This collection of the Pope's writings and talks on the plight of migrants and refugees shows his deep knowledge and concern. It points out how followers of Christ are obliged to understand the root causes of mass movement of peoples and to act in light of their suffering.

This volume provides an anthology of about 40 primary source documents that describe the work of religious communities that took care of pilgrims and the sick in the late antique and early medieval world. The project identifies letters, diary accounts, instructions, sermons, travelogues, and community records and rules that give us a window into a world of early communities that saw it as their duty and their privilege to care for the sick, to safeguard the pilgrim, and to host the stranger. Each document is placed in historical, geographical, and social context as it contributes to an emerging picture of these communities. The volume addresses the motivations and practices of communities that risked extending hospitality. Why did these communities take great risks for the socially vulnerable? What stake did they have in pilgrims and the sick? What communal experiences supported and sustained both the communities and their audiences? How was hospitality cultivated?

"Are we for them or against them?" In this wise, practical book on the refugee and immigrant crises around the world, Kent Annan explores how fear and misunderstanding can motivate our responses to people in need. Instead, he invites us into stories of welcome, laying out simple practices for a way forward across social and cultural divides.

Human beings leave their homelands for many reasons and they are called by many names: illegal aliens, strangers, asylum-seekers, displaced persons, economic migrants, lawful permanent residents, refugees, temporary workers, and victims of trafficking. Some are forced to flee because of violence, persecution, natural disaster, or intense economic privation. Most migrate in search of a better life, many as part of a family survival strategy. The movement of people from one place to another has remained a constant feature of human history. In an era characterized by the fast and cheaper movement of goods and services around the globe, migrants are the face of globalization. The world's two hundred million migrants often find themselves at the center of economic, social, and political debates. This book describes the distinctive way in which Catholic social teaching looks at migrants. It analyzes migration from the legal, social science, and cultural perspectives, and gives special consideration to the lived experience of immigrants themselves and their host communities. The book identifies gaps and opportunities to improve government and non-governmental responses to migration on a local, national, and international level. And You Welcomed Me aims to reframe perspectives on migration by focusing on the human beings at the heart of this phenomenon. It analyzes trade, immigration, labor, national security, and integration policies in light of the core Catholic commitment to the common good, human dignity, authentic development, and solidarity.

Intended to appeal to both Christians and Jews, A Rabbi Looks at Jesus' Parables is an introduction to the teachings of Jesus, and compares the similarities and differences in Jesus' thinking to other Jewish sources from first-century Palestine. Each chapter uncovers hidden messages within each of Jesus' parables, and discusses each parable within its first-century religious and historical context. The book attempts to build bridges of understanding between Christians and Jews by exploring the notion that we share a common history

The Catholic Comparative New Testament features eight complete Catholic New Testaments, translated by dedicated scholars and gathered into a single convenient volume. This edition includes both "word-for-word" translations of the scripture as well as "thought-for-thought" translations. Readers can compare verses at a glance with facing-page translations (four translations per page) in a clear, easy-to-read typeface. The CCNT features four "word-for-word" translations - Douay-Rheims, Revised Standard Version Catholic Bible, New Revised Standard Version Catholic Bible, and the New American Bible. These translations follow as closely as possible the New Testament's original wording, making them perfect for close readings of the text. The Jerusalem Bible, the Good News Bible, the New Jerusalem Bible, and the Christian Community Bible represent the "thought-for-thought" school of Bible translation. These translations emphasize the intended meaning of the original vocabulary, adapting it to English syntax and grammar, making it easier to understand for the lay reader. The Catholic Comparative New Testament offers the most unique and informed way of reading scripture with its eight different translations. Beautifully printed on the highest quality material, the CCNT is an excellent study guide for the value.

“Jesus never wrote a book, but I recognize his handwriting in Grand Theft Jesus. Like Jesus, McElvaine uses lively illustrations and a serious sense of humor to cleanse the temple of exclusive and exploitative religion.” –The Reverend Alan Storey,Calvary Methodist Church, South Africa “We’re mad as Heaven, and we’re not going to take it anymore!” declares historian Robert McElvaine in this passionate and often hilarious rallying cry for sincere Jesus Followers. He lets the rest of society know that the extreme right wing won’t be allowed to speak for all Christians any longer. His whip-smart, take-no-prisoners polemic lays bare the Christian Right’s “Easy Jesus” creed, in which people who claim to accept Jesus get a free pass to lie in his name. Grand Theft Jesus exposes the televangelists and the leaders of megachurches as the people Jesus warned us about–the wolves in sheep’s clothing of our day. The religion that McElvaine calls ChristianityLite resembles schemes that promise “Lose weight without diet or exercise!” Its leaders say, “Be saved without sacrifice or good works!” Run by a crew of politicians, megachurch preachers, televangelists, hypocrites, and snake-oil salesmen, it has hijacked true Christianity and distorted it into something Jesus wouldn’t recognize. Its leaders have taken the generous and loving ideals of Christ and twisted them into a religion that advocates war and intolerance, values money above charity, preaches hatred instead of brotherhood, and promises “true” believers the keys to the gates of the kingdom of God–and to the bank vault. Jesus’ radical message of love and peace has been drowned out by the bluster, the hate, and the selfishness that often passes for Christianity in America. McElvaine names names in his list of “Leading Lites” who have earned spots on Jesus’ Ten Most Unwanted List and exposes the hypocritical (Ted Haggard), the disgraceful (Pat Robertson), and the shocking (Ann Coulter). Grand Theft Jesus blends outrage and humor in a compelling argument that will help to resurrect the real Jesus, who has been crucified and interred by the “Right Reverends” who recite the Apostles’ Greed, are pro-choice on wars of choice, and preach the Greater Gory of Christ.

A collection of story dramas, reflection questions and exercises based on original biblical stories that invites the reader into imaginative engagement and human transformation.

Attitudes represent everything in life. They define the way we choose to conduct ourselves on a daily basis. Good attitudes are contagious. They draw people to us and eventually to God. In this book Emmanuel talks about five attitudes that can help you do just that: humility, happiness (joy), love, hospitality and generosity. These five attitudes do not only make us more approachable. They also help us be at our best. More importantly, they are channels through which God shows up to people we encounter on a daily basis. These attitudes are not just values we acquire out of our own desire. We primarily experience them through prayer. As we ask and pray to God, God will empower us with the ability to be humble, loving, happy, hospitable and generous.

Politics and the Religious Imagination is the product of a group of interdisciplinary scholars each analyzing the connections between religious narratives and the construction of regional and global politics, combining a set of theoretical and philosophic insights with several case studies that represent varied geographies and religious customs. The past decade has seen increasing interest in the links between religion and politics, and this edited volume seeks to take religion seriously as a motivator of action. Few studies have attempted to bring together the multi-disciplinary work in this burgeoning field of study and this work takes a global perspective, using a variety of contexts including East-West relations to analyze the following key themes: the constructive and destructive hermeneutics of religious stories the relevance and importance of religion as a dominant political narrative the rise of new stories among groups as agents of change the way that religious narratives help to define and constrain the Other the manipulation of religious stories for political benefit This work argues that it is insufficient to judge the relationship of religion and politics through mere institutional or quantitative lenses, and this collection proves that while this promise of the narrative part of the social imaginary has been recognized in political theory to a certain extent, its influence in the realm of empirical political science has yet to be fully considered. Combining the work of a wide range of experts, this collection will be of great interests to scholars of politics, philosophy, religious studies, and the literary influence of religion.