We have a pornography crisis in the church. This book, however, does not take a deep dive on the statistics or how our brains are being rewired by the internet. This is not a book about the pornography business. This is a book about root causes, root teachings, and then root solutions. Mentioning the Unmentionables seeks to answer the question “How did we get here?” It calls attention to the dire problem of pornography, but then offers a faithful response in the context of the church: to mention the unmentionables.

A new collection by a poet declared "one of the most exciting poets of her generation" (Harvard Review). With elegant wordplay and her usual subversive wit, Beth Ann Fennelly explores the "unmentionable"—not only what is considered too bold but also what can't be said because words are insufficient. In sections of short narratives, she questions our everyday human foibles. Three longer sequences display her admirable reach and fierce intelligence: One, "The Kudzu Chronicles," is a rollicking piece about the transplanted weed. Another, "Bertha Morisot: Retrospective," conjures up a complex life portrait of the French impressionist painter. The third presents fifteen dream songs that virtually out-Berryman Berryman.

Unmentionables is the epic story of two couples in the Civil War south. One couple is straight, white and wealthy; the other is gay, black and enslaved. Field hand Jimmy meets Cato, a house servant from a nearby plantation. Over time, Jimmy's fascination with Cato grows into romantic love. Winner Book of the Year award for Gay fiction

NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER Have you ever wished you could live in an earlier, more romantic era? Ladies, welcome to the 19th century, where there's arsenic in your face cream, a pot of cold pee sits under your bed, and all of your underwear is crotchless. (Why? Shush, dear. A lady doesn't question.) UNMENTIONABLE is your hilarious, illustrated, scandalously honest (yet never crass) guide to the secrets of Victorian womanhood, giving you detailed advice on: ~ What to wear ~ Where to relieve yourself ~ How to conceal your loathsome addiction to menstruating ~ What to expect on your wedding night ~ How to be the perfect Victorian wife ~ Why masturbating will kill you ~ And more Irresistibly charming, laugh-out-loud funny, and featuring nearly 200 images from Victorian publications, UNMENTIONABLE will inspire a whole new level of respect for Elizabeth Bennett, Scarlet O'Hara, Jane Eyre, and all of our great, great grandmothers. (And it just might leave you feeling ecstatically grateful to live in an age of pants, super absorbency tampons, epidurals, anti-depressants, and not-dying-of-the-syphilis-your-husband-brought-home.)

Nietzsche and Science explores the German philosopher's response to the extraordinary cultural impact of the natural sciences in the late nineteenth century. It argues that the science of his day exerted a powerful influence on his thought and provided an important framework within which he articulated his ideas. The first part of the book investigates Nietzsche's knowledge and understanding of specific disciplines and the influence of particular scientists on Nietzsche's thought. The second part examines how Nietzsche actually incorporated various scientific ideas, concepts and theories into his philosophy, the ways in which he exploited his reading to frame his writings, and the relationship between his understanding of science and other key themes of his thought, such as art, rhetoric and the nature of philosophy itself.

Almost everyone swears, or worries about not swearing, from the two year-old who has just discovered the power of potty mouth to the grandma who wonders why every other word she hears is obscene. Whether they express anger or exhilaration, are meant to insult or to commend, swear words perform a crucial role in language. But swearing is also a uniquely well-suited lens through which to look at history, offering a fascinating record of what people care about on the deepest levels of a culture--what's divine, what's terrifying, and what's taboo. Holy Sh*t tells the story of two kinds of swearing--obscenities and oaths--from ancient Rome and the Bible to today. With humor and insight, Melissa Mohr takes readers on a journey to discover how "swearing" has come to include both testifying with your hand on the Bible and calling someone a *#$&!* when they cut you off on the highway. She explores obscenities in ancient Rome--which were remarkably similar to our own--and unearths the history of religious oaths in the Middle Ages, when swearing (or not swearing) an oath was often a matter of life and death. Holy Sh*t also explains the advancement of civility and corresponding censorship of language in the 18th century, considers the rise of racial slurs after World War II, examines the physiological effects of swearing (increased heart rate and greater pain tolerance), and answers a question that preoccupies the FCC, the US Senate, and anyone who has recently overheard little kids at a playground: are we swearing more now than people did in the past? A gem of lexicography and cultural history, Holy Sh*t is a serious exploration of obscenity--and it also just might expand your repertoire of words to choose from the next time you shut your finger in the car door.

By the early second century the Christian Church was predominantly Gentile, having separated from its Jewish roots and base. It lost most all understanding of Jewish culture. Very few in the church could read Hebrew, and as significantly, its Scriptures were in Greek, which contributed to its growing ignorance of the intricacies of Jewish word play. They could not and did not retain the richness, the interconnectedness, and the brilliance of the Hebrew writing, and thereby misinterpreted much of what they cherished. Today, many, if not most, Christians also lack the basic knowhow needed to adequately appreciate our Jewish-written Scriptures. This little 150 page book will not heal what ails us, but in a light, sometimes fun, other times serious way, it will help, and that is needed. It may even erase a few of the lines that separate our two great communities-Jewish and Christian-and remind us of our shared humanity and Faith. Creative, insightful, humorous, sensitive, challenging, thought provoking . . . . What other words are used to describe this book and its author? See pages iv and v.