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The Sayings of the Desert Fathers

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Title: The Sayings of the Desert Fathers: The Alphabetical Collection
Series:
Published by: Liturgical Press
Release Date: January 1, 1984
Contributors: Benedicta Ward (Translator, Foreword), Metropolitan Anthony (Preface)
Genre:
Pages: 269
ISBN13: 978-0879079598

The fourth-century ascetic flight to the desert indelibly marked Christianity. The faithful who did not embrace the austerity of the desert admired those who did and sought them out for counsel and consolation. The 'words' the monks gave were collected and passed around among those too far away or too feeble to make the trek themselves - or lived generations later. Previously available only in fragments, these Sayings of the Desert Fathers are now accessible in their entirety in English for the first time. We have a great deal to learn from their integrity and their unrelenting courage, from their vision of God - so Holy, so great, possessed of such a love, that nothing less than one's whole being could respond to it. These were men and women who had reached a humility of which we have no idea because it is not rooted in a hypocritical or contrived depreciation of self, but in the vision of God, and a humbling experience of being so loved. They were ascetics, ruthless to themselves, yet so human, so immensely compassionate not only to the needs of men but also to their frailty and their sins; men and women wrapped in a depth of inner silence of which we have no idea and who taught by 'Being', not by speech: 'If a man cannot understand my silence, he will never understand my words.' If we wish to understand the sayings of the Fathers, let us approach them with veneration, silencing our judgments and our own thoughts in order to meet them on their own ground and perhaps to partake ultimately - if we prove able to emulate their earnestness in the search, their ruthless determination, their infinite compassion—in their own silent communion with God.

Malleus Maleficarum

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Title: Malleus Maleficarum
Published by: CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform
Release Date: January 3, 2015
Contributors: James Sprenger, Heinrich Kramer
Genre:
Pages: 312
ISBN13: 978-1505913569

James Sprenger ( 1436/1438 - 1495 ) was a German priest born in Rheinfelden. He is believed to be the co-author of Malleus Maleficarum with Heinrich Kramer. Sprenger was not interested in witches and witch trials and many scholars believe Sprenger was named a co-author to give the book more authority since he was a priest. Heinrich Kramer, also known as Henricus Institoris, (1430 – 1505) was a German churchman. In 1485 he created a treatise on witchcraft that was incorporated in Malleus Maleficarum. This book was met with much rejection and Kramer was denounced by the Inquisition at the Faculty of Cologne.

Greek – History of the Peloponnesian War

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Title: History of the Peloponnesian War
Published by: Penguin Classics
Release Date: January 1, 1972
Contributors: Thucydides (Author), M. I. Finley (Editor, Introduction), Rex Warner (Translator)
Genre:
Pages: 656

Written four hundred years before the birth of Christ, this detailed contemporary account of the struggle between Athens and Sparta stands an excellent chance of fulfilling the author's ambitious claim that the work "was done to last forever." The conflicts between the two empires over shipping, trade, and colonial expansion came to a head in 431 b.c. in Northern Greece, and the entire Greek world was plunged into 27 years of war. Thucydides applied a passion for accuracy and a contempt for myth and romance in compiling this exhaustively factual record of the disastrous conflict that eventually ended the Athenian empire.

Thucydides (c. 460 BC–400 BC) was a general who was exiled for his failure to defend the Greek city of Amphipolis in Thrace. During his exile, he began compiling histories and accounts of the war from various participants.

Rex Warner was a Professor of the University of Connecticut from 1964 until his retirement in He was born in 1905 and went to Wadham College, Oxford, where he gained a "first" in Classical Moderations, and took a degree in English Literature. He taught in Egypt and England, and was Director of the British Institute, Athens, from 1945 to 1947. He has written poems, novels and critical essays, has worked on films and broadcasting, and has translated many works, of which Xenophon’s History of My Time and The Persian Expedition, Thucydides’ The Peloponnesian War, and Plutarch’s Lives (under the title Fall of the Roman Republic) and Moral Essays have been published in Penguin Classics.

M. I. Finley was a professor of ancient history and master of Darwin College, Cambridge. He died in 1986.

The Consolation of Philosophy

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Title: The Consolation of Philosophy
Published by: Penguin Classics
Release Date: May 1, 1999
Contributors: Ancius Boethius (Author), Victor Watts (Translator, Preface, Introduction)
Genre:
Pages: 155
ISBN13: 978-0140447804

Boethius was an eminent public figure under the Gothic emperor Theodoric, and an exceptional Greek scholar. When he became involved in a conspiracy and was imprisoned in Pavia, it was to the Greek philosophers that he turned. The Consolation was written in the period leading up to his brutal execution. It is a dialogue of alternating prose and verse between the ailing prisoner and his 'nurse' Philosophy. Her instruction on the nature of fortune and happiness, good and evil, fate and free will, restore his health and bring him to enlightenment. The Consolation was extremely popular throughout medieval Europe and his ideas were influential on the thought of Chaucer and Dante.

Ancius Boethius (c. A.D.480-524) was a Roman philosopher and is considered one of the last authentic representatives of the classical world, in both his life and writings. It is through Boethius' translations that the knowledge of Aristotle has survived in the West.

Victor Watts read Classics and English at Merton College Oxford. He is Master of Grey College and part-time Senior Lecturer in the School of English and Linguistics at Durham University.

From the Back Cover
The Consolation of Philosophy is perhaps unique in the nature and extent of its influence on Western thinking.

The clarity of Boethius's thought and his breadth of vision made The Consolation of Philosophy hugely popular throughout medieval Europe and his ideas suffused the thought of Chaucer and Dante. This translation makes it accessible to the modern reader while losing nothing of Boethius's poetic artistry and philosophical brilliance.

TAN – The Foundations of Western Monasticism

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Title: The Foundations of Western Monasticism
Series:
Published by: Tan Classics
Release Date: March 1, 2013
Contributors: Dr. William Fahey (Author)
Genre:
Pages: 238
ISBN13: 978-0895551993

St. Antony of the Desert, St. Benedict of Nursia, and St. Bernard of Clairvaux rise above all other figures in Catholic history as guides. To travel with them and to seek a view upon the heights of their personal holiness and wisdom is to secure passage into the rich and complex world of monasticism.

Monasticism distills the essence of Catholic spirituality for all time and for all Christians. The Foundations of Western Monasticism, the latest addition to our TAN Classics, concentrates on three of the finest Christian texts available and will provide both first-time and advanced readers with an essential review of Christian monasticism and the foundational principles of Catholic prayer life, spiritual combat, contemplation, and communal living.

These three texts, The Life of St. Antony, the Holy Rule of St. Benedict, and St. Bernard's Twelve Degrees of Humility and Pride, are offered to the reader as a simple and short path to the essence of Christian monasticism and authentic Christian teaching.

St. Antony is presented as monasticism's foremost Founding Father, St. Benedict as its greatest Law-giver, and St. Bernard as its most daring Mystic. Taken together, these men and their writings will allow the reader to ascend the very heights of Christian monasticism and arrive at certain firm principles by which to evaluate and deepen his commitment to the Faith.

Foundations of Western Monasticism also includes introductions and reading lists provided by Dr. William Edmund Fahey, Fellow and President of Thomas More College. A Benedictine oblate, Dr. Fahey has provided a new translation of the famous Rule of St. Benedict.

William Edmund Fahey is Fellow and President of Thomas More College of Liberal Art in Merrimack, New Hampshire. He has taught and lectured in the United States and Europe on various monastic subjects. A founder and chairman of the Classical and Early Christian Studies program at Christendom College, Fahey earned his Ph.D. in Early Christian Studies from the Catholic University of America. He is a Benedictine Oblate (Postulant) of Our Lady of the Assumption Monastery (Clear Creek, Oklahoma). He lives in New Hampshire with his wife and five children.

Moody – Names of God

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Title: Names of God
Series:
Published by: Moody Classics
Release Date: June 1, 2010
Contributors: Nathan Stone (Author), Ann Spangler (Foreword)
Genre:
Pages: 192
ISBN13: 978-0802458568

Back Cover

Names like Adonai, Elohim, El-Shaddai, and Jehovah can sound foreign to our modern ears. In ancient times, more so than today, names held great significance - a name represented who a person really was: it described their character. The same can be said of the names of God.

Originally delivered as a radio Bible study, Stone's work draws from his early Jewish education. "To show not only the significance of the names of God in the Old Testament, but that they find their complement and fulfillment in the person and work of the Lord Jesus Christ in the New."

As foreword writer Ann Spangler suggests, "Learning about these names and titles can help us to experience more of the love, power, and holiness of the God we revere."

________________________

Nathan J. Stone writes, “Indeed we cannot say all that the mysterious word God means to us until we know more about Him.”

God’s many names reveal not only different dimensions of His character but also point to their fulfillment in the Person and work of Jesus Christ. This insightful little book accurately and clearly works through the many names of God throughout the Old Testament. We can now see God in new lights and angles as we learn of His justice, His unbounded love, His preeminence, and His character--all through His names. This book has sold over 400,000 copies.

The late NATHAN J. STONE was a member of the faculty of Moody Bible Institute for several years and a teacher for the radio program Radio School of the Bible. He is the author of Names of God, Answering Your Questions, 100 Basic Bible Questions Answered, and Holy to the Lord: Studies in Leviticus.

Counterpoints – Five Views on Biblical Inerrancy

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Title: Five Views on Biblical Inerrancy
Series:
Published by: Zondervan Academic
Release Date: December 10, 2013
Contributors: J. Merrick (Editor), Stephen M. Garrett (Editor), Stanley N. Gundry (Editor), Jr. R. Albert Mohler (Contributor), Kevin J. Vanhoozer (Contributor), John R. Franke (Contributor)
Genre:
Pages: 336
ISBN13: 978-0310331360

The inerrancy of the Bible--the belief that the Bible is without error--is often a contentious topic among mainstream Christianity.

Like other titles in the Counterpoints collection, this volume gives those interested in theology the tools they need to draw informed conclusions on debated issues by showcasing the range of positions in a way that helps readers understand the perspectives--especially where and why they diverge.

Each essay in Five Views on Biblical Inerrancy considers:

  • The present context, viability, and relevance for the contemporary evangelical Christian witness.
  • Whether and to what extent Scripture teaches its own inerrancy.
  • The position's assumed or implied understandings of the nature of Scripture, God, and truth.
  • Three difficult biblical texts: one that concerns intra-canonical contradictions, one that raises questions of theological plurality, and one that concerns historical authenticity.

Five Views on Biblical Inerrancy serves not only as a single-volume resource for surveying the current debate, but also as a catalyst both for understanding and advancing the conversation further. Contributors include Al Mohler, Kevin Vanhoozer, Michael Bird, Peter Enns, and John Franke.

R. Albert Mohler Jr. has been called "one of America's most influential evangelicals" (Economist) and the "reigning intellectual of the evangelical movement" (Time.com). The president of the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, he writes a popular blog and a regular commentary, available at AlbertMohler.com, and hosts two podcasts: The Briefing and Thinking in Public. He is the author of many books, including We Cannot Be Silent and The Prayer that Turns the World Upside Down, and has appeared in the New York Times, the Wall Street Journal, USA Today, and on programs such as NBC's Today, ABC's Good Morning America, and PBS NewsHour with Jim Lehrer. He and his wife, Mary, live in Louisville, Kentucky.

Kevin J. Vanhoozer (PhD, Cambridge University, England) is Research Professor of Systematic Theology at Trinity Evangelical Divinity School in Deerfield, Illinois. He is author of several books, including Is There a Meaning in This Text? The Bible, the Reader, and the Morality of Literary Knowledge, The Drama of Doctrine: A Canonical-Linguistic Approach to Christian Theology, and Faith Speaking Understanding: Performing the Drama of Doctrine. He also serves on the editorial board of the International Journal of Systematic Theology and the Journal of Theological Interpretation.

John R. Franke (DPhil, Oxford) serves full-time as Theologian in Residence with Second Presbyterian Church of Indianapolis. He is also Professor of Religious Studies and Missiology for the Protestant Theological Faculty of Leuven, Belgium, and the General Coordinator for the Gospel and Our Culture Network, North America.

Modern Christian Thought, Volume 2

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Title: Modern Christian Thought, Volume 2 (Second Edition): The Twentieth Century
Series:
Published by: Fortress Press; 2nd edition
Release Date: June 21, 2006
Contributors: James H. Evans Jr. (Author), Francis Schussler Fiorenza (Author), James C. Livingston (Author), Sarah Coakley (Editor)
Genre:
Pages: 560
ISBN13: 978-0800637965

This widely acclaimed introduction to modern Christian thought, formerly published by Prentice Hall, provides full, scholarly accounts of the major movements and thinkers, theologians and philosophers in the Christian tradition since the eighteenth-century Enlightenment, together with solid historical background and critical assessments. This second edition deals with the entire modern period, in both Europe and America, and is the first to include extensive treatment of modern Catholic thinkers, Evangelical thought, and Black and Womanist theology.

James H. Evans Jr. is Robert K. Davies Professor of Systematic Theology at Colgate Rochester Crozer Divinity School. He is the author of We Shall All Be Changed (1997), Modern Christian Thought: The Twentieth Century (2nd edition, 2006), and Playing: Christian Explorations of Daily Living (2010), all with Fortress Press.

Francis Schussler Fiorenza is Charles Chauncey Stillman Professor of Roman Catholic Theological Studies at Harvard Divinity School, Cambridge, Massachusetts.

James C. Livingston is Professor of Religious Studies Emeritus at the College of William and Mary, Williamsburg, Virginia.

Covenant

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Title: Covenant: The Framework of God's Grand Plan of Redemption
Series:
Published by: Baker Academic
Release Date: July 20, 2021
Contributors: Daniel I. Block (Author)
Genre:
Pages: 704
ISBN13: 978-0801097881

Leading scholar Daniel Block helps students of the Bible understand the big picture of God's covenants with humanity as they play out in both the First and the New Testaments.

After fifty years of teaching and preaching around the globe, Block brings a lifetime of study and reflection on the First Testament and relationship with God to this comprehensive volume. The book focuses on God's covenants as the means by which God has reached out to a fallen humanity. It examines the heart and history of God's redemptive plan and shows why the covenants are essential for our understanding of the Bible.

Understand the Bible through the Lens of God's Covenants

This volume helps students of the Bible understand the big picture of God's covenants with humanity as they play out in both the First and the New Testaments.

"This is one of the most nourishing books of biblical theology that I have read. The accumulated fruit of a half century of faithful and scholarly Bible study and teaching is evident on every page. With courageous exposure of the damaging ways by which different Christian tribes--including evangelical ones--have relegated, negated, or simply ignored the First Testament, Block showcases the glorious redemptive coherence and missional hope of the grand covenantal narrative structure of Scripture. Every chapter is enriching, with illuminating exegesis from all over Scripture."
--Christopher J. H. Wright, Langham Partnership; author of The Mission of God

"A creative and exhaustive study of covenant and covenant-making in the Bible that draws attention to the underlying logic and remarkable continuity of the biblical covenants. Block makes a compelling case for adopting new categories to describe this central aspect of God's redemptive project. Consideration of Block's proposal is imperative for anyone attempting to understand the biblical notion of covenant in the years to come."
--Michelle Knight, Trinity Evangelical Divinity School

"This book, the fruit of a lifetime of careful study of the Bible, expresses Block's understanding of the way the entire Bible fits together. Regretting the tragic division between the First Testament and the New Testament that has come to characterize much of evangelical Protestantism's biblical interpretation and proclamation, he uses the theme of covenant to show how the Bible is telling one story in five acts. In a tour de force of biblical exegesis, he demonstrates that God's goal from creation onward has been for humans, sharing God's righteous character, to live in harmony with God and the cosmos. He then shows how, when that goal seemed out of reach due to human sin, YHWH devised a scheme of covenants that culminated in the Davidic covenant, by which the original goal will be achieved. Anyone who loves the Bible will be richly satisfied by this banquet Block has set before us."
--John N. Oswalt, Asbury Theological Seminary

"A rich, detailed, and accessible exposition of covenant in the First and New Testaments. We receive not only an overview of how covenant factors into every phase of biblical history but also a grand picture of how the entire Bible coheres marvelously under the hand of God. If you struggle to see how seemingly disparate First Testament themes like creation, sin, law, and exile are interwoven with covenantal ideas and have deep relevance for Christians today, this is the book for you!"
--Jerry Hwang, Singapore Bible College

"This fascinating and beautifully written study of biblical covenants from First Testament to New Testament will be valuable to a wide range of readers. Everyone interested in the Bible will benefit from Block's wise reflection on the theological unity of the Bible's diverse texts. Students, pastors, and scholars will find in this book a treasure trove of insight from years of study and meticulous research."
--Frank Thielman, Beeson Divinity School, Samford University

"At last, Block has written his magnum opus! With characteristic rigor and boldness, Block sweeps aside false dichotomies and stale debates to invite fresh reflection on the 'one continuous story of divine redemption.' His book does a tremendous service to Christians struggling to see continuity between the Testaments. Students and scholars alike will appreciate his exegetical insight and synthesis of the Bible's teaching on covenant."
--Carmen Joy Imes, Biola University

"In Covenant, Dan Block has done a great service for scholars, pastors, teachers, and everyone interested in the structure and logic of the Bible. This is a comprehensive survey of the Bible's message organized around a concept critical to properly appreciating the meaning and significance of the most-read book in human history. Throughout, the reader will find a treasure trove of information, framed and communicated through Dan's characteristic combination of humility, warmth, clarity, thorough research, openness to critical discussion, and personal devotion to the God who speaks and brings us to himself through covenant."
--Dan Wu, Moore Theological College

"Block's Covenant guides readers through the cosmic story of God's plan of redemption through the framework of covenant. Block charts the covenantal story, which begins in Genesis and comes to its dramatic climax as Jesus Christ appears in the New Testament, fulfilling the divine plan. It's a journey that uncovers the heart of God in profound ways, draws the reader into Scripture's great drama and God's great mission, and culminates with the resounding sound of worship. An inspiring and valuable read!"
--Beth Stovell, Ambrose University

"Block has written a masterful survey of his approach to a coherent structure and framework for understanding the Bible. This book is the fruit of decades of research, and Block is the model of a godly and excellent scholar."
--Josh Moody, senior pastor of College Church, Wheaton, Illinois; president and founder, God Centered Life Ministries

About the Author
Daniel I. Block (DPhil, University of Liverpool) is Gunther H. Knoedler Professor Emeritus of Old Testament at Wheaton College in Wheaton, Illinois. He lectures and preaches around the world and is the author of numerous books, including For the Glory of God and commentaries on Deuteronomy, Judges-Ruth, and Ezekiel. Block has also been involved in the production of the New Living Translation of the Bible.

God’s Indwelling Presence

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Title: God's Indwelling Presence: The Holy Spirit in the Old and New Testaments
Series:
Published by: B&H Academic; Illustrated edition
Release Date: August 1, 2006
Contributors: James M. Hamilton Jr. (Author), E. Ray Clendenen (Editor)
Genre:
Pages: 256
ISBN13: 978-0805443837

Were ordinary members of the old covenant remnant continually indwelt by the Holy Spirit? The inaugural volume of the NEW AMERICAN COMMENTARY STUDIES IN BIBLE AND THEOLOGY seeks an answer to this question. This new series is geared for pastors, advanced Bible students, and other deeply committed laypersons.

God's Indwelling Presence pursues answers to the following questions: Are regeneration and indwelling the same thing? What do the words indwelling and regeneration mean? What does the Old Testament say about where the Spirit dwelt in relationship to God's people? How does the anointing of Jesus with the Spirit affect our understanding of these questions? If old covenant believers were not indwelt by the Spirit, how did they become and remain faithful to God?

Users will find this an excellent extension of the long-respected NEW AMERICAN COMMENTARY.

Endorsements
"Hamilton's work represents biblical theology at its best."
--Kevin Vanhoozer

“I was riveted. Never do I sit down and read sixty pages of ANY book that I get in the mail. But I could not stop—could not stop reading and could not stop rejoicing over God’s Glory in Salvation through Judgment. It is the kind of overview of redemptive history Edwards wanted to write. It’s what I hoped would be written.”
--John Piper

About the Author
James M. Hamilton Jr., is assistant professor of Biblical Studies at Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary (SBTS) on the Houston Park Place Campus in Houston, Texas. He holds degrees from the University of Arkansas (B.A.), Dallas Theological Seminary (Th.M.), and SBTS (Ph.D.). He has published articles in Trinity Journal, Westminster Theological Journal, and many others.

Calvin – Institutes of the Christian Religion

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Title: Institutes of the Christian Religion
Series:
Published by: Hendrickson Publishers, Inc.
Release Date: December 1, 2007
Contributors: John Calvin
Genre:
Pages: 1059
ISBN13: 978-1598561685

At the age of twenty-six, Calvin published several revisions of his Institutes of the Christian Religion, a seminal work in Christian theology that altered the course of Western history and that is still read by theological students today. It was published in Latin in 1536 and in his native French in 1541, with the definitive editions appearing in 1559 (Latin) and in 1560 (French). The book was written as an introductory textbook on the Protestant faith for those with some learning already and covered a broad range of theological topics from the doctrines of church and sacraments to justification by faith alone. It vigorously attacked the teachings of those Calvin considered unorthodox, particularly Roman Catholicism, to which Calvin says he had been "strongly devoted" before his conversion to Protestantism. The over-arching theme of the book--and Calvin's greatest theological legacy--is the idea of God's total sovereignty, particularly in salvation and election.

This book was written as a theological introduction to the Bible and a vindication of Reformation principles. After appearing in several editions beginning in 1536, Calvin's 'Institutes' was finally published in this authoritative 1559 edition.

John Calvin (1509-1564) was a French Protestant theologian during the Protestant Reformation and was a central developer of the system of Christian theology called Calvinism or Reformed theology. In Geneva he rejected the authority of the Pope, established a new scheme of civic and church governance, and created a central hub from which Reformed theology was propagated. He is renowned for his teachings and writings.

In the Steps of Saint Paul

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Title: In the Steps of Saint Paul
Series:
Published by: Augsburg Fortress Publishers
Release Date: May 22, 2019
Contributors: Peter Walker
Genre:
Pages: 216
ISBN13: 978-1506457895

As one of the most prolific writers of the Bible and a major leader in the formation of the early church, Saint Paul is often considered the greatest influencer after Jesus in the history of Christianity. He also remains one of the more controversial figures--celebrated by some for his work in spreading the Christian message and criticized by others for promoting what they consider to be a lofty, complex version of it. What we do know, however, is that Paul played an unarguably significant role in the growth of the church, bringing Jesus's message far beyond previous reach.

In this companion title to its well-established forerunner In the Steps of Jesus, Peter Walker uses his expertise in biblical studies and his extensive experience leading tours around the Mediterranean to bring the world of Saint Paul vividly to life. Following Luke's account in the Book of Acts as well as evidence from Paul's own letters, Walker reconstructs the apostle's wide-ranging travels and describes the many places Paul visited as readers would encounter them today. In doing so, he brings to light the issues that Paul confronted in the growing church and helps readers understand the motivation that drove Paul to continue his mission. Enriched with maps, street plans, timelines, and boxed features highlighting special topics of interest, In the Steps of Saint Paul, are an ideal introduction to Paul and his travels for scholars and history enthusiasts at all levels of study.