The Envoy's Interlude

The Envoy's Interlude
Author: J.S. d'Raven
Publisher: Battle King Press
Total Pages: 29
Release: 2014-07-04
Genre: Fiction
ISBN: 0985292199

A chance encounter with a charming stranger leads COLIN to one of the most interesting conversations he's ever had. MICHAEL is no ordinary stranger on COLIN'S train ride to Seattle. And while the two delve into topics like the meaning of life, COLIN begins to unravel MICHAEL'S mysterious past. There's more to MICHAEL. There's something different... something more than human.

Kukai the Universal

Kukai the Universal
Author: Ryōtarō Shiba
Publisher:
Total Pages: 380
Release: 2003
Genre: Art
ISBN:

Kukai the Universal is an extensively researched biography chronicling the life of Kukai, the visionary Japanese monk of the ninth century whose profound influence touched every aspect of Japan's civilization. Kukai was born in 774 into a declining aristocratic family, whose design was for him to become a statesman. However, he soon became disillusioned with the ways of politics and took a new path in life, pursuing his Buddhist studies and practicing meditation while roaming the country as an itinerant hermit. At the age of 30, Kukai sailed to China to become a student monk under the tutelage of Huiguo, the patriarch of esoteric Buddhism. Returning to Japan in 806 as a master of esoteric Buddhist teachings, Kukai initiated the building of a monastic center on Mt. Koya for the practice of Buddhism. This, and the founding and systemization of the Shingon doctrine were Kukai's major concerns for the remainder of his life. In 823 the Emperor Saga presented him with Toji, the most important temple in Kyoto, which became the headquarters for the Shingon sect. Kukai is known as the father of Japanese culture: he invented the kana syllabary, the basis of Japanese written language forms, was the originator of the pilgrimage circuit of 88 temples in Shikoku, a builder of lakes, a poet, calligrapher, sculptor, and the lexicographer who complied the oldest extant dictionary. He was also founder of the oldest school in Japan. Kukai is undoubtedly the greatest figure in Japan's history, creating the very fundamentals of its national culture. For this he was honored as a saint, under the name of Kobo Daishi. Book jacket.

Hearers of the Word

Hearers of the Word
Author: Kieran J O'Mahony
Publisher: Messenger Publications
Total Pages: 221
Release: 2022-08-31
Genre: Religion
ISBN: 1788124715

The first and third readings for Eastertide in year C are taken from the Acts of the Apostles and the Gospel of John, both very appealing in their different ways. The second reading offers some of the more approachable scenes from the New Testament Apocalypse. The Apocalypse does not appeal to everyone, of course, but a contextualised reading and a contextualised presentation could be very life-giving. After all, the book is a response to broad cultural harassment, which occasionally firmed up to open persecution. At its core, the Apocalypse corresponds in the New Testament to the book of Job in Old. In other words, it addresses the question of suffering and what sense to make of it as believers in the crucified and risen Jesus. By exploring the context and background to all three readings, the author hopes to make the readings available for personal prayer and as a preparation for taking part in the Sunday liturgy. A very useful resource for all who wish to get more out the Sunday readings. Fr Kieran is very well-known for his regular emailings of resources on the readings. These are hugely popular amongst clergy and others. Now, for the first time, these readings are brought together in a series of books. This is the third volume covering Easter Week to Pentecost.

Renouncing the World Yet Leading the Church

Renouncing the World Yet Leading the Church
Author: Andrea Sterk
Publisher: Harvard University Press
Total Pages: 369
Release: 2009-06-30
Genre: Religion
ISBN: 0674044010

Although an ascetic ideal of leadership had both classical and biblical roots, it found particularly fertile soil in the monastic fervor of the fourth through sixth centuries. Church officials were increasingly recruited from monastic communities, and the monk-bishop became the dominant model of ecclesiastical leadership in the Eastern Roman Empire and Byzantium. In an interesting paradox, Andrea Sterk explains that "from the world-rejecting monasteries and desert hermitages of the east came many of the most powerful leaders in the church and civil society as a whole." Sterk explores the social, political, intellectual, and theological grounding for this development. Focusing on four foundational figures--Basil of Caesarea, Gregory of Nyssa, Gregory of Nazianzus, and John Chrysostom--she traces the emergence of a new ideal of ecclesiastical leadership: the merging of ascetic and episcopal authority embodied in the monk-bishop. She also studies church histories, legislation, and popular ascetic and hagiographical literature to show how the ideal spread and why it eventually triumphed. The image of a monastic bishop became the convention in the Christian east. Renouncing the World Yet Leading the Church brings new understanding of asceticism, leadership, and the church in late antiquity. Table of Contents: Introduction I. Basil of Caesarea and the Emergence of an Ideal 1. Monks and Bishops in the Christian East from 325 to 375 2. Asceticism and Leadership in the Thought of Basil of Caesarea 3. Reframing and Reforming the Episcopate: Basil's Direct Influence II The Development of an Ideal 4. Gregory of Nyssa: On Basil, Moses, and Episcopal Office 5. Gregory of Nazianzus: Ascetic Life and Episcopal Office in Tension 6. John Chrysostom: The Model Monk-Bishop in Spite of Himself III The Triumph of an Ideal 7. From Nuisances to Episcopal Ideals: Civil and Ecclesiastical Legislation 8. Normalizing the Model: The Fifth-Century Church Histories 9. The Broadening Appeal: Monastic and Hagiographical Literature Epilogue: The Legacy of the Monk-Bishop in the Byzantine World Abbreviations Notes Frequently Cited Works Index

Historical Dictionary of Japanese Traditional Theatre

Historical Dictionary of Japanese Traditional Theatre
Author: Samuel L. Leiter
Publisher: Rowman & Littlefield
Total Pages: 816
Release: 2014-10-30
Genre: Performing Arts
ISBN: 1442239115

Historical Dictionary of Japanese Traditional Theatre is the only dictionary that offers detailed comprehensive coverage of the most important terms, people, and plays in the four principal traditional Japanese theatrical forms—nō, kyōgen, bunraku, and kabuki—supplemented with individual historical essays on each form. This updated edition adds well over 200 plot summaries representing each theatrical form in addition to: a chronology; introductory essay; appendixes; an extensive bibliography; over 1500 cross-referenced entries on important terms; brief biographies of the leading artists and writers; and plot summaries of significant plays. This book is an excellent access point for students, researchers, and anyone wanting to know more about the Japanese theatre.

Early Modern European Diplomacy

Early Modern European Diplomacy
Author: Dorothée Goetze
Publisher: Walter de Gruyter GmbH & Co KG
Total Pages: 838
Release: 2023-12-31
Genre: History
ISBN: 3110672006

New Diplomatic History has turned into one of the most dynamic and innovative areas of research – especially with regard to early modern history. It has shown that diplomacy was not as homogenous as previously thought. On the contrary, it was shaped by a multitude of actors, practices and places. The handbook aims to characterise these different manifestations of diplomacy and to contextualise them within ongoing scientific debates. It brings together scholars from different disciplines and historiographical traditions. The handbook deliberately focuses on European diplomacy – although non-European areas are taken into account for future research – in order to limit the framework and ensure precise definitions of diplomacy and its manifestations. This must be the prerequisite for potential future global historical perspectives including both the non-European and the European world.

The Babylonian World

The Babylonian World
Author: Gwendolyn Leick
Publisher: Routledge
Total Pages: 601
Release: 2009-06-02
Genre: History
ISBN: 1134261284

Exploring all key aspects of the development of this ancient culture, The Babylonian World presents an extensive, up-to-date and lavishly illustrated history of the ancient state Babylonia and its 'holy city', Babylon.

Benjamin Franklin, Envoy Extraordinary

Benjamin Franklin, Envoy Extraordinary
Author: Roger Burlingame
Publisher: New York : Coward-McCann
Total Pages: 288
Release: 1967
Genre:
ISBN:

In an imaginary kingdom in the sixteenth century, four half-brothers court a young Duchess.

The Second Testament

The Second Testament
Author: Scot McKnight
Publisher: InterVarsity Press
Total Pages: 385
Release: 2023-06-06
Genre: Bibles
ISBN: 0830847006

Though many translations aim to make Scripture as accessible as possible, in fact it speaks to us as an ancient text to the modern world. Clever in its expression and stunning in its boldness, this daring approach to Scripture will challenge readers to experience God’s Word anew without masking the distance between the text and modern readers.