"Raising Abel" assumes that the Bible would not bother telling us about a cunning serpent, a murderous brother, or a resinous gopher tree, if they didn't have something to do with the deeper topic of faith. After all, isn't the Bible "the authority" on faith? Raising Abel explores the most familiar chapters of Genesis, not as a collection of stories of the beginning of time, but as our first and best guide to the subject of faith. The author, as a physician, explains faith within the framework of wellness, dividing the Genesis stories into four parts that answer four questions.

The Premise: What does healthy faith look like? (Genesis 1-2) The Problem: What can cause this healthy state to become "diseased"? (Genesis 3-5) The Prescription: What medicine is needed to restore us to a healthy faith? (Genesis 6-9:17) The Practice: What must we do to maintain this healthy faith? (Genesis 9:18-11)

"Raising Abel" reassures us that "there is something greater than a perfectly good world; it is an imperfect world plus faith." In a perfect world there would be no need of faith. Get ready to experience faith in a whole new light

Forgiveness is the key to happiness--but how do you actually do it? When we begin to practice forgiveness, the world becomes a better place to live. Forgiveness is essential to releasing fear and living in peace. In fact, forgiveness is the single most important thing we can do to create a life of love and happiness. Without it, we are destined to live in hurt, anger and upset. With it, all the gifts and miracles of God's love flow into our lives. If you've tried to forgive in the past and been unable to, you're not alone. Forgiveness is not always an easy task, and most of us have no real idea of how to go about it anyway. Although each of the world's important religions and spiritual pathways agrees that forgiveness is essential, there is very little practical information out there about how to actually forgive. Forgiveness is the dirty little secret of Christians, spiritual people, and truth seekers everywhere. We all nod our heads and agree that forgiveness is important, but when it comes right down to it, most of us have no idea how to really do it. Forgiveness is actually an easy and pleasurable process once you understand it. Forgiveness Is the Key to Happiness gives you the essential tools you need to forgive anyone, from the smallest of affronts to the really huge betrayals and damage we all experience at least occasionally in our lives. To learn more you can visit www.forgiveandbehappy.com

An exploration into why and how Jamaicans become Rastafari in spite of increasing incrimination of the religion So much has been written about the Rastafari, yet we know so little about why and how people join the Rastafari movement. Although popular understandings evoke images of dreadlocks, reggae, and marijuana, Rastafarians were persecuted in their country, becoming a people seeking social justice. Yet new adherents continued to convert to Rastafari despite facing adverse reactions from their fellow citizens and from their British rulers. Charles Price draws on in-depth interviews to reveal the personal experiences of those who adopted the religion in the 1950s to 1970s, one generation past the movement's emergence. By talking with these Rastafari elders, he seeks to understand why and how Jamaicans became Rastafari in spite of rampant discrimination, and what sustains them in their faith and identity. Utilizing new conceptual frameworks, Price explores the identity development of Rastafari, demonstrating how shifts in the movement's identity-from social pariah to exemplar of Blackness-have led some of the elder Rastafari to adopt, embrace, and internalize Rastafari and blackness as central to their concept of self.

American society is culturally diverse with a variety of religious denominations, sects, cults, and self-help groups vying for members. This volume analyzes nine of these groups, chosen both for their intrinsic interest and because they illustrate a variety of sociological concepts. The groups included in this study are: Heaven's Gate, Jesus People USA, the Love Family, The Farm, Amish Women, Scientology, El Nino Fidencio, Santeria, and Freedom Park. The contributors are social scientists with first-hand knowledge of the groups they examine.

How does a Vampire Cult differ from a Satanic Cult? How do seemingly "normal" or "ordinary" citizens suddenly find themselves committed to a group whose leader promotes criminal activities and isolation from families and friends? What should you do if a loved one becomes indoctrinated by a potentially dangerous cult? This book focuses on various cults and their often criminal belief systems. Most readers are shocked by stories of mass suicides and ritualized cult killings, but few understand how such crimes come to be committed. Snow, a seasoned police officer with experience working on cult crimes, examines those cults that commit offenses from murder and fraud to kidnapping and sexual assault. By providing specific accounts of dangerous cults and their destructive acts, Snow illustrates how seemingly innocent groups can turn pernicious when under the sway of a charismatic leader with an agenda, or when members take things too far. He offers advice on how to avoid falling victim to cult indoctrination, concluding with chapters on how to identify cults, how to protect yourself and your family, and what to do if a loved one is ensnared by such a group.

"Transformed" shares with you spiritual truths learned along the path to spiritual freedom. Earlynn Sheehan takes you along as she transforms her life from deeply religious to deeply spiritual. As her vision of the true nature of God transformed, she left worry, guilt, judgment, and fear behind. "Transformed "can help you uncover your true nature and bring your life into a state of unity, peace, abundance, prosperity, happiness, and joy. Visit Earlynn on the Web at earlynnsjustsayin.org.

This book is about mindfulness and many other techniques and practices that allow for healing and spiritual evolving to take place. It is about the energetic bodies and how working with these bodies can help us remove our dysfunctions, which exist as energy imprints. It is about the use of physics and metaphysics to assist us in expanding so that we can once again find our own truths. It is about ways we can all participate in the clean-up of ourselves and the planet. It is about simplicity on all levels.

Through in-depth interviews with 22 New Agers and Neo-Pagans, this study proposes a new model of religious identity from a sociological standpoint. The analysis demonstrates that in spite of their great diversity of beliefs and lack of strong organizational ties, a discernible community of alternative spiritualists does exist. This volume will appeal not only to scholars of the sociology of religion, but also to sociologists interested in community building, social movements, and self-identity.