Brian Zahnd
Biography
Brian Zahnd wrote When Everything's on Fire, The Wood Between the Worlds, and Unseen Existences.
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Theology
“It’s easy for Christians to imagine that in the Old Testament the holy spirit is mostly waiting in the wings until a grand entrance can be made in the New Testament. But in A Boundless God Jack Levison shows this to be entirely false. From the spirit that broods over the face of the deep in Genesis to a remnant of the spirit found in Malachi, the Old Testament is saturated with the holy breath, wind, and spirit of God. A Boundless God is a remarkable achievement, alerting the reader to the ubiquitous and transforming presence of the holy spirit throughout the Old Testament.”
Biblical Studies & Commentaries
“A Quid without Any Quo is a crisp slap across the face of any attempt to turn the liberating gospel of Jesus Christ into the striving and scolding of religious moralism. Though Micheli is clearly well-read theologically and possesses a keen mind, he writes as a pastor who understands the real-life implications of a salvation offered by the sheer gratuity of the God whose very nature is grace. This is a wonderful book!”
Being Christian After the Desolation of Gaza
Ethics, Culture & Social Issues
“To be Christian does not entail the embrace of an aberrant eschatology used to justify war crimes; to be Christian is to walk this world in a deliberate attempt to imitate the Prince of Peace. And thus Being Christian After the Desolation of Gaza could not be more timely.”
“Centuries of comfortable Christendom have tended to domesticate baptism to a benign religious ritual entirely at home within the empire. But Caesar and the Sacrament awakens us to the true radical nature of Christian baptism. Alan Streett’s latest book is an important and timely work that calls Christians to live out their baptismal identity in fidelity to Christ and resistance to empire.”
Counseling, Grief & Mental Health
“I don't know if cancer is funny, but I can tell you that Cancer Is Funny is often hilarious! And the parts of Jason Micheli's astounding book that aren't hilarious brim with profound reflections on life, death, God, and the absurd wonder and tragedy of being human. And it doesn't hurt that the writing is superb. This is not a book for people with cancer, this is a book for people who are mortal.”
Theology
“The church has a long and tragic history of using Old Testament violence to justify Christian complicity in the collective violence of war, torture, and capital punishment. But Gregory A. Boyd understands that the crucified Christ reveals a God who is eternally nonviolent. In Cross Vision, Boyd offers a way of reading the Old Testament that does not succumb to the false narrative of a violent God. Cross Vision wisely calls us to read the whole Bible through the corrective lens of the cross.”
Ethics, Culture & Social Issues
“Allegiance to the American empire and religious devotion to partisan politics has resulted in a deeply compromised church. Instead of offering the beautiful alternative found in the gospel of Jesus Christ, far too many Christians have become zealous combatants in America’s corrosive culture wars. It’s in this context that Exiles: The Church in the Shadow of Empire arrives as a word from elsewhere. With careful attention to the biblical text, Preston Sprinkle calls us to emulate faithful Jewish exiles in Babylon and early Christians in the Roman Empire by living as true citizens of the kingdom of God. This book is just what we need!”
Church Leadership & Ministry
“J.R. Briggs has something to say to pastors about our American obsession with 'success.' He holds to the Jesus-endorsed notion that those in ministry are called to faithfulness, not success, and that sometimes faithfulness takes the peculiar form of failure. Fail dares to tell the truth and will bring much-needed clarity and comfort to a multitude of ministers who, though faithful, have drunk from the bitter cup of failure.”
World Religions
“In Finding Messiah, Jennifer M. Rosner deftly weaves together her fascinating story of becoming a Jewish follower of Jesus with her adept theological investigation into the questions and implications surrounding Messianic Christianity. Rosner's attempt to bridge the ancient rift between Jewish identity and Christian faith is timely and important. I thoroughly enjoyed this book.”
Biblical Studies & Commentaries
“From the beginning, the story of Jesus has been a translated story. Jesus spoke in Aramaic, but Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John wrote their Gospels in Greek. The story of Jesus is intended to be translated to every tribe, tongue, people, and nation. That translation is intended, not just permitted, serves to show how we must resist any cultural domination of the gospel. Terry Wildman has done a masterful job of rendering the New Testament into the storytelling motif characteristic of Native Americans. It should tell us something important when we realize how beautifully the story of Jesus can be adapted to the style and vocabulary of indigenous people. I deeply appreciate Terry Wildman's retelling of the story of Jesus for First Nations people. I believe the Great Spirit is pleased.”
Christian Living
“As we pass through a time when certain expressions of Christianity are no longer tenable for millions of people living in late modernity, a door of discovery is opening for new expressions of Christian faith. Ben Sternke and Matt Tebbe are among those who have discovered that from the ashes of deconstruction something beautiful can be born. In Having the Mind of Christ their eight axioms serve as signposts to lead the disenchanted into a faith centered in the love of Christ. I hope many people will read this timely book.”
Christian Living
“Behind every beautiful thing there’s been some kind of pain.” I believe that’s true. It’s certainly true of Jonathan Martin’s How to Survive a Shipwreck. From his bitter experience of nearly drowning in a sea of pain, Jonathan has survived to paint a beautiful portrait of a grace that will not quit. He artfully reminds us that even when we feel we are swallowed in a sea of pain, we are still enveloped in the boundless ocean of God’s relentless love. This book will help and heal many shipwrecked souls.”
Church Leadership & Ministry
“In their sympathetic and insightful book, Scot McKnight and Tommy Phillips helpfully point out that when a sensitive Christian soul realizes that a consumerist, politicized, fundamentalist, scandal-ridden Christianity looks nothing like the enduring beauty of Christ, deconstruction is conversion. Deconstruction doesn’t have to be the end of faith; instead, it can be the beginning of a better faith. Invisible Jesus is a timely gift from a scholar and a pastor who genuinely want to help people find an expression of Christianity centered on Jesus Christ.”
Bible Studies & Devotionals
“I cannot think of a more reliable guide to escort us through the church calendar with weekly devotions than Fleming Rutledge. Her love of holy Scripture and the sacred calendar combined with her half century of preaching expertise make Means of Grace a precious gift. From Advent through Ordinary Time, the words of Fleming Rutledge are indeed a means of grace to help us behold the glory of Christ.”
Theology
“Once Loved Always Loved is a magisterial work. Andrew Hronich has given us a book that is stunningly well-researched and compellingly presented. For years now I have longed for the apokatastasis hope for universal restoration in Christ so prominent in patristic theology to be recovered by the modern church, and Once Loved Always Loved is a mighty contribution toward that end. I am grateful for the gift Andrew Hronich has given us.”
Biblical Studies & Commentaries
“Instead of treating the Bible as a totem before which we merely mutter, 'I believe it,' Serving Up Scripture provides the reader with the necessary tools of interpretation, thus unlocking the true treasury of Scripture.”
Christian Living
“At a time when Christianity is in danger of being hijacked for the nefarious agendas of nationalism, racism, and xenophobia, Richard Beck calls us to welcome Jesus, who so often comes in the guise of the maligned or forgotten stranger. In Beck's brilliant Stranger God, we find a beautiful portrait of a Christianity that prioritizes care for the indigent, infirm, immigrant, and imprisoned. I cannot think of a more timely book!”
Ethics, Culture & Social Issues
“At a moment when America’s culture wars have dragged public thought and discourse into the realm of the vacuous and insipid, Laurie Johnson speaks to us as a thoughtful political philosopher and committed follower of Jesus. Instead of the shallow zingers of social media, The Gap in God’s Country is a careful analysis of the culture wars and sets forth a far better way of pursuing the common good. This is an important book.”
NOTE: Only includes books currently in our catalog; not necessarily a complete list.
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