History: Fiction or Science? (Chronology, No. 1)

Book Description

Recorded history is a finely-woven magic fabric of intricate lies about events predating the sixteenth century. There is not a single piece of evidence that can be reliably and independently traced back earlier than the eleventh century. This book details events that are substantiated by hard facts and logic, and validated by new astronomical research and statistical analysis of ancient sources.

Customer Reviews:

Calculations are only as good as your numbers.......2007-08-03

Yes, we can all agree that mainstream history is nearly 100% BS due to politics, economics, ego, problems with dating techniques, and various conspiracies. Agreed. But, I've been researching the distinct possibility that human history (in terms of civilizations) are much more ancient than we've been told, so coming across this book was very interesting to me. I wondered how Fomenko could be wrong (if at all) because he is very persuasive in his presentations. Then it dawned on me. If at previous times in prehistory, due to the various catastrophies that are well documented (comets, asteroids, planetary disruptions, plasma discharge, pole reversals, etc) the Earth was in a different position in relation to the sun, different tilt on its axis, different orbit, different rotation (in terms of velocity and DIRECTION), and the continents were in different positions, then would this not cause the ancients to see the sky (constellations) differently? In other words, is Fomenko making erronious assumptions about the physics of the Earth in pre-history, which then corrupt his data with regards to dating the relevant astrology? The last event to seriously disrupt our planet occured roughly 3500 years ago, according to other good researchers, so is it possible Fomenko has been confused by this? The vastly different physics of our planet in the not so distant past may explain this confusion, which is not to say the "mainstream" version of history is correct; on the contrary. I am not an expert in these fields, but wanted to see if this idea could spark discussion.

Pants on fire?.......2007-07-19

Will people ever read before spamming? Yes, Jesuits could not rewrite world history alone, they had help. Anyway, Dr Prof Acad A.Fomenko does not point to jesuits as the driving force of world wide history manipulation in published volumes 1,2,3;, actually he barely mentions the poor devils. Check it with 'Search inside' feature, please. China is rarely mentioned either, in fact, Dr Fomenko is completely eurocentric. Right, his theory contradicts all mainstream schools of history, because in their actual state they are all built on blatantly erroneus chronology. You don't need a mysterious cabal (conspiracy) to falsify history, the falsification is its modus operandi. It is inherent to history(ians) to falsify (distort) events, as it is inherent to humans to boast as it is inherent to power (authority) to legimize itself by referrring to glorious past made to its own order. Dr Prof Fomenko and team have identified scores of instances of such manipulation in Russian, European, etc.. history, and delivered valid statistical proof thereof. His own 'reconstruction' is completely another story. Forget c14 as a valid method of dating. W.Libby has initially discovered a brilliant method of INDEPENDENT dating. Too bad, c14 method has become a joke after a forced marrige with dendrochronology with consensual chronological scale inbuilt. Radiocarbon method can't stand blind tests, but is so very productive as a rubberstamp.

Accepted History & Chronology Must Be Changed. .......2007-04-09

There is no doubt that history as most know it is a sham, & institution's version of History both University & Church is fradulent & inaccurate. Everything was established with an agenda, The real "Dark Ages" are now when we have access to incredible amounts of information past authorities & more important 'common folk' didn't have but our institutions & educators are slow to evolve because of what has ignorantly & arrogantly been taught for too long. This is on many subjects not just Chronology.

For anyone to question "Why would a Mathematician have anything credible to say of History?" The answer is from Dr. Fomenko's preface in the book: "It would be worthwhile to remind the reader that in the XVI-XVII century Chronology was considered to be a subdivision of Mathematics." These volumes could possibly be some of the most important works to date & should be read by everyone with an interest in History, especially professors & educators who have a duty to the public. I have read both books & must say that 'Chronology 1' has some very eye opening & revolutionary information. Even if these volumes are part true the implications are profound & opens the doors to further investigations & questions which must be done. I speak several different lanquages & must say the logic Dr. Fomenko uses with "inflection" of words & words being read from left to right in one region & right to left in another then written backwards, the removal of vowels & get down to basics of words, or different cities & locations having the same name etc. is correct. Vowel usage has always been optional & varied, actually complicating linquistics & study. The first thing one has to understand is that words never had a fixed spelling in history like we do now, the spelling of words was mutable & regional, as well as names & titles of people were vast, varied & changed, NOTHING WAS FIXED or understood linear. Matters of Life & Death as well as financial profiteering yesterday & today were & are made with ignorant, illogical & conspiratorial views of history & reality, it's time people get closer to the Truth & society collectively grow up.

Very Interesting.......2007-03-07

It is a good proposal and I believe it will mature into something even better in the future. I think it deserves to be read.

History as Science Fiction.......2007-01-10

Anatoly Fomenko has written a very intriguing book, full of pictures, charts, and computer 'proof' of his thesis: backwards of AD900 we don't really know what happened or when. Between AD900 and AD1600 there is more certainty, but there is still a lot of fuzzy ground, and things don't get reliable until we get past the 1600's where the printing press made it very difficult for the perpetrators of this timeline manipulation to change anything that had been committed to print. The Dark Ages did not happen. Books were burned for a reason. One organization has doubled the actual length of its existence by expanding the real chronology. Read why.

I had always wondered why Christ died about AD33 and yet men waited until the 11th century to form the Knights Templar, the Cathars, etc and go after the Holy Land by force. Why the 1000 year gap? Turns out there wasn't more than a 10-12 year gap and he proves it using astronomy. This also implies that the planet is not as old as we have been told, and current Christian and other creationist scientists are already championing that idea without being aware of Fomenko's book. The two groups, creationist scientists and the Russian mathematical analysts corroborate each other. Fascinating.

Of course, all this flies in the face of what we have been told traditionally is the 'proper' chronology of western civilization, and most readers will experience 'cognitive dissonance' in reading this book. It means that our history going backwards from AD1600 becomes progressively more incorrect and unreliable until it cannot be trusted at all... in the space of 700-800 years.

Naturally, the curious, open-minded reader will want to know WHO did this, WHY, and did any of the events we think of as really ancient ever happen?
Dr. Fomenko is a respected scientist/mathematician at Moscow State University who has already answered these questions to the satisfaction of his initially skeptical colleagues. Most of them are now believers, a few still refuse to believe (the usual diehards), and of course the western press has ignored Fomenko's work -- for obvious reasons when you read the book. The ones who perpetrated this chronology ruse have a lot to answer for. They are still with us. That's why this book is a well-kept secret.

I gave the book a 4-star rating because I was unable to check out some of his claims; those I checked were as he said. But if even 1/3 of his claims are true, this punches a big hole in what we think is our history, the meaning of western civilization, our educational process (for repeating the ruse as gospel), and the trustworthiness of the organization that perpetrated this ruse, well-intentioned or not.

This book relates to current research into a Young Earth paradigm, to John Keel's discoveries about our planet, and Fr Malachi Martin's insights (in his now out-of-print books). We are indeed sheep who are manipulated and kept ignorant -- for a reason. While knowing what these men have to say may be the "booby prize" (as in: 'what can you do with this knowledge?'), it will provide interesting reading. Didn't someone say: "...and the Truth will set you free."?? For you to judge if this book contains the truth.

As Sure as the Dawn (Mark of the Lion #3)

Average customer rating:

Pretty good except for the double standards
My! this book is long; also, what happened to the female characters?
As Sure as the Dawn (Mark of the Lion #3)
Incredibly engaging, thought-provoking, faith deepening for me
Rivers Rocks!

As Sure as the Dawn (Mark of the Lion #3)
Francine Rivers
Manufacturer: Tyndale House Publishers
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Contemporary | General | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books

Romance | Fiction | Religion & Spirituality | Subjects | Books

General | Fiction | Religion & Spirituality | Subjects | Books

Regency | Historical | Romance | Subjects | Books
Similar Items:

ASIN: 0842339760

Book Description

This classic series has inspired over half a million readers. Both loyal fans and new readers will want the 10th anniversary editions of this beloved series. These editions include a new foreword from the publisher, a new preface from Francine Rivers, and discussion questions suitable for personal and group use.

#3 As Sure As the Dawn: Atretes. German warrior. Revered gladiator. He won his freedom through his fierceness . . . but his life is about to change forever.

Download Description

Atretes. German warrior. Revered gladiator. He won his freedom through his fierceness . . . but his life is about to change forever.

Customer Reviews:

Pretty good except for the double standards.......2006-11-25

I agree with the last reviewer that I thought this author's view of women is too black and white. I also got the impression that women's sexual immorality is so more hideous than men's. Marcus lives a thoroughly indulgent and immoral life, but escapes unscathed except for a feeling of emptiness. Sister Julia does the same and is wickedly punished with disease and other miseries. Seems like the sexual double standard is alive and well for Christians: men deserve a slap on the wrist; women need to get whipped.

My! this book is long; also, what happened to the female characters?.......2006-11-07

I don't want to put this book down (figuratively speaking). It was an engrossing read but I have some major objections. The first is that it really seems stretched out - Rizpah says something that's not even that bold, then she regrets it and wishes she had "held her tongue". Upon this event, a muscle in Atretes' neck jerks while he growls a fowl curse at her in an unwashed-barbarian manner. The baby happily gurgles nearby. Then it happens again. And again. And again.

My second objection is that some parts are overwrought and silly, as in a fantastic romance novel. This is a shame because some parts of the first 2 books have brilliant scenes that transport the reader to the Roman Amphitheater, the home of a typical aristocratic roman family, Jerusalem under siege, etc. This trilogy could have been excellent had the author stayed away from the supernatural and the overwrought romantic.

Last, and most objectionable, the author is obviously a prejudiced woman. In her world, women are very clearly divided into two distict categories - the good and the bad. The good are saintly, always kind, submissive to men, and self-effacing to the point where they are not recognizable as human beings - ie Hadassah, Rizpah, Phoebe. The only other kind of woman is the conniving, wicked sorceress type who is wanton, tempts men, and - the hallmark of the wicked woman - has no respect for male authority ie Calabas, Julia, Aria, Anomia. The only good woman who is allowed a bit of spirit is Rizpah, and her fieryness is in the end totally erased. Yes, Julia is willful but in a stupid way and she is surely punished for it. It's as if the women have no soul.

The author transports a lot of the New Testament into the book and she makes it seem real. But there were women leaders of the early church - it's there, in the New Testament. Why did she leave that completely out?

As Sure as the Dawn (Mark of the Lion #3).......2006-11-07

This is a MUST READ series. I love any book written by Francine Rivers and this series is no different. You won't be able to put it down.

Incredibly engaging, thought-provoking, faith deepening for me.......2006-11-04

I highly recommend all 3 Mark of the Lion books. I was blessed by them.

Rivers Rocks!.......2006-10-17

I'm one of those girls that avoids anything pink or fluffy. I avoid being "cute". I don't like Valentine's Day. And I hate romance novels!

And I used to think Christian romance novels were the worst. And don't even try recommending a Christian historical romance novel! I'd tell you that's something my mom would read.

But then I read Francine River's Mark of the Lion series. Wow, did my opinion change drastically. Here was violence, power plays, all kinds of sin, impossible love, God's glory verbally portrayed in ways that gave me goosebumps, and history, of all things! I always thought of a boring historical "tourist" city when I thought of (for example) Rome. This book really put some imagination to the times and caught my interest!

So, besides being a fascinating read, this series has both gospel truth and well-researched history.

The first book (A Voice In The Wind) is my favorite. The second book I didn't like as much (maybe because it didn't have so many men in it? =) and this book is my second favorite. Read other reviews for plot outlines and details.

A Muslim in Victorian America: The Life of Alexander Russell Webb

Average customer rating:

A timely book
A Muslim in Victorian America: The Life of Alexander Russell Webb
Webb could be called the founder of Amerin Islam

A Muslim in Victorian America: The Life of Alexander Russell Webb
Umar F. Abd-Allah
Manufacturer: Oxford University Press, USA
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

African-American & Black | Ethnic & National | Biographies & Memoirs | Subjects | Books

General | Ethnic & National | Biographies & Memoirs | Subjects | Books

General | Biographies & Memoirs | Subjects | Books

Religious | Leaders & Notable People | Biographies & Memoirs | Subjects | Books

19th Century | World | History | Subjects | Books

General | Religion & Spirituality | Subjects | Books

History | Religious Studies | Religion & Spirituality | Subjects | Books

History | Islam | Religion & Spirituality | Subjects | Books

All Titles | Qualifying Textbooks - Fall 2007 | Stores | Books
Similar Items:

ASIN: 0195187288

Book Description

Conflicts and controversies at home and abroad have led Americans to focus on Islam more than ever before. In addition, more and more of their neighbors, colleagues, and friends are Muslims. While much has been written about contemporary American Islam and pioneering studies have appeared on Muslim slaves in the antebellum period, comparatively little is known about Islam in Victorian America. This biography of Alexander Russell Webb, one of the earliest American Muslims to achieve public renown, seeks to fill this gap. Webb was a central figure of American Islam during the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. A native of the Hudson Valley, he was a journalist, editor, and civil servant. Raised a Presbyterian, Webb early on began to cultivate an interest in other religions and became particularly fascinated by Islam. While serving as U.S. consul to the Philippines in 1887, he took a greater interest in the faith and embraced it in 1888, one of the first Americans known to have done so. Within a few years, he began corresponding with important Muslims in India. Webb became an enthusiastic propagator of the faith, founding the first Islamic institution in the United States: the American Mission. He wrote numerous books intended to introduce Islam to Americans, started the first Islamic press in the United States, published a journal entitled The Moslem World, and served as the representative of Islam at the 1893 World's Parliament of Religions in Chicago. In 1901, he was appointed Honorary Turkish Consul General in New York and was invited to Turkey, where he received two Ottoman medals of merits. In this first-ever biography of Webb, Umar F. Abd-Allah examines Webb's life and uses it as a window through which to explore the early history of Islam in America. Except for his adopted faith, every aspect of Webb's life was, as Abd-Allah shows, quintessentially characteristic of his place and time. It was because he was so typically American that he was able to serve as Islam's ambassador to America (and vice versa). As America's Muslim community grows and becomes more visible, Webb's life and the virtues he championed - pluralism, liberalism, universal humanity, and a sense of civic and political responsibility - exemplify what it means to be an American Muslim.

Customer Reviews:

A timely book.......2007-06-20

This look at the life of Muhammad Alexander Russell Webb, one of the first American converts to Islam, is well researched and written in a language that captivates one and takes you on a journey with Mr. Webb on his many travels. People in the West still view Islam as a late entrant to the scene in the US but as muslims continue to integrate in the American social life, one will read and hear (and see hopefully) more and more stories of how muslims have always been a part of the fabric of America. Some estimates say that almost 30% of the slaves brought over to the US were muslims and we have Alex Kronemer coming up with a documentary on the life a African slave who was a Prince and how he fought for and won his freedom after 40 years of slavery here to go back to Africa (The Prince among slaves). Dr. Abd-Allah is educated from Columbia, Cornell and the Univ. of Chicago and taught at King Abdul Aziz university in Saudia for 18 years. He has been back in the USA since 2000 and is the head of a non-profit organization called the Nawawi foundation based in Chicago which is dedicated to provide relevant, meaningful Islamic teachings to America's growing first and second generation Muslims - teachings firmly rooted in authentic scholarship and taught in a way that is dynamic and applicable to the modern world (See website www.nawawi.org). Dr. Abd-Allah is and has always been a voice of moderation amongst muslims scholars and is dedicated to more interfaith dialogue amongst people of various faiths. He has always been a proponent of peace and he has many Audio CD's out in the market dealing with various issues affecting muslims and has made his feelings on extremism and violence quite clear. Mr. Rubin needs to check his sources (if any) before making comments on Dr. Abd-Allah.

Read the book, you will like it. It is a book about a man of his times, who lived in a time of turmoil and great change in the USA, andshould interest any student of American and Islamic history.

A Muslim in Victorian America: The Life of Alexander Russell Webb.......2007-05-07

Abd-Allah, chair of the Chicago-based Nawawi Foundation, an organization promoting education about Islam, explores the life of Alexander Russell Webb (1846-1916), a convert to Islam who started some of the earliest U.S. Muslim periodicals.

Abd-Allah traces Webb's early life to look for his inspirations for his subsequent conversion. He grew up in upstate New York at the time of the Second Great Awakening, exposing him to an active theological discourse. The Civil War dominated his teenage years. Abd-Allah blames the religious establishment for "beat[ing] the drums" of war and suggests that the destruction wrought might have turned Webb against traditional religion. He also grew disillusioned with post-Civil War materialism and sought solace in other spiritual movements, opening the door to his eventual conversion to Islam. After years of activity in Missouri journalism and support for the Democratic Party, Webb received a presidential appointment to be consul in Manila.

While the Catholic church dominated the Philippines, Webb learned about Islam through Indian merchants and the writing of Indian Muslim intellectuals. It was not long before he converted to Islam. In 1891, he entered into correspondence with prominent Indian scholars and, the next year, resigned his post to travel around India to study and raise money to support a proselytizing mission in the United States. In 1893, he returned to the United States and established a mission and publishing center funded first by Indian and later Ottoman patrons. In 1901, he became the honorary Ottoman consul in New York.

Webb submerged himself in his new faith and wrote that, among Indian Muslims, he had found a society superior to Western civilization. Upon his return, he did not shy away from public lectures but found study circles and, especially, publishing a better investment of time. Eventually, though, neither Indian nor Ottoman patronage could keep Webb solvent. His missions collapsed under a mountain of debt.

Webb's story may have resonance with Abd-Allah, who converted to Islam after reading the biography of Malcolm X. Abd-Allah subsequently drifted from the Nation of Islam to radical Saudi interpretations of religion; for more than fifteen years he taught at King Abdul-Aziz University in Saudi Arabia. Like Webb, he is an American convert to Islam who seeks to propagate its spread.

While Abd-Allah produces a well-researched work, making full advantage of Webb's myriad papers and publications (but not State Department or presidential archives mentioning Webb's mission), his sympathy may lead him to avoid critical questions. What does Webb's abandonment of his diplomatic post say about the compatibility of Islam and U.S. government service, especially after his acceptance of work for a foreign government? Is propagation of Islam dependent upon foreign subsidy? How does Webb compare to those today who drift from liberalism to "spiritualism" and, then, immerse themselves in Islam? For this, the reader will have to wait for another author to examine Webb. For those following Abd-Allah's path, though, the narrative will provide solace.

Michael Rubin
Middle East Quarterly
Summer 2007

Webb could be called the founder of Amerin Islam.......2006-12-02

In 1887 Alexander Russell Webb was made the American counsul in the Phillipines, at the time a Spanish colony largely Roman Catholic, but with a Muslim minority. Mr. Webb apparently experenced the Muslim faith at this time and in 1888 he converted. Upon his return to the United States he became active in promoting the Muslim faith including the writing of articles and the creation of study circles in various cities.

Webb could well be called the father of the Muslim movement in America and he lived a life that reflected the best of what the Muslim religion could be. After his death in 1916, he was largely forgotten and the center of Muslim religion in the US moved to Noble Drew Ali in Chicago whose early writings implied that he knew or at least had heard of Webb. After Drew Ali's death the Muslim faith in American split into many factions.

This is the first ever biography of Webb.

Dreaming Me: An African-American Woman's Buddhist Journey

Average customer rating:

A Valuable Book
Fascinating
Dreaming All of Us
Universal Dreaming
Loved Your Book

Dreaming Me: An African-American Woman's Buddhist Journey
Janice Dean Willis
Manufacturer: Riverhead Hardcover
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

African-American & Black | Ethnic & National | Biographies & Memoirs | Subjects | Books

General | Ethnic & National | Biographies & Memoirs | Subjects | Books

Religious | Leaders & Notable People | Biographies & Memoirs | Subjects | Books

Women | Specific Groups | Biographies & Memoirs | Subjects | Books

General | Buddhism | Religion & Spirituality | Subjects | Books

General | Religion & Spirituality | Subjects | Books

General | Other Eastern Religions | Religion & Spirituality | Subjects | Books

African American | Other Practices | Religion & Spirituality | Subjects | Books
Similar Items:

ASIN: 1573221732
Release Date: 2001-03-29

Book Description

From an Alabama mining camp to India, from the Baptist church to Tibetan monasteries in Nepal, Dreaming Me is the account of how one woman realized her dreams against all odds.

The black section of an Alabama mining camp in the 1950s and 1960s is not where you might expect to find a budding Indo-Tibetan scholar, the first American woman and the first African American to become so. Jan Willis's journey from the Jim Crow south to Wesleyan University is a moving tale of spiritual exploration and a profound healing of the rage and low self-esteem that are the legacy of racism.

The civil rights movement was in full swing during Jan's teenage years, when she and her family marched with Martin Luther King in Birmingham, and when she later became one of eight black students to attend Cornell University. As with so many others of her time, Jan was constantly faced with the dilemma of how to win the struggle for freedom. She participated in the takeover of an academic building at Cornell, and she was actively recruited by the Black Panthers. But a trip to India, and her relationship with a Tibetan spiritual master, would set her firmly on the path to peace-both outward and inward.

Three decades as a student of Tibetan Buddhism gave Willis the structure and support to transform her life by helping her to confront the old wounds and to discover a well of confidence and joy we all share.

Customer Reviews:

A Valuable Book.......2006-09-16

I've always had the impression that Western/American Buddhism was overwhelmingly white, upper-middle-class and academic - an impression and perhaps a prejudice (or a hang-up); in spite of having read and been influenced by the philosophy and practice through much of my adult life, I've always held any personal endorsement or affiliation at arm's length because of this - I'm not white, upper-middle-class, or an academic, and the (perceived) insularity of that particular world doesn't often seem to be very inviting.

This is why this was such a valuable read for me - Willis belongs to a very, very small demographic - African-American Buddhists, and in DREAMING ME she traces a path from a Baptist upbringing in the segregated (and oft-violent) South to her present life as an academic and Buddhist scholar. Willis' recountings of her childhood were - to me - the most successful part of the book, with the grimness of Jim Crow-era Alabama rendered in cinematic detail. Willis also - with great success - draws parallels between the faith she grew up with and the philosophies she grew to accept as an adult. Beautifully written, she makes it almost seem effortless.

Not a very well-known book, unfortunately - and I fear this may slide into obscurity. I would encourage checking it out.

-David Alston

Fascinating.......2004-03-07

There is something intriguing about a story which chronicles a former Baptist's alteration towards adhering to the teachings of the Buddha Shakyamuni. Jan Willis is an African-American Tibetan scholar and translator, a professor of religion at Wesleyan University and teacher of Buddhism for more than 25 years. She starts the book recording her life prior to finding the Buddha's teachings, a life spent as a devout Southern Baptist in a segregation ridden south. The KKK was active in her area of Alabama, and at a very early age they had burned a cross in her parent's front lawn. Later she would go on to march in Martin Luther King's civil rights movement, adhering to the values she so strongly believed in. In 1965, with 7 other African-Americans, she enrolled in Cornell University where during her junior year she sailed off on a trip to India which greatly impacted her life. For a brief period she returned to the states to continue her studies at Cornell, but eventually she felt drawn back unto the East again. She left this time for Nepal and underwent intense study with the Tibetan master Lama Yeshe. She studied with him for more than 15 years, where she faced a problem most predominant in all our practices: sense of self, ego.

This book is a fascinating look at a very small minority in the world of Buddhism, the role African-Americans have played in it's growth and the teaching of the Dharma. In the west, in my lineage of Zen, African-American's are probably the least represented group of all. While we have male and female teachers, and practitioners of several racial and cultural backgrounds, for some reason or another there is a very small pocket of African-Americans present. This is not due to any sort of discrimination but rather, to be frank, oftentimes the African-American individual can at times have a problem with breaking down ego. Something which has it's roots in the horrendous treatment this group underwent at the hands of a predominantly white America. This work is a fascinating look at practicing the Buddha Dharma in modern times with a voice of honesty, clarity, and incisive wisdom on each and every page. Enjoy this treasure.

Dreaming All of Us.......2001-09-19

Books like "Dreaming Me" are gifts or treasures that we rarely have the good fortune to discover. Ms Willis' journey is at times painful yet ultimately joyful. She shares this pain and joy in a compelling writing style that is filled with anecdotes and drama. No matter what your life experiences may be you are quickly drawn into the universal themes that every human being shares. As a white male living in the Northeast during the sixties I was on the other side of the world from a person like Ms Willis. Yet she made her experiences part of me. And like two parts of a greater experience I felt whole after reading this book. I highly recommend it. Thank you Ms Willis for putting your experiences into such a beautifully written book.

Universal Dreaming.......2001-06-11

This book was read in one marathon session that flew by all too quickly. It spoke to the very core of my being. Having this story told in such a personal way deftly teaches the reader at every level. It's well written and one could easily be fooled that they are simply being entertained with a good read. There were many moments where I felt stunned with deep recognition of a life experience that mirrors a good portion of my own. I connected with this book deeply at the heart level. Most touching were the moments with her teacher, Lama Yeshe. His extraordinary heart helped her heal deep societal and personal pains which have traveled across generations influencing and shaping our culture in difficult ways. Thank goodness Dr. Willis chose to develop the good heart, rather than fight the good fight. One does not need to be in a culturally specific group or religion to recognize and feel Dr. Willis' experience. She reached into the depths of spirit and wrote in a way that touches universally. This lady has a heart that totally outsizes her brilliant, immeasurable intellect and her story will benefit countless numbers. I'm one unabashedly grateful reader.

Loved Your Book.......2001-06-10

Since I have met Jan Willis a few times through my own work at Naropa University, I emailed her after I finished reading Dreaming Me. Here's part of what I wrote to her: "I just wanted to let you know how engrossing I found your book. It was like talking to you, hanging out with you, to read it. I had put it at the bottom of my pile of "books I want to read" but somehow it jumped right up to the top, and I couldn't put it down until I finished it. Please take that as a resounding compliment! Thanks so much for writing it, and for revealing so much of your big heart.

Between Heaven and Earth: The Religious Worlds People Make and the Scholars Who Study Them

Average customer rating:

Interesting, easy read

Between Heaven and Earth: The Religious Worlds People Make and the Scholars Who Study Them
Robert A. Orsi
Manufacturer: Princeton University Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Religion & Spirituality | Subjects | Books

Comparative Religion | Religious Studies | Religion & Spirituality | Subjects | Books

History | Religious Studies | Religion & Spirituality | Subjects | Books
Similar Items:

ASIN: 069112776X

Book Description

Between Heaven and Earth explores the relationships men, women, and children have formed with the Virgin Mary and the saints in twentieth-century American Catholic history, and reflects, more broadly, on how people live in the company of sacred figures and how these relationships shape the ties between people on earth. In this boldly argued and beautifully written book, Robert Orsi also considers how scholars of religion occupy the ground in between belief and analysis, faith and scholarship.

Orsi infuses his analysis with an autobiographical voice steeped in his own Italian-American Catholic background--from the devotion of his uncle Sal, who had cerebral palsy, to a "crippled saint," Margaret of Castello; to the bond of his Tuscan grandmother with Saint Gemma Galgani.

Religion exists not as a medium of making meanings, Orsi maintains, but as a network of relationships between heaven and earth involving people of all ages as well as the many sacred figures they hold dear. Orsi argues that modern academic theorizing about religion has long sanctioned dubious distinctions between "good" or "real" religious expression on the one hand and "bad" or "bogus" religion on the other, which marginalize these everyday relationships with sacred figures.

This book is a brilliant critical inquiry into the lives that people make, for better or worse, between heaven and earth, and into the ways scholars of religion could better study of these worlds.

Customer Reviews:

Interesting, easy read.......2007-05-14

Orsi's book is an interesting intro to some of the issues facing religious studies scholars. It presents the issues of how to study a religious community and what difficulties arise in doing so. For the reader less interested in the academic field of religious studies, there is still a wealth of information on religion in America, especially the history and development of American Catholicism.

The book is accessible to a wide audience and is the kind of work that makes for good dicussions with a variety of different types of groups. I will add, however, that for those who are already sufficiently aware of the problems of doing anthropological research on religious communities, it offers little that is new or insightful.

The Shaman: Patterns of Religious Healing Among the Ojibway Indians (Civilization of the American Indian Series)

Average customer rating:

Searching for the stoic Indian
Native Americans Live in a Universe
Excellent synopsis of the shamanic practices of the Ojibwe.

The Shaman: Patterns of Religious Healing Among the Ojibway Indians (Civilization of the American Indian Series)
John A. Grim
Manufacturer: University of Oklahoma Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Russia | History | Subjects | Books

Native American | Earth-Based Religions | Religion & Spirituality | Subjects | Books

Shamanism | Earth-Based Religions | Religion & Spirituality | Subjects | Books

Native Healing | Alternative Medicine | Health, Mind & Body | Subjects | Books
Similar Items:

Accessories:

ASIN: 0806121068

Customer Reviews:

Searching for the stoic Indian.......2007-03-29

I compliment the author for the amount of work put into this book and the attempt to represent shamanism. However, it is rather patronizing in its presentation.

Native Americans Live in a Universe.......2003-02-04

Thourough account of shamanism in the Ojibwe society, but applicable to the phenomenon as a whole. A great researcher, Mr. Grim provides perspectives from other areas of the world such as Siberia to exhibit similarities of human experience both in the shamanic realm and in the human psyche.

Excellent synopsis of the shamanic practices of the Ojibwe........1999-04-26

The author wisely places the practices of shamanism within the cultural context. At no point does the author make the mistake of reducing the shamanic practices to deities and such but correctly emphasizes the "forces" and movements of nature of which the shaman is an "expression." Excellent read for anyone generally interested in shamanism or specifically in the Ojibwe practices of the Mide society.

Canaan Land: A Religious History of African Americans

Average customer rating:

The Best Place to Start

Canaan Land: A Religious History of African Americans
Albert J. Raboteau
Manufacturer: Oxford University Press, USA
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Religion & Spirituality | Subjects | Books

History | Religious Studies | Religion & Spirituality | Subjects | Books

African American | Other Practices | Religion & Spirituality | Subjects | Books
Similar Items:

ASIN: 0195145852

Book Description

Throughout African-American history, religion has been indelibly intertwined with the fight against intolerance and racial prejudice. Martin Luther King, Jr.-America's best-known champion of civil liberties-was a Baptist minister. Father Divine, a fiery preacher who established a large following in the 1920s and 1930s, convinced his disciples that he could cure not only disease and infirmity, but also poverty and racism. An in-depth examination of African-American history and religion, this comprehensive and lively book provides panoramic coverage of the black religious and social experience in America. Renowned historian Albert J. Raboteau traces the subtle blending of African tribal customs with the powerful Christian establishment, the migration to cities, the growth of Islam, and the 200-year fight for freedom and identity which was so often centered around African-American churches. From the African Methodist Episcopal Church to the Nation of Islam and from the first African slaves to Louis Farrakhan, this far-reaching book chronicles the evolution of an important and influential component of our religious and historical heritage. African American Religion combines meticulously researched historical facts with a fast-paced, engaging narrative that will appeal to readers of any age.

Customer Reviews:

The Best Place to Start.......2007-01-01

Albert J. Raboteau is the foremost researcher on African American religious history. "Canaan Land" is the foremost book to start with when seeking to gain an understanding of the flow and focus of African American religious history. Raboteau, as in all his books, combines the scholarship of an academic with the passion of a great writer. The combination produces a book that is wonderfully readable both for the student and the lay reader.

"Canaan Land" is rightly considered a modern-day classic in the genre of African American religious history. Raboteau splendidly weaves together his own insightful commentary with copious first-hand accounts and quotations. Readers are left with an epic telling of the faith of African Americans.

Reviewer: Bob Kellemen, Ph.D., is the author of Beyond the Suffering: Embracing the Legacy of African American Soul Care and Spiritual Direction, Soul Physicians, and Spiritual Friends.

The Knight and the Dove (Kensington Chronicles, Book 4)

Average customer rating:

The Knight and the Dove
a keeper
Great historical
where do i start?
An Excellent Book

The Knight and the Dove (Kensington Chronicles, Book 4)
Lori Wick
Manufacturer: Harvest House Publishers
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Contemporary | General | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books

Historical | Genre Fiction | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books

Domestic Life | Women's Fiction | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books

General | Fiction | Religion & Spirituality | Subjects | Books
Similar Items:

ASIN: 1565072898

Customer Reviews:

The Knight and the Dove.......2007-05-12

The knight and the Dove was a very well written book. Lots of Spiritual guidelines for living out lives daily for the Lord.

a keeper.......2006-11-12

Definitely one to place on the 'keeper' shelf! This is a very moving story with the potential to sweep you away to a completely different place and time. I have re-read it so often I might have memorized it by now.

Great historical.......2006-06-18

I'm not usually into medieval historicals...mainly because I'm a medieval historian and am WAY too picky. This certainly wasn't historically accurate, but I loved it anyway. The characters are such fun and definitely worth the time to explore. Bracken and Megan are both a lot of fun to watch change and grow in all their relationships.

where do i start?.......2005-10-22

When I was younger and hadn't actually read any good fiction, or excellent writing, I used to like the Lori Wick Kensington Chronicles. Now I realize that although the story lines are good, everything else falls short. The writing is plain, the characters even worse. You might think the female characters engaging if you enjoy overly submissive, unrealistically innocent, wide-eyed, types with no fiery passion of any sort. And the male characters in most of her books are disgustingly domineering or just dumb. I haven't yet decided. You might enjoy her stories if you don't have a shred of feminism, or if you believe the male sex in general to be superior and dictatorial. The Knight and the Dove carries out these lacks to a fault. In my opinion is is by far the worst of the four.

An Excellent Book.......2005-10-03

I am a romance addict, but what disappoints me is that most romance books are trashy and not worth reading. However, I adore Lori Wick's romance novels. Its definetely romantic, but without the trashy scences, and its Christian fiction as well.

The Kensington series has got to be one of my favorite series she's written so far. The Knight and the Dove is a story about how 2 people are forced to get married but fall in love eventually. Its a sweet story, and I would reccomend it to anyone who loves a good romance.

An Apache Life-Way: The Economic, Social, and Religious Institutions of the Chiricahua Indians

Average customer rating:

very good
An objective and accurate ethnology

An Apache Life-Way: The Economic, Social, and Religious Institutions of the Chiricahua Indians
Morris E. Opler
Manufacturer: University of Nebraska Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Social Sciences | Nonfiction | Subjects | Books

Native American | Earth-Based Religions | Religion & Spirituality | Subjects | Books
Similar Items:

ASIN: 0803286104

Book Description

Originally published in 1941, An Apache Life-Way remains one of the most important and innovative studies of southwestern Native Americans, drawing upon a rich and invaluable body of data gathered by the ethnographer Morris Edward Opler during the 1930s. Blending the analysis of individual Apache lives with the analysis of their culture, this landmark study tells of the ceremonies, religious beliefs, social life, and economy of the Chiricahua Apache. Opler traces, in fascinating detail, how a person "becomes an Apache," beginning with conception, moving through puberty rites, marriage, and the various religious, domestic, and military duties and experiences of adulthood, and concluding with the rites and beliefs surrounding death. Morris Edward Opler is Professor Emeritus of anthropology at the University of Oklahoma. Charles R. Kaut is Associate Professor Emeritus of anthropology at the University of Virginia.

Customer Reviews:

very good.......1999-09-26

This book is an invaluable resource for anyone interested in Apache culture. It may not have the flow of novel but that is not the intention. This book is a glimpse into the lives of the fiercest and most honorable Native Americans that ever lived...the Apache.

An objective and accurate ethnology.......1998-04-05

Opler's book is the result of lengthy interviews with informants during the early part of the Twentieth century .He has quoted many of these Apaches verbatum without editorializing thereby providing an authentic picture of the tribal lifeway during the 19th century. The reader learns not only the ethnological facts but senses the feelings, values and emotions of these people. "An Apache Lifeway" remains the most definitive source of material cited in later publications on the subject. The book is easily readable because anthropological jargon is avoided.

Cry for Luck: Sacred Song and Speech Among the Yurok, Hupa, and Karok Indians of Northwestern California

Average customer rating:

Cry for Luck: Sacred Song and Speech Among the Yurok, Hupa, and Karok Indians of Northwestern California
Richard Keeling
Manufacturer: University of California Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

General | Music | Entertainment | Subjects | Books

Native American | Earth-Based Religions | Religion & Spirituality | Subjects | Books

General | Religion & Spirituality | Subjects | Books

Music | Judaism | Religion & Spirituality | Subjects | Books
Similar Items:

Standing Ground: Yurok Indian Spirituality, 1850-1990

ASIN: 0520075609

Book Description

The "sobbing" vocal quality in many traditional songs of northwestern California Indian tribes inspired the title of Richard Keeling's comprehensive study. Little has been known about the music of aboriginal Californians, and Cry for Luck will be welcomed by those who see the interpretation of music as a key to understanding other aspects of Native American religion and culture.
Among the Yurok, Hupa, and Karok peoples, medicine songs and spoken formulas were applied to a range of activities from hunting deer to curing an upset stomach or gaining power over an uninterested member of the opposite sex. Keeling inventories 216 specific forms of "medicine" and explains the cosmological beliefs on which they were founded. This music is a living tradition, and many of the public dances he describes are still performed today. Keeling's comparative, historical perspective shows how individual elements in the musical tradition can relate to the development of local cultures and the broader sphere of North American prehistory.

Books:

Books Index

Books Home

Recommended Books