Robert P. Vande Kappelle
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Human beings are happiest when they live virtuously. For Jesus and his first followers, living virtuously meant loving God and others as extensions of oneself. However, what began as an inclusive ethical way of life based on unconditional love gradually degenerated into an exclusive social and political religious movement that came to be known as Christendom. Originally a continuation of Jewish messianism, the Christian movement aligned itself with...
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Everyone loves a good story-one with interesting characters, an intriguing plot, lots of twists and turns, and a surprise ending. Jesus was a master storyteller, teaching primarily through a technique we call parables. In fact, over one third of the gospel material in the New Testament is parabolic in nature. Examining the parables of Jesus, Living Water views parables as a wisdom genre belonging to mashal, the Jewish tradition of sacred poetry, stories,...
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Iron Sharpens Iron is grounded in the conviction that humans have the capacity to transcend conventional spirituality to a genuine and wholesome faith that is dynamic rather than static, future-oriented rather than past-oriented, and owned rather than passively acquired.
Classroom tested, this discussion guide is an ideal way for thoughtful Christians--in individual and group settings--to interact with timely topics. Like its companion text, Beyond...
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Spirituality is our connection to a greater whole. It is a journey "from God, to God, and with God," and thus a journey toward Self. Through this process, we come to differentiate between our temporary self, called ego, and our permanent self, the part of us made for ongoing relationship with God. In the end, we discover that we know God by being known, much like one loves by being loved.
There are two "halves" or phases in spirituality, sometimes...
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Many people today, including Christians of deep conviction, are deciding, for one reason or another, to stop attending church. They have been swept up by the avalanche in America known simply as the "nones," thereby joining the ranks of the religiously unaffiliated dubbed the "church alumni association"-or perhaps more accurately "believers in exile"-by Anglican Bishop John Shelby Spong.
Research shows that during the first two decades of the twenty-first...
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How did Jesus do it? we wonder. How did he walk on water? To which we can imagine Jesus responding, "O ye of literal faith. Walk with me on the waters of life; explore with me the depths of reality." Walking on water is not, as one might think, about staying on the surface of things, but rather about going deep into the ordinary aspects of our lives and finding gold. It is not about exotic miracles or blind faith, but about "living into a new way...
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There is no more important topic for inquiry today than the meaning and message of Jesus, for in this quest lies the solution to human discontent and despair. Examining an array of titles for Jesus found in the New Testament, expressions ranging from rabbi and messiah to Wisdom of God, Word of God, and Lord, this study explores why Christology is not simply the study of Jesus Christ but also of the highest and best in us all.
Who is Jesus Christ,...
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Whether religiously theists, atheists, agnostics, or simply seekers, each of us is on a journey of faith, spiraling through stages, seasons, or phases of spirituality. On this journey, we discover that spirituality is more caught than taught, and that faith, enriched more by subtraction than by addition, is more about unlearning than learning.
At the center of Jesus' life and message stands the exhortation to receive and share divine love. The two...
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The Arc of Spirituality invites readers on a journey through Western history, a journey that begins with the pioneering concepts of ancient Israelites, who understood spirituality communally and covenantally. Continuing biblically with wisdom and apocalyptic conceptions, The Arc of Spirituality examines Western Christian spirituality as it developed historically through twelve phases, culminating in the modern period with ethical, ecumenical, pluralist,...
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Securing Life represents a novel yet timely approach to reading and understanding the Bible. While reverence for the Bible and respect for its authority remain high in our society, biblical illiteracy, misinterpretation, and selective reading place us at risk. The Bible seems to have a conserving effect on conservative readers, a moderating effect on moderate readers, and a liberating effect on liberal readers. Do biblical texts contain conserving...
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At a time when people are increasingly considering themselves "spiritual but not religious," Wading in Water speaks of spirituality as an individual's connection to a greater whole. Hence, the process of coming to know what we call God is also the process of knowing oneself. Thinking comprehensively, spirituality involves what is, what can be, and what ought to be. When activity, rationality, and morality are infused with creativity and imagination,...
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What is addiction, and how do we know if we are addicted? Speaking sociologically, we are addicted because we live in addictive societies that turn us into consumers and materialists. Speaking biologically, we are addicted because that is how we are hardwired. Speaking spiritually, we are addicted because we seek spiritual satisfaction through things other than God. Humans can be addicted to most any object, ideology, and belief, but they cannot be...
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Mistakes, disappointments, suffering, and heartbreak can prevent us from growing physically, emotionally, even spiritually, or they can propel us to a new way of life. Building on the contributions of therapists, holistic healers, and spiritual mentors such as Richard Rohr, James Hollis, Elizabeth Lesser, Bill Plotkin, Ken Wilber, and Thich Nhat Hanh, Dark Splendor takes us on a journey into "depth" spirituality, exploring the two halves of life,...
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People concerned with spirituality are seekers, instead of possessing truth, they seek to be possessed by it. Thus, a fully spiritual person is forever learning and growing. William Blake, the seminal mystic poet, who worked to bring about change both in the social order and in common ways of thinking, taught that "all we need to do is cleanse the doors of perception, and we shall see things as they are- infinite." And nothing cleanses-and enlarges-the...
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In 1989 Dr. Robert Vande Kappelle cycled solo cross-country. The 3,400-mile trip was the seed project for the Washington County (Pennsylvania) chapter of Habitat for Humanity. For forty-two days he went Homeless for Habitat, placing himself and his personal needs in the hands of strangers he met along the way. At the beginning he cycled across some of the most mountainous--and spectacular--terrain in America. After he crossed the Rockies, a nagging...
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Christianity is essentially a historical religion. It cannot be understood merely through a set of dogmas, a moral code, or a view of the universe. Through the stories of Israel, Jesus, and the developing church, Christianity acknowledges the revelation of God in action.
Augustine, the great medieval theologian, envisioned human society as composed of two "cities," distinguished by two loves: the love of God and the love of Self. He viewed these cities...
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Human beings seek meaning and purpose. To do so, we tell stories about the past, which we call history, and stories about what will occur in the future, constructed from memory and imagination. History is not a subject we study, but one we live. History is our medium, as water is to fish.
No period of antiquity is more informative and influential for Western civilization than the Greco-Roman, the period from the time of Alexander the Great to the...
18) Living Graciously on Planet Earth: Faith, Hope, and Love in Biblical, Social, and Cosmic Context
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Humans are happiest when they live virtuously. Building on the premise that the purpose of life is happiness conducive to the equitable flourishing of all humanity, Living Graciously on Planet Earth argues that the appropriate way to regard our abilities and moral opportunities is as gifts for the common good, to be used for the glory of God, guided by the biblical principles of stewardship and community. Utilizing a biblical approach and a Trinitarian...
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Discipleship is a universal experience all human beings share. In our lifetime, each of us has had a mentor, tutor, teacher, or role model, someone we admired, respected, and followed. As the central character in the Bible, the world's best-selling book, Jesus is known and revered the world over. What would it be like to be mentored by such an individual? Of course, we can follow the accounts of the historical Jesus and his disciples in the gospels,...
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When you think of God, what images come to mind? Do you see God in others? Do you acknowledge God's presence in each circumstance and situation of your everyday life, no matter how trivial? How you conceive God determines how you experience God. As contemporary author Frederick Buechner advises, "Listen to your life. Listen to what happens to you, because it is through what happens to you that God speaks."
While spiritual life of some kind is necessary...