After America's Iraq adventure devolved into a debacle, a chorus of commentators and analysts noted that the U.S. military had no plan to fight a counterinsurgency campaign. Given the failure of conventional tactics, America in the last two years has redoubled its efforts to develop a new strategy to fight the Iraqi insurgency, and has gone so far to place our leading counterinsurgency expert, General David Petraeus, in charge of the Iraq theater. In sum, there seems to be a growing consensus that for better or worse, counterinsurgency will be a core tactic in future American military campaigns. Iraq, of course, presents special problems to the U.S. because of the intensity of religious belief and sectarianism. How do we fight against an insurgency that so often strategically positions itself on 'hallowed ground'--mosques and shrines? Yet Iraq is not unique. As the contributors to Treading on Hallowed Ground show, counterinsurgency efforts on religiously contentious terrain is a widespread phenomenon in recent times, ranging from North Africa to Central and Southeast Asia. Here, C. Christine Fair and Sumit Ganguly have assembled an impressive group of experts to explore the most important counterinsurgency efforts in sacred spaces in our era: churches in Israel, mosques and shrines in Iraq, the Sikh Golden Temple in India, mosques and temples in Kashmir, the Krue Se Mosque in Thailand, and the Grand Mosque in Saudi Arabia. Taken together, the essays comprise the first comprehensive account of this increasingly pivotal component of contemporary war.

Probing the dark corners of the South, this book follows the courageous people who risked their lives to rebuild the black churches in order to heal the Southern community.

Walking On Holy Ground With Persons Suffering From The Alzheimer’s Disease explores the sacredness of the Alzheimer’s patients as well as draws the attention of clergy and laymen alike to acknowledge the sanctity of ministering to those suffering with the Alzheimer's disease. It is important to recognize the sacredness of ‘man’ and as such to value his human dignity. We must respect and revere everyone we encounter daily, irrespective of health conditions and their caste, color or creed. This maxim of reverencing the sacredness in all persons is the crux of this book. This book will help you to minister fruitfully to the Alzheimer’s patients and to address their yearning for God and simultaneously provide them with spiritual sustenance. This book will undergird the prevalent traditional cognitive pastoral care ministry and help to appropriately meet the spiritual need of these non-cognitive patients.

In the spiritual successor to the best-selling Touchstones, the author continues to explore masculinity and sobriety. Now well beyond recovery’s trailhead, we confront life itself: it isn’t merely abstinence and coping skills, it’s a triumph. Stepping Stones guides your self-help discovery along its next steps, ensuring your recovery finds inspiration, meaning, and brilliance. For many of us, sobriety began uncomfortably. Treatment and counseling unearthed addiction’s thumbprint—substance use, anger, resentments, and behavioral patterns around sex and intimacy—as well as challenged perspectives about religion and spirituality. As addictive behaviors and mind-sets gave way to both mental health and physical wellness, our new sense of self emerged, and our family and friends supported our continuing transformation. This self-help meditation book is designed for men to keep moving forward in recovery. Recovery is well-earned, but life never slows—nor should it. Stepping Stones advances a person’s recovery so that it emerges as a comfortable journey that stays in stride with a person’s overall life and experiences. It offers insight into the many masculine roles men undertake—father and son, friend and lover—and provides actionable meditations for leading a full life. Life isn’t about recovery; recovery is about life.

Stepping Into The Shoes of a Predecessor is an attempt to help pastors, churches, organizations and ministries to better understand the process and aspects of ministry transition. Transfer of responsibility and authority often entails much more than is recognized on the surface, with issues and circumstances arising that can either enhance or deter the potential opportunities and/or success of such transitions. In this book, the author has examined eighteen biblical occasions of authority transitions from which he has drawn observations, principle, and lessons that can be applied to almost any situation today.

The little boy gazed up at Abigail as they walked on. Im sorry, he whispered. Hanzas statement almost brought tears to Abigails eyes. He seemed to apologize for his existence. For a six-year-old, the history and experiences in Hanzas short life seemed to have created a benign acceptance and realization in him that had sent him beyond his years.