1572: Returning from his studies in Montpellier, Pierre de Siorac is ambushed by a jealous Périgord nobleman. A duel ensues, and Pierre must subsequently travel to Paris, to seek his pardon from the King. The capital city and the royal court are a disorienting new environment for Pierre: a world of sweet words and fierce pride, where coquettish smiles hide behind fans, and murderous intents behind elegant bows; a world of genteel tennis matches and deadly swordplay, whose elaborate social graces mask a simmering tension that will soon explode to engulf the entire city in one of history's most infamous bouts of butchery - and signal the dawn of a new and bloody era in the history of France. Here, Pierre faces the greatest challenge of his young existence - to make his way through this deceptively dangerous milieu, to win a royal pardon, and finally to escape from Paris with his life, and the lives of his beloved companions, intact.

This book explores the shifting and negotiated boundaries of religion, spirituality, and secular thinking in Britain and North America during the twentieth century. It contributes to a growing scholarship that problematises secularization theory, arguing that religion and spirituality increasingly took diverse new forms and identities, rather than simply being replaced by a monolithic secularity. The volume examines the way that thinkers, writers, and artists manipulated and reimagined orthodox belief systems in their work, using the notion of heresy to delineate the borders of what was considered socially and ethically acceptable. It includes topics such as psychospiritual approaches in medicine, countercultures and religious experience, and the function of blasphemy within supposedly secular politics. The book argues that heresy and heretical identities established fluid borderlands. These borderlands not only blur simple demarcations of the religious and secular in the twentieth century, but also infer new forms of heterodoxy through an exchange of ideas. This collection of essays offers a nuanced take on a topic that pervades the study of religion. It will be of great use to scholars of Heresy Studies, Religious Studies and Comparative Religion, Social Anthropology, History, Literature, Philosophy, and Cultural Studies.

This book is intended to open Christians' minds up to other Christians and to help improve dialog between them. It deals with where a lot of them are coming from doctrinally, and the problems to be dealt with on both sides. There is a core to all true Christians that should bind us, but we cannot do that as long as we cannot be open with our differences and open-minded enough to understand why some people believe what they do. Mature Christians should be able to talk about the elephant in the room. I am of the firm belief that if everybody was coming from the Bible with what they believed, we would have a lot more agreement. (And the world would hate us all the more.) I certainly do not expect every Christian to agree with me on everything. It is not for nothing I call myself Hereticus.

Whether you’re together on a military base with your spouse or alone waiting for your loved one to return from deployment, you’re juggling the many endless, special, and often heartbreaking demands placed on military families – demands not addressed in most prayer books. And, like so many other military wives, you’ve often got to bear these burdens alone, and sometimes even silently. To help you, we’ve created this unique book for Catholic military wives. Here you’ll find powerful prayers composed for your needs and also frank and inspiring testimony from fellow Catholic military wives. These are your stories, told with unflinching honesty, echoing your heartaches, your pains, and yes, your amazing triumphs in faith, both small and large. On good days, By Dawn’s Early Light will help you thank God for the blessings of your spouse’s noble vocation; on bad days, it will help you walk steadily in your sure Catholic faith, grateful to be able to put one foot in front of another. All too well you know that for you, heroism doesn’t remain on the battlefield—it’s woven into the fabric of your life. By Dawn’s Early Light shines the healing light of Christ on that heroism, giving honor and praise to you and to God, as with Him you fulfill the duties and experience the joys of one of the most noble of all vocations: that of a military wife.

A ROYAL REBELLION... When the power-mad Himerius won himself enough support to have foreigners and magicians put to death, Lofantyr, Abeleyn and Mark – three of the five Ramusian Kings – defied the cruel pontiff’s purge. Now they must fight to hold their thrones through excommunication, intrigue and civil war. Meanwhile, in the quiet monastery city of Charibon, two humble monks make a discovery that will change the whole world...

From the bestselling author of The Illuminator comes a magnificent tale about the power of love and the perils of faith Tudor England is a perilous place for booksellers Kate Gough and her brother John, who sell forbidden translations of the Bible. Caught between warring factions—English Catholics opposed to the Lutheran reformation, and Henry VIII's growing impatience with the Pope's refusal to sanction his marriage to Anne Boleyn—Kate embarks on a daring adventure that will lead her into a dangerous marriage and a web of intrigue that pits her against powerful enemies. From the king's lavish banquet halls to secret dungeons and the inner sanctums of Thomas More, Brenda Rickman Vantrease's glorious new novel illuminates the public pageantry and the private passions of men and women of conscience in treacherous times.