April 2011 Featured Titles

April highlights:

·         Book of the Month: The Art of Curating Worship: Reshaping the Role of Worship Leader. No matter what style of service you run at your church, NZ pastor Mark Pierson’s book will provide stimulating, practical ideas for new ways to engage your congregation & the public in worship.

·         Other Featured & Recent Titles.

·         ANZAC Day story books

·         Grief and Pastoral Care titles in stock

·         Click here for our Lent & Easter resources: http://www.epworthbooks.org.nz/featured_books/lent_easter.htm

·         Autumn Specials. 20 more titles specialled this month. All 50% to 70% off, now $20.00 or less.
Click here: http://www.epworthbooks.org.nz/stock/sale.htm.

To order please email sales@epworthbooks.org.nz or phone 0800 755 355 with details of the titles you require.

Book of the Month

The Art of Curating Worship: Reshaping the Role of Worship Leader. Mark Pierson. 239pp. Sparkhouse. $35.00.

No matter what style of service you run at your church, NZ pastor Mark Pierson’s book will provide stimulating, practical ideas for new ways to engage your congregation & the public in worship. Pierson uses many real-life examples to illustrate ways in which worship, both inside and outside the church building, can be curated and delivered for spiritual formation and mission.

He says, "I'm beginning to understand worship and worship preparation much more as an art form than an organisational task. To see myself as a producer/preparer of worship for myself and others, as a worship curator — someone who takes the pieces provided and puts them in a particular setting and makes a particular arrangement of them, considering juxtaposition, style, light, shade, etc. A maker of context rather than a presenter of content. A provider of a frame inside of which the elements are arranged and rearranged to convey a particular message to the worshipper.”

Also on this topic:

Contemplative by Design: Creating Quiet Spaces for Retreats, Workshops, Churches and Personal Settings. Gerrie Grimsley and Jane Young. Upper Room (2008). $33.00.

Creative Ideas for Alternative Sacramental Worship + CD ROM. Simon Rundell. Canterbury (2010). $57.00.

Other Featured Titles

Psalmist’s Cry, DVD + Book: Scripts for Embracing Lament. Walter Brueggemann, Stephen Frost. Book 105pp. House Studio. DVD & book set $71.00. Book only $29.00.

This five session study explores Psalms as Scripts for Lament - guides for how to express feelings honestly in ways not normally expected within the Christian community.

We all live in a constant state of denial. Culture tells us all problems are solvable, or at least manageable; we simply need to try (or buy) the right solution. Our self-help, pop-a-pill culture is prone to masking symptoms and calling that mask a cure. But as long as we deny our pain, we lose the danger of the Gospel the part where we give up control and allow God’s mystery to unfold in our lives and in doing so, we lose the depth of its goodness.

Brueggemann helps us discover the fullness of God when we allow our lives to become about God healing us and not about us controlling or managing our way through life.

Practical Skills for Ministry (SCM Study Guide). Andrew Pratt. 197pp SCM-Canterbury. $59.99

This hands-on guide offers a practical introduction for those preparing for lay and ordained ministry. It answers the questions asked by those who have recently started and found gaps in the way they have been prepared. He distils into a little under 200 pages a career’s worth of practical experience of the bread-and-butter issues of ministry.

The book covers baptisms, weddings, working with others, communication, meetings and funerals. It provides practical guidance which is soundly theologically and pastorally based.

Ideal for everyday use: the sort of book you scan through when you get it, and then pick up when a problem crops up.

Book of Fire: William Tyndale, Thomas More and the Bloody Birth of the English Bible. Brian Moynahan. 422pp. Abacus. $39.99

The great echoing phrases of the King James Bible that have boomed through the English-speaking mind for 400 years: “an eye for an eye ...eat, drink and be merry ...death, where is thy sting? ...man shall not live by bread alone” are largely the work of a man whose genius for words matches Shakespeare. But William Tyndale, the young Gloucestershire tutor who wrote them, paid for them with his life. He was persecuted, exiled and eventually burned at the stake.

A thrilling, moving story of the man who first translated the word of God into the English vernacular. Tyndale did so in defiance of church and state, hunted by the implacable enmity and the agents of the sainted Thomas More. He was finally betrayed, but by then his courage and poetic instinct had provided the backbone of the single most significant work in the English language. The Tudor heretic had changed the literary, religious and political landscape for ever.

Tree of a Thousand Voices. Anne Powell. 72pp. Steele Roberts. $19.99.

“These poems and personal stories are calm, assured and respectful. They are unique in NZ writing because they come from a contemplative life where the spiritual and natural worlds are undivided. They contain wisdom and consolation but no heaviness and no agenda.” Dinah Hawken.

Powell’s poems appear in several anthologies of New Zealand poetry. She was born in New Plymouth and now lives in Wellington in a community of the Cenacle Sisters.

Also by Powell from Steele Roberts:

Firesong (1999) $19.99

·         Enough Clear Water (2001) $19.99.

Welcome to the Wisdom of the World and Its Meaning for You: Universal Spiritual Insights Distilled from Five Religious Traditions. Joan Chittister. 186pp. Eerdmans. $32.00.

“Spurred by letters from fans who often pour out their hearts and seek her advice, each chapter tackles a separate existential question such as Where is God? or What does it mean to be a spiritual person? Chittister begins each of the 25 chapters with a description of a particular person’s struggle to find meaning amid hardship, moving the narrative toward a wisdom story or parable from one of five religious traditions: Hinduism, Buddhism, Judaism, Christianity and Islam. A concluding meditation rounds out each section.

Ecumenical readers will find that the God that lies behind these stories is acutely aware of human misery and helps us in surprising and meaningful ways. Chittister writes, ‘If the question is, Where is God? The answer is distressingly uncomplicated: God is wherever we know God to be, wherever we bring God to be, no more and no less at any time, anywhere, or in anyone.’ This refreshing book will be welcomed by Chittister's many admirers and is sure to win new ones as well.” Publisher’s Weekly

Gods and Diseases: Making Sense of Our Physical and Mental Wellbeing. David Tacey. 255pp. HarperCollins. $39.99.

There are many problems in today’s society that cannot be resolved by the application of reason, logic or medical science. These include child abuse, alcoholism, drug addiction and suicide.  Numerous mental health problems, such as anxiety, depression and phobias, are rising dramatically and there seems to be no solution in sight.

Tacey argues that the answer lies in breaking free from the confines of modern medicine.  Instead we must turn to spirituality, and to what he calls ‘meaning-making’, to make sense of our physical and mental wellbeing.

David Tacey teaches at La Trobe University,Melbourne, and is a recognised international authority in Jungian psychology, spirituality and mental health.

Also by Tacey:

Spirituality Revolution: The Emergence of Contemporary Spirituality. HarperCollins (2003). $36.00.

Wired For God?: The Biology of Spiritual Experience. Charles Foster. 331pp. Hodder Faith. $29.99.

Human religious experiences are remarkably uniform; many can be pharmacologically induced. Recent research into the neurology of religious experience has shown that, when worshipping or praying, a certain part of the brain, apparently dormant during other activities, becomes active.

What does all this mean for those of faith and those with none? In this fascinating book barrister Charles Foster takes a survey of the evidence - from shamans to medieval mystics, to out-of-body experiences and epilepsy, via Jerusalem and middle-class Christianity - and assesses its significance.

Written in short, accessible chapters, this is a fascinating tour of religious and mystical experiences and their relation to human physiology.

Also by Charles Foster:

Sacred Journey. (The Ancient Practices Series) Thomas Nelson (2010). $38.00.

Also on this topic:

How God Changes Your Brain: Breakthrough Findings from a leading Neuroscientist. Andrew Newberg & Mark Robert Waldman. Ballantine (2010). $35.00.

All Blacks Don’t Cry: A Story of Hope. John Kirwan. 222pp Penguin. $42.00.

Kirwan was one of the most devastating wingers New Zealand, and world, rugby had ever seen. A prominent and revered figure at the dawn of the professional age of rugby, he seemed to live a charmed life.

But nobody knew, though, that behind closed doors ‘JK’ was living a life of torment. Afflicted with depression for many years – including those as a high-profile sportsman – Kirwan was able to survive by reaching out, seeking help from those closest to him.

All Blacks Don't Cry is John Kirwan's story of hope, of working through the pain and living a full life.  It is a poignant, inspirational and helpful example for anybody battling depression.

Sometimes Life Sucks: When Someone You Love Dies. Molly Carlile. 110pp. Allen & Unwin. $24.99.

Teenagers experience loss in all kinds of ways. Whether it's the death of a grandparent, pet or school friend, a teen fatality, a peer with terminal illness, living without a mum or dad, or the death of a celebrity, like everyone else teenagers also struggle to come to terms with their shock and grief.

Full of helpful tips, stories and gentle advice, Sometimes Life Sucks helps teens navigate the loss of those they love. Ideal for parents and teachers to use with teens struggling with grief and loss.

Playwright, educator and former palliative care nurse, Molly Carlile is in an expert in the care of the dying, and strong advocate of understanding children’s’ needs around the death of those they love.

Worshipping with Dementia: Selected Scriptures and Prayers for Sufferers and Carers. Louise Morse. 268pp. Monarch. $24.99.

Morse gives people coping with their own or a relative’s dementia, a book they can pick up and leaf through for words, Scriptures and prayers to help at any time. The biggest thing it will do is let them know they are not alone. The collection is topic related, so someone can turn to the page(s) on ‘feeling rejected,’ or ‘being misunderstood,’ or ‘being angry,’ or ‘feeling guilty’ or any one of the hundred and one things that affect them personally. For many their faith is the only thing keeping them going. This book will strengthen that lifeline.

This practical book explains how Christians can care spiritually for people who may not be able to show their response. Often dementia hides the person from us, but never from God. For people with dementia, simplicity is paramount. This book provides simple daily devotions, together with a Scripture verse, a suggested prayer and a hymn. Use it as a worship resource for caregivers, sufferers, families, pastors, church groups and medical professionals.

Also suitable for those with dementia and people caring for them:

Words of Hope: Being with God Series. 48pp + Music CD. Scripture Union. $26.99

Words of Faith: Being with God Series. 48pp + Music CD. Scripture Union $26.99

Words of Peace: Being with God Series. 48pp + Music CD. Scripture Union $26.99

Discerning Life Transitions: Listening Together in Spiritual Direction. Dwight Judy. 157pp. Morehouse. $48.00.

Written for individuals seeking discernment as they meet new phases, opportunities and challenges in their lives, and spiritual directors who accompany them on their way toward clarity.

Prof. Judy’s approach to discovering where our creative God is leading each of us takes into account many areas of life: community service, family concerns, health issues, career directions, spiritual life. He shows how discernment is a way to respond to God’s call to a new way of being in all aspects of our existence.

Covers various arenas of discernment including calling, community, life stages, passionate commitment, suffering and pain, seeking forgiveness, and being embodied. Along the way, Judy presents meditations and exercises to further explore the discerner's faith, story-making patterns, old habits, and high hopes.

This book is designed to help us search well and fruitfully for that next step of life, work, relationship or place, when the previous era is ending and the way forward is unknown.

Creating Mandalas: For Insight, Healing, and Self-Expression (Revised 2010). Susanne Fincher. 207pp.  Sahmbala. $38.00.

The circular designs known as mandalas are symbols of deep inner truth, and when creating your own mandalas, you can discover things about yourself that can surprise you. Fincher introduces the history and ritual use of mandalas in cultures all over the world. She then shows you how to make your own, offering guidance on choosing art materials and techniques. She discusses the symbolism of colours, numbers, shapes, and motifs (such as birds and flowers) that appear in mandalas, and she also presents several illustrated case histories of people who have successfully used her techniques. This revised edition includes a new preface. It also includes a new chapter on making mandalas with a group, a practice that can yield even greater insight—and more fun.

ANZAC Day story books

Only a Donkey. Celeste Walters. 32pp. Picture Puffin (2008). $17.99

At the farm, the donkey is teased by the other animals - especially the bull! Then one night the donkey has a magical dream. The following morning, they all set out on an amazing journey. This uplifting story of humility, courage and compassion weaves in the heroic Anzac legend of Simpson and the Donkey. Lyrically told and beautifully illustrated, it is a story that demands to be read and re-read, while the timeless themes will inspire readers of all ages.

Anzac Day Parade (New Zealand Edition). Glenda Kane. 32pp. Picture Puffin (2010). $19.99.

A poignant look at war through the eyes of a former member of the 18th Battalion. Told in rhyme it takes place on Anzac Day when an old man and a young boy meet - the young boy wide-eyed and wanting to hear the glories of war and death; the old man quietly sad to remember the reality of what was faced.

“Age won't weary him, he said

But boy it's wearied me

He looked out over the young one's head

And the past was all he could see.”

Hymn for Anzac Day – Honour the Dead. Sheet Music. A4. NZ Hymnbook Trust (2008) Was $5.00, now $3.00 + $2.00 p&p. (5 copies only at this price).

Includes: Melody line version, SATB+ Decant setting with piano accompaniment, and words in Maori.

This hymn is also included in the Hope Is Our Song hymnbook. $31.00.

Recent Titles

We have one copy of each of these new books in stock. Time to supply additional copies is shown below.

The Making of the New Testament: Origin, Collection, Text & Canon. 2nd Edition. Arthur Patzia. 302pp. IVP. $46.00. (Allow 2-3 weeks)

This revised and expanded edition is a textbook introduction to the origin, collection, copying and canonizing of the New Testament documents. Like shrewd detectives reading subtle whispers of evidence, biblical scholars have studied the trail of clues and pieced together the story of these books. Patzia tells the story, answering our many questions:

·         How were books and documents produced in the first century?

·         How were the stories and sayings of Jesus circulated, handed down and shaped into Gospels?

·         How were Paul's letters, sent here and there, gathered into a single collection?

·         Who decided - and by what criteria - which documents would be included in the New Testament?

The Selfish Society: How We All Forgot to Love One Another and Made Money Instead. Sue Gerhardt. 388pp. Simon & Schuster. $41.00. (Allow 3-4 weeks)

Open any newspaper, and what do you find? Violence and crime, child abuse and neglect, expenses scandals, addiction, fraud and corruption, environmental melt-down. How did modern society get to this point? Who is to blame? How can we change?

Ambitious and wide-ranging, The Selfish Society reveals the vital importance of understanding our early emotional lives, arguing that by focusing on the attention we give to our young children we can create a better society. If we are to build a more reflective and collaborative society, Gerhardt argues, we need to support the caring qualities that are learnt in early life and integrate them into our political and economic thinking. Inspiring and thought-provoking, The Selfish Society sets out a roadmap to a more positive and compassionate future.

A Most Amazing Man: Meditations, Reflective Services and Quiet Day Outlines Based on the Gospel Readings For Year A of the Lectionary. Nick Fawcett. 374pp. Kevin Mayhew. $81.99. (Allow 4-6 weeks)

Section One is a series of meditations:

·         one for every Sunday and major feast

·         written from the perspective of Bible characters who appear in the Gospels. They are ideal as a sermon supplement or replacement in a less formal all-age service.

Section Two has reflective services and resources for quiet days. 

Also on this topic by Sue Pickering, published by Canterbury:
Creative Ideas for Quiet Days: With CD-ROM. (2010). $51.00.

Creative Retreat Ideas+ CD-ROM: Resources for Short, Day and Weekend Retreats. (2010). $57.99.

Theology Remixed: Christianity as Story, Game, Language, Culture. Adam English.  208pp. IVP. $39.99. (Allow 2-3 weeks)

Jesus didn’t give his followers a fixed set of statements defining everything they needed to know about the kingdom of God in a neat package. Rather he told stories, made comparisons, drew contrasts.

What pictures or analogies today can give us greater understanding of the Christian faith? Adam English finds fresh insight in four: Christianity as story, game, language, culture. Christianity is like a story with scenery, characters and plots. It's like a language with vocabulary, grammar and conversation. It's like a game with rules and players, goals and equipment. It's like a culture with a distinct way of living, working, playing and loving.

“In a time when the normal patterns of thinking about the faith ring hollow for many, Adam English offers the church ways of recovering the deep wisdom of the Christian tradition” Philip Thompson, Sioux Falls Seminary, South Dakota.

Every Pilgrim's Guide to Walking to Santiago De Compostela. Peter Muller & Angel Fernandez de Aranguiz. 192pp compact. Canterbury. $37.99. (Allow 6-8 weeks)

Every year, some 200,000 people set out on the world’s most famous pilgrimage route – ‘the Camino’, designated a World Heritage Site in 1993. A mix of practical information and spiritual inspiration for walkers, it offers a stage-by-stage guide pointing out places of interest along the way; practical tips for walkers; prayers, blessings and spiritual exercises to nourish the pilgrim spirit and deepen the pilgrimage experience. Illustrated throughout with maps and photographs, and conveniently pocket sized.

Also on this topic:

Pilgrimage: A Spiritual and Cultural Journey. Ian Bradley ed. Lion Publishing (2009) $49.99.

The Challenge of Jesus (now with DVD). NT (Tom) Wright. 204pp Hbk. IVP. $55.00. (Allow 2-3 weeks)

Out of his own commitment to both scholarship and Christian ministry, Wright challenges us to roll up our sleeves and take seriously the study of the historical Jesus. The Challenge of Jesus poses a double-edged challenge: to grow in our understanding of the historical Jesus within the Palestinian world of the first century, and to follow Jesus more faithfully today.

Now included in this special edition is the 50 minute DVD Resurrection, shot on location in Israel, Greece and England. Here Wright presents the political, historical and theological issues of the first century and today regarding the startling claim that Jesus rose from the dead. Throughout he brings clarity and insight to one of the most profound mysteries in human history.

Luke: The Gospel of Amazement. Michael Card. 268pp. IVP. $36.00. (Allow 2-3 weeks)

With careful attention to detail, Michael Card embarks on an imaginative journey through the Gospel of Luke. He introduces us to Luke the historian and imagines his life as a Gentile, a doctor and a slave. Card explores Luke’s compelling account of this dynamic rabbi who astounded his hearers with parables and paradoxes. What might Luke have experienced as he interviewed eyewitnesses of Jesus? What leads Luke to focus on the marginalized and the unlikely? Why does Luke include certain details that the other Gospel writers omit? Join Michael Card in the work of opening heart and mind to the "Gospel of Amazement."

Now in Paperback

Twelve Steps to a Compassionate Life. Karen Armstrong. Pbk. 215pp. The Bodley Head. $37.99.

One of the most original thinkers on the role of religion in the modern world gives us an impassioned and practical book that can help us make the world a more caring place. Karen Armstrong believes that while compassion is intrinsic in all human beings, each of us needs to work diligently to cultivate and expand our capacity for compassion. Here, in this straightforward, thoughtful, and thought-provoking book, she sets out a program that can lead us toward a more compassionate life.

Grief and Pastoral Care

First 48 Hours: Spiritual Caregivers As First Responders. Jennifer Cisney. Abingdon Press (2009). $38.00. (1 copy in stock.)

In the aftermath of natural disaster, community violence, personal injury, and crime, spiritual caregivers are often among those first on the scene.

Responses covered include: the power of presence -  safety - assessment and triage - how we help - putting the pieces together - telling the story - hope - caring in the long haul.

Also in stock as at 28 March 2011:

·         Honouring our Loved Ones. Brian Malcouronne. Grasmere Productions. (Reprinted 2010) $25.00. (9 copies in stock)

·         Children’s Grief: A Guide for Parents. Pam Heaney. Longacre Press (2004). $24.99. (1 copy in stock.)

·         Paths Through Grief. Helen Jaeger. Lion Publishing (2006). Was $24.99, now $10.00. (1 only at this price.)

·         Unwanted Gift of Grief: A Ministry Approach. Tim Vanduivendyk. Haworth (2006). Was $31.99, now $13.00. (1 only at this price.)

·         Work of the Chaplain. Naomi Paget. Judson Press (2006). $34.00. (1 copy in stock)

·         Living Well in Suffering & Sadness. Susan Sayers. Kevin Mayhew Ltd (2007). Was $14.99, now $6.00. (2 only at this price.)

·         Living With Bereavement. Sue Mayfield. Lion Publishing (2008). Was $24.99, now $10.00. (3 only at this price.)

·         What Should I Say, What Can I Do? How to Help a Loved One. Rebecca Bram Feldbaum. Pocket Books (2008). $16.99. (4 copies in stock.)

·         Good Grief: A Constructive Approach to the Problem of Loss. Granger Westberg. Fortress Press (1997). Was $9.99, now $4.00. (2 only at this price.)

·         Indispensable Guide To Pastoral Care. Sharyl Peterson. Pilgrim Press (2008). Was $45.00, $18.00. (2 only at this price.)

·         Now That You’ve Gone Home: Courage and Comfort for Times of Grief. Joyce Rupp & Joyce Hutchison. Ave Maria Press (2009). $29.99. (4 copies in stock.)

·         Listening and Caring Skills: A Guide for Groups and Leaders. John Savage. Abingdon Press (1996). $38.00. (1 copy in stock.)

Light for Our Path 2011 now in stock. Living in Australia? Ask us to airmail your copy now. Pay by secure Visa/Mastercard. Email: sales@epworthbooks.org.nz

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