Prominent Hellenistic moralists from ca. the first century CE warn that all emotions carry temptation(s) to sin or error. To be guilty of emotional sin is to allow psychosomatic feelings (or rising emotion) free reign to trump godly (rational) guidance of behavioral pursuits. Thus, morally minded Hellenists widely view unemotional behavior as a sign of moral progress. Emotive language peppers the Markan narrative, inviting moral assessments, yet scholarship has seldom delved into a historical-literary analysis of Jesus's emotional characterization. This study proposes a working definition of emotion apropos the narratival nature of Hellenistic emotion theory. It finds that Jesus consistently vanquishes emotional temptations with “battle” techniques similar to those championed by the moralists. Mark characterizes Jesus in the moral tradition of the anti-emotional exemplar, and several minor characters are liberated from destructive emotions through the mercy of Jesus's godly rationale. By recognizing the Markan Jesus as a model, this study outlines a method for persevering in emotional testing that modern readers might also emulate to resist temptation with divine help.

We are only happy when we pursue a transcendent purpose, something larger than ourselves. This pursuit involves a deeply meaningful relationship with God by committed participation in the spiritual disciplines. The Lost Virtue of Happiness takes a fresh, meaningful look at the spiritual disciplines, offering concrete examples of ways you can make them practical and life-transforming.

An Early History of Compassion explores the role of the emotional imagination within the context of Roman imperialism.

Do not be shaped by this world; instead be changed within by a new way of thinking. Then you will be able to decide what God wants for you; you will know what is good and pleasing to him and what is perfect. (Romans 12:2) Emotions saturate Scripture. God is an emotional Godnot in the same way we talk about an emotional person. But God is certainly aware of the runaway emotions were referring to when we put a negative spin on emotions. We cant escape Gods presence. That means he sees and hears alongside us, including our (often messy) emotions. And if we let him, God will replace those untruthful messages weve learned about emotions along the journey of life with the truthful messages reflecting his character, will, and commands. God didnt mess up his design of you. He created you in his image. He has a plan for your life. He even knew what mistakes youd make throughout your life, and he still loves you and wants nothing more than to be in an ever-deepening relationship with you. He will pursue youwhether youre not following him and need to make that decision or youre following him marginally or youre passionate about him. He designed you for more, and he will pursue you, tapping you on the shoulder, whispering in your ear, and knocking on the door of your heart so that your daily lifeincluding your decisions, attitudes, and yes, emotionsis impacted in the purity of who he created you to be and the everyday messiness of living on Earth. If your emotions arent reflecting the character of God well, youre probably distorting something and need to get back on track. Thats what this journey is about: growing closer to God, getting to know him better, and committing to reflecting him more and more on a daily basis. Pure Emotion will dig into, reflect upon, and live out Gods Word. Chapters include: Week One: The Emotional Experience Week Two: Whats a Pure Emotion? Week Three: Fear Week Four: Jealousy Week Five: Anger Week Six: Anxiety and Peace Week Seven: Frustration Week Eight: Guilt and Shame Week Nine: Joy Week Ten: Living Emotionally Pure

We women are wonderfully made, but, boy, we sure are emotionally intricate. With her trademark conversational style and wit, Patsy Clairmont tackles a subject most women feel at a loss to approach—their feelings. I Second That Emotion takes one of Patsy’s most popular topics at the Women of Faith conferences and shows how you can deal with a turbulent emotional life. I Second That Emotion pulls some of our emotions out to examine them individually. Don’t allow life to push your emotional buttons till you have an emotional meltdown. Instead, let God help you get untangled.

Preeminent psychologist Lisa Barrett lays out how the brain constructs emotions in a way that could revolutionize psychology, health care, the legal system, and our understanding of the human mind. “Fascinating . . . A thought-provoking journey into emotion science.”—The Wall Street Journal “A singular book, remarkable for the freshness of its ideas and the boldness and clarity with which they are presented.”—Scientific American “A brilliant and original book on the science of emotion, by the deepest thinker about this topic since Darwin.”—Daniel Gilbert, best-selling author of Stumbling on Happiness The science of emotion is in the midst of a revolution on par with the discovery of relativity in physics and natural selection in biology. Leading the charge is psychologist and neuroscientist Lisa Feldman Barrett, whose research overturns the long-standing belief that emotions are automatic, universal, and hardwired in different brain regions. Instead, Barrett shows, we construct each instance of emotion through a unique interplay of brain, body, and culture. A lucid report from the cutting edge of emotion science, How Emotions Are Made reveals the profound real-world consequences of this breakthrough for everything from neuroscience and medicine to the legal system and even national security, laying bare the immense implications of our latest and most intimate scientific revolution.