Religion Community

Meals have always been important across societies and cultures, a time for friends and families to come together. An important part of relationships, meals are vital to our social health. Author Tim Chester sums it up: "Food connects." Chester argues that meals are also deeply theological - an important part of Christian fellowship and mission. He observes that the book of Luke is full of stories of Jesus at meals. These accounts lay out biblical principles. Chester notes, "The meals of Jesus represent something bigger."

Fellowship among believers is more than just talking over coffee after church service. Biblical fellowship in New Testament times - or koinonia - had rich and varied meanings, including covenant relationship, partnership in the gospel, communion with God and others, and the sharing of earthly possessions. In True Community, best-selling author Jerry Bridges guides you through koinonia and its implications for today’s church.

Every church, every organization, has experienced them: betrayal, deception, grumbling, envy, exclusion. They make life together difficult and prevent congregations from developing the skills, virtues, and practices they need to nurture sturdy, life-giving communities.

In an era in which religion can be perceived as a source of division rather than peace, Heaven Help Us by former Ohio governor and congressman John Kasich explores true, inspiring stories of American faith communities becoming fresh, surprising forces for the common good. More than a collection of "feel-good" stories, Heaven Help Us reminds us of the resourcefulness and ingenuity of our fellow congregants and religious leaders that make it possible to turn our good intentions into even better outcomes.

Corrymeela is Northern Ireland’s oldest peace and reconciliation organization. At its heart is a simple pattern of daily worship that is structured around meditation on the Gospels. This prayer book captures the essence of the Corrymeela prayer experience for everyone who wishes to incorporate its spirituality into their regular prayer practice.

Put on your armor - it’s time to fight. We are in a spiritual war, William Gurnall reminds us, and “the Christian’s safety lies in resisting. All the armour provided is to defend the Christian fighting, none to secure him flying; stand, and the day is ours; fly or yield, and all is lost". This hard-hitting volume is packed with biblical wisdom for day-to-day Christian living, as helpful today as it was when first published nearly 400 years ago. Although history left us little knowledge of William Gurnall’s life, it preserved this book.

The Rule of St. Benedict has governed monastic communities for centuries, but it is far more than a standard religious text. The Rule is, above all, a handbook for living a deliberate life - no matter your religious background or beliefs. It teaches the importance of contemplation and silence, of solitude, and the power of community and unity.

Author and pastor David Kim shares his experiences with loneliness as a Korean American immigrant and delivers compelling research about belonging that includes the revolutionary five anchors for developing meaningful relationships.

American life and politics are suffering from a raging knowledge crisis, and the church is no exception. In Untrustworthy, Bonnie Kristian unpacks this crisis and explores ways to combat it in our own lives, families, and church communities. Drawing from her extensive experience in journalism and her training as a theologian, Kristian explores social media, political and digital culture, online paranoia, and the press itself. She explains factors that contribute to our confusion and helps Christians pay attention to how we consume content and think about truth.

Today, many of us have lost our appreciation of the beauty of covenant theology and covenant community, and this has had dire consequences for us, resulting in misunderstandings of theology and individualism and isolationism in the church. Author Sarah Ivill believes that a key solution to this problem is a robust understanding of covenant theology, which will deepen our knowledge of Scripture and enable us to truly serve our sisters by pointing them to Christ.

As the first Black woman to anchor the Boston-area evening news, Liz Walker found herself in an industry that defined the neighborhood of Roxbury largely by violence. But when she became a pastor there, Walker grew close to households marked not only by trauma but by courage—including the family of Cory Johnson, a young father who was murdered. In the wake of their worst nightmare, the family reached out for help.

In When the Church Harms God's People, Langberg unveils what she has learned about how churches cause harm and why Christian communities often foster unhealthy leaders who end up hurting rather than protecting God's people. She also offers hope for the future, describing how churches can reflect Christ not just in what they teach but also in how they care for themselves and others.

Lamorna Ash was raised with about as much Christianity as most people in Britain these days: a basic knowledge of hymns and prayers received via a Church of England primary school education; occasional brushes with religious services. But once she started writing about her two friends’ unexpected conversions, she began encountering a recurring phenomenon: in an age of disconnection and apathy, a new generation was discovering religion for itself.

Pastor David Platt believes we’ve gotten really good at following a really bad gospel—one that worships American ideas over biblical truth. It’s time for disillusioned, discouraged, and divided Christians, and the next generation, to follow Jesus into a different future.

Our greatest need is to be recognized—to be seen, loved, and embedded in rich relationships with those around us. But for the last century, we’ve displaced that need with the ease of technology. We’ve dreamed of mastery without relationship (what the premodern world called magic) and abundance without dependence (what Jesus called Mammon). Yet even before a pandemic disrupted that quest, we felt threatened and strangely out of place: lonely, anxious, bored amid endless options, oddly disconnected amid infinite connections.

In every position of power lies the potential for life-giving leadership or destructive corruption. Driven by sinful pride or opportunism, many people abuse their God-given influence, harming the ones they’re called to lead and contributing to an intense angst against authority. The answer to bad authority, however, is not no authority, but good authority—the kind that, according to Scripture, causes those under it to flourish. In this compelling guide from 9Marks, Jonathan Leeman shows that authority, done biblically, is not only good, but is essential to human flourishing.

Acclaimed author, process-oriented therapist, and earlier Jungian analyst Arnold Mindell teaches us how to find the power to make our own choices and control our own lives. Drawing on his experiences with "witch-doctors" and shamans in Africa, Japan, Russia, and India, Mindell leads us on a "death walk" through our worst fears and deepest emotional crises to wake our inner shaman - which he calls our "dreamingbody." Methods for tapping the wisdom hidden in crises free our own internal sorcery for use in our daily lives. These methods enable us to become whole from within and to avoid the phantoms of unrealistic hopes and desires that limit our lives.

In all of the years that Rick Warren has been a pastor, the number one question he's asked is "Why can't I change?" We want to make changes, but we often feel stuck. Let God's Power to Change Your Life be the first step on your journey to getting out of your rut and back into God's wonderful purposes for your life.

With humor, insight, and a gift for storytelling, Ortberg shows how community pays tremendous dividends in happiness, health, support, and growth. It’s where all of us weird, unwieldy people encounter God’s love in tangible ways and discover the transforming power of being loved, accepted, and valued just the way we are.

It’s the great paradox of the digital age, what Radha Agrawal calls “community confusion” - the internet connects us to hundreds, thousands, even millions of people, and yet we feel more isolated than ever, with one in four Americans saying they have zero friends to confide in. Where are our people? The answer is found in Belong, a highly energetic guide to discovering where and with whom you fit.