News Blog @ Wellington City Libraries

The latest additions to the religions and beliefs collection encompass the Amish, Buddha Standard Time, some origins of the 2012 Apocalypse thinking, and a Christian view of place.

Walking gently on the earth : making faithful choices about food, energy, shelter and more, by Lisa Graham McMinn & Megan Anna Neff.
“Each chapter uniquely begins with a prelude by Megan Anna that highlights an African perspective or practice, helping us glean the wisdom of another culture and reminding us of the interconnectedness of everything on the earth. Lisa’s fluid, passionate writing then offers both the truth about the state of the earth and inspiration to get back toshalom–a peace that allows all things to thrive. Covering such topics as farming practices, slave labour, consumer power, climate change, alternative energy sources, and family size Lisa clearly demonstrates the effects of our choices and makes it easy for us to choose with discernment, with lists of resources and organizations at the end of each chapter. …” (Syndetics summary)

Man seeks God : my flirtations with the divine, by Eric Weiner.
“When a health problem puts him in the hospital, agnostic Eric Weiner is asked by a nurse. “Have you found your God yet?” This unbalances his equilibrium and he embarks on a personal mission to do just that. This entertaining book includes heartwarming accounts of those he met along the way – those steeped in Sufism, Buddhism, Catholicism, Judaism, Wicca, and even a UFO-based religion.

Wounded wisdom : a Buddhist and Christian response to evil, hurt and harm, by Ross Thompson.
“How as the hurt people we all are, are we not to be harmed and harm others in turn? This is an urgent issue for a world increasingly embroiled in more and more conflicts that are regarded, bythose who wage them, as battles of good against evil.” (Syndetics summary)

Your true home : the everyday wisdom of Thich Nhat Hanh / [Thich Nhat Hanh] ; compiled and edited by Melvin McLeod.
“Inspiring, joyful, and deeply insightful, this book offers daily contemplations and words of wisdom from one of today’s most important spiritual teachers. These powerful and transformative words of wisdom, drawn from the works of a bestselling and prolific author, touch all aspects of readers’ lives, from the personal to the global, and reflect the great themes of his teachings. ” (Syndetics summary)

Scapegoat : a history of blaming other people, by Charlie Campbell.
“We still crave simple explanations for complex happenings,” Campbell writes, but these explanations have often led to tragic situations in which innocents suffer for crimes they didn’t commit. … The book offers examples organized into thematic chapters (Jewish, Christian, sexual, Communist, medical), which cover ancient to modern times and show how powerful leaders and enemies of the people have always been “inextricably linked, reverse sides of a coin, one the shadow of the other.” Although Campbell is a witty and engaging writer, the book never develops an argument beyond anecdote, ….” (drawn from Publishers Weekly, courtesy of Syndetics)

Buddha standard time : awakening to the infinite possibilities of now, by Surya Das.
“We’re all given the same twenty-four hours a day.We can spend our time feeling hurried and harried, overwhelmed by chores and demands, distracted and burned out . . . or we can awaken to Buddha Standard Time, the realm of timelessness whereevery choice, every action, and every breath can be one of renewal and infinite possibilities. … Drawing on Tibetan Buddhism and other great wisdom traditions, as well as on neuroscience and holistic traditions, renowned teacher and national bestselling author Lama Surya Das shares real world examples, practical exercises, and essential techniques. ” (Syndetics summary)

The Amish way : patient faith in a perilous world, by Donald B. Kraybill, Steven M. Nolt, David L. Weaver-Zercher.
“This second book by the authors of the award-winning Amish Grace sheds further light on the Amish, this time on their faith, spirituality, and spiritual practices. They interpret the distinctive practices of the Amish way of life and spirituality in their cultural context and explore their applicability for the wider world. Using a holistic perspective, the book tells the story of Amish religious experience in the words of the Amish themselves. Due to their long-standing friendships and relationships with Amish people, this author team may be the only set of interpreters able to provide an outsider-insider perspective….(Syndetics summary)

Where mortals dwell : a Christian view of place for today, by Craig G. Bartholomew.
“Where Mortals Dwell provides a biblical, theological, and philosophical grounding for the significance of place in our rootless culture. Bartholomew illuminates the importance of place throughout the biblical canon, in the Christian tradition, and in the contours of contemporary thought. This timely book encourages readers to recover a sense of place and articulates a hopeful Christian vision of placemaking in today’s world. ” (Syndetics summary)

Renovation of the church : what happens when a seeker church discovers spiritual formation, by Kent Carlson and Mike Lueken ; foreword by Dallas Willard.
“2012 Christianity Today Book Award winner. Pastors Kent Carlson and Mike Lueken tell the story of how God took their thriving, consumer-oriented church and transformed it into a modest congregation of unformed believers committed to the growth of the spirit …. [this] … triggered major changes in the content of their sermons, the tenor of their worship services, and the reason for their outreach… Honest and humble, this is Kent and Mike’s story of a church they love, written to inspire and challenge other churches to let God rewrite their stories as well. ” (Syndetics summary)

Apocalypse not : everything you know about 2012, Nostradamus and the Rapture is wrong / John Michael Greer.
“All the end time prophecies splashed across the media in every age have had something else in common: every one of them has been wrong. Apocalypse Not is a lively and engaging survey of predictions about the end of the world, along with the failed dreams and nightmares that have clustered around them. Among the stories highlighted are: the birth of the apocalypse meme out of archaic star myths in the ancient Middle East; the failed end time prophecies of Nostradamus, Mother Shipton, and other famous prophets; the long and murky road from the Great Pyramid to today’s Rapture beliefs; and the real origins of the belief in apocalypse in 2012 ….” (Syndetics summary)

Objecting to God, by Colin Howson.
“… In this book Colin Howson analyses in detail the evidence which is claimed to support belief in God’s existence and argues that the claim is not well-founded. Moreover, there is very compelling evidence that an all-powerful, all-knowing God not only does not exist but cannot exist, a conclusion both surprising and provocative.” (Syndetics summary)

Understanding world religions, by Irving Hexham.
“Presents religion as a complex and intriguing matrix of history, philosophy, culture, beliefs, and practices. Hexham believes that a certain degree of objectivity and critique is inherent in the study of religion, and he guides readers in responsible ways of carrying this out.Of particular importance is Hexham’s decision to explore African religions, which have frequently been absent from major religion texts. He surveys these in addition to varieties of Hinduism, Buddhism, Judaism, Christianity, and Islam.” (Syndetics summary)