This monograph contributes to a better understanding of the Book of Chronicles. The past forty years have seen a complete transformation in the study of the Book of Chronicles. The former domination of Chronicles by parallel texts in the Books of Samuel and Kings made way for studying the historical, sociological, literary, theological, and ideological aspects of Chronicles in their own right. This book/document is now increasingly recognized as being of major interest to the Second Temple Period. Reading the book of Chronicles, it appears that the Chronicler is constantly transforming Israel's tradition(s) into a new theological and ideological system. In this study, attention is, therefore, paid both to specific texts, such as 1 Chronicles 17; 21; 2 Chronicles 20; 26, and to particular central themes, such as the special function of Jerusalem, and the peculiar way of how the Chronicler presents prophets, war narratives, and genealogies.

In a world grown cold without wonder, how do we reimagine the drama and joy of Christianity? For C. S. Lewis, the answer was to invite us into Narnia, a new world that would help us see our own with fresh, healed eyes. Even now, it is not too late to go there. When Lewis wrote his Chronicles of Narnia, he laid out a land where courage would be tested and character forged—where travelers would find themselves on a journey toward unimaginable beauty. The stories are not for children alone. They touch the mind and soul of anyone who is open to becoming childlike again, including adults who have become too weighed down by life to enjoy its simple glories. The Chronicles of Transformation, edited by University of Notre Dame professor Leonard J. DeLorenzo, is a collaborative work between scholars and artists, aimed to open adult readers' eyes and hearts to the transformative power of Lewis' Narnia, book by book. Jesus teaches,"Unless you turn and become like children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven." The Chronicles of Narnia, read anew, can help us do just that. Includes seven original illustrations by Stephen Barany.

The Butterfly Chronicles takes you on Seanette's unpredictable rollercoaster ride filled with twists, turns, peaks, and valleys. How can a child survive, when coming from a dysfunctional home with verbal and physical abuse, domestic violence to sexual abuse, witnessing the loss of her only father figure, and including her own bouts with various self-destructive and at-risk behaviors? Seanette's survival attests to the power of undying faith, perseverance and positive thinking. Through her journey, you will see how God and His angels kept her grounded and protected, especially when se lost her way.

Dante, Mercy, and the Beauty of the Human Person is a pilgrimage to rediscover the spiritual and humanizing benefit of the Commedia. Treating each cantica of the poem, this volume offers profound meditations on the intertwined themes of memory, prayer, sainthood, the irony of sin, theological and literary aesthetics, and desire, all while consistently reflecting upon the key themes of mercy and beauty in the revelation of the human person within the drama of divine love.

Rachel Cusk meets Nora Ephron in this intimate and evolving portrait about the end of a marriage and how life can fall apart and be rebuilt in wonderful and surprising ways "Thrilling." —The New York Times Book Review One minute Elizabeth Crane and her husband of fifteen years are fixing up their old house in Upstate New York, finally setting down roots after stints in Chicago, Texas, and Brooklyn, when his unexpected admission—I’m not happy—changes everything. Suddenly she finds herself separated and in couples therapy, living in an apartment in the city with an old friend and his kid. It’s understood that the apartment and bonus family are temporary, but the situation brings unexpected comfort and much-needed healing for wounds even older than her marriage. Crafting the story as the very events chronicled are unfolding, Crane writes from a place of guarded possibility, capturing through vignettes and collected moments a semblance of the real-time practice of healing. At turns funny and dark, with moments of poignancy, This Story Will Change is an unexpected and moving portrait of a woman in transformation, a chronicle of how even the stories we tell ourselves about ourselves are bound to change.

Have you ever asked yourself why you are on planet Earth? And what the ultimate purpose for your life might be? Well, Jack Canfield asked himself this very question and came up with a surprising answer —part of which included a vision revealing that he is part of a "Golden Motorcycle Gang" —a gang whose intent is to have fun, but also to make significant contributions to the well-being of humanity. During a joyful dinner many years ago in Santa Barbara, California, Jack told his friend William Gladstone about the Gang. Upon hearing this account, William had an epiphany that Jack's story held a powerful underlying truth not only explaining Jack's true purpose, but William's as well. For more than ten years, William encouraged Jack to write a book based on the story of the Gang, so they have now collaborated on this work to show you its relevance to this critical moment in the history of human civilization . . . and also to you, personally. As you read, you will be introduced to some of the extraordinary members of the Golden Motorcycle Gang, including visionary thinkers such as Barbara Marx Hubbard, the originator of the concept of Conscious Evolution. The mystery and adventure inherent in this book reveals that there is now the opportunity for all of us on planet Earth to make a quantum leap in real time toward choosing the actual course of our evolution. Along the way, we are meant to experience the joy that comes from recognizing who we really are. Perhaps, as you embark on Jack's journey along with him . . . you will find that you are also a member of the Golden Motorcycle Gang! So get ready for the adventure of your life!

Former Archbishop of Canterbury Rowan Williams offers fascinating insight into The Chronicles of Narnia, the popular series of novels by one of the most influential Christian authors of the modern era, C. S. Lewis. Lewis once referred to certain kinds of book as a "mouthwash for the imagination." This is what he attempted to provide in the Narnia stories, argues Williams: an unfamiliar world in which we could rinse out what is stale in our thinking about Christianity--"which is almost everything," says Williams--and rediscover what it might mean to meet the holy. Indeed, Lewis's great achievement in the Narnia books is just that-he enables readers to encounter the Christian story "as if for the first time." How does Lewis makes fresh and strange the familiar themes of Christian doctrine? Williams points out that, for one, Narnia itself is a strange place: a parallel universe, if you like. There is no "church" in Narnia, no religion even. The interaction between Aslan as a "divine" figure and the inhabitants of this world is something that is worked out in the routines of life itself. Moreover, we are made to see humanity in a fresh perspective, the pride or arrogance of the human spirit is chastened by the revelation that, in Narnia, you may be on precisely the same spiritual level as a badger or a mouse. It is through these imaginative dislocations that Lewis is able to communicate--to a world that thinks it knows what faith is--the character, the feel, of a real experience of surrender in the face of absolute incarnate love. This lucid, learned, humane, and beautifully written book opens a new window onto Lewis's beloved stories, revealing the moral wisdom and passionate faith beneath their perennial appeal.