This is open access under a CC BY 4.0 licenseThe history of Charismatic Christianity in the Nordic countries reaches as far back as Pentecostalism itself. The bounds of these categories remain a topic of discussion, but Nordic countries have played a vital role in developing this rapidly spreading form of world-wide Christianity. Until now, research on global Charismatic Christianity has largely overlooked the region. This book addresses and analyzes its historical and contemporary trajectories in Finland, Norway, and Sweden. Through a selection of cases written by Nordic scholars from various disciplines, it demonstrates historical and contemporary diversity as well as interconnections between local, national, and global currents. Highlighting change and continuity, the anthology reveals new aspects of Charismatic Christianity.

Few cultural issues alarm conservative Protestant families and communities like the seemingly ubiquitous threat of pornography. Thanks to widespread access to the internet, conservative Protestants now face a reality in which every Christian man, woman, and child with a smartphone can access limitless pornography in their bathroom, at work, or at a friend's sleepover. Once confident of their victory over pornography in society at large, conservative Protestants now fear that "porn addiction" is consuming even the most faithful. How are they adjusting to this new reality? And what are its consequences in their lives? Drawing on over 130 interviews as well as numerous national surveys, Addicted to Lust shows that, compared to other Americans, pornography shapes the lives of conservative Protestants in ways that are uniquely damaging to their mental health, spiritual lives, and intimate relationships. Samuel L. Perry demonstrates how certain pervasive beliefs within the conservative Protestant subculture unwittingly create a context in which those who use pornography are often overwhelmed with shame and discouragement, sometimes to the point of depression or withdrawal from faith altogether. Conservative Protestant women who use pornography feel a "double shame" both for sinning sexually and for sinning "like a man," while conflicts over pornography in marriages are escalated by patterns of lying, hiding, blowing up, or threats of divorce. Addicted to Lust shines new light on one of the most talked-about problems facing conservative Christians.

Few figures in history have defined their time as dramatically as Martin Luther. And few books have captured the spirit of such a figure as truly as this robust and eloquent life of Luther. A highly regarded historian and biographer and a gifted novelist and playwright, Richard Marius gives us a dazzling portrait of the German reformer--his inner compulsions, his struggle with himself and his God, the gestation of his theology, his relations with contemporaries, and his responses to opponents. Focusing in particular on the productive years 1516-1525, Marius' detailed account of Luther's writings yields a rich picture of the development of Luther's thought on the great questions that came to define the Reformation.

Marius follows Luther from his birth in Saxony in 1483, during the reign of Frederick III, through his schooling in Erfurt, his flight to an Augustinian monastery and ordination to the outbreak of his revolt against Rome in 1517, the Wittenberg years, his progress to Worms, his exile in the Wartburg, and his triumphant return to Wittenberg. Throughout, Marius pauses to acquaint us with pertinent issues: the question of authority in the church, the theology of penance, the timing of Luther's "Reformation breakthrough," the German peasantry in 1525, Muntzer's revolutionaries, the whys and hows of Luther's attack on Erasmus.

In this personal, occasionally irreverent, always humane reconstruction, Luther emerges as a skeptic who hated skepticism and whose titanic wrestling with the dilemma of the desire for faith and the omnipresence of doubt and fear became an augury for the development of the modern religious consciousness of the West. In all of this, he also represents tragedy, with the goodness of his works overmatched by their calamitous effects on religion and society. "

In this book, Lewis Sperry Chafer instructs the aspiring preacher on the authentic principles of evangelism: that salvation, and proper communication of Christ's message, are of utmost importance. Chafer begins by noting the emergence of preachers who behave and speak contrary to the wishes of Jesus Christ. It is these 'False Forces' that moved the author to spell out precisely what is and is not true evangelic preaching. The identification of falsehoods in the messages delivered, and improper emphases which distract from the ever-present, ever-beneficent God, led Lewis Sperry Chafer to pen this book. Lewis Sperry Chafer spent a lifetime in evangelical preaching and writing in service of the Lord. Although remembered mainly for his scholarly work upon Biblical theology, he was also praised for his easygoing and relaxed demeanor. His leadership at the Dallas Theological Seminary was characterized by this competent, just and thoroughly Christian personality.

In this book William Tyndale, one of the most renowned religious scholars of the Reformation, writes his explanations of justification by faith. The Parable of the Wicked Mammon is the very first work which carries William Tyndale's name. Selecting chapter sixteen from the Book of Luke as a basis, Tyndale explains crucial differences between emerging Protestant beliefs and the established Catholic system. By choosing this passage, Tyndale is able to explain justification and the fruits of it, thereby highlighting a central motivation behind the ensuing Reformation. Notably, this work sees the author acknowledge for the first time his new translation of the Biblical New Testament. Writing in part to blunt the blame levied upon the Protestant cause as being behind outbreaks of violence in Europe, Tyndale sought to frame his arguments in religious terms. By admitting his translation of the Bible, Tyndale reveals that he is opposed to keeping the scripture out of the hands of the common people.

The Christian Century, the most respected magazine for mainline Protestants in the world, has helped Christians think critically and live faithfully since 1884. The publication's former editor and publisher, John Buchanan, has compiled a collection of biweekly editorials from the magazine that highlight events, issues, and questions that progressive Christians faced at the turning of this century. A must-read for Christian Century fans, From the Editor's Desk examines ten key areas from the years 1999-2015, focusing on war and peace, civic engagement, newsworthy events, the Middle East, and congregational life.