Effort and Grace
Effort and Grace

Author: Simone Kotva

Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing

Published: 2020-06-25

Total Pages: 249

ISBN-13: 1350113662

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Philosophy and theology have long harboured contradictory views on spiritual practice. While philosophy advocates the therapeutic benefits of daily meditation, the theology of grace promotes an ideal of happiness bestowed with little effort. As such, the historical juxtaposition of effort and grace grounding modern spiritual exercise can be seen as the essential tension between the secular and sacred. In Effort and Grace, Simone Kotva explores an exciting new theory of spiritual endeavour from the tradition of French spiritualist philosophy. Spiritual exercise has largely been studied in relation to ancient philosophy and the Ignatian tradition, yet Kotva's new engagement with its more recent forms has alerted her to an understanding of contemplative practice as rife with critical potential. Here, she offers an interdisciplinary text tracing the narrative of spiritual exertion through the work of seminal French thinkers such as Maine de Biran, Félix Ravaisson, Henri Bergson, Alain (Émile Chartier), Simone Weil and Gilles Deleuze. Her findings allow both secular philosophers and theologians to understand how the spiritual life can participate in the contemporary philosophical conversation.

Effort and Grace
Effort and Grace

Author: Simone Kotva

Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing

Published: 2020-06-25

Total Pages: 248

ISBN-13: 1350113646

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Philosophy and theology have long harboured contradictory views on spiritual practice. While philosophy advocates the therapeutic benefits of daily meditation, the theology of grace promotes an ideal of happiness bestowed with little effort. As such, the historical juxtaposition of effort and grace grounding modern spiritual exercise can be seen as the essential tension between the secular and sacred. In Effort and Grace, Simone Kotva explores an exciting new theory of spiritual endeavour from the tradition of French spiritualist philosophy. Spiritual exercise has largely been studied in relation to ancient philosophy and the Ignatian tradition, yet Kotva's new engagement with its more recent forms has alerted her to an understanding of contemplative practice as rife with critical potential. Here, she offers an interdisciplinary text tracing the narrative of spiritual exertion through the work of seminal French thinkers such as Maine de Biran, Félix Ravaisson, Henri Bergson, Alain (Émile Chartier), Simone Weil and Gilles Deleuze. Her findings allow both secular philosophers and theologians to understand how the spiritual life can participate in the contemporary philosophical conversation.

Active Spirituality
Active Spirituality

Author: Brian G. Hedges

Publisher: Shepherd Press

Published: 2014-04-28

Total Pages: 148

ISBN-13: 1936908581

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In Active Spirituality, Brian Hedges allows us to read someone else’s mail — a series of warm pastoral letters, written to a young Christian, about the paradox of grace and effort in the life of faith. “Is my Christian life about trying or trusting?” • “Would I describe my relationship to God as running or resting?” • “Is my life more characterized by grace or effort?” Active Spirituality makes it clear that it is both: trying and trusting, running and resting, dependence on grace and exerting disciplined effort. This balance is not about getting my doctrine right, but is key to living a healthy Christian life. So, pull up a chair, settle in, and read over the shoulder of Chris, a struggling young adult trying to find a church, overcome discouragement, live a chaste life, and develop a plan for spiritual growth, all while learning to rest in the finished work of Jesus.

Philosophy as a Way of Life
Philosophy as a Way of Life

Author: Matthew Sharpe

Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing

Published: 2021-07-15

Total Pages: 425

ISBN-13: 1350102164

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In this first ever introduction to philosophy as a way of life in the Western tradition, Matthew Sharpe and Michael Ure take us through the history of the idea from Socrates and Plato, via the medievals, Renaissance and Enlightenment thinkers, to Schopenhauer and Nietzsche, Foucault and Hadot. They examine the kinds of practical exercises each thinker recommended to transform their philosophy into manners of living. Philosophy as a Way of Life also examines the recent resurgence of thinking about philosophy as a practical, lived reality and why this ancient tradition still has so much relevance and power in the contemporary world.

In the Grip of Grace -
In the Grip of Grace -

Author: Max Lucado

Publisher: Thomas Nelson

Published: 2011-01-09

Total Pages: 237

ISBN-13: 1418515906

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Exchange the pressure of accomplishment for the peace of God’s grace When the world demands: achieve, succeed, earn, God says: lean on me, trust me, believe me. That is grace. And that is what God offers: unconditional acceptance of a believing heart. Your heavenly Father loves you enough to hold you in his grace. Pastor and New York Times bestselling author Max Lucado will help you release a false sense of self-sufficiency. rest in God’s unbending and unending gift of grace. remember that God is for you and will carry you through every circumstance. Today, leap from the cliff of self-sufficiency and land in the strong arms of the Father who loves you . . . the Father who catches you—every time—in the grip of his grace.

Grace Defined and Defended
Grace Defined and Defended

Author: Kevin DeYoung

Publisher: Crossway

Published: 2019-04-17

Total Pages: 85

ISBN-13: 1433564424

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Christians love to celebrate grace, but often talk about it in vague generalities. But such an important biblical concept ought to be clearly defined so it can be consistently defended. In this book, best-selling author Kevin DeYoung points modern readers back to an old document originally written to do just that. Warmly pastoral and broadly accessible, this book introduces readers to the Canons of Dort, a 17th-century work summarizing the central doctrines of the Christian faith. Widely regarded as a key pillar of the Reformed tradition, the Canons of Dort stand as a faithful witness to God's grace—offering a depth of understanding that the church still needs today. In three concise sections—covering history, theology, and practical application—DeYoung explores what led to the Canons and why they were needed, the five important doctrines that they explain, and Dort's place in the Reformed tradition today.

Everyday Ethics
Everyday Ethics

Author: Michael Lamb

Publisher: Georgetown University Press

Published: 2019-10-01

Total Pages: 263

ISBN-13: 1626167087

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What might we learn if the study of ethics focused less on hard cases and more on the practices of everyday life? In Everyday Ethics, Michael Lamb and Brian Williams gather some of the world’s leading scholars and practitioners of moral theology (including some GUP authors) to explore that question in dialogue with anthropology and the social sciences. Inspired by the work of Michael Banner, these scholars cross disciplinary boundaries to analyze the ethics of ordinary practices—from eating, learning, and loving thy neighbor to borrowing and spending, using technology, and working in a flexible economy. Along the way, they consider the moral and methodological questions that emerge from this interdisciplinary dialogue and assess the implications for the future of moral theology.

Finding Grace at the Center (3rd Edition)
Finding Grace at the Center (3rd Edition)

Author: M. Basil Pennington, OCSO

Publisher: Turner Publishing Company

Published: 2012-12-14

Total Pages: 94

ISBN-13: 1594733635

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A new edition of the classic that helped launch the Centering Prayer movement. Centering Prayer is a precious part of the ancient spiritual traditions of the West. When Finding Grace at the Center was first published in 1978, people all over the world welcomed this practical guide to a simple and beautiful form of meditative prayer. Reflections and advice on Centering Prayer’s possibilities—and its pitfalls—are presented with clarity and simplicity, with a vision of the deeper life of the soul that contemplative prayer can bring about. Now, with a new foreword by Rev. Cynthia Bourgeault, PhD, another generation will discover the amazing difference Centering Prayer can make in their lives.

By Grace Alone
By Grace Alone

Author: Sinclair B. Ferguson

Publisher: Reformation Trust Publishing

Published: 2010

Total Pages: 123

ISBN-13: 9781567692020

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Are you truly amazed by God's grace? Or have you grown accustomed to it? These probing questions and more help us know if we're tasting, savoring, and delighting in God's amazing grace. In this book, Dr. Sinclair Ferguson offers those willing to delver into God's Word a deeper astonishment at being saved by grace alone.