No matter where you are in your own spiritual journey, no matter how little you know about the Bible, no matter how busy your schedule, you CAN grow your kids in Christian faith! Parents of faith are the most influential people in the lives of children - more than pastors, Sunday School teachers, youth workers, or teachers. Passing our faith to our kids is the responsibility of the church (home grown faith versus church grown faith). There are certain conditions that parents can intentionally create in the home that will leave a legacy of faith for their childre, grandchildren, and beyond. They include prayer and devotions; family acts of service; caring conversations; and rituals and traditions. Home Grown Faith will encourage and teach parents how they can shape the spiritual future of their kids one day at a time.

In response to the myriad of complexly interconnected health and socioeconomic problems that wreak their worst destruction in the worlds poorest communities, an equally complex developmental-aid industry powered by the West has arisen. While appearing enormously beneficial in intent, expertise, and finances, it often perpetuates dependence and yields mediocre long-term results, due to its massive systemic, impersonal, autocratic, self-enhancing, and shallow programmatic nature. The most indispensable resources for catalyzing transformative development among impoverished communities lies within their own borders, where God has sown infinite prosperity in less-visible forms. Home-Grown Glory conveys the spirit of discerning and building upon such treasure, using prose-poetic stories that depict: Gods heart for liberation of the impoverished into freedom and prosperity. Limited impact of global best practices often used with HIV-related developmental aid. The power of reaching and inspiring individual and collective hearts with love, hope, and creative dreaming. Hidden wealth and opportunity amid the overwhelming tragedy of poor communities. Gods creative and unpredictable means of sparking transformational development in a shanty town community. The call of the church toward unity, humility, and honor in its developmental aid practices, rather than reinforcing damaging power dynamics and further division. As eyes and minds of rich and poor are opened to such potential, the latter will lead the way toward unprecedented and unimaginable change, as together they experience heaven on earth in the most unlikely of places.

If the stewards of religion would allow people to communicate with whatever they believe in, humanity would be a lot better off. That’s the bold assertion from Quincy Jones, who examines everything from terrorism, Islamophobia, Armageddon, Judaism, Hinduism, Buddhism, and metaphysics in this book. Jones argues that humanity has moved away from spirituality in recent years and that there’s too much emphasis on material wealth. This answers questions such as: • What is the role of the media in how we view various religions? • How do individuals embrace religious beliefs? • Why do people leave their faith? • What are the origins of religion? Good and evil exist in every human soul, but there are factors that determine which path a person takes. Discover what makes a person believe what they believe and why members of different faiths are so often at odds with each other with the wisdom in this book.

The relationship between religion and the law is a hot-button topic in America, with the courts, Congress, journalists, and others engaging in animated debates on what influence, if any, the former should have on the latter. Many of these discussions are dominated by the legal perspective, which views religion as a threat to the law; it is rare to hear how various religions in America view American law, even though most religions have distinct views on law. In Faith and Law, legal scholars from sixteen different religious traditions contend that religious discourse has an important function in the making, practice, and adjudication of American law, not least because our laws rest upon a framework of religious values. The book includes faiths that have traditionally had an impact on American law, as well as new immigrant faiths that are likely to have a growing influence. Each contributor describes how his or her tradition views law and addresses one legal issue from that perspective. Topics include abortion, gay rights, euthanasia, immigrant rights, and blasphemy and free speech.

ÒFaith development cannot be divided into components. Rather it can be likened to the growth of a plant: seed, root, stem, leaf, bud, bloom. Each step happens in sequence, yet all are dependent on the earlier and continuing phases. All phases are the plant; the bloom is no more the plant than are the leaves or roots. So it is with faith: all phases are faith. Yet there is a distinct pattern of development.Ó --from Chapter 1

FAITH! What is saving faith, and where does it come from? I am not talking about the faith that is in every man by nature, the kind of faith that has led, and continues to lead, millions to place their trust in false gods. I am not talking about the kind of faith that cannot justify, the kind of faith that cannot save, but only serves to reveal and confirm the condemned and accursed state every man is in by nature. The faith I am talking about is the faith. That faith which is NOT in ANY man by nature. That faith which leads a man to trust only in the true God, Who He is and what He has done, for salvation. That faith which does not place its trust in false doctrines or even a mixture of false doctrines and true. I am talking about the faith which does justify, the kind of faith which converts a man from the condemned and accursed state into a right relationship with the true God. The only kind of faith that savingly believes the only Gospel there is that reveals the righteousness of Christ.

In 1990, Fr. Michael Lapsley, an Anglican priest active in the struggle against apartheid in South Africa, opened a letter bomb that nearly killed him. This memoir tells the story of this horrendous event, beginning with the journey that led him there.

Activities for celebrating secular and sacred seasons of the year Many of our experiences in life happen when several generations are together—at church, at home, in our communities. Holidays and family events are times for celebration, learning, rituals, food, and fun. This edition of Faithful Celebrations focuses on Mardi Gras/Carnival, Shrove Tuesday, Lent, Holy Week, Easter, and Pentecost. It includes plenty of activities to learn more about each of these sacred seasons or days in a church setting, at home, camp, or anywhere in-between. This abundance of ideas allows you to create meaningful celebrations within a faith context throughout the months of February, March, and April. Each event to be celebrated includes key ideas, a cluster of activities to experience the key ideas, materials needed, full instructions for implementation, background history and information, music, art, recipes, and prayer resources to use in a small, intimate or large, multi-generational group. For children, youth, adults, or any combination of ages, any of these activities can take place in any setting. Reproducibles, such as a Lenten calendar, role playing cards, and art patterns are available at www.churchpublishing.org for ease of use.

Catechetical / Youth Ministry

After an introduction about basic beliefs and two chapters that briefly recount the church's history, three chapters discuss Mormons in American culture, society, and politics.