This reference book, compiled with the help of more than 50 scholars from many denominations, provides a basic guide to Christian spiritual formation through more than 470 entries. It covers such subjects as great spiritual teachers of the past and present, important topics in Christian spirituality, and ways to pray and lead groups in prayer and spiritual growth. Containing enough information to get you started but not so many details as to overwhelm, the entries in this dictionary answer such questions as: What is spiritual formation? What is grace? How does it help me grow? What is centering prayer? How do I do it? Who is Hildegard of Bingen? What did she write? How can I grow in forgiveness? What are Fowler's stages of faith? What are other ways of talking about stages of spiritual growth? This dictionary also includes a chart that compares various Christian spiritual traditions, plus a list of significant spiritual classics by title and author.

Children's spiritual development is currently a hot topic in Christian circles, as well as in other fields and disciplines such as educational psychology, medicine, developmental psychology, education, and sociology. The key question for Christian scholars and educators is "How do Christian beliefs and practices uniquely interrelate with children's spirituality?" In 2003 and again in 2006, a national conference entitled "Children's Spirituality Conference: Christian Perspectives" examined children's spirituality from a distinctly Christian standpoint. This book is a collection of the best materials from the 2006 conference. The first half of the book addresses definitional, historical, and theological concerns related to spiritual development in children. The second half explores best practices for fostering spiritual growth among our children--in our homes, families, churches, Christian schools, and among special populations of children--from a wide spectrum of Christian scholars and practitioners. The volume closes with John Westerhoff's moving keynote address and Catherine Stonehouse and Scottie May's eloquent, culminating plenary address. Nurturing Children's Spirituality provides a rich cross section of the current research and writing by Christian scholars on children's spirituality. Contributors: Holly Catterton Allen, Michael J. Anthony, Stacy Berg, Chris J. Boyatzis, MaLesa Breeding, Marilyn Brownlee, Linda V. Callahan, Jane Carr, Mara Lief Crabtree, Karen Crozier, James Riley Estep Jr., Jeffrey E. Feinberg, Stephanie Goins, Judy Harris Helm, Dana Kennamer Hood, Sungwon Kim, Kevin Lawson, Scottie May, Marcia McQuitty, Heidi Schultz Oschwald, Donald Ratcliff, Pam Scranton, Timothy A. Sisemore, Catherine Stonehouse, La Verne Tolbert, T. Wyatt Watkins, John H. Westerhoff III

In recent decades Christian spirituality, spiritual formation and spiritual theology have become important concepts in the global evangelical community. Consequently, an accessible and reliable academic resource is needed on these topics—one that will offer a discerning orientation to the wealth of ecumenical resources available while still highlighting the distinct heritage and affirming the core grace-centered values of classic evangelical spirituality. The Dictionary of Christian Spirituality reflects an overarching interpretive framework for evangelical spiritual formation: a holistic and grace-filled spirituality that encompasses relational (connecting), transformational (becoming), and vocational (doing) dynamics. At the same time, contributors respectfully acknowledge the differences between Reformed, Holiness, and Pentecostal paradigms of the spiritual life. And, by bringing together writers from around the world who share a common orthodoxy, this reference work is truly global and international in both its topical scope and contributors. Entries give appropriate attention to concepts, concerns, and formative figures in the evangelical tradition of spirituality that other reference work neglect. They offer a discerning orientation to the wealth of ecumenical resources available, exploring the similarities and differences between Christianity and alternate spiritualities without lapsing into relativism. The Dictionary of Christian Spirituality is a resource that covers a wide range of topics relating to Christian spirituality and is biblically engaged, accessible, and relevant for all contemporary Christians.

Give your children the greatest gift of all-pass on your faith. In Passing It On, Kara Lassen Oliver provides a practical guide to help parents, grandparents, and other concerned adults nurture their children's faith. For four weeks at a time, she offers easy-to-follow suggestions for families during the seasons of Advent, Lent, summer, and back to school. This book features plans for weekly Family Gatherings with age-appropriate activities symbols to remind family members of the week's spiritual emphasis a suggested daily practice and prayer for each week a Leader's Guide for parent groups studying this book together The most valuable legacy we can pass to our children, grandchildren, and other children is a spiritual heritage. Kara Oliver shows us how to do just that.

The Kingdom Life provides an integrated approach to spiritual formation. This rich compilation from an extraordinary team of thinkers offers sound theology and key practices to strengthen you and those you disciple in light of Christ's lordship and life in the kingdom. -- back.

In this book Sunggu Yang proposes five socio-ecclesial codes as unique faith fundamentals of Korean American Christianity. Drawing from rigorous research and years of ecclesial experience, Yang names the codes as follows: the Wilderness Pilgrimage code, the Diasporic Mission Code, the Confucian Egalitarian code, the Buddhist Shamanistic code, and the Pentecostal Liberation code. These five codes, he asserts, help Korean Americans sustain their lives, culture, faith, and evangelical mission as aliens or “pilgrims” in the American “wilderness.” Yang outlines how his five proposed codes serve as liberative and prophetic mechanisms of faith through which Korean Americans can contribute to racial harmony and cultural diversity in North America. In this sense, Korean American Christianity—its theology and spirituality—works not only on behalf of Korean Americans, but also for the sake of all Americans. Yang shows how the Korean American pulpit is the locus where these five codes appear most vividly.

In today’s church, use of the term transformation has become commonplace. Various perspectives are offered on what a Christian view of transformation is—and on how it may be achieved. These often-conflicting views suggest an ecclesial landscape characterized by pluralism, division, fragmentation, confusion, relativism, individualism, pragmatism, and subjectivism. Despite the current interest in transformational theology, the absence of a common, coherent, and integrated vision (and the lack of transformation) is often accepted and affirmed. Re-Envisioning Transformation looks at the possibility of moving toward a vision of transformational theology that is cohesive, unified, broad, effectual, and distinctly Christian. In this book, the contributions of two radically different“theologians of the Christian life” are examined. This provides the basis from which to develop a comprehensive and integrated framework of transformational theology—pointing God’s people toward the need to express and live out a distinctly Christian vision.

For centuries, people have been drawn to the Christian mystics—women and men who have known God in powerful and experiential ways. Mystic Bonfires is for students, scholars, and practitioners of ministry, theology, and spiritual formation. It explores theology and theory and shares insights for practice and prayer. Readers will encounter classical concepts about the spiritual life and how to apply these concepts to their ministries in faithful and creative ways. Mystic Bonfires includes questions for students in academic and formation settings as well as project ideas for congregations. Mystic Bonfires explores the intersection of spiritual theology and practical theology. Walter Hilton, a 14th century English mystic and a contemporary of Julian of Norwich serves as a case study for the intersection of these fields called practical spiritual theology.

E. Stanley Jones observed that people “know everything about life except how to live it.” We humans have acquired immense knowledge and achieved great things. We are enlightened, Jones said, but not necessarily enlivened. Steve Harper has been mulling over this human situation for a few decades and offers his profoundly inspiring conclusions in Life In Christ. Harper helps us recognize our tendency to search for life through rules and dogmas rather than in relationships with other people and with God. By living in relationship, we live as enlivened Christians, the abundant life God intends for us and the life we long for. He encourages us to see the spiritual life as a movement, where we are always on the way, taking steps forward to continually align our lives with Christ. He shows us how Christ can be the goal and pattern for our lives, motivating us to live as God’s beloved and as instruments of God’s love. Harper provides a wealth of helps, including a set of questions for reflecting on each chapter, a discussion guide for conversing about the book in a group, and extensive reading lists for further enrichment.

This book affirms relationship as the shared human elemental pursuit and proposes relationship as the transformative space. Wonderfully, the author asserts, it is God's intention to fulfill this intrinsic human desire in the present in all of us and universally. This desire is an often inarticulate, innate desire and pursuit to enjoy and reflect the divine image in which every human being was created. In this book, this pursuit is referred to as proleptic spiritual transformation (PrōST). That is, this book demonstrates that what is too often relegated to eternity is available now. Relationship is the Transformative Space considers God's heart, in relationship, and its implication toward human spirituality and how this intent has been interrupted and restored. God is actively interested in the recovery of a fully expressed image in humanity.