A powerful and thought-provoking look at "reunions" of all kinds as roads to remembering and re-membering ourselves. "Reunions with people, places, things, and ourselves happen every day around us and within us. Whether to participate or not will always be your choice." --from the Introduction Explore humankind's timeless, universal and deeply spiritual desire to reunite for the sake of healing and wholeness. Whether we wander far from home or reminisce from our favorite armchair, people of all faiths or none whatsoever undertake journeys to remember, restore and re-member the missing pieces of our stories, psyches and souls: Do you occasionally Google a person from your past in hopes of "catching up"? Do you leaf through old address books to try to call someone for the first time in decades? When you visit gravesites or memorials, can you pinpoint what drew you there? Have you felt an urge to revisit your birthplace or travel to your ancestors' homelands? Do you feel compelled to attend an upcoming high school, family or other reunion? If not, why not? Delve deeply into ways that your body, mind and spirit answer the Spirit of Re-union's calls to reconnect with people, places, things and self.

The Celtic Christians beheld the world around them and perceived the divine life of God as upholding every aspect of the material universe. Their prayers and poems, their liturgies and theological interpretations give Christians a sense of faith that is confident in a merciful and infinitely creative, healing God.

Sometimes What We Need Most Is What We Fear Most "Times change and situations seem to change, but there is still a great need for prophets, for God's ambassadors, to stand up and be counted. Who will dare to be Paul the Apostle today, or Dorothy Day, or Francis of Assisi, or Dietrich Bonhoeffer? Who will dare, when God calls, to say, 'Here I am, Lord. Send me’?" —from the Foreword by Archbishop Desmond Tutu Meet twelve fascinating—at times, intimidating—Christian change agents who were unafraid to ask what God would have them do in the face of life’s realities—and unafraid to go ahead and do it. Their words and actions challenged the status quo, and in so doing they showed the face of Jesus to the Church and to the world. Whether calling us to live simply in the name of Jesus, showing the way to genuine peacemaking, or exemplifying the true meaning of courage, the legacies of these blessed troublemakers continue to inspire us today ... if we let them. Paul of Tarsus • Mary Magdalene • Origen of Alexandria • Francis of Assisi • Hildegard of Bingen • Thomas Cranmer • Sojourner Truth • Dorothy Day • Dietrich Bonhoeffer • Janani Luwum • Oscar Romero • K. H. Ting

Inspiration, encouragement and spiritual practice from across faith traditions for all who seek hope and wholeness through letting go. We all carry wounds that can bind up our hearts and keep us from fully loving―and fully living―in the present. Our pain may come from devastating trauma or unconscious resentment from accumulated everyday grievances. No matter the depth of the hurt, in the warmth and wisdom of this inspiring guidebook readers will find courage to face the past and begin the process of letting go. Contributors active as spiritual directors, clergy, religious scholars and retreat leaders draw on the depths of their own spiritual practice, religious traditions and sacred texts to offer hope and encouragement for the journey of forgiveness. They provide a rich variety of practices for cultivating an open and forgiving heart, both toward ourselves and others, as well as step-by-step guidance in the process of forgiveness. They share their insights on: Healing ourselves through forgiveness Overcoming obstacles to forgiveness Letting go of resentment, blame and anger Forgiving ourselves Deciding whether to restore relationships Asking for and accepting forgiveness Receiving Divine forgiveness Fostering mercy in our hearts Seeking peace and reconciliation in our communities For use by individuals as well as groups in worship or counseling settings, this wide range of perspectives, offered with grace and compassion, will gently move readers toward the wholeness and freedom that come from true forgiveness. Contributors: Nancy L. Bieber • Rev. Carolyne Call • Rev. Dr. Joan Brown Campbell • Nancy Barrett Chickerneo, PhD • Paul Wesley Chilcote, PhD • William Cleary • Nancy Corcoran, CSJ • Linda Douty • Rabbi Ted Falcon • Marcia Ford • Rev. Dr. Marie M. Fortune • Tamar Frankiel, PhD • Rabbi Edwin Goldberg, DHL • Caren Goldman • Rev. Steven Greenebaum • Judy Greenfeld • Kent Ira Groff • Diana L. Guerrero • Rabbi Karyn D. Kedar • Kay Lindahl • Rabbi David Lyon • Pastor Don Mackenzie • St. Maximos • Ron Miller • Diane M. Millis, PhD • Rev. Timothy J. Mooney • Rev. Dr. John Philip Newell • Linda Novick • Rev. Larry J. Peacock • Gordon Peerman • M. Basil Pennington, OCSO • Jan Phillips • Susan Quinn • Imam Jamal Rahman • Marty Richards, MSW, LCSW • The Rev. Canon C.K. Robertson, PhD • Rev. Nanette Sawyer • Rev. Dr. Donna Schaper • The Most Rev. Katharine Jefferts Schori • Aaron Shapiro • Rami Shapiro • Louise Silk • Rev. Susan Sparks • Aaron Spevack, PhD • Rabbi Elie Kaplan Spitz • Molly and Bernie Srode • Tom Stella • Sohaib N. Sultan • Terry Taylor • Yoland Trevino • Rev. Jane E. Vennard • The Rev. Peter Wallace • Cynthia Winton-Henry

This is a study of Taiwanese film and its some of most celebrated directors, focusing on the rich body of work from four contemporary filmmakers - Ang Lee, Edward Yang, Hou Hsiao-hsien and Tsai Ming-liang.

Have the courage and curiosity to face the inner changes of aging--and learn how they can help you find meaning in your later years. "I used to think that age sixty-five was the start of a slippery downward slope to the cemetery. But inside, I felt a surge of enormous energy, with the potential to approach aging as an uncharted adventure instead of a prison sentence." --from the Introduction Unlike other authors, spiritual director Linda Douty discusses the challenges and surprises of aging by talking about how you actually feel, not what you're supposed to feel. In a warm, down-to-earth voice, she offers a spiritually grounded method to adjust to the unexpected as you grow older. There is no one-size-fits-all here, but a variety of responses to the inner and outer transformations of aging and new ways of looking at them. She looks at surprises, welcome and unwelcome, concerning: - Self-image - The physical body - Relationships - Spiritual life Questions for reflecting on who you are in this period of your life--or who you would like to be--will help you live each day more purposefully and joyfully.

The wisdom of Confucius, China's greatest teacher and sage, can guide each of us in our own time. Twenty-six centuries after their origination, the principles laid down in the Analects of Confucius still act as the foundation of Chinese philosophy, ethics, society and government, and play a formative role in the development of many Eastern philosophies. In this intriguing look at the ethical and spiritual meaning of the Analects, Rodney L. Taylor, the foremost American researcher of Confucius as a religious and spiritual figure, explains their profound and universal wisdom for our own time. He shows how Confucius advocates learning and self-cultivation to follow the "path of the sage" or “Way of Heaven”—a journey that promises to promote reason, peace and understanding. Alongside an updated version of the classic translation by Sinologist James Legge, Taylor provides informative and accessible commentary that illuminates the meaning behind selected passages from the Analects and their insights on character development, respect and reverence, and the nature of learning, goodness, truthfulness and righteousness.

This soulful companion for grief offers wisdom and creative spiritual practices from across faith traditions for walking with sorrow and honoring loss. Whether you need to grieve in words or silence, in solitude or in company with others, this compassionate guide will help you find wholeness and a renewed vision of yourself and the world.

By breaking free from our misperceptions about what it means to be an adult, we can reshape our world and become harbingers of grace. “In our desire to grow up, mature, become adults, we become enamored with who we are supposed to be. When we have finally ‘grown up’ we realize much of who we really are has been left behind or buried under various masks and roles we play. But the knowledge of who we truly are never leaves us. To reclaim our selfhood, we must grow up again and consciously embrace all that it means to be childlike.” —from Chapter 12, “It Takes a Long Time to Become Young” By restoring the childlike ways of humility, trust, awe, wonder, playfulness and more, we can recover a fuller picture of what it means to be human. This unique spiritual resource explores what Jesus may have meant when he said, “Unless you change and become like children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.” It addresses our modern misperceptions regarding the nature of maturity and the common coping mechanisms—distrust, guardedness, insecurity, judgmental thinking—we acquire, and feel we require, in adulthood. Along with the wisdom of ancient and modern spiritual luminaries, this book provides over twenty-five spiritual practices to help us cultivate the childlike ways of attention, self-awareness, joy and resilience in our inner lives as well as in our relationships with others.

Inspired by the ancient spiritual practices of lectio divina and walking meditation, camino divina helps you explore whole new worlds inside yourself as well as re-view the natural world around you by combining mindful walking with inspiring phrases and spiritual exercises. Includes introductions to twelve spiritual luminaries and their work.