This issue of Plough Quarterly explores our relationship with the natural world. Hear from leading scientists, farmers, writers, activists, theologians, and artists who have set their hearts and minds and hands to caring for the earth for generations to come. Plough Quarterly features stories, ideas, and culture for people eager to put their faith into action. Each issue brings you in-depth articles, interviews, fiction, poetry, book reviews, and art to help you put Jesus' message into practice and find common cause with others.

From Jordan to Germany, the influx of refugees is straining goodwill to the breaking point. This issue of Plough Quarterly focuses on the second half of Jesus' Great Commandment: Love your neighbor as yourself. We found love of neighbor demonstrated by Christians and Muslims in ISIS-controlled Syria, and by volunteers who continue to welcome refugees despite growing public hostility. Here in election-year America, how do we as citizens live out love of neighbor in relation to immigrants? To the unborn threatened by abortion, and to their mothers? To prisoners, especially those held in solitary confinement for unconscionable terms and those on death row? To the victims of crime, and to the law enforcement officers charged with keeping the peace? To our youth, who are the ones most gravely harmed by our culture's gender confusion? On all these fronts and many others, love of neighbor makes claims on us. But shouldn't it start within the fellowship of believers, the church? When this happens, we can bear one another's burdens - for example, those of the soldier returning from war, or the coworker battling an addiction. Perspectives from Navid Kermani, Neil Shigley, Denise Uwimana, Gerhard Lohfink, Michael Yandell, Teresa of Ávila, C.S. Lewis, John Stott, Matthew Loftus, Nathaniel Peters, Eberhard Arnold, Richard J. Foster, and Annemarie Wächter are sure to stimulate reflection and discussion. Then there's new poetry by Laurie Klein, book reviews, a children's story by Laura E. Richards, and world-class art by Dean Mitchell, Aristarkh Lentulov, Alex Vogel, Michael D. Fay, Paula Modersohn-Becker, Marc Chagall, Vasilij Ivanovic Surikov, and Sekino Jun'ichirō. Plough Quarterly features stories, ideas, and culture for people eager to put their faith into action. Each issue brings you in-depth articles, interviews, poetry, book reviews, and art to help you put Jesus' message into practice and find common cause with others.

It is summer, 1940. As Hitlers armies turn mainland Europe into a mass graveyard, his feared Luftwaffe rain bombs on England. Meanwhile, amid the green hills of the Cotswolds, a nest of enemy aliens has been discovered: the Bruderhof, a Christian community made up of German, Dutch, and Swiss refugees, and growing numbers of English pacifists. Having fled Nazi Germany to escape persecution, the Bruderhof had at first been welcomed in England. Now, at the height of the Battle of Britain, it is feared. Curfews and travel restrictions are imposed; nasty newspaper articles appear, and local patriots initiate a boycott. Determined to remain together as a witness for peace in a war-torn world, the little group of 300 half of them babies and young children looks for a new home. No country in Europe or North America will take them. And so they set off across the submarine-infested Atlantic for the jungles of ParaguayIn this gripping tale of faith tested by adversity, Emmy Barth lets us hear directly from the mothers, fathers, and children involved through their letters and diaries. Especially eloquent are the voices of the women as they faced both adventure and tragedy.

Integrity, Viability, and Accountability Perhaps there is no greater challenge in missions than money. Paul reminds us, “For we are taking pains to do what is right, not only in the eyes of the Lord but also in the eyes of man” (2 Cor. 8:21). Money sufficient to assure the viability of one’s life work carries with it an insidious ethical virus that can easily infect the integrity and accountability of its stewards. The Realities of Money & Missions provides a unique level of credibility and transparency as it calls for evangelicals to reevaluate their relationship with money, both personally and corporately. Global case studies, workshops, and testimonials cover a broad range of topics such as: Misalignment between fiscal theology and practice Environmental stewardship, community development, and business as mission Mobilization, fundraising practices, and “faith financing” Short-term missions, patronage, and dependency Power dynamics and structural injustice The Realities of Money & Missions was not written by experts in the fields of investment, money management, or fundraising, but by men and women whose calling as missionaries, pastors, and administrators has brought them face-to-face with the complex, real-life issues involving the intersection of money and ministry. Read on and be challenged to change

A powerful story of spiritual awakening, reconnection with Nature, and rekindling of ancestral wisdom • Details the author’s encounters with ancestral spirits and animal teachers, such as Coy-Wolf, and profound moments of direct connection with the natural world • Shows how ancestral connections and intimate communications with Nature are not unique or restricted to those with indigenous cultural roots • Reveals how reconnection with ancestors and the natural world offers insight and solutions for the complex problems we face We are but a few generations removed from millennia spent living in intimate contact with the natural world and in close commune with ancestral spirits. Who we are and who we think we are is rooted in historical connections with those who came before us and in our relationships with the land and the sentient natural world. When we wander too far from our roots, our ancestors and kin in the natural world call us home, sometimes with gentle whispers and sometimes in loud voices sounding alarms. In this powerful story of spiritual awakening, Randy Kritkausky shares his journey into the realm of ancestral Native American connections and intimate encounters with Mother Earth and shows how anyone can spiritually reconnect with their ancestors and Nature. Like 70 percent of those who identify as Native American, Kritkausky grew up off the reservation. As he explains, for such “off reservation” indigenous people rediscovering ancestral practices amounts to a reawakening and offers significant insights about living in a society that is struggling to mend a heavily damaged planet. The author reveals how the awakening process was triggered by his own self-­questioning and the resumption of ties with his Potawatomi ancestors. He details his encounters with ancestral spirits and animal teachers, such as Coy-Wolf. He shares moments of direct connection with the natural world, moments when the consciousness of other living beings, flora and fauna, became accessible and open to communication. Through his profound storytelling, Kritkausky shows how ancestral connections and intimate communications with Nature are not unique or restricted to those with indigenous cultural roots. Offering a bridge between cultures, a path that can be followed by Native and non-Native alike, the author shows that spiritual awakening can happen anywhere, for anyone, and can open the gateway to deeper understanding.

We live in an increasingly hostile political climate, and even within the church we can find the signs of political division. Yet the truth of the matter is that political dialogue has been around for millennia—even in the epic tales of Abraham, Joseph, and Moses—and the social and political issues during the time of Jesus’s public ministry are not that different from those we are encountering presently. Pulpit Friction looks at the challenges facing the church today as it seeks to strike a balance between its prophetic call and the political and social issues causing so much turmoil in our world. Author Ken Kinton offers both biblical and historical insights in an attempt to help Christians and the secular world live more harmoniously. In order for the church to have a meaningful impact on our nation’s political process, it needs to contribute to the political integrity of the process. By learning more about the church’s role in shaping political discourse, we as Christians can together become agents of positive change.