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The Next Christendom: The Coming of Global Christianity
What does the future hold for Christianity? Many books have been written which argue
that secular forces will cause Christianity to become more liberal and less literal.
Such claims may be provocative and appealing, but they don't seem very credible in
light of the actual demographic and geographic facts. Philip Jenkins, however, does
take those facts into account and comes up with a different vision of the future of
Christianity - one which may not be pleasant to some readers, but which may also
be more accurate.
Government vs. Erotica
Should the government have the power to regulate private sexual conduct - and if so,
how far should that power reach? Why would the government even be interested in
regulating such conduct - what would be the purpose, and what would be the
consequences?
Solstice Tree for Jenny
One good way to help kids understand and cope with difficult situations is through
books aimed at their reading level, and there is just such a book available now which
addresses the problems of a secular family dealing with a Christmas-oriented culture.
By telling the story of a girl who feels "left out" from the religious celebrations of
her friends, Karen I. Shragg is able to explain why nonbelievers don't participate in
religion generally, and the religious celebrations of Christmas specifically.
Spiritual But Not Religious
A figure commonly cited in atheist circles is that around ten percent of the
population in the United States are nonbelievers. The resulting assumption,
understandably enough, seems to be that if ten percent are nonreligious, then the
remaining ninety percent must be religious, right? Robert Fuller's book refutes that
assumption, arguing that a great many people in America may not be rleigious, but that
doesn't make them nonbelievers.
The New Buddhism
Buddhism has become very popular in the West over the past couple of decades,
but to what degree has Buddhism been changing the West, and to what degree has Buddhism
itself undergone change? According to William Coleman, Buddhism has changed a lot,
yet nevertheless, it is fundamentally the same as it has always been. But how can
this be?
The Homeric Epics and the Gospel of Mark
Dennis MacDonald's argument is one which is novel and will surely anger biblical
traditionalists and literalists: namely, that the gospel of Mark was written as a
conscious and deliberate imitation of the stories in the Homeric epics. The goal was
to give readers a familiar context to discover the superiority of Christ and
Christianity over pagan gods and beliefs.
