A lot of churches and youth ministries have given up on the idea of small groups, writing them off as too tedious, too difficult to manage, too hard to find volunteers for, too expensive to provide materials or curriculum for, or any other number of reasons. In A Volunteer Youth Worker's Guide to Leading a Small Group, Mark Oestreicher argues a different perspective. Marko insists that small groups promote safe spaces to grow, consistency in teenagers' emotionally tumultuous lives, and repetition that instills in them the importance of trust and tradition. The Guide to Leading a Small Group is perfect for anyone feeling disenchanted with the concept of small groups, and after Marko succeeds in changing your mind in the first few pages, he'll use the rest of the book to help you restructure and rethink your small-group programming so you don't get burned out again. Marko is leading the charge in reviving small groups, and you can join him today.

This book considers what work and retirement mean for older women, how each is experienced, and how working fits with other facets of their lives. The authors draw on data collected from women themselves, employers, industry stakeholders and older workers' advocates, to explore older women's experiences of work and retirement against a backdrop of current policy efforts to extend working lives in response to ageing societies. Contrary to common representations of the situation of older workers, the data reveal how workplaces can be seen as relatively benign, and retirement viewed positively. It contributes to academic debate regarding identity, purpose and meaning in later life, identifying challenges for work-focused public policy. Students and scholars of human resource management, sociology, gerontology and social policy will appreciate the extension of understanding older women's life course trajectories that the book offers. Public policy-makers will benefit from the different representations of older women in the book, and the identification of where they would benefit from policy changes.

From an award-winning science journalist comes Nomad Century, an urgent investigation of environmental migration--the most underreported, seismic consequence of our climate crisis that will force us to change where--and how--we live. "The MOST IMPORTANT BOOK I imagine I'll ever read."--Mary Roach "An IMPORTANT and PROVOCATIVE start to a crucial conversation." --Bill McKibben "We are facing a species emergency. We can survive, but to do so will require a planned and deliberate migration of a kind humanity has never before undertaken. This is the biggest human crisis you've never heard of." Drought-hit regions bleeding those for whom a rural life has become untenable. Coastlines diminishing year on year. Wildfires and hurricanes leaving widening swaths of destruction. The culprit, most of us accept, is climate change, but not enough of us are confronting one of its biggest, and most present, consequences: a total reshaping of the earth's human geography. As Gaia Vince points out early in Nomad Century, global migration has doubled in the past decade, on track to see literal billions displaced in the coming decades. What exactly is happening, Vince asks? And how will this new great migration reshape us all? In this deeply-reported clarion call, Vince draws on a career of environmental reporting and over two years of travel to the front lines of climate migration across the globe, to tell us how the changes already in play will transform our food, our cities, our politics, and much more. Her findings are answers we all need, now more than ever.

'It is easier to tell you I used to be in a religious cult. My declaration is most likely to surprise you, even leave you confused. You might ask for more details. I’d tell you it was one of those evangelical churches, and you'd fill in the gaps for yourself because there are endless possibilities of what a cult-like evangelical church can look like in South Africa. Did I eat grass? Or maybe a snake? Was I sprayed with doom?'

Unlike more traditional denominational churches Pentecostal or evangelical churches are more of a movement and much less regulated. Journalist Pontsho Pilane's experience at a powerful evangelical church changed the trajectory of her life and began her journey of deconstruction. Her aim is to be a responsible believer contributing to a more just society.

In this memoir and analysis, Pontsho investigates the dangers of uninterrogated belief in Pentecostal churches and how these beliefs affect our everyday lives.

Bestselling writer and psychotherapist Irvin D. Yalom puts himself on the couch in a “candid, insightful” memoir​.

Irvin D. Yalom has made a career of investigating the lives of others. In this profound memoir, he turns his writing and his therapeutic eye on himself.

He opens his story with a nightmare: He is twelve, and is riding his bike past the home of an acne-scarred girl. Like every morning, he calls out, hoping to befriend her, "Hello Measles!" But in his dream, the girl's father makes Yalom understand that his daily greeting had hurt her. For Yalom, this was the birth of empathy; he would not forget the lesson.

As Becoming Myself unfolds, we see the birth of the insightful thinker whose books have been a beacon to so many. This is not simply a man's life story, Yalom's reflections on his life and development are an invitation for us to reflect on the origins of our own selves and the meanings of our lives.

This book explores representations of fathers in select South African novels published from the birth of apartheid to the post-transitional moment.

Father figures in the texts reflect political and social climates in South Africa – at different times representing the oppressive apartheid government, righteous and authoritative liberation leaders and the unfulfilled promise of a democratic South Africa. Grant Andrews examines how father characters are linked to storytelling; they narrate the lives of their children and their patriarchal power is constituted through narratives. He features authors such as Alan Paton, Nadine Gordimer, J.M. Coetzee, Zakes Mda, K. Sello Duiker, Mark Behr, Zoë Wicomb, Lisa Fugard and Zukiswa Wanner.

Stories of Fathers, Stories of the Nation also investigates how fatherhoods are being reimagined in light of shifting discourses of gender and identity. More recent novels have deconstructed the father figure and his paternal narrative power, representing conflicts around racial identity, sexuality, legacy and how the sins of the father are visited on his children.

Drawing on the concept of the 'politics of compassion', this Handbook interrogates the political, geopolitical, social and anthropological processes which produce and govern borders and give rise to contemporary border violence. Chapters map different aspects of structural violence and mobilities in some of the world's most contentious border zones, highlighting the forms and practices that connect with labour exploitation, legal exclusion and a severe absence of human rights. International interdisciplinary contributors, including renowned sociologist Saskia Sassen, draw attention to the forms and spaces of resistance available to migrants and activists, contemplating how advocates attempt to provide protection and human security to those subjected to border violence. Offering empirical analyses of critical border spaces, the book covers extensively the US-Mexico border region and border zones around the Mediterranean. Border issues in South, Central and North America, Eastern Europe, Northern Europe, the Middle East, Central Africa and East and Central Asia are also discussed. The Handbook thus provides a truly transnational approach to borders and migration, demonstrating the dynamic but asymmetric relationship between the social structure of border enforcement and the human agency of migrants and global activists. Combining theoretical insights into structural violence and human rights with key case studies of border zones, this comprehensive Handbook is crucial reading for scholars and researchers of social and political science investigating human migration, the humanitarian, border control and human rights. Its practical insights will also benefit policy-makers involved in borders and migration, as well as advocates and NGOs working with migrants and refugees to create secure environments.

How can we create more meaningful and intimate connections with our loved-ones? By using moments of discord to strengthen our relationships, explains this original, deeply researched book. You might think that perfect harmony is the defining characteristic of a good relationship, but the truth is that human interactions are messy, complicated, and confusing. The good news, however, is that we are wired to deal with this from birth - and even to grow from it and use it to strengthen our relationships, according to renowned psychologist Ed Tronick and paediatrician Claudia Gold. Scientific research - including Dr Tronick's famous 'Still-Face Experiment' - has shown that working through mismatch and repair in everyday life helps us form deep, lasting, trusting relationships; resilience in times of stress and trauma; and a solid sense of self in the world. This refreshing and original look at our ability to relate to others and to ourselves offers a new way for us to think about our relationships, and will reassure you that conflict is both normal and healthy, building the foundation for stronger connections.

Providing a comprehensive overview of the governance of urban infrastructures, this Companion combines illustrative cases with conceptual approaches to offer an innovative perspective on the governance of large urban infrastructure systems. Contributions by leading scholars in the field present a transdisciplinary approach to the topic, with a global scope. Chapters examine the challenges facing urban infrastructure systems, including financial, economic, technological, social, ecological, jurisdictional and demand. Using novel conceptualizations of urban infrastructure, and examining global cases of specific energy, mobility, water, housing, green and telecommunication systems, the Companion further illustrates how these challenges are interrelated with their governance. Finding efficiency, sustainability, and resilience to be key governance performance indicators, it concludes by highlighting the role that digitalization plays in making cities smarter and argues for the potential of digitalization for large urban infrastructure governance. With global significance, this Companion will be an invaluable read for students and scholars of urban studies, governance and infrastructure. The informative case studies will be an excellent resource for city practitioners, officials and policymakers.

This groundbreaking Research Handbook provides a comprehensive analysis and assessment of the impact of international law on cities. It sheds light on the growing global role of cities and makes the case for a renewed understanding of international law in the light of the urban turn. Written by a group of scholars from a wide range of different geographical and theoretical backgrounds, this Research Handbook contributes to a better understanding of the practice of cities in various fields of international law ranging from climate change over human rights and migration to security governance. Additionally, it offers reflections on how to account for this urban turn in the light of historical and cross-cutting theoretical perspectives from legal and non-legal scholarship alike. Combining doctrinal work and analysis of international practice with critical historical and theoretical contributions, this Research Handbook will be a must-have reference book for researchers and students in the field of international law as well as other disciplines, including human geography, urban studies, sociology and political science.

This volume considers the important and timely question of criminal justice as a method of addressing state violence committed by non-democratic regimes. The book's main objectives concern a fresh, contemporary, and critical analysis of transitional criminal justice as a concept and its related measures, beginning with the initiatives that have been put in place with the fall of the Communist regimes in Europe in 1989.The project argues for rethinking and revisiting filters that scholars use to interpret main issues of transitional criminal justice, such as: the relationship between judicial accountability, democratisation and politics in transitional societies; the role of successor trials in rewriting history; the interaction between domestic and international actors and specific initiatives in shaping transitional justice; and the paradox of time in enhancing accountability for human rights violations. In order to accomplish this, the volume considers cases of domestic accountability in the post-1989 era, from different geographical areas, such as Europe, Asia and Africa, in relation to key events from various periods of time. In this way the approach, which investigates space and time-lines in key examples, also takes into account a longitudinal study of transitional criminal justice itself.

This is the first anthropological monograph of Muslim and Hindu lives in contemporary Myanmar. In it, Judith Beyer introduces the concept of "we-formation" as a fundamental yet underexplored capacity of humans to relate to one another outside of and apart from demarcated ethno-religious lines and corporate groups. We-formation complements the established sociological concept of community, which suggests shared origins, beliefs, values, and belonging. Community is not only a key term in academic debates; it is also a hot topic among Beyer's interlocutors in urban Yangon, who draw on it to make claims about themselves and others. Invoking "community" is a conscious and strategic act, even as it asserts and reinforces stereotypes of Hindus and Muslims as minorities. In Myanmar, this understanding of community keeps self-identified members of these groups in a subaltern position vis-a-vis the Buddhist majority population. Beyer demonstrates the concept's enduring political and legal role since being imposed on "Burmese Indians" under colonial British rule. But individuals are always more than members of groups. The author draws on ethnomethodology and existential anthropology to reveal how people's bodily movements, verbal articulations, and non-verbal expressions in communal spaces are crucial elements in practices of we-formation. Her participant observation in mosques and temples, during rituals and processions, and in private homes reveals a sensitivity to tacit and intercorporeal phenomena that is still rare in anthropological analysis. Rethinking Community in Myanmar develops a theoretical and methodological approach that reconciles individuality and intersubjectivity and that is applicable far beyond the Southeast Asian context. Its focus on we-formation also offers insights into the dynamics of resistance to the attempted military coup of 2021. The newly formed civil disobedience movement derives its power not only from having a common enemy, but also from each individual's determination to live freely in a more just society.

Freemasonry is one of the world's oldest secular associations with its modern origins dating to the remnants of the medieval stonemasons' guilds in the late seventeenth century. Today it is a major contributor to charities and promotes high levels of moral conduct and integrity in its members, who number about 250,000 in England and Wales. In the past, over-zealous notions of privacy created an impression of secrecy and mystery which led to misplaced accusations of corruption and improper behaviour by its members. The resulting and very welcome official policy of openness and transparency has led to a wider understanding of its aims and ideals. One of the most important aspects of Freemasonry is to provide its member with tools to enable them to embark on a voyage of self-discovery and self-improvement, ultimately enabling them to gain a better understanding of their spirituality. This book looks at some of the images and objects used in Masonic ritual to illuminate the Freemason's s journey of self-discovery and examines how Freemasonry's use of symbolism and allegory can provide the Freemason with tools to assist him in both facing the challenges of his everyday life and in exploring his spirituality. By looking at the development of these symbols and ritual objects and by the examination of contemporary images it also sheds light on the evolution of English freemasonry itself.

There have been books written in the past purporting to expose the secrets of Freemasonry. By and large these have been written by non-Masons and have generally been somewhat negative and antagonistic towards Freemasons and Freemasonry; missing critical nuances and making unjustified assumptions. There have also been books written by Freemasons and aimed primarily at new Freemasons, as an introduction to Freemasonry, and as such have tended to go over the heads of non-Masons. This book is written by a Freemason specifically for the non-Mason. It does not set out in any way to proselytise, neither does it attempt to justify the case for Freemasonry nor to try and make Freemasonry more acceptable or sanitised. Indeed having read the book a reader may well still continue to be left antagonistic towards Freemasonry but at least will be better informed and know the reasons why.

The artist Steve Cadburn is a full-time professional cartoonist and caricaturist and has the ability to capture facial expressions perfectly. So much so that sometime you wonder if the you're looking at a portrait from your very own lodge! If you love freemasonry this book is sure to amuse, entertain, and offer a unique insight into how Freemasons balance their commitment to families and work. With the duties, obligations and fellowship to be found in Freemasonry A must for all Masons as well as their families and friends.