable to Christians. Returning to the biblical story afresh to see what it might say to us in the late twentieth and early twenty-first centuries, Clapp articulates a challenge to both sides of a critical debate. A book to help us rethink the significance of the family for the next century.

David Rich examines the pervasive influence of organized religion on three vital areas of human behavior - ethics, government, and economics - and argues that the belief systems of all major religions have become a detriment to clear thinking, rational conduct, and wise public policy. Despite the fact that modern society is an outgrowth of the Enlightenment, most of our "tribe" continues to operate on the basis of assumptions and attitudes that have their origin in ancient myths. These myths, still propagated by organized religion, not only hamper efforts to apply reason to our problems, but they can even foster violent conflicts that threaten global security, as witnessed today in the former Yugoslavia, the Middle East, Northern Ireland, and many regions of Africa and Asia.
Rich begins his analysis by examining the history of our major world religions and the common mythic elements that they share. He contrasts the figurative picture of the universe presented by religion with the currently accepted scientific facts. He then discusses the link between traditional morality and religious beliefs, demonstrating how obsolete attitudes have led to futile and wasteful government policies in such critical areas of social concern as illegal drugs, abortion, crime, poverty, and environmental abuse.
Rich proposes an essentially libertarian philosophy, which argues for rational analysis of all problems in the light of objective scientific evidence, a system of ethics that allows complete individual liberty constrained only by the principle of harming no one else, taking personal responsibility for one's own welfare and actions, and the absence of government control over the pursuit of happiness. Rich maintains that religion is a private matter and as such should play no part in public policy or internatioal relations. Only by maintaining this distinction can our global community have a chance of achieving its highest rational aspirations.

In this broad philosophical examination of the relationship between religion and the family, Jay Newman delves into issues concerning Biblical religion, culture, sociology, and family values. He maintains that recent media debates about the Bible and family values have obscured the complex relationship between the family and religion.

Focusing on how the family values that the Biblical literature imparts might be relevant--or irrelevant--to family problems and other cultural problems in a modern Western democracy, this study contributes to the understanding of basic cultural relations between religion and the family. After reflecting on the effects of much Biblical teaching on the family, the book proceeds to explore the cultural and existential significance of competition and cooperation between Biblical religion and the family.

Biblical scholar Wayne Grudem offers thought-provoking analysis of what the Bible says-and doesn't say-about divorce, bringing much needed clarity to the discussion and guidance to those stuck at a crossroads.

The Forgotten Victims is a real story of one family's struggle with the legacy of domestic abuse and suicide. Monica Soileau father's abuse led him to shot her mother and him committing suicide. Monica speaks to today's victims and survivors of abuse or suicide from her unique perspective. She speaks frankly of how faith helped her family cope; brought about through her mother's miraculous recovery from grievous emotional and physical wounds, and eventually resulting in her own mature understanding and empathy for everyone caught in a vicious cycle of abuse. The author embraces her mother's compelling memories, as well as includes her younger brother's experience, along with her own provocative and inspirational journey through the stages of coping, understanding, and overcoming their dark, shared legacy. As a final point, this hopeful book will help guide any reader in their discerning of how abuse affects the children who encounter it. Through retrospect the reader is brought full circle to their own childhood expectations to the actuality that life can certainly be painful and full of difficult decisions. Anyone who has experienced any of the following as a victim, as an offender, as a parent, as a child, as a counselor or healthcare worker should read this book: Domestic Violence Domestic Homicide Suicide of a Parent Children Self-Esteem Development Suppression of emotions and mourning Children assuming responsibility and guilt for parent's abusive behavior Dysfunctional Relationships Post Traumatic Stress Disorder Monica Soileau is a Certified Christian Therapist. She has worked as a Sunday School Teacher, Eucharistic Minister, Lecturer, Help Minister and Motivational Speaker in multiple ministries. She is currently enrolled in Calvary Theological Seminary School and Cornerstone University.

What Catholic social thought can teach thinkers of all faiths and backgrounds about equitable economics Inequality is skyrocketing. In a world of vast riches, millions of people live in extreme poverty, barely surviving from day to day. All over the world, the wealthy's increasing political power is biasing policy away from the public interest toward the financial interests of the rich. At the same time, many countries are facing financial fragility and diminished well-being. On top of it all, a global economy driven by fossil fuels has proven to be a collective act of self-sabotage with the poor on the front lines. A growing chorus of economists and politicians is demanding a new paradigm to create a global economy for the common good. In Cathonomics, Anthony M. Annett unites insights in economics with those from theology, philosophy, climate science, and psychology, exposing the failures of neoliberalism while offering us a new model rooted in the wisdom of Catholic social teaching and classical ethical traditions. Drawing from the work of Pope Leo XIII, Pope Francis, Thomas Aquinas, and Aristotle, Annett applies these teachings to discuss current economic challenges such as inequality, unemployment and underemployment, climate change, and the roles of business and finance. Cathonomics is an ethical and practical guide to readers of all faiths and backgrounds seeking to create a world economy that is more prosperous, inclusive, and sustainable for all.

Of Divine Economy expands upon the economic connotations of the theological doctrine of redemption. The term redemption refers to a process of 'buying back' slaves from conditions of oppression, and thus compares the crux of Christian dogma to an economic exchange involving human emancipation. The phrase 'miraculous exchanges' refers to the problem of redemptive divine and human agency in an economic context in which many who desire justice and equity feel powerless and hopeless. The originality of Divine Economy lies not only in its theological reading of redemption as an economic metaphor, but also in its focus on the economic subtexts of Christian tradition and how they form and are formed by society's economic constructions. Grau's unique project merges together economic, historical, and psycho-social analysis with theological critique and construction.