You are the fountain of life, light, and all grace and truth The hearts of the first Christians beat with praise for Christ. The strength of their devotion is remarkable, considering the times of uncertainty and persecution in which they lived. Despite all of this, the early church flourished, sustained by the God to whom they prayed. Christians today have a lot to learn from the devotional life of the early church. In Fount of Heaven, a collection of carefully selected prayers from the first six centuries of the church, we can pray with our spiritual forefathers. Prayers from luminaries such as Clement of Rome, Irenaeus, and Augustine are arranged by theme to reveal the right prayer for the moment. The prayers have been slightly updated to read more easily, but they retain their joy and mystery. As we turn to the prayers of the first Christians, we can return to the foundations of our own faith.

CHAPTER 1 In the very first chapter a discussion is opened and titled: open the eyes of my heart Lord. This sets up the main running theme of the book that Gods guidance, direction and path be every believers aim and focus. God is shown as the final arbiter in all of mans affairs. We are encouraged to seek the revealed truth in our lives. Our prayer and wish should be that God directs all our ways. The story of the prophet Elisha under attack is used to illustrate Gods providence for his children. Because Elishas spiritual eyes are open, he is not filled with fear and panic in light of his enemies but is reassured of Gods protective shield over his life. God surrounds his children with his love. God is a warrior and fights our battles. CHAPTER 2 Nothing is too hard for the Lord. Sarah and Abraham had been married for a long time and had no children. They even tried to help God in this regard but their attempt was remiss. Our faith in God helps us to get results that are otherwise impossible. Sarah was rich, had a large household, servants, and animals and all but lacked one thing, a son she could call her own. This became a source of misery and ridicule for her. As rich as she was, when people looked at her they just remembered her shortcoming and constantly reminded her about it. Her faith gave birth to strength and power. Through the faithfulness of God and her practicing faith principles she bore a son when all hope was lost. Read her story to build your faith and see your trust in God soar. CHAPTER 3 The book of James admonishes Christians to be glad when they face tough testing situations. This results in patience, a requisite believers virtue. Temptations and trials may leave us broken, dejected and discouraged. We may be broken but not valueless, because God sees value in us however our status; as he is in the business of transforming our lives. God is able to spring to life and quicken our spirit even after adverse experiences. The life of Paul the apostle is used to illustrate that we can endure all sorts of persecution to remain in focus, on the right path and remain resolute in our faith. Like a diamond we can withstand pressure in order to let our light shine through. CHAPTER 4 God is powerful far beyond our imagination or comprehension; there is no limit to what He can do. Its only when we come to Him that we can reach our fullest potential. God also possess all wisdom. This is why it is not prudent to put ones trust in the help of man. Gods wisdom does not fail. The story of Noah teaches us that through Gods wisdom he, an unlearned and unqualified engineer; built, maintained, sailed and saved humanity and all animals all at once. Can you begin to marvel at the plumbing and ablution feat this must have been! Everything we are capable of counts for nothing if the source is not God. He has the power to change the times and the seasons of our lives. He can change your time of mourning into a time of joy. God is all-powerful; everything on earth is under His control. CHAPTER 5 Sometimes the troubles and tribulations that follow us cant seem to have an end. They leave us feeling forsaken. We may remove our eyes from God and focus on them. An account of how the children of Israel were faced with their enemy on countless occasions but finally prevailed is given. Gods leading through Moses and Aaron is expounded. Against Pharaoh they had an indomitable, ferocious, stubborn adversary. Time after time even after relenting, he would be oppressively behind the children of Israel. I show in this account that no matter how many our enemies, no matter how well armed, no matter our humble unprotected lowly position, God fights our battles for us. We know we can prevail through him. CHAPTER 6 The book of Ezra depicts a picture of a people who were heavily discouraged. It speaks of people who were told they would never finish what God had commissioned them to do. Zerubbabel is the leader at th

In Christian Origins and Hellenistic Judaism, Stanley E. Porter and Andrew W. Pitts assemble an international team of scholars whose work has focused on reconstructing the social matrix for earliest Christianity through reference to Hellenistic Judaism and its literary forms.

Reprint of the original, first published in 1873.

Shakespeare’s plays are filled with religious references and spiritual concerns. His characters—like Hamlet in this book’s title—speak the language of belief. Theology can enable the modern reader to see more clearly the ways in which Shakespeare draws on the Bible, doctrine, and the religious controversies of the long English Reformation. But as Oxford don Paul Fiddes shows in his intertextual approach, the theological thought of our own time can in turn be shaped by the reading of Shakespeare’s texts and the viewing of his plays. In More Things in Heaven and Earth, Fiddes argues that Hamlet’s famous phrase not only underscores the blurred boundaries between the warring Protestantism and Catholicism of Shakespeare’s time; it is also an appeal for basic spirituality, free from any particular doctrinal scheme. This spirituality is characterized by the belief in prioritizing loving relations over institutions and social organization. And while it also implies a constant awareness of mortality, it seeks a transcendence in which love outlasts even death. In such a spiritual vision, forgiveness is essential, human justice is always imperfect, communal values overcome political supremacy, and one is on a quest to find the story of one’s own life. It is in this context that Fiddes considers not only the texts behind Shakespeare’s plays but also what can be the impact of his plays on the writing of doctrinal texts by theologians today. Fiddes ultimately shows how this more expansive conception of Shakespeare is grounded in the trinitarian relations of God in which all the texts of the world are held and shaped.