Religion & Philosophy

The church is full of leaders who are called upon to speak, teach, preach, and communicate the Gospel. Yet far too few know how to connect with their audience using both the skill of a seasoned orator and the grace of a humble leader.

The world is finally ready to discover that spirituality is in fact the very basis of all our most profitable business transactions, even in atheists, and strictly secular individuals. Spirituality isn't something we put into business; business is something that we have already put into spirituality.

Whether it's the loss of a job, a marriage, or a life, we've all faced uncomfortable situations where we don’t know what to say. How do we pause, listen, and offer comfort in those hard moments?

Missional has become a key word for innovative leaders who forego the emphasis on internal programming for their church members and increase outreach to the unchurched in their local communities. But for more traditional leaders who wish to find a healthy balance between the two, the authors use the phrase externally focused to describe their outlook.

In arguably the most comprehensive study ever done by Leadership Network to review the methods, trends, and outcomes of church planting organizations across the United States, surprising results emerged. Not only were more U.S. churches being started than closed each year, but the greatest increase of new churches were being planted by networks

Written by best-selling author and multicultural expert Derald Wing Sue, this book examines microaggressions, a subtle but insidious form of racism and sexism. Sue not only illustrates the impact microaggressions have on both victims and perpetrators, he also points the way to first address and then eradicate microaggressions on the individual, group, and community level.

Erik Wesner, a leading scholar on the Amish, is one of a few who have gained access to the Amish for an extended period of time. He set out to find out why Amish businesses have an astounding 95% success rate over a 5-year period. What he found was surprisingly simple.

Now the basis for a Lifetime Original movie set to premier on March 28^th, the paperback edition of AMISH GRACE includes a surprising interview with the shooter's mother in the new afterword.

Flora Jessop’s rise to fame began when she was featured in Jon Krakauer’s Under the Banner of Heaven as the stunning young girl who escaped from Warren Jeff’s polygamous sect and then returned to rescue women and children who were being sexually abused. Now she tells her harrowing life story in her own gritty and fearless voice.

Published on behalf of the World Psychiatric Association, Religion and Psychiatry: Beyond Boundaries, addresses the impact that religion and spirituality have on shaping cultural values, as well as the choice of not identifying with a particular faith. 

The Evolutionary Origins of Religious Ethics and Violence

New book discusses the overlap between current affairs, political, and religious debate

Author, church planter, consultant, and innovative pastor Neil Cole takes church leaders into the 21^st century with an in-depth exploration of what it means to be an organic church—intimate, accountable, and capable of infinite replication.

We all have maps through which we navigate our lives. These maps reflect our understanding of how the world works and how we function within it. But what happens when the landscape changes?

From the earthquake in Haiti to the healthcare debate in America, there are questions of cost. People of faith wonder, “How much do I give and to how many charities?” or, perhaps, “Is it my responsibility to pay for the provisions of others?” According to Douglas A. Hicks, a scholar with training in both economics and theology, Jesus spoke of economic issues more often than other “worldly” topic.

In the arguments among Christian evangelicals and emergents, mainlines and non-denominationals, conservatives and liberals, there are prophets who point to something truly fundamental: Jesus. Few are better messengers than writer Sara Miles, whose midlife conversion transformed her from an atheist into a Jesus-loving activist feeding thousands of hungry people a week. A “free-range Christian,” less interested in doctrine than in doing, Miles takes literally the commission given to Jesus and his followers, and gives others hope that, as she writes, “this thing is real.”

The best-selling book that launched Jossey-Bass’s religion publishing program, is now being released in a new edition after more than a decade of accolades. Laypersons, leaders, denominations, and study groups have resonated with the book’s twelve central spiritual practices that define what it means to live out Christian faith.

For more than a decade, author Kennon L. Callahan’s groundbreaking study of the key ingredients that make up successful churches has formed the basis for many church renewal programs. Clergy and lay leaders alike cling to its teachings on how to understand strategic long-range planning and incorporate the twelve keys of effectiveness in the life of their churches.

"This book achieves something very difficult: it provides a fresh and innovative way of looking at the age-old questions about religious faith that philosophers have argued about for centuries. Written in a clear and engaging style, Holley shows the role 'life-orienting stories' play for both believers and atheists, and, without dogmatism or minimizing difficulties, he shows how religious faith might be possible in the contemporary world." —C. Stephen Evans, University Professor of Philosophy and Humanities, Baylor University

“Palmer shares the lessons of his vocational and spiritual journey, discussing his own burnout and intense depression with exceptional candor and clarity. In essays that previously appeared in spiritual or educational journals and have been reworked to fit into this slim volume, he suggests that individuals are most authentic when they follow their natural talents and limitations, as his own story demonstrates.” --- Publishers Weekly