In June 2007 Rev. Mark Townsend resigned from his ministry as a priest after his decision to share his story of brokenness and failure with the hierarchy. This book is the irreverent and whimsical, yet honest and gut-wrenching, story of his struggle to hold on to a faith within a world that seemed to be against him. It is a story that brings hope to all those who feel the established Western religious path has lost sight of compassion, grace and the one who could easily have been called ‘Friend of Failures.’ As the author gradually digs himself out of the consequential gutter the reader will discover that all such failures can be redeemed and may even produce glittering nuggets of gold. More importantly, the reader will begin to see that his or her own failure can also lead to real moments of magic - so long as it is not repressed but accepted. A major underlying theme of the whole diary is the notion that real magic does exist, and that the magical traditions such as Druidry can be a major blessing for those who crave for something more. ,

When Malcolm Tully, the young owner of a pastry shop in suburban Chicago, hosts a Saturday night discussion group, he is astonished to find an audience hungry to learn life's meaning and ready to pay for it. Quirky, comic, and poignant, DIARY OF A HERETIC is a wild ride through the dark reaches of faith and desire.

Every man is possessed of one great sin. Etienne Allard is a libertine. Carousing with prostitutes, gambling away his fortunes, and carrying on clandestine affairs with the married elite of Belle Époque Paris, he wiles away his days, and nights, drinking deeply from the cup of carnal delights both divine and devilish. But even pleasure has its limits. So, when the infernal emissary Arman Sur appears with an offer of a life of sensual passions unimaginable in exchange for his soul, a deal is struck that will lead Etienne on a journey to the heights of rapture and the edge of madness. Decades later, an ageless and aimless Etienne wanders the earth like Cain bemoaning his self-inflicted tortures. That is until fate intercedes, and the reappearance of a one-time enemy bearing a remarkable secret sets Etienne on a new journey to reap his own vengeance upon the devil and reclaim his lost soul.

My name is Winfred Menson. I have published this text with the hope that you may find in it what I have found-a wonderful surge and rolling back, 'mysterious salvation' conjured by a writer who has no idea that he is one. I don't know who Charlie is, or was. I don't know if his story is true, or whether he ever left Greystone at all. But I am certain that while The Heretic's Diaries may not be a good book, it seems entirely unpretentious.

Excerpt from The Secret Life: Being the Book of a Heretic "The very Devil's in the moon for mischief: There's not a day, the longest, not the twenty-first of June, Sees half the mischief in a quiet way On which three single hours of moonlight smile." At my age, alas! one no longer gets into mischief, either by moonlight or at mid summer, and yet to-day all the tricksey spirits of the invisible world are supposed to be abroad - tangling the horses' manes, souring the milk maid's cream, setting lovers by the ears. Some such frisky Puck stirs even peaceable middle-aged blood at this season to mild little secret sins, such as beginning a diary in which to set down one's private naughty views - the heresies one has grown too staid and cautious to give speech to any longer. About the Publisher Forgotten Books publishes hundreds of thousands of rare and classic books. Find more at www.forgottenbooks.com This book is a reproduction of an important historical work. Forgotten Books uses state-of-the-art technology to digitally reconstruct the work, preserving the original format whilst repairing imperfections present in the aged copy. In rare cases, an imperfection in the original, such as a blemish or missing page, may be replicated in our edition. We do, however, repair the vast majority of imperfections successfully; any imperfections that remain are intentionally left to preserve the state of such historical works.

Covers issues from unnecessary surgeries and prescribed drugs to preventive medicine and home births.

A New York Public Library Best Book of the Year! Put an atheist in a strict Catholic school? Expect comedy, chaos, and an Inquisition. The Breakfast Club meets Saved! in debut author Katie Henry’s hilarious novel about a band of misfits who set out to challenge their school, one nun at a time. Perfect for fans of Becky Albertalli and Robyn Schneider. When Michael walks through the doors of Catholic school, things can’t get much worse. His dad has just made the family move again, and Michael needs a friend. When a girl challenges their teacher in class, Michael thinks he might have found one, and a fellow atheist at that. Only this girl, Lucy, isn’t just Catholic . . . she wants to be a priest. Lucy introduces Michael to other St. Clare’s outcasts, and he officially joins Heretics Anonymous, where he can be an atheist, Lucy can be an outspoken feminist, Avi can be Jewish and gay, Max can wear whatever he wants, and Eden can practice paganism. Michael encourages the Heretics to go from secret society to rebels intent on exposing the school’s hypocrisies one stunt at a time. But when Michael takes one mission too far—putting the other Heretics at risk—he must decide whether to fight for his own freedom or rely on faith, whatever that means, in God, his friends, or himself.