Transforming Saints explores the transformation and function of the images of holy women within wider religious, social, and political contexts of Old Spain and New Spain from the Spanish conquest to Mexican independence. The chapters here examine the rise of the cults of the lactating Madonna, St. Anne, St. Librada, St. Mary Magdalene, and the Suffering Virgin. Concerned with holy figures presented as feminine archetypes—images that came under Inquisition scrutiny—as well as with cults suspected of concealing Indigenous influences, Charlene Villaseñor Black argues that these images would come to reflect the empowerment and agency of women in viceregal Mexico. Her close analysis of the imagery additionally demonstrates artists' innovative responses to Inquisition censorship and the new artistic demands occasioned by conversion. The concerns that motivated the twenty-first century protests against Chicana artists Yolanda López in 2001 and Alma López in 2003 have a long history in the Hispanic world, in the form of anxieties about the humanization of sacred female bodies and fears of Indigenous influences infiltrating Catholicism. In this context Black also examines a number of important artists in depth, including El Greco, Murillo, Jusepe de Ribera, Pedro de Mena, Baltasar de Echave Ibía, Juan Correa, Cristóbal de Villalpando, and Miguel Cabrera.

Saints were not simply superstar Christians with otherworldly piety. When we take a closer look at the lives of these spiritual heavyweights, we learn that they're not all that different from you and me. With humor and vulnerability, Karen Marsh introduces us afresh to twenty-five brothers and sisters who challenge and inspire us with their honest faith.

Rohr paints a bleak picture of the prevailing thought, culture and attitudes of the present-day West -- which he calls "The Postmodern Opportunity" -- including cultural biases; embrace of victimhood; and the often fearful attitudes toward one another, the Church and religion in general. He offers hope in introducing the Franciscan path of transformation, the "new way of being that would change the face of history".

Stories of 55 saints, beati, and holy people of the past 200 years, along with their pictures; most are actual photographs. Includes St. Gemma Galgani, St. Bernadette, St. Maria Goretti, St. John Neumann, Padre Pio, Edith Stein, St. Peter Julian Eymard, St. Frances Cabrini, St. Maximilian Kolbe, St. John Bosco, St. Dominic Savio, and many, many more. Will bring hours and hours of pleasure and entertainment to the entire family.

All Christians know his name. Few truly know the man. Francis of Assisi was not even five feet tall. He was not well educated. And yet he is the one saint commonly recognized as Alter Christus, the “other Christ.” Francis is not just any saint—he’s a saint for everyone, whatever your place or position in life. But do we really know him? Who was this man at his core? What was it that thrust this little man from a little town to the heights of sanctity, into a place of high honor among the celestial court? In this riveting biography, author Bret Thoman accomplishes what few biographers have. He pierces the inner life of Francis, revealing his deepest passions, his unquenchable love for poverty, and his unshakable grip on the core of the Gospel. The life of Francis, so often festooned with spectacle and miracle, is in reality the story of a soul yearning for God in every moment and glimpsing His presence in all creation. If you want to see the hidden life of the greatest saint, if you want to hear his thoughts, if you want to feel the fervor that blazed within his soul, you must readSt. Francis of Assisi: Passion, Poverty, and the Man who Transformed the Catholic Church.

The Divine Dance has become a classic for fans of Richard Rohr and an important book on Christian mysticism, it provides a fresh perspective for anyone studying or teaching the trinity. The Trinity is the central doctrine of Christianity, but it is still widely considered a mystery we won't ever fully understand. Should we still try to understand it, even so? If we could, how would it transform our relationship with God? In this stimulating and thought-provoking book, internationally recognised teacher Richard Rohr explores the nature of God and the paradoxical idea of the Holy Trinity as both three and one. With clear, surefooted wisdom, he encourages us to build on the early Christian understanding of the relationship between Father, Son and Spirit as a flow and dance - a Divine Dance - that we are invited to join in. An engaging, accessible look at the nature of God, The Divine Dance will challenge the way you think about the Trinity and give you a much fuller understanding of the triune relationship that is at the heart of Christian doctrine. It will leave you with a faith that is renewed and strengthened, and show you how you can engage more deeply in your relationship with God and the world through the Trinity.

In this expanded edition of her spiritual formation classic, Ruth Haley Barton invites us to an honest exploration of what happens when spiritual leaders lose track of their souls. Weaving together contemporary illustrations with penetrating insight from the life of Moses, Barton explores topics such as facing the loneliness of leadership, leading from your authentic self, reenvisioning the promised land and more.

"Mennonites are heirs to the Anabaptist movement of the Reformation period in Western and Central Europe. Mennonite groups from what is today the Netherlands and northwestern Germany settled in Danzig (Gdansk) and Polish-Prussia from the sixteenth century on-wards. At the end of the eighteenth century large numbers of their descendants began to emigrate to the southern steppes of the Ukraine, a movement which continued well into the nineteenth century. This book deals with the first century of Russian Mennonite settlement, and the dynamics of change in Mennonite communities in Russia between 1789 and 1889. It chronicles the establishment in southern Russia of prosperous agrarian colonies, the foundation of religious congregations and the creation of new economic, social and political institutions. Mennonites in Russia had to face the dual challenge of the emergence of a modern, industrial society and the increasing power of the Russian State. As Mennonites responded to these challenges, and some grew rich and successful, tension and conflict in their communities increased. This resulted in the division of congregations and communities and the further emigration of many Mennonites to North America." -- Back cover

Theologies of justification are too numerous to count. In this book, Gordon Smith synthesizes a lifetime of writing on calling, conversion, discernment and spiritual formation in a comprehensive and compelling theology of sanctification. Smith presents holiness in its christological, sapiential, vocational, social and emotional dimensions.