In this small but masterly-crafted book, Richard Rohr addresses what Christianity views as the three traditional sources of evil - the world, the flesh and the devil - to encourage us to look beyond our personal moral failings and give us principles for resisting evil on a wider scale. Exploring how Christianity has focused almost exclusively on individual evil, or the sins of the flesh, he offers a gripping interpretation of Jesus' teachings and the writings of Paul the Apostle to show how vital it is that we also understand the often subtle and well-disguised evil of the world and the devil. This book offers no easy solutions. Yet, skilfully distilling half a century of teaching and preaching, The World, the Flesh and the Devil will leave you with a greater understanding of evil and its role in the social issues of our time, and better equipped to recognise and fight it. With his characteristic wisdom and compassion, Rohr offers us principles for resisting the social evils pervading our lives, in which we are all complicit, through Christian contemplation and by reaching out to one another in love.

Passing the Plate shows that few American Christians donate generously to religious and charitable causes -- a parsimony that seriously undermines the work of churches and ministries. Far from the 10 percent of one's income that tithing requires, American Christians' financial giving typically amounts, by some measures, to less than one percent of annual earnings. And a startling one out of five self-identified Christians gives nothing at all.
This eye-opening book explores the reasons behind such ungenerous giving, the potential world-changing benefits of greater financial giving, and what can be done to improve matters. If American Christians gave more generously, say the authors, any number of worthy projects -- from the prevention and treatment of HIV/AIDS to the promotion of inter-religious understanding to the upgrading of world missions -- could be funded at astounding levels. Analyzing a wide range of social surveys and government and denominational statistical datasets and drawing on in-depth interviews with Christian pastors and church members in seven different states, the book identifies a crucial set of factors that appear to depress religious financial support -- among them the powerful allure of a mass-consumerist culture and its impact on Americans' priorities, parishioners' suspicions of waste and abuse by nonprofit administrators, clergy's hesitations to boldly ask for money, and the lack of structure and routine in the way most American Christians give away money. In their conclusion, the authors suggest practical steps that clergy and lay leaders might take to counteract these tendencies and better educate their congregations about the transformative effects of generous giving.
By illuminating the social and psychological forces that shape charitable giving, Passing the Plate is sure to spark a much-needed debate on a critical issue that is of much interest to church-goers, religious leaders, philanthropists, and social scientists.

The NRSV Compact Text Edition is elegantly designed, with small but readable type. The Bibles are a comfortable size to carry and small enough to fit in a pocket or bag. This elegantly produced gift Bible is bound in grey imitation leather with gilt edges and a ribbon marker, and includes a presentation page, making it suitable for marking special occasions such as confirmations and other ceremonies.