Published in the UK for the first time, Mixed Blessings is one of Barbara Brown Taylor’s earliest books which helped to establish her reputation as one of the finest spiritual writers in the English language. In a series of reflections on scripture, she considers the startling reality of what it means to be the people of God.

Mixed Blessings is a work of fiction. It is the story of Toby Martin, a young musician who plays in a pop band in the seventies. As Toby reaches manhood, he discovers that life is not all fun and games like it was when he was just a teen. The book explores his triumphs, tragedies, the heartaches and high points in his life, and his test of faith, as he matures and tries to balance his music career with being a responsible young adult and family man, living in a small southern town. From the first chapter when his band opens for one of the hottest rock bands of that era, to seeing his best friend go from a tragic loss to finally finding happiness, along with experiencing his own loss of a loved one. He and his two best friends, Corey Gable and Fred Litton, who refer to themselves as the Three Muskyteers, experience life at it's fullest. Come join Toby and his friends for this ride of their life through the seventies.

Taking a woman-centered approach, Mixed Blessings analyzes the effect of religious fundamentalism on gender roles in a variety of religions and nations. It explains how some women benefit from fundamentalism, gaining economic power and autonomy, and portrays how others maneuver within its restrictions. The scope of the book is broad, ranging from Christian groups in North and South America, Islamic groups in the Middle East and China, Jews in Israel, Hindus in India, and Buddhists in Sri Lanka. The detailed descriptions of women's lives illustrate the complexity of the intersection of gender and fundamentalism. The impact of fundamentalism for some women has been beneficial and has lead to greater economic power and autonomy. In other areas women must maneuver within the constraints of fundamentalism to gain power and autonomy.

After the wedding of Diana Goode and Andrew Douglas, Diana teases that they will make a baby on their honeymoon. But long afterward, she is still not pregnant. As Diana and Andrew wait out each month only to be bitterly disappointed, they are forced to question just how much they are willing to go through to have a baby. Charlie Winwood dreams of a house filled with children. His bride, party-girl actress Barbie Mason, has other ideas. When he discovers he is sterile, Charlie has to rethink his deepest values -- and his marriage to a woman who shares none of his dreams. After ten years of living together, Pilar Graham, a prominent Santa Barbara attorney, marries Judge Brad Coleman, who is nineteen years her senior and father of two grown children. They are happy with their comfortable life together, à deux, until Pilar begins to wonder if she will someday regret not having a baby with Brad. Are they crazy to begin now -- with Brad about to become a grandfather and Pilar with a busy career, and in her early forties, possibly putting herself at risk? Through the lives of these couples, Danielle Steel shows us the mixed blessingswe face as we build our families and live our modern lives. She touches us with the triumphant people who prevail, their victories, their defeats, their tragedies and joys, their compromises, their lives.

Mixed Blessings transforms our understanding of the relationship between Indigenous people and Christianity in what is now Canada. While acknowledging the harm of colonialism, including the trauma inflicted by church-run residential schools, this book challenges the portrayal of Indigenous people as passive victims of malevolent missionaries who experienced a uniformly dark history. Instead, it illuminates the diverse and multifaceted ways that Indigenous communities and individuals across Canada have interacted, and continue to interact, meaningfully with Christianity from the early 1600s to the present. Ranging widely across time and place, these insightful case studies explore how and why some Indigenous people – including Louis Riel and Edward Ahenakew – historically aligned themselves with Christianity while others did not. It also plumbs the processes and politics involved in combining spiritual traditions and reflects on the role of Christianity in Indigenous communities today.

The girls are growing up. Not for them the daily grind of family life. Not yet anyway. After all, it is 1873. Women have more opportunities than ever before, especially in New Zealand in an era of great prosperity and progress. Five years have passed since we last visited the Mackenzies. Applecross sheep station is thriving, more people than ever have made it their home. There are changes everywhere, big and small, but James and Sophia remain the solid, dependable mainstay of life in the rural community. Until a dramatic incident rocks the very foundations of Mackenzie’s Basin. We join Heather, Caroline and Adey Rose, daughters of the Basin, as they blossom into young ladies, find their feet in the burgeoning city of Christchurch and take their first hesitant steps into the world of romance. However, the draw of Applecross is strong……..

This volume focuses on the ethical and philosophical issues that arise in an aging society, and the implications of these issues for healthcare and social policy. After a brief overview of biomedicine's changing approach of ageing and longevity and of the new expectations that these changes generate, various ethical, social, and policy issues that surround aging and longevity are discussed. First, the images and social meanings of aging and old age in our society are explored, including their normative dimensions and implications for policy. Next, ethical issues in the care for frail elderly are discussed, as well as notion of good care and end-of-life decisions. Finally, the ethical and social implications of emerging possibilities for anti-aging and lifespan extension are considered. The book concludes with an overview of the relevance of the issues discussed for policy making on professional, national and international levels.​

Mierce, the English Midlands, 8th Century A.D. Æthelbald, King of Mierce, is a man of ambition. Having created much-needed stability within his domain, he now aspires to take the surrounding kingdoms to expand and fortify his own. Stealthy and cunning, Æthelbald manipulates other men of power to achieve his goals. The quest for power is not King Æthelbald's only passion in life. Despite not wishing to marry, he has an unabating lust for women and takes advantage of his position to 'raid' nunneries to satisfy his desires. But Æthelbald also wishes to be seen as a fair and merciful king, and many poor, common folk benefit from his generous deeds and favourable resolutions. As Æthelbald's reign grows and strengthens, so too does the authority of the church, whose leverage over monarchical matters becomes increasingly overbearing. The church does not approve of King Æthelbald's exploits with innocent women and seeks to bring him into line with the threat of eternal damnation. The sequel to Saints and Sinners, Mixed Blessings chronicles the life of an English king in the days where the boundaries of kingdoms and social propriety were undergoing rapid change.

Chandra Crane has keenly felt the otherness of having a mixed multiethnic and multicultural background. But those of us with a mixed heritage have the privilege and potential to serve the Lord through our unique experiences. Crane explores what Scripture and history teach us about ethnicity and how we can bring all of ourselves to our sense of identity and calling.

Invidious distinctions on the basis of race and overt racism were central features in American colonial policy in the Philippines from 1898 to 1947, as America transported its domestic racial policy to the island colony. This collection by young Filipino scholars analyzes American colonialism and its impact on administration and attitudes in the Philippines through the prism of American racial tradition, a structural concept which refers to beliefs, attitudes, images, classifications, laws, and social customs that shape race relations and racial formation in multiracial and colonial societies. The dominance of this tradition was manifested in the wanton prerogatives of the U.S. Congress and others who helped to carry out colonial policy in the region. The Spanish flexible racial tradition had resulted in a system based on ethnicity and class as determinants of social and economic structure, while the rigid U.S. racial tradition assigned race the more dominant role. The cultural affinity between the early individual American administrators and the Filipino elite, however, meant that class-based distinctions in the islands were not broken up. Thus, the extreme elitist character of the Philippines' economy and society persisted and became impervious to the influences which in other Asian countries led to a progressive weakening of elite structures as the 20th century advanced.