Instructing Beginners in Faith

Instructing Beginners in Faith PDF Author: Augustine of Hippo
Publisher: New City Press
ISBN: 1565482395
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 173

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Book Description
As with very many of Augustine’s works, Instructing Beginners in Faith is a response to a request, an answer to questions put to him by others. In this case we know from the first words of the work itself that the one making the request is named Deogratias (Augustine calls him “brother”), and a couple of lines later we learn that he is a deacon in Carthage, the principal city of Proconsular Africa, where he enjoys popularity as a teacher of the faith. In the most general terms, he wanted Augustine to send him “something in writing which might be of use to him on the question of instructing beginners in faith (de catechizandis rudibus)”. The term rudes in this expression referred specifically to people who were approaching the Church for the first time with the wish to become Christians. Instructing Beginners in Faith has been frequently and creatively adapted to serve the needs of education in faith in many different contexts, including the education of clergy and religious education more generally. The two model catecheses that Augustine sketches not only continue to have relevance today but also provide an important insight into his understanding of the use of scripture and tradition. Augustine's awareness of the problems that religious educators face demonstrates his profound grasp of the human condition. Written as a reflection on the most suitable way of communicating the heart of Christian faith to those applying for membership of the Church.

Instructing Beginners in Faith

Instructing Beginners in Faith PDF Author: Augustine of Hippo
Publisher: New City Press
ISBN: 1565482395
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 173

Get Book

Book Description
As with very many of Augustine’s works, Instructing Beginners in Faith is a response to a request, an answer to questions put to him by others. In this case we know from the first words of the work itself that the one making the request is named Deogratias (Augustine calls him “brother”), and a couple of lines later we learn that he is a deacon in Carthage, the principal city of Proconsular Africa, where he enjoys popularity as a teacher of the faith. In the most general terms, he wanted Augustine to send him “something in writing which might be of use to him on the question of instructing beginners in faith (de catechizandis rudibus)”. The term rudes in this expression referred specifically to people who were approaching the Church for the first time with the wish to become Christians. Instructing Beginners in Faith has been frequently and creatively adapted to serve the needs of education in faith in many different contexts, including the education of clergy and religious education more generally. The two model catecheses that Augustine sketches not only continue to have relevance today but also provide an important insight into his understanding of the use of scripture and tradition. Augustine's awareness of the problems that religious educators face demonstrates his profound grasp of the human condition. Written as a reflection on the most suitable way of communicating the heart of Christian faith to those applying for membership of the Church.

Faith for Beginners

Faith for Beginners PDF Author: Aaron Hamburger
Publisher: Random House Trade Paperbacks
ISBN: 0812973208
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 370

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Book Description
An acclaimed short-story writer has created a miraculous first novel about an American family on the verge of a breakdown–and an epiphany. In the summer of 2000, Israel teeters between total war and total peace. Similarly on edge, Helen Michaelson, a respectable suburban housewife from Michigan, has brought her ailing husband and rebellious college-age son, Jeremy, to Jerusalem. She hopes the journey will inspire Jeremy to reconnect with his faith and find meaning in his life . . . or at least get rid of his nose ring. It’s not that Helen is concerned about Jeremy’s sexual orientation (after all, her other son is gay as well). It’s merely the matter of the overdose (“Just like Liza!” Jeremy had told her), the green hair, and what looks like a safety pin stuck through his face. After therapy, unconditional love, and tough love . . . why not try Israel? Yet in seductive and dangerous surroundings, with the rumbling of violence and change in the air, in a part of the world where “there are no modern times,” mother and son become new, old, and surprising versions of themselves. Funny, erotic, searingly insightful, and profoundly moving, Faith for Beginners is a stunning debut novel from a vibrant new voice in fiction.

Augustine in His Own Words

Augustine in His Own Words PDF Author: Saint Augustine (of Hippo)
Publisher: CUA Press
ISBN: 0813217431
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 543

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Book Description
This volume offers a comprehensive portrait--or rather, self-portrait, since its words are mostly Augustine's own--drawn from the breadth of his writings and from the long course of his career

Growing into God

Growing into God PDF Author: John Mabry
Publisher: Quest Books
ISBN: 0835609014
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 306

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Book Description
Offers a straightforward look at the Christian mystical tradition, using examples of the classical mystical journey from the lives of Christian mystics.

The First Catechetical Instruction

The First Catechetical Instruction PDF Author: Saint Augustine (of Hippo)
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Catechetics
Languages : la
Pages : 186

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Book Description


A Beginner's Faith in Things Unseen

A Beginner's Faith in Things Unseen PDF Author: John Hay
Publisher: Beacon Press
ISBN: 9780807085332
Category : Nature
Languages : en
Pages : 148

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Book Description
In A Beginner’s Faith in Things Unseen John Hay writes from the vantage point of eighty, and like no other American writer on what he calls “the real world.” Hay returns to memories of a boyhood divided between Manhattan and the deep woods of Sunapee, New Hampshire, to a time when he knew “one should always be outdoors, with the unregistered and the unsigned.” He writes with precision and beauty of pilot whale strandings on Cape Cod’s Outer Beach—and of the attendant human confusion and greed—and of the sweep of a century in which “our modern, owned world is going deaf from listening to its own answers.” Hay keeps company with Maine barn swallows and finds in the Lakota Sioux Grass Dance a way to listen to the wind. Always, through often uncannily affecting language, John Hay shows us just which ceremonies we all must attend to.

Grounded in the Gospel

Grounded in the Gospel PDF Author: J. I. Packer
Publisher: Baker Books
ISBN: 9781441207593
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 240

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Book Description
Historically, the church's ministry of grounding new believers in the essentials of the faith has been known as catechesis--systematic instruction in faith foundations, including what we believe, how we pray and worship, and how we conduct our lives. For most evangelicals today, however, this very idea is an alien concept. Packer and Parrett, concerned for the state of the church, seek to inspire a much needed evangelical course correction. This new book makes the case for a recovery of significant catechesis as a nonnegotiable practice of churches, showing the practice to be complementary to, and of no less value than, Bible study, expository preaching, and other formational ministries, and urging evangelical churches to find room for this biblical ministry for the sake of their spiritual health and vitality.

Outgrowing God

Outgrowing God PDF Author: Richard Dawkins
Publisher: Random House
ISBN: 1984853910
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 314

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Book Description
Should we believe in God? In this brisk introduction to modern atheism, one of the world’s greatest science writers tells us why we shouldn’t. Richard Dawkins was fifteen when he stopped believing in God. Deeply impressed by the beauty and complexity of living things, he’d felt certain they must have had a designer. Learning about evolution changed his mind. Now one of the world’s best and bestselling science communicators, Dawkins has given readers, young and old, the same opportunity to rethink the big questions. In twelve fiercely funny, mind-expanding chapters, Dawkins explains how the natural world arose without a designer—the improbability and beauty of the “bottom-up programming” that engineers an embryo or a flock of starlings—and challenges head-on some of the most basic assumptions made by the world’s religions: Do you believe in God? Which one? Is the Bible a “Good Book”? Is adhering to a religion necessary, or even likely, to make people good to one another? Dissecting everything from Abraham’s abuse of Isaac to the construction of a snowflake, Outgrowing God is a concise, provocative guide to thinking for yourself. Praise for Outgrowing God “My son came home from his first day in the sixth grade with arms outstretched plaintively demanding to know: ‘Have you ever heard of Jesus?’ We burst out laughing. Maybe not our finest parenting moment, given that he was genuinely distraught. He felt that he had woken up one day to a world in which his peers were expressing beliefs he found frighteningly unreasonable. He began devouring books like The God Delusion, books that helped him formulate his own arguments and helped him stand his ground. Dawkins’s new book is special in the terrain of atheists’ pleas for humanism and rationalism precisely since it speaks to those most vulnerable to the coercive tactics of religion. As Dawkins himself says in the dedication, this book is for ‘all young people when they’re old enough to decide for themselves.’ It is also, I must add, for their parents.”—Janna Levin, author of Black Hole Blues “When someone is considering atheism I tell them to read the Bible first and then Dawkins. Outgrowing God—second only to the Bible!”—Penn Jillette, author of God, No!

A Scoop of Honey

A Scoop of Honey PDF Author: Ashley Hetherington
Publisher:
ISBN: 9781090747631
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 97

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Book Description
What do you do when you want to find your faith, but don't know where to start? Lifestyle blogger Ashley Hetherington tackles the question so we can finally start living the life that's waiting for us. Many women have no idea how to get into their faith. It's even easier for them to wonder what the heck is out there and if there really is someone Divine looking over them. Ashley Hetherington understands this problem. But she also discovered that no matter where you come from or how much you know, there is a way to start a relationship with Jesus from scratch. Her experience helps us: · Learn how to pray, and see that it's a lot easier than you'd think.· Open up the Bible and actually understand it.· Find a church home, even if you don't have anyone to go with.· Make friends that will support you on your faith journey, and what Christian community looks like. Hetherington, a former Jesus-googler herself, delivers just how you can find your faith from ground zero. By the end of A Scoop Of Honey, you will understand more about your purpose, gain a sense of your worth, and you will surely feel closer to your Maker.

Practicing Our Faith

Practicing Our Faith PDF Author: Dorothy C. Bass
Publisher: Jossey-Bass
ISBN: 9780787938833
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 260

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Book Description
As wise as grandparents, a good guide to living within our families and communities with integrity and generosity. -- Kathleen Norris, author of Dakota and The Cloister Walk Many people are looking for ways to deepen their relationship with God by practicing their faith in everyday life. Some go on retreats but are often disappointed. Many thoughtful, educated people search for spiritual guidance in Eastern religious traditions, unaware of the great riches within their own heritage. Dorothy Bass and the other contributors to this multi-denominational collection show how they can shape a faithful way of life during challenging times at work, at home, and in the community. This book explores the stuff of everyday life, placing ordinary activities in a biblical and historical context, and discovering in them opportunities to realize God's active presence in life. Practices include: * Honoring the body * Hospitality * Household economics * Saying yes and saying no * Keeping Sabbath * Testimony * Discernment * Shaping Communities * Forgiveness * Healing