In Faith Amid the Ruins, Heath Thomas brings the story of Habakkuk to life—reminding us that although it’s a small book about a lesser known prophet, it’s themes and importance are anything but minor. When we face hardship and opposition, it’s easy to seek security and stability instead of God’s will. Habakkuk teaches us both about the faithfulness of God and what it looks like to live faithfully before God when life turns upside down.

Where do we turn when our world is falling apart?It takes courage to hope; to stand in our confusion and grief and still to believe that 'God is not helpless among the ruins'. Guided by Habakkuk and his prophetic landmarks, we are drawn on a reflective journey through the tangled landscape of bewildered faith, through places of wrestling and waiting, and on into the growth space of deepened trust and transformation. As you read, discover for yourself the value and practice of honest prayer, of surrender, of silence and listening, and of irrepressible hoping.

Argues that the postmodern Western church is in ruins and that to be in the church is to embrace a "broken way of life"

Donald E. Gowan offers new insights into what may be the Old Testament's earliest treatment of the problem of suffering: the book of Habakkuk. That small, obscure part of the Old Testament tucked away somewhere in the middle of the minor prophets,--as Gowan put it--Habakkuk has been a middle child of too many Bible students' non-attention. Yet Gowan makes no claim that this book should be more central than it has been. Instead, he shows his own personal, pastoral, and scholarly involvement with this powerful tract. After an introductory chapter, the author examines each of Habakkuk's three sections. Gowan offers his own translation of the text, applying a critical approach, and providing a decisive commentary. Gowan compares the first section's dialogue between the prophet and God (Habakkuk 1:1--2:4) with other Old Testament dialogues about God's justice. He also discusses God's response, But the just shall live by faith, as a meaningful answer to Habakkuk's questions. While the woe-oracles of the second section (Habakkuk 2:5-20) have not seemed very important in the past, Gowan shows how they form a mock funeral dirge sung in advance of a great tyrant's death. He then applies this insight to the problems of tyranny and liberty today. The psalm (Habakkuk 3) which concludes the book is discussed in terms of Israelite traditions, theophany, faith, and history. The central focus is placed on Habakkuk's striking personal statement concerning the ability of the man of faith to live through suffering joyfully. Recognizing the relationship of our suffering to that of Christ, Gowan concludes The Triumph of Faith in Habakkuk by drawing together relevant themes from Habakkuk's time and Jesus's experience.

DIVDIV“A great adventure . . . So outrageous and so real, one is left speechless.” —Chicago Sun Times/divDIV/divDIVIn Walker Percy’s future America, the country is on the brink of disaster. With citizens violently polarized along racial, political, and social lines, and a fifteen-year war still raging abroad, America is crumbling quickly into ruin. The country’s one remaining hope is Dr. Thomas More, whose “lapsometer” is capable of diagnosing the spiritual afflictions—anxiety, depression, alienation—driving everyone’s destructive and disastrous behavior./divDIV /divDIVBut such a potent machine has its pitfalls. As Dr. More soon learns, in the wrong hands, the powerful lapsometer could lead to open warfare, pushing America into anarchy at full-speed./div /div

Julius Evola's masterful overview of the political and social manifestations of our time, the "age of decline" known to the Hindus as the Kali Yuga. • Reveals the occult war that underlies the crises that have become a prevailing feature of modern life. • Includes H. T. Hansen's definitive essay on Evola's political life and theory. Men Among the Ruins is Evola's frontal assault on the predominant materialism of our time and the mirage of progress. For Evola and other proponents of Traditionalism, we are now living in an age of increasing strife and chaos: the Kali Yuga of the Hindus or the Germanic Ragnarok. In such a time, social decadence is so widespread that it appears as a natural component of all political institutions. Evola argues that the crises that dominate the daily lives of our societies are part of a secret occult war to remove the support of spiritual and traditional values in order to turn man into a passive instrument of the powerful. Evola is often regarded as the godfather of contemporary Italian fascism and right-wing radical politics, but attentive examination of the historical record--as provided by H. T. Hanson's definitive introduction--reveals Evola to be a much more complex figure. Though he held extreme right-wing views, he was a fearless critic of the Fascist regime and preferred a caste system based on spirituality and intellect to the biological racism championed by the Nazis. Ultimately, he viewed the forces of history as comprised by two factions: "history's demolition squad" enslaved by blind faith in the future and those individuals whose watchword is Tradition. These latter stand in this world of ruins at a higher level and are capable of letting go of what needs to be abandoned in order that what is truly essential not be compromised.

For those looking to deepen their appreciation of Flannery O'Connor, Wood shows how this literary icon's stories, novels, and essays impinge on America's cultural and ecclesial condition.