[Do you want to experience true freedom? [Do you feel there is still something missing in your life in spite of success and accomplishments? [Do you find yourself exhausted and in need of experiencing a spiritual refreshment? [Do you still have areas in need of spiritual healing? [Do you feel the need to be accepted, recognized, and understood? We all have the desire to live in freedom; we fight for justice and civil rights, but even then, we seem to lose our way while searching for the most important freedom our lives desire. In Search of True Freedom will help you discover the best way to live in victory regardless of your circumstances. VICTOR MANUEL RIVERA has led discipleship ministries, home Bible study groups, leadership school training, and other ministerial responsibilities in the local church. His desire is to glorify God by serving and developing others, challenging them to become what the Lord has declared them to be. Victor and his family live in Washington State.

True Freedom: Spinoza's Practical Philosophy is a straightforward presentation of Spinoza's philosophy focused on the issue of how one might live. The book is unique among recent Spinoza scholarship in the way in which it centers on the ethical component in Spinoza's work. In order to bring Spinoza's ethics to the fore, Brent Adkins begin with what he considers to be Spinoza's fundamental ethical insight: namely, that emotions are controlled by understanding them. Adkins reveals how the process of unfolding Spinoza's philosophy is always anchored in the very practical issue of living well. The significance of True Freedom lies in its understanding of Spinoza's ethics as an 'experimentalism' and its accessibility to a very wide audience. Despite the fact that Spinoza died over 300 years ago, his writings remain remarkably prescient for a wide variety of disciplines, from religion to neuroscience. The source of this prescience, however, comes from Spinoza's recasting ethical theory in terms of how we might live rather than in terms of how we should live. Freedom in every aspect of life from the personal to the political to the religious is dependent on a particular way of engaging with the world. This engagement takes the form of an experiment to see if what we engage with results in an increase or a decrease in our capacity to affect and be affected by the world. True freedom, for Spinoza, lies in increasing our capacities.

Finding a proper balance between freedom and responsibility is a problem that has faced every serious Christian. For those raised in a highly structured religious environment, balancing loyalties to a religious organization, family, and personal conscience may raise difficult issues. Raymond Franz's first-hand account of the issues with which he struggled forms the theme of his first book, Crisis of Conscience. In Search of Christian Freedom, the sequel to Crisis of Conscience, provides even more comprehensive study. The issues and options discussed herein, although relating particularly to the structure of Jehovah's Witnesses, are not so very different from issues other Christians have faced and continue to face when they seek to reconcile considerations for conscience, loyalty, responsibility and freedom. This work will mover readers — of any religion — to consider seriously how much they value Christian freedom and to ask how genuine their own freedom is.

True Freedom is all about healing and change. There are many things that can stop or prevent individuals from moving forward. These obstacles can be things like alcohol, anger, pills, food, pornography, or unhealthy relationships. So, what can be done? Throughout True Freedom, readers learn important choices and practical action steps that helps move them forward in a positive direction. Rick Bosch’s personal experience and the work he has done over the last 15 years with people has allowed him to develop a process that includes making specific choices and taking actions that are essential in discovering freedom. Imagine living a life of transparency, free from fear and regrets. That is what readers find within the pages of True Freedom.

Representing the Other in Modern Japanese Literature looks at the ways in which authors writing in Japanese in the twentieth century constructed a division between the ‘Self’ and the ‘Other’ in their work. Drawing on methodology from Foucault and Lacan, the clearly presented essays seek to show how Japanese writers have responded to the central question of what it means to be ‘Japanese’ and of how best to define their identity. Taking geographical, racial and ethnic identity as a starting point to explore Japan's vision of 'non-Japan', representations of the Other are examined in terms of the experiences of Japanese authors abroad and in the imaginary lands envisioned by authors in Japan. Using a diverse cross-section of writers and texts as case studies, this edited volume brings together contributions from a number of leading international experts in the field and is written at an accessible level, making it essential reading for those working in Japanese studies, colonialism, identity studies and nationalism.