Recent years have seen scholars in a wide range of disciplines re-evaluate the history of the Society of Jesus. In 1997, a group of scholars convened a major international conference to discuss the world of the Jesuits between 1540 and 1773 (the year of its suppression by papal edict). This meeting led to the creation of the first volume in this series, The Jesuits, which examined the worldwide Jesuit undertaking in such fields as music, art, architecture, devotional writing, mathematics, physics, astronomy, natural history, public performance, and education, with special attention to the Jesuits' interaction with non-European cultures. This second volume, following a second conference in 2002, continues in a similar path as its predecessor, complementing the regional coverage with contributions on the Flemish and Iberian provinces, on the missions in Japan, and in post-Suppression Russia and the United States. The performing arts, like theatre and music, are broadly treated, and, in addition to continued attention to painting and architecture, the volume contains essays on a range of objets d'art, including statuary, reliquaries, and alter pieces - as well as on gardens, mechanical clocks, and related automata. Other themes include finances, natural theology, censorship within the Jesuit order, and the Society's relationship to women. Perhaps most important, the volume gives particular attention to the eighteenth century, the 'age of disasters' for the Jesuits - the negative papal ruling on Chinese Rites, the destruction the of Paraguay Reductions, and the suppressions of the order that began in Portugal and that culminated in the general Suppression of 1773. With contributions from distinguished scholars from a dozen different countries, The Jesuits, II continues in the illustrious tradition of its predecessor to make an important contribution to religious memory.

Presents over 130 color reproductions of the landscape paintings of Tucson-based artist Hurlstone Fairchild, with a biographical introduction.

Has the time come for your elf to stay forever? This heartwarming Christmas children's picture book is perfect for fans of the Elf on the Shelf! An Elf's Journey Home shares one elf's story about his love for his family and how all he really wants is to stay with his family forever. Get a rare glimpse inside the mind of an elf. Learn about his excitement as he waits to be promoted to scout, his feelings on being apart from his family most of the year, and how all he really wants for Christmas is to stay with them year-round. This rhyming children's picture book provides children the opportunity to choose to keep their elf as a family member and shares how they can make that permanent choice. Then your diligent search would begin; it was almost a race as you'd get closer and closer to discovering my place. I've watched you learn incredible things on these quests, like critical thinking and how to give one's best. Every year elves bring tremendous joy to families around the world. As children get older, the excitement wanes and parents begin searching for ways to bring closure to the tradition. Every elf parent has had a morning that they had to think on their feet when their child came and asked, "Why didn't the elf move? I didn't touch him!" This heartwarming book provides a graceful way for families to transition to the next chapter in their holiday traditions.

In this captivating collection of unpublished and published essays, one of our most important scholars, Paula Gunn Allen, explores the symbiotic relationship between Native American culture and the larger Western world. Through her own history and that of other Native peoples, she searches for a connection that will link the eco-spiritual and implicitly multicultural heritage to the demands of an increasingly global and culturally unilateral community.