The poor will always be with you, Jesus said - but that doesn't mean Christians have ever figured out how to be with the poor. Pope Francis has emphasized a vision of a "Church that is poor and for the poor." But growing economic inequality continues to spread across the globe. This book takes a fresh look at the role of churches, and individual Christians, in relating to poverty and the poor among them. A strong focus is placed on the biblical and...

How did Christianity get shared around the world? And how has Christian belief changed over the last 50 years? Providing some of the answers to these and many other questions, this overview charts the 2,000-year-long history of the world's largest religion. A History of Christianity covers everything from the world of the Old Testament to Christianity in the 21st century, including topics such as the early martyrs, the birth of the monasteries, the...

A homeless cat wanders in and warms the hearts of the people of a small church.

"In 1838, a group of America's most prominent Catholic priests sold 272 enslaved people to save their mission, the fledgling Georgetown University. Journalist, author, and professor Rachel L. Swarns has broken new ground with her prodigious research into a history that the Catholic Church has edited out of its own narrative. Beginning in the present, when two descendants of a family enslaved by the church reconnect, Swarns follows their ancestors...

"Flavius Claudius Julianus, or Julian the Apostate, ruled Rome as sole emperor for just a year and a half, from 361 to 363, but during that time he turned the world upside down. Although a nephew of Constantine the Great, the first Christian emperor of Rome, Julian fought to return Rome to the old gods who had led his ancestors to build their vast empire. As emperor, Julian set about reforming the administration, conquering new territories, and reviving...

"The key to America's future begins with exploring our past. In Freedom Is Costly, But Priceless, Dave Meyer shares the importance of our nation's true history?learning about our rich, godly heritage and discovering Who and what has made this nation so great. God's Word was an integral part of our nation?s founding, and His Word is still the key today to restoring our families, schools, churches and communities. When it comes to the future of this...

"As Christians we confess that Jesus is Lord. But do we fully understand what all that entails? In this his book Re-Enchanting Time, Josh Robinson makes the case that Jesus' lordship touches on how we understand and keep time. In the spirit of Abraham Kuyper, Robinson argues that there's not one square inch of creation that does not belong to Christ, and that includes how we observe holidays. The book begins by laying out a biblical-theological understanding...

"The long-awaited, beloved Pope Francis' prayers for the ten most pressing issues the world is facing today, inspiring action to radically unify humanity in hope for a peaceful future. "The clock is ticking, all life is in danger, but we are on time...Let's take the first step and go to meet the other, the different. Let's put hands, mind and heart to work together. Let's change the world."-Pope Francis In his most challenging and evocative book yet,...

In this story, written in the style of Clement C. Moore's classic poem, a girl and her twin brother nervously prepare for their first communion.

"A generation of American Christian girls was taught submitting to men is God's will. They should not question the men in their families or their pastors. They were told to remain sexually pure and trained to feel shame if a man was tempted. Some of these girls were abused and assaulted. Some made to shrink down so small they became a fraction of themselves. To question their leaders was to question God himself. All the while, their male leaders built...