Everyone has a story. Some of these stories are good, some are bad, some are memorable, and some are best left forgotten.In By Any Means Necessary: My Personal Struggles with Good and Evil, Emivita--a baby born in Europe to Italian parents, a child who moved to America, and a woman who struggled to build a better life in her adopted country--shares a lifetime of her stories. She shares the confusion of beginning a new life in a new land, the thrill of first love, the pain of abuse at her mother's hands, her fascination with testing traditional gender roles, vacations, college, lifelong battles with violent impulses against herself and others, a complicated marriage, motherhood, depression, and more.Emivita's life has been one of struggle, pain, and growth, and her only concern is the footprint she leaves behind. But through it all, she has always felt deep compassion for animals. She cares about how her actions will impact the future of both man- and animal-kind alike. A vocal advocate for animal rights and welfare, she works to enhance our understanding of compassionate care for the creatures in our lives.Hers is a very human life lived By Any Means Necessary, and her story is still being written.

Cardinal and Archbishop of Canterbury Robert Kilwardby OP (c. 1215-1279) was a very important and influential thinker in his time, but he has not received the scholarly attention he deserves. In this book we present the first study of all of his philosophical works from logic and grammar to metaphysics and ethics. It contains a substantial introduction about Kilwardby's life and work as well as a comprehensive bibliography. The articles are all newly written by the foremost experts on Kilwardby today. The book should be of interest to any one studying medieval philosophy but foremost for scholars of thirteenth century philosophy. Contributors include Henrik Lagerlund, Paul Thom, Anthony Celano, Alessandro D. Conti, Amos Corbini, Silvia Donati, C.H. Kneepkens, Alfonso Maieru, Jose Filipe Silva and Cecilia Trifogli.

The autobiography of John Hitchcock is a true life story that will make you laugh and it will make you cry. All readers will find comfort in the acceptance and easiness to relate to his stories. The stories of adventure, danger, deliverance, and the unseen hand of God in John's life will keep you engaged. John stutters, yet every time he prays, preaches or sings he is totally fluent. He is an example that miracles do happen. The pages will become addictive and it will be almost impossible to put the book down. You will read stories about the wildlife in Africa that almost killed him to the eerie acquaintances with spirits and ghosts that are sure to make the hair on your neck stand up. Readers will cry as they turn each page as they become John's friend and feel his pain as they discover his heartaches and setbacks, but will smile as they learn that all things happen for a reason. Read the story of a classic romance that will give others hope in the low times of their lives. There is a story for everyone, from young to aged, I dare you to enter John's world and quickly become a friend of his literature" - Charlene Hitchcock, daughter.

www.johnhitchcockministries.blogspot.com

[email protected].

This first critical biography of Msgr. Nelson Baker (Father Baker) places him within the rich context of American Catholic life between 1840 and 1940. Through his devotion to Mary under her title Our Lady of Victory he supervised an orphanage and Protectory for boys and an infant home for unwed mothers and their babies. As a result of more than 50 years of ministry, both as superintendent of these institutions and pastor of St. Patrick's/Our Lady of Victory Parish, Baker became an almost iconic figure in western New York. Additionally, he was integrally involved in the Diocese of Buffalo, both as vicar general and twice administrator when the See was vacant. Nelson Baker's work to date is relatively unknown outside western New York. This biography will broaden the base of people who know of his work and significant accomplishments for the betterment of children. His significant work in the institutions, and most especially his rather unique work with unwed mothers and their children, merits a precise, complete, and historically accurate account of his life.

"Peter Clark's ministerial journey provides an in-depth understanding of the sacrifices and hardships faced by black Methodist preachers as they spread the gospel and expanded Methodism in the late nineteenth century and early twentieth century. It provides deep insight into the racial attitudes and economic conditions that prevailed in post-Reconstruction Louisiana." - Angella Current-Felder, author, Breaking Barriers: An African American Family & the Methodist Story

"I could feel the story better than most because I had been down some of the same roads Peter Clark traveled, although a hundred years later and under more comfortable circumstances.'' - Rev. James L. Killen, Jr., author, Pastoral Care in the Small Membership Church

"We sensed Peter Clark's strength and leadership throughout this very turbulent and racially charged time in our history. He would have been honored to have his life written about with such loving care." - Rev. Cindy Foster Serio, spiritual director and retreat leader, Mosaic Spiritual Formation Ministry

"The information regarding tuberculosis is insightful. The biography walks the reader through some very important points and offers some food for thought on the thinking at the time and implications for the race, the individual and the family unit." - Dr. Lisa Armitige, medical consultant, Heartland National TB Center

Just like Us is a vivid snapshot of the possible reactions of no fewer than twenty-one characters who came into contact with Jesus of Nazareth. It ranges over a wide spectrum of individuals, from Elizabeth, the mother of John the Baptist, to Paul, Apostle to the Gentiles. The studies are clustered around the birth of Jesus, his death, and his resurrection, and they afford a fascinating glimpse of how representatives from every walk of life, from kings to fishermen, could have responded to the unique personality of the most influential person in history.

"Free Will, No Choice" is Wendy Buckingham's first published work, a memoir which chronicles her childhood, adolescence, and how she came to meet and join The Unification Church of Rev. Sun Myung Moon. She was to be a faithful follower for half of her adult life before becoming disillusioned by it all after making a pilgrimage to Korea intended to further deepen her faith. The story opens with the recollection of a picture-perfect day with her and her playmates enjoying a carefree life in a wooded bedroom community in the northwest suburbs of Chicago in the mid-1950s. The tragic death of her older sister from leukemia at age 8 creates a tangible disturbance in the family, and as happens all too frequently when such a tragedy strikes a young married couple, her parents divorce not long after. Her mother decides to move back to her hometown of Denver with Wendy and her younger sister Georgia, just as the girls are reaching adolescence. Mother realizes that she cannot survive for long as a single mom with two daughters without an income, and sets her sights on well-to-do bachelors in the Denver social circles. Drugs and alcohol come to be convenient avenues of escape for the author as she is moved in and out of a variety of schools before finally graduating from high school back in Illinois. She has the opportunity to do some traveling with Georgia before the independent-minded Hitchcock sisters seemingly go their separate ways. In 1975, a letter from Georgia from a new age community outside of San Francisco gets Wendy's attention. Sensing that Georgia may have been lured into a cult of some kind, the author decides to travel to the west coast to see for herself what sister has gotten herself into. Long story short, Georgia's stay with the Creative Community Project (aka The Unification Church) ends within 3 months. Wendy's is to last considerably longer. Positive changes in mind, body and spirit are immediately evidenced for our heroine, who begins to experience a most substantial presence of and relationship with God. The first seven years in the movement are spent on MFT (Mobile Fundraising Teams), raising money to support Rev. Moon in his vision of building the Kingdom of Heaven on Earth (even though Jesus very plainly said that The Kingdom of Heaven is within you.). Having laid the seven year foundation of fundraising to qualify to be matched (engaged) and blessed (married) by Sun Myung Moon, the scene shifts to New York City and the New Yorker Hotel (now the World Mission Center for The Unification Church), where Rev. Moon is preparing to match 1,500 men and women with unshakeable faith in him as the 2nd Coming of Christ. Wendy emerges from the ceremony with her fiance, Francis Buckingham, and her foot-soldier days are behind her. As family life begins, they find in one another alternative sounding boards for what they really believe and why they are doing what they're doing. With the arrival of their son in 1991, the demands on their time and the little money they have for themselves become more and more unreasonable and unbearable. Where is the messiah when you really need him? As the storm clouds loom in the distance, hope arrives in the form of a book they discover sitting on a shelf in the home of another church couple. It's entitled A Course in Miracles. It begins by stating: Nothing real can be threatened, nothing unreal exists. Herein lies the Peace of God. The story of the next leg of the journey is now in progress: the power of Faith guided by Wisdom.

Knowing is a process, not an arrival. "The Place of Knowing: A Spiritual Autobiography" celebrates the spiritual-both seen and unseen-through the life of acclaimed writer and devout Mormon Emma Lou Warner Thayne.

In this insightful, eloquently written memoir, Emma Lou-author of thirteen books of poetry, essays, and fiction-shares poignant personal anecdotes that begin with a terrifying near-death experience when, without warning, a six-pound iron rod smashed through a car windshield into her face. As she narrates her journey through her recovery process, she reflects on previous life experiences-from the daily to the sublime. Through both example and insight, she shares adventures while offering a calming presence for those who may fear death, yearn to know how to celebrate life, and crave direction on how to access the wonders of the divine.

For anyone who has wondered about life after death or who desires a better understanding of his or her divine self, "The Place of Knowing" will inspire spiritual seekers everywhere to reach out in friendship to others and to embrace new experiences-ultimately discovering themselves in the process.