FIRST WE RECEIVED THE WARNING, NOW AMERICA MUST FACE THE ULTIMATUM...

Eighteen months ago, Buddy Korda warned the nation that an economic disaster was on the horizon. Now families across the country are living out the grim reality of the second depression of the twentieth century. Some say it was just a coincidence. Others say he caused the crisis by frightening investors out of the stock market.

But Korda's warning was not a mere prediction. It was a divine message. And now Buddy has received another message -- this time more than a warning, an ultimatum.

God's call leads the reluctant prophet to Washington, D.C., where his friends -- including Linda Kee, a well-known reporter familiar with the D.C. power structure -- coordinate the effort to bring America face to face with its heritage and its destiny. This historic movement threatens to transform the current political process. And the Washington power brokers will do anything to keep Korda from succeeding.

Responding to the call of the Second Vatican Council, this introduction to moral theology shows how virtue ethics and a global perspective shape the call to faithful discipleship today.

From Christian Piatt: "When I was a teenager, my youth minister threw a bible at my head for asking questions." Too often, for various reasons, people don't have the opportunity to ask the hard questions they have about faith, religion, salvation and the bible. And when questions are left unanswered in communities of faith, people either seek answers elsewhere or lose interest all together. The purpose of the series is to collect the most compelling and challenging questions from various theological areas and pose them to a panel of "experts" who are challenged with responding in two hundred words or less in plain English. This volume addresses challenging or controversial questions about scripture collected from people on Facebook, MySpace, Twitter and other social networking media. Respondents include theology professors, clergy, lay leaders, liberals, conservatives and voices representing a spectrum of views. The idea behind the books is not so much to provide definitive answers as it is to stimulate thought, reflection and discussion. By offering multiple perspectives, readers have the opportunity to arrive at their own questions. Better, they come to understand that questioning faith is not taboo, but rather that it can be at the foundation of a strong and growing faith. The directive given to each respondent guided them to be concise and to speak in plan language, but also not to rely exclusively on "the Bible says it" justifications, or to wax abstract or overly intellectual. Instead, they write from personal experience as much as possible, and provide real-life contexts that will allow the average seeker or churchgoer to apply such ideas to their daily lives.