Five thirty-somethings are horrified to receive an invitation to the funeral of the man who sexually abused them all at some point in their youth; the man they thought had died in front of them sixteen years ago. The story chronicles their attempts to discover the reason behind the invitation, the truth about his death and the consequences of their discoveries. This story spans from 1967 through to 1987, beginning in the coastal city of Portsmouth and culminating in the hauntingly beautiful cointryside around Corbridge and Hexham in Northumberland.
When international lecturer Clifton Taulbert receives an unexpected invitation to supper in Allendale, South Carolina, he brings with him Little Cliff, the colored boy from the Mississippi Delta who is also Clifton Taulbert, carrying all he was taught as a child about staying "in his place" and surviving in the Jim Crow South.Transported back into a setting that looks and feels like the cotton fields and shotgun shacks of his childhood, Taulbert finds himself expected to cross racial barriers he would have been forbidden to cross before. The Invitation is the story of the man and the little boy inside him wrestling with a past they both know so well, while stepping into a future that is still being determined
From the author of the New York Times bestsellers The Paris Apartment and The Guest List, an evocative love story set along the Italian Riviera about a group of charismatic stars who all have secrets and pasts they try desperately — and dangerously — to hide. Rome, 1953: Hal, an itinerant journalist flailing in the post-war darkness, has come to the Eternal City to lose himself and to seek absolution for the thing that haunts him. One evening he finds himself on the steps of a palazzo, walking into a world of privilege and light. Here, on a rooftop above the city, he meets the mysterious Stella. Hal and Stella are from different worlds, but their connection is magnetic. Together, they escape the crowded party and imagine a different life, even if it's just for a night. Yet Stella vanishes all too quickly, and Hal is certain their paths won't cross again. But a year later they are unexpectedly thrown together, after Hal receives an invitation he cannot resist. An Italian Contessa asks him to assist on a trip of a lifetime -- acting as a reporter on a tremendous yacht, skimming its way along the Italian coast toward Cannes film festival, the most famous artists and movie stars of the day gathered to promote a new film. Of all the luminaries aboard — an Italian ingénue, an American star, a reclusive director — only one holds Hal in thrall: Stella. And while each has a past that belies the gilded surface, Stella has the most to hide. As Hal's obsession with Stella grows, he becomes determined to bring back the girl she once was, the girl who's been confined to history. An irresistibly entertaining and atmospheric novel set in some of the world's most glamorous locales, The Invitation is a sultry love story about the ways in which the secrets of the past stay with us — no matter how much we try to escape them.
We like to think our church welcomes visitors. But how welcoming can we be, if we are not inviting? We are welcoming as long as people get themselves across the church threshold, but we fail to take our welcome outside. During the years Michael has been developing Back to Church Sunday, he has conducted an extensive study on the seemingly simple subject of 'invitation'. Over 650 times in 12 countries he has asked: 'Why don't we invite our friends to take a closer look at Christ?' The many answers form the impetus for this book. After considering why it seems so hard to invite friends to church, Michael looks at our concerns over acceptance and rejection, and suggests ideas gleaned from years of trying to establish a culture of invitation. 'When I have specifically encouraged Christians to issue an invitation, some people say yes and some no. God sent his son to invite us all into a relationship, and so to be like God is to be a person who invites!'
This engaging book presents a model for personal reflection on what a career in public service means. It's designed not to convince the reader to take up a public service career, but rather to invite him or her to explore the implications for one's identity that are inherent in the public service life. Lively and anecdotal, Invitation to Public Administration directly confronts the various difficult issues involved with a public service career even as it evokes self-reflection. It is equally useful for undergraduate through Ph.D. level readers, and it is ideal supplemental reading for any foundational course in Public Administration. The book will also stimulate public service professionals seeking fresh insights for their own careers.
The Greek Poetry of Summons and Invitation assembles and studies for the first time the numerous poetic invitations and summonses of Archaic, Classical, and Hellenistic Greece. These poems and passages come from epic, lyric, dramatic, epigrammatic, and epigraphic sources. Most of them are by celebrated Greek poets ― Homer, Sappho, Alcaeus, Aeschylus, Sophocles, Euripides, Aristophanes, Theocritus, Callimachus, Apollonius, among others. Analysis of this poetic corpus associates it with the ‘kletikon’, an ancient rhetorical genre of content, and reveals everywhere in it the commonplaces of that genre, thus allowing new sub-types of the kletikon to be discovered, and the development of the genre over the centuries to be charted. When individual invitations and summonses are viewed against this generic background, their originality and merits emerge along with their poets’ unique voices. Each summons and invitation is presented, translated, discussed in detail, and, when part of a longer work, linked to its context. This volume is directed to scholars and students of Classics; scholars of the Latin equivalent genre, the ‘vocatio’, which persisted into the Renaissance, can also find in it an intellectual model.
The Leader Guide provides process guidance for weekly group sessions. The Leader Guide understands the role of leader as facilitator of small-group sessions. Procedures for guiding sessions include: directions for using related video segments, and questions for discussion. Make a deeper connection to the world of the Psalms so that these well known scriptures can help you give voice to all aspects of our human experience–joy, faith, uncertainty and sorrow. During two weekly video segments, experience a varied presentation of individual Psalm texts, including dramatic reading, music, dance, and images. Listen to insights into specific Psalms presented by one of two biblical scholars through an informal, roundtable conversation format Ideal experience for adults who are interested in the practice of prayer and worship and would like to connect prayer practice with Scripture. The study is accessible for adults with little prior Bible experience. Participants for this Invitation to Psalms do not have to have an in-depth knowledge of the Bible to enjoy and benefit from participation. Reading just two chapters of Psalms a week, they will discover the life altering stories that will invite them to follow Christ as true disciples. This ten-week study includes a participant book outlining daily reading assignments for group preparations, a leader guide suggesting discussion activities for use in the 60–90-minute weekly meeting, and a video component providing interpretation and context for the biblical texts. Michael Jinkins is an ordained Minister of Word and Sacrament in the Presbyterian Church (USA). He serves as Dean of Austin Presbyterian Theological Seminary, where he is also Professor of Pastoral Theology. Michael is the author of eleven books, including In the House of the Lord: Inhabiting the Psalms of Lament, Invitation to Theology, and Letters to New Pastors. Sessions: Word of God, Words of Prayer The Prayer Book of God’s People Praying the Psalms The Language of the Heart A Geography of the Imagination A Theology of the Imagination Lament and Praise Grace and Repentance Love and Wrath Hallelujah and Amen
Welcome to a Regency Christmas… …in these two festive short stories! Captain Treeve Penhaligon must return to Cornwall when he inherits his family’s grand estate. But could his meeting with Emily Faulkner on the wild beaches be even more life changing? Find out in Marguerite Kaye’s The Captain’s Christmas Proposal. Then, discover what happens when Treeve invites composer Cador Kitto to complete the celebrations, and Cade clashes with local girl Rosenwyn Treleven in Unwrapping His Festive Temptation by Bronwyn Scott… "An enjoyable, impeccably detailed historical romance, with authentic, believable characters, a good plot and a satisfying end." — Jane Hunt Writer on The Earl's Countess of Convenience by Marguerite Kaye “Tempted by His Secret Cinderella blew me away, it’s stylish, seductive, intriguing and utterly romantic, honestly it’s perfect!” — Goodreads on Tempted by His Secret Cinderella by Bronwyn Scott
The invitation from Christ is: "Come and see, Follow me". Experience the magnificent passages in John including the I am statements (I am the truth, the life and the way, I am the living water and more). Revisit stories only told in John's gospel including Nicodemus, Mary Magdalene and the raising of Lazarus. During the weekly video segments, travel into the scripture as you hear the Word, experience the grand artwork connected with each story and interview the scholar. Each week wraps up with a small group discussion on video to spark your own conversation. Participants for this Invitation to John do not have to have an in-depth knowledge of the Bible to enjoy and benefit from participation. Reading just two chapters of John a week, they will discover the life altering stories that will invite them to follow Christ as true disciples. This eleven-week study includes a participant book outlining daily reading assignments for group preparations, a leader guide suggesting discussion activities for use in the 60–90-minute weekly meeting, and a video component providing interpretation and context for the biblical texts. Robert D. Kysar, Bandy Professor Emeritus of Preaching and New Testament, Candler School of Theology, is a noted scholar on the Gospel of John. He has authored numerous articles and books, including a revised edition of John: The Maverick Gospel; Preaching John; and most recently Voyages With John: Charting the Fourth Gospel. Session titles and scripture: Come and See (John 1–2) How Is It Possible? (John 3–4) Taste for Yourself (John 5–6) To Believe or Not to Believe (John 7–8) Are We Blind? (John 9–10) I Couldn't Believe My Eyes! (John 11–12) Would You Believe It? (John 13–14) What Time Is It? (John 15–16) Look Out! (John 17–18) Believing Without Seeing (John 19–20) Do You See Him? (John 21)
