Just Faith

According to new research from the Public Religion Research Institute, there are over 35 million consistently progressive Christians in the United States. Majorities of American Christians support reproductive justice and LGBTQ+ rights. Yet they're erased from our public narrative--only mentioned as outliers to the fundamentalist norm. In Just Faith, progressive Christian activist and writer Guthrie Graves-Fitzsimmons explains how a strong religious left has accompanied every major progressive advance in our society, and he resurrects the long but forgotten history of progressive Christianity in the United States that can and must link arms with progressive Muslims and Jews to make the moral case for pluralism, human dignity, and the common good. Graves-Fitzsimmons provides a blueprint for this type of resurrection based on his advocacy work at the intersection of religion and American politics. Graves-Fitzsimmons creates a rallying cry for a bold progressive Christianity that unapologetically fights for its values to impact the biggest political battles of our time--from immigration and economic fairness to LGBTQ+ rights and abortion rights--so that progressive Christians will stop lowering their voices when they identify as Christians. "What kind of Christian are you?" they'll be asked. And they'll even be understood when they reply with a smile, "The good kind."

The purpose of this scholarly book is to expand the body of knowledge available on urban theology. It introduces readers to the concept of planetary urbanisation, with the view of deepening an understanding of urbanisation and its all-pervasive impact on the planet, people and places from a theological perspective. A critical theological reading of ‘the urban’ is also provided, deliberating on bridging the divide between voices from the Global South and the Global North. In doing so, this book simultaneously seeks out robust and dynamic faith constructs, expressed in various forms and embodiments of justice. The methodology chosen transcended narrow disciplinary boundaries, situating reflections between and across disciplines, in the interface between scholarly reflection and an activist faith, as well as between local rootedness and global connectedness. This was facilitated by the collected gathering of authors, spanning all continents, various Christian faith traditions and multiple disciplines, as well as a range of methodological approaches. The book endeavours to contribute to knowledge production in a number of ways. Firstly, it suggests the inadequacy of most dominant faith expressions in the face of all-pervasive forces of urbanisation, and it also provides clues as to the possibility of fostering potent alternative imaginaries. Secondly, it explores a decolonial faith that is expressed in various forms of justice. It is an attempt to offer concrete embodiments of what such a faith could look like in the context of planetary urbanisation. Thirdly, the book does not focus on one specific urban challenge or mode of ministry but rather introduces the concept of planetary urbanisation and then offers critical lenses with which to interrogate its consequences and challenges. It considers concrete and liberating faith constructs in areas ranging from gender, race, economic inequality, a solidarity economics and housing to urban violence, indigeneity and urbanisation, the interface between economic and environmental sustainability, and grass-roots theological education.

Maxie grew up the daughter of immigrants who strongly believed in keeping familyespecially extended familyvery close. But in Maxies family the closeness only created a childhood that was filled with turmoil, abuse, betrayal, and finally abandonment. When Maxie was old enough, she educated herself and believed she had moved on with her life. She eventually had her own family, only to find herself facing an abuse and betrayal that was beyond what she faced as a child. Then one day something more awful than even Maxie could imagine happened that changed the course of her life forever.

NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • From the author of Relationship Goals . . . Will you be remembered as a person who claimed to follow God but liked to play it safe? Or as a person who lived your life out on the limb and trusted God enough to live in crazy faith? Noah looked crazy when he started building the ark . . . until it started raining. It was crazy for Moses to lead a nation of people into the desert away from Egypt . . . until the Red Sea parted. It was crazy to believe that a fourteen-year-old virgin would give birth to the Son of God . . . until Mary held Jesus in her arms. There are many things that seem normal or average today that at one point in time seemed absolutely crazy. Smartphones, Wi-Fi, and even the electric light bulb were all groundbreaking, history-making inventions that started out as crazy ideas. Our see-it-to-believe-it generation tends to have a hard time exercising true faith—one that steps out, takes action, and sees mountain-moving results. Many of us would rather play it safe and stand on the sidelines, but it’s crazy faith that helps us see God move and reveals His promises. In Crazy Faith, Pastor Michael Todd shows us how to step out in faith and dive into the purposeful life of trusting God for the impossible. Even if you have to start with baby faith or maybe faith, you can become empowered to let go of your lazy faith, trust God through your hazy faith, and learn to live a lifestyle of crazy faith. With powerful stories of modern-day faith warriors who take their cues from biblical heroes, Michael Todd equips you to • believe for the impossible • choose hope over fear • be alert to the voice of God • cope with loss and doubt • develop a deeper level of trust in God • speak faith-filled declarations • inspire crazy faith in others God’s not looking for somebody to give Him all the reasons why His plans can’t happen. He’s looking for somebody to believe they will happen. In fact, He has so much He wants to do through you. The question is, Are you crazy enough to believe it?

When lobbyist Faith Lockhart stumbles upon a corruption scheme at the highest levels of government, she becomes a dangerous witness who the most powerful men in the world will go to any lengths to silence in this #1 New York Times bestselling thriller. In a secluded house not far from Washington, D.C., the FBI is interviewing one of the most important witnesses it has ever had: a young woman named Faith Lockhart. For Faith has done too much, knows too much, and will tell too much. Feared by some of the most powerful men in the world, Faith has been targeted to die. But when a private investigator walks into the middle of the assassination attempt, the shooting suddenly goes wrong, and an FBI agent is killed. Now Faith Lockhart must flee for her life--with her story, her deadly secret, and an unknown man she's forced to trust...

Mae Elise Cannon opens the annals of activist history to see if there is a correlation between great acts of compassion and advocacy and great depths of prayer. Looking at the lives of Mother Teresa, Dietrich Bonhoeffer, Martin Luther King Jr. and others, Cannon finds a depth of spiritual practice at the root of courageous social action.

Is a life without religion one without values or purpose? Julian Baggini emphatically says no. He sets out to dispel the myths surrounding atheism and to show how it can be both a meaningful and moral choice. He directly confronts the failure of officially atheist states in the twentieth century, and presents an intellectual case for atheism that rests as much on reasoned and positive arguments for its truth as on negative arguments against religion.

Popular Bible teacher and host of the Gospel Truth broadcast, Andrew Wommack takes on one of the biggest controversies of the church, the freedom of God's grace verses the faith of the believer. Wommack reveals that God's power is not released from only grace or only faith. God's blessings come through a balance of both grace and faith. Addressing many of the misconceptions believers are taught in the Church today, this book opens up the Scriptures revealing the vital connection between grace and faith. Many believers think they walk in both grace and faith when actually they are misusing one or both of these principles. Wommack addresses: * Some believers willingly sin believing Gods grace will cover them, while the blessing of grace is not to sin, but to release guilt and condemnation when they make a mistake. * Other believers think they must "work" their faith by ritualistic prayer, confession, or Bible study. Although all these things are good, Jesus Christ set believers free from works of the law. God wants a relationship where He can communicate directly to each believer. * Grace and faith work together. When believers receive the unmerited favor or grace of God, they can release their faith without doubt or reservation and receive God's blessings. Andrew Wommack in his logical, practical style brings believers back on track in their Christian walk through living in the balance of grace and faith.