Spiritually there is a great hunger today for contemplative and more satisfying experiences with God. Puritanism might seem to be an unlikely source for this, yet few groups in the history of Christian spirituality have written more extensively or wisely on the subject. Isaac Ambrose (1604-64), a relatively forgotten English Puritan, developed a theological foundation for the spiritual life based upon the Christian's intimate union with Christ, which the Puritans often called "spiritual marriage." Schwanda demonstrates that this vibrant relationship of union and communion with Jesus, inspired by the Holy Spirit, was manifested in a deep contemplative piety of gazing lovingly and gratefully upon God. At the same time, Ambrose did not neglect loving his neighbors. This study reveals how heavenly meditation was one of the significant practices engaged by Ambrose to cultivate spiritual intimacy and enjoyment of God. Further, his experiential reading of Scripture, in particular the Song of Songs, provided him with a language of ravishment and delight in God. This book provides a distinctively Protestant foundation for recovering the contemplative life while recognizing the significant contributions of the Western Catholic tradition.

• The first examination of prayer in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries. • Written by leading international scholars from interdisciplinary perspectives of history, literature and theology. • Written from interdisciplinary perspectives of history, literature and theology.

In the 1990s alone, more than 400 works on angels were published, adding to an already burgeoning genre. Throughout the centuries angels have been featured in, among others, theological works on scripture; studies in comparative religions; works on art, architecture and music; philological studies; philosophical, sociological, anthropological, archeological and psychological works; and even a psychoanalytical study of the implications that our understanding of angels has for our understanding of sexual differences. This bibliography lists 4,355 works alphabetically by author. Each entry contains a source for the reference, often a Library of Congress call number followed by the name of a university that holds the work. More than 750 of the entries are annotated. Extensive indexes to names, subjects and centuries provide further utility.

In The Christian Warrior, Isaac Ambrose (1604–1664) provides armament and strategy to fight our tireless adversary, the devil. He begins by showing, from Ephesians 6:12, how all God's people are warriors engaged in a battle, that our enemy is both powerful and malicious, and that we must wrestle and strive hard against him. He then gives specific examples of how Satan attacks us at different stages of life: in childhood, at our first conversion, during the prime of life, and at the time of death. Ambrose gives practical, point-by-point advice throughout the book on how to cope with these attacks. He illustrates how Satan attempts to foil the believer coming to Christ at each stage of his conversion. He then shows how Satan tries to convince the doubting believer that his conversion is not genuine, and how to answer those arguments. He continues by showing how to endure persecution, how to resist temptations of the flesh (lust, pride, anger, condemning others, dishonest gain), and how Satan attempts to exploit the special vulnerabilities of both weak and strong Christians. He concludes by preparing the believer for "the final battle" in the hour of his death (which is often his most intense time of attack), by illustrating how to avoid the extremes of presumption and despair. Even readers not accustomed to Puritan works will find Ambrose's warm and engaging style both eminently useful and Christ-exalting. Much more than a copy-paste-publish e-book, this Digital Puritan Press reprint has been carefully edited from the original scans. The more difficult language has been smoothed out to make it more accessible to the modern reader. Every Scripture reference is also hyperlinked as an endnote in the ESV version (no internet connection is needed). Includes a helpful biographical preface to the life and times of the author.