Windows To The World Literature In Christian Perspective

This is a teacher's book, written by an able teacher.... Most people are interested in literature because of a deep love for literature itself. They want to understand the reasons for that love. Ryken helps us do this, but he also helps Christians understand and validate their love for literature.... Ryken has also provided a solid means for non-Christians to understand a Christian perspective on literature.... It [Windows to the World] comes closer to defining the goal and task of the teacher of literature than any work I have read." - Christianity and Literature

Educated people have become bereft of sophisticated ways to develop their religious inclinations. A major reason for this is that theology has become vague and dull. In The Character of God, author Thomas E. Jenkins maintains that Protestant theology became boring by the late nineteenth century because the depictions of God as a character in theology became boring. He shows how in the early nineteenth century, American Protestant theologians downplayed biblical depictions of God's emotional complexity and refashioned his character according to their own notions, stressing emotional singularity. These notions came from many sources, but the major influences were the neoclassical and sentimental literary styles of characterization dominant at the time. The serene benevolence of neoclassicism and the tender sympathy of sentimentalism may have made God appealing in the mid-1800s, but by the end of the century, these styles had lost much of their cultural power and increasingly came to seem flat and vague. Despite this, both liberal and conservative theologians clung to these characterizations of God throughout the twentieth century. Jenkins argues that a way out of this impasse can be found in romanticism, the literary style of characterization that supplanted neoclassicism and sentimentalism and dominated American literary culture throughout the twentieth century. Romanticism emphasized emotional complexity and resonated with biblical depictions of God. A few maverick religious writers-- such as Harriet Beecher Stowe, W. G. T. Shedd, and Horace Bushnell--did devise emotionally complex characterizations of God and in some cases drew directly from romanticism. But their strange and sometimes shocking depictions of God were largely forgotten in the twentieth century. s use "theological" as a pejorative term, implying that an argument is needlessly Jenkins urges a reassessment of their work and a greaterin understanding of the relationship between theology and literature. Recovering the lost literary power of American Protestantism, he claims, will make the character of God more compelling and help modern readers appreciate the peculiar power of the biblical characterization of God.

The Christian Imagination brings together in a single source the best that has been written about the relationship between literature and the Christian faith. This anthology covers all of the major topics that fall within this subject and includes essays and excerpts from fifty authors, including C.S. Lewis, Flannery O’Connor, Dorothy Sayers, and Frederick Buechner.

This book examines a number of facets of contemporary culture and sets forth what thoughtful Christians have been and should be thinking about each one. Written in honor of Carl F.H. Henry on the occasion of his eightieth birthday, the essays in God and Culture are on these topics and by these contributors: •hermeneutics Kevin J. Vanhoozer •pluralism D.A. Carson •eschatology Geoffrey W. Bromiley •anthropology Robert J. Priest •psychology Warren J. Heard, Jr. •philosophy George I. Mavrodes •history Lewis W. Spitz •economics Ian Smith •law Phillip E. Johnson •politics Sir Fred Catherwood •literature Leland Ryken •art Edmund P. Clowney •media Larry W. Poland •science Charles B. Thaxton •environment Loren Wilkinson •bioethics Nigel M. de S. Cameron •human sexuality Armand M. Nicholi, Jr. •personal life-style and leisure J.I. Packer Each of these authors has demonstrated a profound interest in thinking "Christianly" about his subject. Some of the essays scan the ways previous Christians have tried to evaluate each cultural "slice"; all of them offer some guidance regarding what Christians need to bear in mind as our culture rushes on. Some contributors adopt the well-known grid of H. Richard Niebuhr in his classic Christ and Culture; others cut fresh paths. The aim throughout is to foster fidelity to Christ and his gospel while encouraging a comprehensive Christian outlook on our rapidly changing world.

Very few works attempt to analyze and apply the biblical principles that relate to work and leisure. Leland Ryken hopes to change that, reframing labor and leisure around God's purposes for a holistic lifestyle. Ryken finds the answers in Scripture and in the rich heritage of theological thinking, while weaving together insights drawn from a wide array of sources. The result is one of the most informed and practical studies on our day-to-day activities.

"Why do we have to learn this?" For as long as there have been students, teachers have been answering this question, but we haven't always answered it very well--for our students or for ourselves. We sometimes forget that everything we teach, whether "sacred" or "secular," has value because it is part of God's truth, and integrating that truth across the curriculum is what makes an education Christian. This book from a father-and-daughter team of seasoned Christian educators offers a comprehensive, biblically based presentation of integration. Its goal is to help readers view all aspects of the curriculum within the framework of God's story as told from Genesis to Revelation. By organizing subject areas under five broad categories--nature, people, communication, beauty, and ultimate issues--the authors demonstrate that each subject area flows from the biblical story. Each chapter concludes with a summary of the truths presented, a set of teacher tips, and a list of additional resources.

Although most of the world’s children live in the Global South, much of the corpus of scientific knowledge which forms the basis of the current notion of “good childhood” worldwide is drawn from research on Western, middle-class children. Even cross-cultural research often applies the Western model of childhood as the standard to which others must correspond. This volume serves to bridge this gap by both bringing up significant features of the development and socialisation of children in African countries and presenting cross-cultural procedures which help to discuss and develop differentiated and joint ideas about childhood, instead of implementing one-sided standards which are disconnected from most children’s lives.

Throughout history, great literature has been a cohesive force in Western culture. It interprets our experiences and tells us the truth about our fears and longings. It is a catalyst to our thinking and an invaluable index to the minds and feelings of people around us. In 'Realms of Gold,' Leland Ryken proceeds chronologically through some of the best of the best, from Homer through Shakespeare to Camus, offering not only a taste of the classics, but a framework in which to analyze them. For students studying literature, this book serves as an introduction to the classics as friends; for those who have not read the classics in a long time, it is motivation to renew delightful acquaintances; for people who already know the classics as intimate friends, it offers the opportunity to renew acquaintance within a Christian context.