Around 1800 roughly three per cent of the human population lived in urban areas; by 2030 this number is expected to have gone up to some seventy per cent. This poses problems for traditional religions that are all rooted in rural, small-scale societies. The authors in this volume question what the possible appeal of these old religions, such as Christianity, Judaism, or Islam could be in the new urban environment and, conversely, what impact global urbanization will have on learning and on the performance and nature of ritual. Anthropologists, historians and political scientists have come together in this volume to analyse attempts made by churches and informal groups to adapt to these changes and, at the same time, to explore new ways to study religions in a largely urbanized environment.

The Kingdom of God Come Upon You By: Richard Charles Carlson Author Richard Charles Carlson wrote this book for you to understand why things happen in this world whether it is good or bad. He wants other people to be happy and to accept others for who they are with love. You should have no room in your heart to hate anyone. Carlson’s main focus is to try to have a better understanding of what the Bible is all about from the beginning to the end. He uses scripture to show proof of his belief through faith of why people exist and our purpose. In the book, Carlson writes about the events before and after this universe was created. His main focus is on Jesus Christ and the war with Satan for people to understand good and evil and to then know good and evil by examining themselves. Carlson finds that everything in the Bible is very important, from the beginning to the end. He refers to it as “Jesus’ Book.” He discovers more about God’s kingdom by revelations through visage, dreams, and even through other people. Carlson sees the power of God’s kingdom through the peace in his heart that can only come from Jesus Christ, our Lord and Savior. Carlson desires to bless his Father in the Highest of Heaven and gain more born-again children in His house. His Father wants all His children to have the knowledge of the wisdom of God, to join with Him in eternal life in Paradise forever. Carlson explains what kind of choice you want in life to be happy and how to rejoice forever. Within this book, Carlson keeps a humble state of mind while writing about his testimonies of confessions, to live without guilt and shame, and to continually praise the Lord Jesus Christ with a clean mind. He wants you to live your life to the Most High God Almighty and to be happy as well.

With so much attention given to the presentation aspect of modern worship services, is it possible that many people attending church today forget to focus on the primary purpose of actually being in God's presence? Pastor Steve Gaines and coauthor Dean Merrill (Fresh Wind, Fresh Fire) fear this is the case and call for a return to the core point of corporate worship in When God Comes to Church. The goal here is to "send people out the door saying not 'What a sermon!' or 'What great music!' but rather 'What a Savior!' . . . the only 'Wow!' in a church should be God." With that in mind, Gaines and Merrill write thoroughly about what attracts God to our worship gatherings--sincere prayer, repentance, unity, etc.--and warn against the worldly hindrances to pure worship such as legalism, liberalism, and fanaticism.

Often our Advent/Christmas journey is focused on us our memories, feelings, relationships and experiences. This study puts the focus on Gods action in Jesus Christ. It encourages participants to think more deeply in terms of the biblical, theological and spiritual meaning of the Nativity, while still applying it to their own life experience.

Liturgy is not a religious frill or Sunday morning ceremonial exercise. It is a communal response to the sacred. The liturgies, ceremonies, and rituals in our lives are the stuff of reality and have the power to heal and inspire us. From archaic times they have had this capacity, as they have always been our interaction with God and the gods. This book is filled with essays and stories, ancient and modern. Some of its liturgies are tried and proven, creative, ecumenical services of worship and others are nonreligious, spirit-filled events. Can God Come Out To Play? is aimed at those who are looking for a spiritual approach to today's challenges and are interested in imaginative forms and methods to guide them. Educators, clergy, divinity students, event facilitators, care workers, and environmentalists will appreciate this book as a valuable resource. And all its readers will have one thing in common--a willingness to recognize God as their mysterious, playful companion.

An approach to the Spiritual Exercises of St. Ignatius As more and more people begin to reclaim their spiritual heritage, longoverlooked traditions resurface, offering seekers new ways to rekindle their spiritual selves. The Spiritual Exercises of St. Ignatius of Loyola is such a tradition, and its recovery in the church has sparked the interest of many believers—religious and laypeople alike. In light of this resurgence, Fr. William A. Barry, a director of the Spiritual Exercises for more than thirty years, offers Letting God Come Close, a guide that shows spiritual directors how to effectively and creatively help individuals meet the living God through the Exercises. Using clear, down-to-earth examples from his own experience, Fr. Barry hopes to instill in the director the trust, confidence, and skills needed to help retreatants approach God. “Spiritual directors will find a gold mine here of help in understanding and giving the Exercises.” —George Aschenbrenner, S.J., director, Jesuit Center for Spiritual Growth “For over thirty years Barry has listened attentively for the ways God deals directly with God’s people through the Spiritual Exercises. God’s voice comes through and Barry helps directors pay attention.” —George R. Murphy, S.J., adjunct lecturer in spirituality at the Jesuit School of Theology in Berkeley

What Happens... When God Gets Angry God created Heaven and earth and all that is in it. He created man and woman with His two hands and named them Adam and Eve. God told them they had total control of the Garden of Eden except one tree, “The Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil.” God did not want them to look at it or touch it or eat the fruit from it. The warning from God did not last long. Satan was after Adam and Eve as soon as God told them to stay away from the tree. Satan convinced them to eat the fruit so their eyes would be opened and thus sin was born. God threw Adam and Eve out of the Garden and into the world of sin that the man and woman had created by disobedience. Several hundred years later God saw the wickedness of the Adam and Eve generations. He decided to clear the earth of sinful man. God killed every land born creature with a flood of water that was above the mountain tops. God spared Noah, his wife, their three sons and their wives. Only eight people survived the flood. Those eight people produced today’s world population of eight billion. Hundreds of years later, God again looked at the sins of mankind and was disturbed. He looked at two of the worst cities, Sodom and Gomorrah, and decided to destroy four cities in the evil valley. Abraham asked God to spare the cities if he could find ten righteous people within the city of Sodom. Abraham could only find four righteous people, so God destroyed the cities with fire and brimstone. Now, hundreds of years after Sodom and Gomorrah, God is looking at the world today. He is deciding how long He will wait before He sends Christ to rapture the church-age saints and destroy sinful mankind. In the Bible book of Revelation, God explains some of the events that will take place during the Tribulation period of seven years. I have tried to capture the consequences in this book. After these events there will be no reason for God to look from Heaven to earth anymore because Heaven will be on earth. It is all there, right in the Bible.

The lessons in this publication, "God comes To Man In Jesus," are a study of the life and ministry of the Lord Jesus Christ dependent on the accounts of the gospels of Mark and Luke. In spite of the fact that the occasions themselves are well known, there is open door for readers to make new applications to their own needs. The effect of the words and deeds of Jesus is genuinely necessary, so all Christians can come to affirm with the missionary Paul: "It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me." In one sense, Jesus was the most inventive, most uniquely creative individual who at any point lived, yet he was totally dutiful to his Father's will. Today compliance to God is as yet the way to control for inventive living. Jesus Christ makes his kids new people (II Cor. 5:17). Christians are reestablished in knowledge after the image of God. With that tremendous potential, for what reason would we settle for anything less than the best God has for us? Reverend Dr. John Thomas Wylie

What happens when language and thought come face-to-face with their maker: the self-organizing processes out of which they emerge?