This is anovel about the return of Mary Magdalene at the end of time. It tells of her final incarnationasa young woman named Jenna who is born with a birthmark over her forehead shaped like the continent of Africa. Jennaisirreligious and tough, andunhappily immersed in the corporate world. Unbidden, she starts to have dreams and visions of a time with Christ, andthey become soreal that she crosses through time tofind herself weeping at hisfeetduringthecrucifixion. This is also a story about the Cathars in the Languedoc area of France. The Cathars embraced the idea of reincarnation. For this, andfor theirbelief indirect revelation and a dualistic universe of good and evil, theywere destroyedby the Catholic Church in the 13th century. In the process, their society was destroyed too as town after town was mercilessly razed by the crusaders andthousands put to death: men, women and children, none were spared. This became known as the first western genocide of Christian against Christian. Because of theCathars, the Church gave birth to the Inquisition. The Cathars loved Mary Magdalene, andbelievedthat she was the beloved of Christ and the keeper of his teachings. Their story is interwoven with the Knights Templar who were embedded in the Languedoc, and with Jenna's ongoing odyssey as she comes to full awareness ofwho she is. Ultimately, this is a story about love that does not depend on time. It is also a warning about the end of time.

Bringing together the voices of Elders and traditional teachers from across Canada, this collection compares the vision and experience of a generation and sets a new standard for the representation of First Nations cultures in academic context.

As a woman in the church, it's difficult to know what it means to say "I'm called to ministry." Whether you have been wrestling with that calling for years or are just starting to ask what it means, Now That I'm Called will provide you with guidance and direction on your journey. Perhaps you are feeling the Holy Spirit leading you toward vocational ministry but are unsure of what that means or if you are hearing the voice of the Lord correctly. This book will help you answer these questions and serve as a guide as you walk down this new and unfamiliar path. Author Kristen Padilla answers questions like: What does the Bible say about ministerial calling? Can I, as a woman, be called to gospel ministry? What is the difference between spiritual gifts and ministerial roles within the church? Is there value in obtaining a theological education? Should I go to a Bible college, seminary, or divinity school, and what is the difference between these three? What is the value in having a ministerial mentor and doing internships? What if I feel called to ministry but do not know what type of ministry? Each chapter ends with further questions, exercises, assignments, and stories of real women doing vocational ministry. This is a book that will prepare you for a lifetime of vocational service to God. You will walk away with a biblical understanding of ministerial calling and a robust view of women in gospel ministry, as well as practical tools to help you pursue God's call for your life. X

Chosen by God Mary was more than the mother of Jesus. She was a hero of the Bible. She said “Yes!” to God. Learn about Mary and her exciting place in history. Discover what it was like to grow up in Israel and be a part of Jesus’ life on earth. Mary—part of the Get to Know series—will teach you everything you need to know about this young woman whom God used to do great things!

Alice Walker's Pulitzer Prize winning novel The Color Purple is a tale of personal empowerment which opens with a protagonist Celie who is at the bottom of America's social caste. A poor, black, ugly and uneducated female in the America's Jim Crow South in the first half of the 20th century, she is the victim of constant rape, violence and misogynistic verbal abuse. Celie cannot conceive of an escape from her present condition, and so she learns to be passive and unemotional. But The Color Purple eventually demonstrates how Celie learns to fight back and how she discovers her true sexuality and her unique voice. By the end of the novel, Celie is an empowered, financially-independent entrepreneur/landowner, one who speaks her mind and realizes the desirability of black femaleness while creating a safe space for herself and those she loves. Through a journey of literary criticism, Dialogue: Alice Walker's The Color Purple follows Celie's transformation from victim to hero. Each scholarly essay becomes a step of the journey that paves the way for the development of self and sexual awareness, the beginnings of religious transformation and the creation of nurturing places like home and community.

A moving, evocative tale of love, grief, and sisterhood from the author of the “brilliant, tender, and riveting” (John Dufresne, author of I Don’t Like Where This Is Going) The Winters in Bloom. She can hear the music in people’s souls. Mary Beth and her younger sister Leeann are trying to support themselves in their small Southern hometown. Mary Beth works to make ends meet by practicing her own unique talent: “song reading.” By making sense of the song lyrics people have stuck in their heads, Mary Beth can help people make sense of their lives. In no time, Mary Beth’s readings have the entire town singing her praises, including the handsome scientist Ben, who falls hard for Mary Beth and her unearthly intuition. What happens when she can’t make out the lyrics? When Mary Beth reveals a long-muted secret in the community, however, she turns off the music and gives up song reading for good. Soon everyone’s lives are out of tune: Leeann worries she’ll never graduate from high school, and Ben can’t conduct his experiments. Without Mary Beth’s music, the town’s silence is louder than ever. Could it be that all the lyrics to all those foolish love songs really aren’t so foolish after all?

A devout Catholic, a visionary—and some say prophetic—writer, Flannery O’Connor (1925–1964) has gained a growing presence in contemporary popular culture. While O’Connor professed that she did not have an ear for music, allusions to her writing appear in the lyrics and narrative form of some of the most celebrated musicians on the contemporary music scene. Flannery at the Grammys sounds the extensive influence of this southern author on the art and vision of a suite of American and British singer-songwriters and pop groups. Author Irwin H. Streight invites critical awareness of O’Connor’s resonance in the products of popular music culture—in folk, blues, rock, gospel, punk, heavy metal, and indie pop songs by some of the most notable figures in the popular music business. Streight examines O'Connor's influence on the art and vision of multiple Grammy Award winners Bruce Springsteen, Lucinda Williams, R.E.M., and U2, along with celebrated songwriters Nick Cave, PJ Harvey, Sufjan Stevens, Mary Gauthier, Tom Waits, and others. Despite her orthodox religious, and at times controversial, views and limited literary output, O’Connor has left a curiously indelible mark on the careers of the successful musicians discussed in this volume. Still, her acknowledged influence and remarkable presence in contemporary pop and rock songs has not been well noted by pop music critics and/or literary scholars. Many years in the making, Flannery at the Grammys achieves groundbreaking work in cultural studies and combines in-depth literary and pop music scholarship to engage the informed devotee and the casual reader alike.