Jay Parini

Atlantic

Arts & Literature

“I’m much taken by the poems of Kenneth Steven, who seems quite naturally a poet to his fingertips. This is a spiritual poetry, attentive to the rhythms of faith, not infrequently uplifting, always compelling. Steven’s language is often surprising, digging into the roots of words, with a sense that spirit is pushing deeper and deeper into the material world. Atlantic is a book I will read again and again.”

Christian Faith in Our Time

Theology

“Christian Faith in Our Time is one of those rare, wide-ranging, bold, and provocative books that one immediately wants to read again. Paul Jersild is a theological adventurer, taking on all key aspects of the faith, challenging us to think again, to see Christianity as a broad, evolving, and complex set of ideas that can shape, even transform, a life. It's a work of deep scholarship that reflects a lifetime of reading and thinking, yet it remains wonderfully accessible to general readers.”

Earthing the Cosmic Christ of Ephesians—The Universe, Trinity, and Zhiyi’s Threefold Truth, Volume 1

Biblical Studies & Commentaries

“Rarely does a deeply serious theological work read with such ease, such a thrill of discovery. John Keenan’s new book on Paul’s letter to the Ephesians is both profound in its insights and exciting. Keenan brings a Buddhist perspective to bear on this pseudo-Pauline letter that has found a place of huge importance in Christian liturgy and theology as he reads Trinitarian theology in the context of Tiantai Zhiyi’s threefold path. As ever, Keenan finds congruencies and distinctions that illumine both Christian and Buddhist traditions. This book will challenge many readers in our identity-focused world, but I believe Keenan’s clear-eyed force of argument and benevolent tone will go a long way toward a fresh reading of Paul’s self-emptying drive to enlightenment or, in Christian terms, salvation. This book is truly splendid: fresh, eloquent, and welcome to seekers and scholars alike.”

Giving the Devil His Due

Arts & Literature

“This is one of those rare books that should appeal to readers who love classic fiction and those with a strong interest in Christian theology. I admired Jessica Hooten Wilson's readings of both O'Connor and Dostoevsky--muscular, intelligent criticism, written with a passion for the worlds they conjure. It's splendid work, provocative, and deeply satisfying.”

Merchant of Alyss

Fiction

“Trial Run is wonderfully told: a swift, engaging story that shows a large understanding of the human condition, our essential frailty, our drivenness, our need for connection. As three stories collide, Locke brings into play some key questions that face each of us as human beings: Do we know what is really going on? If we don’t, can it destroy us? This is artful writing, full of suspense.”

Rising

Arts & Literature

“Poetry is memorable language, according to W. H. Auden. Rising is a work of such vividness that I kept thinking about the poems long after I closed the book. Jane Beal is a strong poet with a sharp eye for landscape, a deep sense of history, and an intimate way of writing her language is never less than bracing. I admire her work, and I hope that readers make their way toward this fine collection.”

The Great Betrayal

History & Biography

“I’ve read many of the best accounts of what happened between the Jews and the Christians in the early centuries of this millennium. It’s in many ways a sad story, one full of rivalry and misapprehensions, deliberate obfuscations, and serial attempts to revise the story of Jesus and the Jews. The long and short, as Sheldon Liebman admirably shows in this brilliant and beautifully written study, is that our image of Jesus was permanently reconstructed in ways at odds with historical realities. I would recommend The Great Betrayal to anyone who hopes to come to a clear understanding of this critical moment in history.”

Visions of Hope

Counseling, Grief & Mental Health

“Déli has made intimate connections here between the psychological and physiological parameters of illness and mortality, linking them to the stages of Christ’s riveting and crucial journey. . . . A moving and important meditation on life and death, on suffering and transcendence.”