Appropriating insights from empirical findings and theoretical constructs of 'embodied cognition', this study explores how theological understanding is accommodated to the bodily nature of human cognition. The principle of divine accommodation provides a theological framework for considering the human cognitive capacities that are accommodated by theological concepts and ecclesial practices. A rich portrait of the nature of human cognitive capacities is drawn from an emerging paradigm in cognitive science, embodied cognition, which proposes that cognition depends upon bodily sensorimotor systems to ground concepts and to draw upon environmental resources. Embodied cognition's hypothesis that human concepts are grounded in sensorimotor states poses a theological quandary for God-concepts, since identifying God with sensorimotor content risks idolatry. The incarnation resolves this problem in theological epistemology by grounding God-concepts in bodily understanding, while avoiding idolatry. Thus, the incarnation represents an accommodation to human conceptual capacities. Embodied cognition further hypothesises that cognition relies on sensorimotor engagement with the world rather than internal mental representations. Subsequently, in addition to the brain, bodily states and environmental artefacts 'scaffold' cognitive processes. A scaffolded view of cognition highlights the cognitive import of embodied religious practices, which choregraph the body and curate material culture. Tobias Tanton applies dozens of studies identifying mechanisms by which bodily or environmental factors influence cognition to the embodied and material dimensions Christian practices. On account of their inherent cognitive effects, practices are theorised to have intrinsic 'embodied' meanings alongside 'symbolic' ones established by conventions. Consequently, liturgy is seen as a bearer of theological content rather than merely an expression of it; a locus of religious experience; and a crucial determinate of religious and ethical formation. Again, the embodied nature of Christian liturgy is understood in terms of accommodation. Embodied cognition research helpfully illuminates the details of human embodiment to which theological understanding must be accommodated.

With few exceptions, the scholarship on religion in late antiquity has emphasized its tendencies toward transcendence, abstraction, and spirit at the expense of matter. In The Corporeal Imagination, Patricia Cox Miller argues instead that ancient Christianity took a material turn between the fourth and seventh centuries. During this period, Miller contends, there occurred a major shift in the ways in which the human being was oriented in relation to the divine, a shift that reconfigured the relationship between materiality and meaning in a positive direction. The Corporeal Imagination is a groundbreaking investigation into the theological poetics of material substance in late ancient Christian texts. From hagiographies to literary descriptions of sacred paintings to treatises on relics and theurgy, Miller examines a wide variety of ancient texts to reveal how Christian writers increasingly described the matter of the world as invested with divine power. By appealing to the reader's sensory imagination, Christian texts endowed phenomena like relics, saints' bodies in hagiography, and saints' presence in icons with a visual and tactile presence. The book draws on a variety of contemporary theoretical models to elucidate the significance of all these materials in ancient religious life and imagination.

This work explores the impact of Christian women—as scholars and leaders representing the ethnic, national, racial, and denominational diversity of Christianity today—on all aspects of life. Women and Christianity explores the experiences of women and how their daily lives interface with their spirituality and faith. Beginning with a historical overview, the book presents essays grouped under five broad headings: women, family, and environment; socioeconomics, politics, and authority; body, mind, and spirit; sex, power, and vulnerability; and women, world view, and religious practice. These essays focus on multiple aspects of women's experiences and contemporary Christian realities, involving the interrelatedness of faith, thought, and activism across many strata of global society. They wrestle with the daily experiences and challenges women face integrating their lives as women of faith—as they are advocates, experience agency, and work for mutuality. It shows how in all these roles, women must negotiate power, injustice, and the impact of sexism as they work within systemic oppression amid a patriarchal system, nevertheless championing change and refusing to be severely compromised.

This text explores Mikhail Bakhtin's reliance on the terms and concepts of theology. It begins with an identification of the theological categories and terms recalling Christology in general and Trinitarianism in particular that emerge throughout Bakhtin's long and varied career. Alexander Mihailovic discusses the elaborately wrought subtextual imagery, wordplay, and palpable orality of Bakhtin's theology of discourse, and explores the role that theology plays in supporting Bakhtin's ideas about the anti-hierarchical drift of language and culture.

Musaicum Books presents to you this unique Christianity collection with carefully picked out religious works from the earliest times to modern days, showing the development of Christian religion and spirituality. Scripture: Bible First Clement Second Clement Didache Epistle of Barnabas Shepherd of Hermas The Infancy Gospel of Thomas Apocalypse of Peter History: History of the Christian Church (Philip Schaff) Creeds of Christendom (Philip Schaff) Philosophy of Religion: The Confessions of St. Augustine On the Incarnation (Athanasius) On the Soul and the Resurrection (Gregory of Nyssa) On the Holy Spirit (Basil) Pastoral Care (Gregory I) An Exact Exposition of the Orthodox Faith (John of Damascus) Summa Theologica (Saint Thomas Aquinas) The Imitation of Christ (Thomas à Kempis) A Treatise on Christian Liberty (Martin Luther) The Interior Castle (St. Teresa of Ávila) The Practice of the Presence of God (Brother Lawrence) The Age of Reason (Thomas Paine) The Natural History of Religion (David Hume) The Religious Affections (Jonathan Edwards) The Essence of Christianity (Ludwig Feuerbach) Beyond Good and Evil (Nietzsche) All of Grace (Charles Spurgeon) Humility (Andrew Murray) Orthodoxy (Chesterton) The Everlasting Man (Chesterton) The Sovereignty of God (Arthur Pink) The Kingdom of God Is Within You (Tolstoy) Religious Fiction: Divine Comedy (Dante) Paradise Lost (John Milton) The Pilgrim's Progress (John Bunyan) Zadig (Voltaire) Ben-Hur: A Tale of the Christ (Lew Wallace) Quo Vadis (Henryk Sienkiewicz) In His Steps (Charles M. Sheldon) The Story of the Other Wise Man (Henry Van Dyke) The Ball and the Cross (Chesterton) The Enchanted Barn (Grace Livingston Hill) The Grand Inquisitor (Dostoevsky Wilhelm Meister's Apprenticeship (Goethe) Thus Spoke Zarathustra (Nietzsche) Spirituality: The Conduct of Life (Ralph Waldo Emerson) Lessons in Truth (H. Emilie Cady) As a Man Thinketh (James Allen) Thoughts are Things (Prentice Mulford) The Game of Life and How to Play It (Florence Scovel Shinn)

The anthology '50 Christian Books: Scripture, History, Theology, Spirituality and Fiction' represents an unprecedented assembly of philosophical, theological, and literary genius spanning centuries of Christian thought and storytelling. It binds together an eclectic mixture of genresfrom theological treatises and spiritual autobiographies to allegorical fiction and philosophical discourse. The diversity present within this collection allows for a comprehensive exploration of Christian ideals, ethics, and spiritual struggles. Among these pages, readers will find seminal works that have shaped Christian thought and influenced global literary movements, providing insights into the perennial questions of faith, good and evil, and human destiny. The contributing authors and editors, ranging from early church fathers like Saint Augustine and Gregory of Nyssa to Renaissance luminaries such as John Milton, up to modern philosophers like Friedrich Nietzsche and G.K. Chesterton, embody a wide spectrum of theological, philosophical, and cultural perspectives. This diversity reflects the anthology's commitment to displaying the rich tapestry of Christian literature, encompassing various epochs, cultures, and doctrinal viewpoints. Their collective works chart the development of Christian theology and philosophy, engage with the socio-political challenges of their times, and continue to provoke thoughtful reflection on moral and spiritual questions today. This collection is essential reading for anyone interested in the depth and diversity of Christian literary tradition. It offers readers the unique opportunity to engage with a myriad of perspectives and voices, all united by the theme of exploring the Christian faith but varied in their approaches and conclusions. Whether one approaches these works with scholarly intent, spiritual seeking, or mere curiosity about the influence of Christianity on world literature, there is much to be gleaned from the dialogue these texts provoke. '50 Christian Books' invites a journey through history, thought, and beliefa journey well worth taking for the richness of its scenery and the company of its guides.

Embodiment--having, being in, or being associated with a body--is a feature of the existence of many entities, perhaps even of all entities. Why entities should find themselves in this condition is the philosophical problem that concerns the present volume. The contributors to this volume shine light on a number of demanding questions that have driven reflection on embodiment throughout the history of philosophy.