"Finally," says John S. McClure, Charles G. Finney Professor of Homiletics, The Divinity School, Vanderbilt University, "an outstanding group of Anabaptist scholars freely offer the homiletical gifts of their tradition to everyone who has `ears to hear.¿ Listen closely to these writers, and you will discover how your own preaching can be transformed into a deeply communal, grace-filled form of biblical, theological, and prophetic witness."

Preaching the Manifold Grace of God is a two-volume work describing theologies of preaching from the historical and contemporary periods. Volume 1 focuses on historical theological families: Orthodox, Roman Catholic, Lutheran, Reformed, Anabaptist, Anglican/Episcopal, Wesleyan, Baptist, African American, Stone-Campbell, Friends, and Pentecostal. Volume 2 focuses on families that are evangelical, liberal, neo-orthodox, postliberal, existential, radical orthodox, deconstructionist, Black liberation, womanist, Latinx liberation, Mujerista, Asian American, Asian American feminist, LGBTQAI, Indigenous, postcolonial, and process. In each case, the author describes the circumstances in which the theological family emerged and describes the purposes and characteristics of preaching from that perspective.

The Anabaptist Vision, given as a presidential address before the American Society of Church History in 1943, has become a classic essay. In it, Harold S. Bender defines the spirit and purposes of the original Anabaptists. Three major points of emphasis are: the transformation of the entire way of life of the individual to the teachings and example of Christ, voluntary church membership based upon conversion and commitment to holy living, and Christian love and nonresistance applied to all human relationships.

Dr. Davis explores the Anabaptist emphasis on penitence, personal holiness, and active discipleship to Christ. He examines their view that discipleship involves the rejection of a life of affluence, the civil oath, and participation in the military and the magistracy.

Where have all the prophets gone? And why do preachers seem to shy away from prophetic witness? Astute preacher Leonora Tisdale considers these vexing questions while providing guidance and encouragement to pastors who want to recommit themselves to the task of prophetic witness. With a keen sensitivity to pastoral contexts, Tisdale's work is full of helpful suggestions and examples to help pastors structure and preach prophetic sermons, considered by many to be one of the most difficult tasks pastors are called to undertake.

Is the Doctrine of Biblical Inerrancy Biblical? While theologians throughout church history have condemned numerous doctrines as heresy, Cragun boldly declares that the doctrine of biblical inerrancy is the worst heresy that the church has ever faced, resulting in the undermining of central teachings of Jesus. Treating the Bible as the inerrant word of God often eclipses the very real dimensions of hermeneutics, that is, the who, how, and why of biblical interpretation and translation. After twenty-five years of detailed research in libraries based in six major universities and seminaries, Cragun has distilled his work in this book to challenge Christians who hold up inerrancy as a key tenant of the faith.

Click here to read the introduction to The Naked Anabaptist. In churches and kitchens and neighborhood centers across the world, communities of Jesus-followers are crafting a vision of radical service, simple living, and commitment to peace. Many are finding a home in a Christian tradition almost five centuries old: Anabaptism. Who are the Anabaptists? What do they believe? Where did they come from? What makes them different from other Christians? And can you become an Anabaptist without leaving your own church? Follow Stuart Murray as he peels back the layers to reveal the core convictions of Anabaptist Christianity, a way of following Jesus that challenges, disturbs, and inspires. Glimpse an alternative to nationalistic, materialistic, individualistic Christian faith. If you are seeking a community of authentic discipleship, heartfelt worship, sacrificial service, and radical peacemaking, consider this your invitation. This new edition features: Voices and stories from North America and the global church. Updated and expanded definition and discussion of Christendom. Updated resource section. Free downloadable study guide available here.

Death by drowning or being burned at the stake. In the days of the Reformation, many Christians suffered this horrible fate. What was their crime? Simply being baptised, immersed into Christ as believing adults. Why did they endure death? They preferred death to compromising their faith. Today we are beneficiaries of the stand they took and the spiritual heritage they passed on. Thank God that after 150 years of these killing times a more enlightened age came in. This was the age of religious discussion and discovery as men sought the truth in religion. It was not easy to go against over 1500 years of human tradition. Where was truth to be found? In that which existed from the days of the apostles, the Word of God. Their spiritual quest also blesses our lives if we are but willing to listen. A further 100 years would elapse before Restoration principles produced fruit. Again, we are blessed with the fruit of their labours. However, every generation has to decide what to believe and why. That challenge remains and it is a challenge that confronts each one of us: What are we going do about it?

Preaching in the Purple Zone is a resource for helping the church understand the challenges facing parish pastors, while encouraging and equipping preachers to address the vital justice issues of our time.This book provides practical instruction for navigating the hazards of prophetic preaching with tested strategies and prudent tactics grounded in biblical and theological foundations. Key to this endeavor is using a method of civil discourse called “deliberative dialogue” for finding common values among politically diverse parishioners. Unique to this book is instruction on using the sermon-dialogue-sermon process developed by the author that expands the pastor’s level of engagement on justice issues with parishioners beyond the single sermon. This book equips clergy to help their congregations respectfully engage in deliberation about “hot topics,” find the values that bind them together, and respond faithfully to God’s Word.

Accompanying CD-ROM contains the full text of volume one and two. Volume two contains primary source material on preaching drawn from the entire scope of the church's twenty centuries. Each chapter in volume two is geared to its companion chapter in volume one's narrative history.