Sacred Natural Sites are the world's oldest protected places. This book focuses on a wide spread of both iconic and lesser known examples such as sacred groves of the Western Ghats (India), Sagarmatha /Chomolongma (Mt Everest, Nepal, Tibet - and China), the Golden Mountains of Altai (Russia), Holy Island of Lindisfarne (UK) and the sacred lakes of the Niger Delta (Nigeria). The book illustrates that sacred natural sites, although often under threat, exist within and outside formally recognised protected areas, heritage sites. Sacred natural sites may well be some of the last strongholds for building resilient networks of connected landscapes. They also form important nodes for maintaining a dynamic socio-cultural fabric in the face of global change. The diverse authors bridge the gap between approaches to the conservation of cultural and biological diversity by taking into account cultural and spiritual values together with the socio-economic interests of the custodian communities and other relevant stakeholders.

It is commonly claimed that Islam is antiblack, even inherently bent on enslaving Black Africans. Western and African critics alike have contended that antiblack racism is in the faith’s very scriptural foundations and its traditions of law, spirituality, and theology. But what is the basis for this accusation? Bestselling scholar Jonathan A.C. Brown examines Islamic scripture, law, Sufism, and history to comprehensively interrogate this claim and determine how and why it emerged. Locating its origins in conservative politics, modern Afrocentrism, and the old trope of Barbary enslavement, he explains how antiblackness arose in the Islamic world and became entangled with normative tradition. From the imagery of ‘blackened faces’ in the Quran to Shariah assessments of Black women as ‘undesirable’ and the assertion that Islam and Muslims are foreign to Africa, this work provides an in-depth study of the controversial knot that is Islam and Blackness, and identifies authoritative voices in Islam’s past that are crucial for combatting antiblack racism today.

"Lord, prepare me for a miracle "
You could call them God's fingerprints. Suddenly you're seeing them all over your life. Unexplainable encounters. Little miracles. Big answers to simple requests that only recently you wouldn't have had the courage to utter.
Welcome to "life after Jabez." If you've been praying his simple prayer, you know what I'm talking about. Now you want to capture the miracle in a more personal way, every day.
"The Prayer of Jabez Devotional" is designed with you in mind. Every page is intended to help you make a lifelong habit of beginning each day with the expectation of seeing--and participating in--God's supernatural plans for your life. You'll find thirty-one days of personal mentoring and encouragement, plus suggestions for recording your spiritual journey in the accompanying volume, "The Prayer of Jabez Journal."
So join me in reaching for the blessed life today
--Bruce Wilkinson

Originally published in 1978, Zen and the Ways is the first publication in a series of books published by the Buddhist Society in association with the Trevor Leggett Trust. In Japanese Zen, every activity in life, including the martial arts, flower arrangement and serving tea, are considered a field for practicing inner control, mediation and inspiration, and can be termed the 'Way' when practised in this manner. In this book, Leggett collects together translation of texts relating to this phenomenon and offers his own thoughts and observations on the subject.

Do you know that God loves to think about you? Even right now! The psalmist David realized this when he wrote Psalm 139: "How precious to me are your thoughts, O God! How vast is the sum of them! If I would count them, they are more than the sand." But God doesn't just think about you. He loves you--fiercely. In times of uncertainty, we need some pillars we can build our lives on. You are loved. You are welcomed. You are wanted. You were always his idea and he has a plan for you.

New York Times bestselling author Lisa Bevere shifts your perspective with daily boosts of courageous love, giving you a confidence grounded in both your identity and your relationship with your Creator.

These 90 devotionals each include Scripture to guide you, encouragement to lift you up, and powerful declarations of truth to send you forth in strength.

Based on religious ethnography, in-depth interviews and archival data, Indigeneity in African Religions explores the historical origins, worldviews, cosmologies, ritual symbolism and praxis of the indigenous Oza people in South West Nigeria. The author's locationality and positionality plugs the book within decolonizing knowledges and indigeneity discourses, thus unpacking the complexity of "indigeneity" and contributing to its conceptual understanding within socioreligious change in contemporary Africa. The future of Oza indigeneity in the face of modernity is illuminated against the backlash of encounters, contestations with multiple hegemonies, transmissions of Christianity and Islam and indigenous (re)appropriations. Thus, any theorizations of such encounters must be cognizant of instantiations of indigeneity politics and identity, culture, tradition and power dynamics. Through decolonizing burdens of history, memory and method, Afe Adogame demonstrates a framework of understanding Oza indigenous religious,sociocultural and political imaginaries.

'On all my travels, if I had the Gospels, Paul's letter to the Romans and Andrew Ollerton's book I would need nothing else!' Sir David Suchet With his trademark straightforward teaching style, Andrew Ollerton guides readers through Romans - one of the most theologically complex books of the Bible - to discover how an understanding of Paul's longest letter unlocks the whole story of Scripture and helps us make sense of life. It's been said that if the New Testament were the Himalayas, Paul's Epistle to the Romans would be Mount Everest. The chapters of this book therefore imagine the contents of the letter as a great mountain landscape - complex, challenging but highly rewarding. Together, we will take on the challenge of ascending to the summit, taking in the view and then descending to put it into practice on the other side. Readers will not only come away with a greater understanding of Romans, but as invigorated disciples, equipped for the adventure of life and faith, and emboldened to share the Gospel with others. Each chapter includes suggested Bible readings and questions for reflection, making this book a great choice for devotional reading for Lent 2023. Romans is a perfect follow-up read for fans of Andrew's first book The Bible, those who've completed Bible Society's 'The Bible Course', or the Alpha course.

How is a free faith expressed, organised and governed? How are diverse spiritualities and theologies made compatible? What might a religion based in reason and democracy offer today's world? This book will help the reader to understand the contemporary liberal religion of Unitarian Universalism in a historical and global context. Andrea Greenwood and Mark W. Harris challenge the view that the Unitarianism of New England is indigenous and the point from which the religion spread. Relationships between Polish radicals and the English Dissenters existed, and the English radicals profoundly influenced the Unitarianism of the nascent United States. Greenwood and Harris also explore the US identity as Unitarian Universalist since a 1961 merger, and its current relationship to international congregations, particularly in the context of twentieth century expansion into Asia.

The Feasts of the Lord will come alive like never before as you journey through Israel's annual appointed times with the Messianic Mo'adiym Devotional. This companion volume to the popular Messianic Daily Devotional contains insightful and uplifting devotionals from a Messianic Jewish perspective, designed specifically to be read during the yearly Mo'adiym as found in Leviticus 23 (one devotional for each day of every feast, including all 49 days of the Omer). Also included is a special, extended teaching that introduces you to God's appointed times, offering a fresh approach that lays the foundation for a unique and life-changing devotional experience. Enter into the fullness of these designated seasons with Messianic Jewish teacher and author Kevin Geoffrey, as he draws out the inherent themes found in each appointed time... deep truths that will lead us into a life of maturity, as we grow in devotion to our Master, the Messiah Yeshua.

What are miracles, and why do we believe in them? Is it for comfort, to explain the inexplicable, or do we simply long for a connection with something larger than ourselves? And why do some people dismiss them out of hand, as if they can never happen? What Heaven is for Real did for neardeath experiences, Miracles does for the miraculous-provides undeniably compelling evidence that there's something real to be reckoned with, whatever one has thought of this topic before. It provides a wide range of real stories of the miraculous and will engage the reader in the serious discussion that this fascinating and rich subject deserves. Miracles is in some ways a more personal, anecdotal, and updated version of C. S. Lewis's 1947 book on the subject. Metaxas's Miracles is an exploration and an exhortation to view miracles as not only possible, but as far more widespread than most of us had ever imagined. Eric Metaxas says it is not a question of whether miracles happen-the evidence that they do is overwhelming in this book alone-but rather, what exactly are miracles, why do they happen, and how can we to understand them in our own lives?

In fast-food society we long for quick fixes and easy answers. But no worthwhile goal is easily reached, and a deep spiritual life is not created in a week or two. It takes perseverance over the long haul to finish well. "The Finishing Touch" encourages you to keep on keeping on to reach your goals and reap the harvest of a life worth living.

Charles Swindoll challenges today's I'm-getting-tired-so-let's-just-quit mentality. He says, "Dieting is a discipline, so we stay fat. Finishing school is a hassle, so we bail out. Cultivating a close relationship is painful, so we back off. Working through conflicts in a marriage is a tiring struggle, so we walk away. Sticking with an occupation is tough, so we change jobs. . . . what we don't hear about is finishing well. About sticking with something until it is done."

God wants to touch us and be our strength in the struggle. He wants us to finish what we started and complete the course. "The Finishing Touch "takes you through every day of a year, introducing you to God's touches of grace, joy, and love. As a sculptor applies himself to the marble, and keeps chipping and cutting away to reveal the masterpiece within, so the Master Artist wants to use our trials, hard times, and day-to-day struggles to chip away at our faults and to help us discover the potential treasures within us.

Daily devotionals for fifty-two weeks help you discover gut-level authenticity, hope in the midst of despair, courage in the face of fear, the light of faith in the shadows of doubt, and peace in the midst of stress. Learn how God's touch on your life enables you to run the race to the finish―to the honor and glory of the Master who has called you to be more than you think you can be.

Written with the rigor and precision of a New Testament specialist, Preaching the Parables provides a responsible introduction to understanding and proclaiming the parables that pastors, church leaders, and seminary students will appreciate. Craig Blomberg demonstrates how the structure of a parable is key to its interpretation and thus to its exposition. He shows how a parable, when properly contemporized, can be a powerful rhetorical device, and that recognizing the elements of the parable that were atypical to everyday life leads to important surprises that will be of significance to contemporary parishioners. Each of the fifteen exemplary sermons is accompanied by an analysis that points out key interpretive decisions.

Look and See comprises over twenty Buddhist teaching stories with commentaries by the Venerable Myokyo-ni.The stories are collected from various Buddhist sources but have in common the Buddhist way of facing the trials life brings. Stories from the Southern Scriptures, such as 'The Parable of the Poisoned Arrow' are included alongside Northern Training Stories such as 'The Taming of the Harp' and 'The Great Wave.' Each story is followed by the thoughts and observations of the Venerable Myokyo-ni.

Am 16. Januar 1599 erschien die heilige Mutter Gottes der Mutter Marianna von Jesus Torres im Konvent des Ordens des Unbefleckten Herzens in Quito, in Ecuador. Die heilige Mutter trug der Schwester auf eine Statue zu errichten, die so aussehen sollte, wie die Erscheinung, die sie sah: Maria mit dem Jesuskind auf dem linken Arm und einem Bischofsstab in der rechten Hand, hinzu den Schlusseln des Klosters in der rechten Hand. Unsere liebe Frau hielt den Bischofsstab in der Hand als Zeichen dafur, dass sie selbst das Kloster beschutzt und bat die Schwester darum, dass ihre Statue im Chorraum der Klosterkirche aufgestellt werden solle, wo sie bis zum heutigen Tage steht. Die Statue wurde am 2. Februar 1611 unter dem Namen Frau vom guten Erfolg der Reinigung oder Lichtmess" vom Bischof von Quito eingeweiht. Wahrend Unsere liebe Frau der Mutter Mariana erschien, prophezeite sie ihr, dass bis zu ihrem Tod am 16. Januar 1635 viele Einflusse des Teufels die Katholische Kirche heimsuchen wurde, welche sie in kleinsten Details beschrieb. Dazu offenbarte sie ihr, dass ihre Erscheinung und Visionen nur bis zum Beginn des 20. Jahrhunderts bekannt sein wurde und wurde gebeten durch Gebet und Busse den armen Seelen, die in dieser Zeit durch enorme Haresien gehen sollten, beizustehen. Es war Gottes Wille diese Enthullung und die Geschichte der Mutter Mariana bis in unsere Zeit zu retten, in der Sittenlosigkeit herrscht und das wertvolle Licht des Glaubens beinahe erloschen ist, gemass den Worten unserer Lieben Frau. Unsere Mutter Gottes sagte auch voraus, dass die Treue zum Glauben, Gnade und Vergebung aller Sunden gewahren wird, fur diejenigen, die mit reuevollem Herzen zur heiligen Mutter beten. So sagte sie: Der trostende Name Mutter vom guten Erfolg..".wird den Glauben starken und ihn gegen allerlei Haresien und Irrwege, die im 20. Jahrhundert herumschleichen, schutzen.&quo

The devotional poems of Annamaya (15th century) are perhaps the most accessible and universal achievement of classical Telugu literature, one of the major literatures of pre-modern India. Annamaya effectively created and popularized a new genre, the short padam song, which spread throughout the Telugu and Tamil regions and would become an important vehicle for the composition of Carnatic music - the classical music of South India. In this book, Rao and Shulman offer translations of 150 of Annamaya's poems. All of them are addressed to the god associated with the famous temple city of Tirupati-Annamaya's home-a deity who is sometimes referred to as "god on the hill" or "lord of the seven hills." The poems are couched in a simple and accessible language invented by Annamaya for this purpose. Rao and Shulman's elegant and lyrical modern translations of these beautiful and moving verses are wonderfully readable as poetry in their own right, and will be of great interest to scholars of South Indian history and culture.