General-Order

I'd never heard of this woman. I literally picked this book up because I was desperate for something new to read. These letters chronicle her life from the moment she entered Carmel until her death. She is both simpler and more complex than St. Therese of Lisieux, but a woman completely in love with God and completely in TOUCH with love. Outreaching, unafraid to love with seemingly her whole heart. This much love is staggering. I couldn't put the book down, because I had simply never encountered such a creature. Now, I find myself, everyday, remembering one of her phrases. I will have to get the first volumne, now.

A must read for anyone interested in the Jesuit order - especially those of us that attended Jesuit schools! In his translation, Father Buckley takes us from the beginning to the end of St. Ignatius' life in a manner that is full of information, yet also easy to read and at times difficult to put down.

This book is Volume II in an ongoing series called "Studying the Historical Jesus", edited by Bruce Chilton and Craig Evans, a thorough and superb study of John the Baptist. Taylor refutes (once and for all, hopefully) theories which associate John with the Essenes: He lived in the wilderness himself, but he sent people home after baptizing them; he was an ascetic, but the particular foods he rejected were accepted by the Essenes; he wore camel hair sackcloth, the Essenes wore white garments; he lived in the lower Jordan, they lived on the western shores of the Dead Sea. Enough is enough! About the Pharisees, Taylor concludes that they were probably not overly hostile to John. They may have disagreed with the belief that a purification rite like baptism needed prior repentance, but they certainly would not have been offended by a prophet who was turning sinners back to righteousness. Her chapter dealing with John's execution is very helpful, probably the best in the book. She notes that unlike other wilderness prophets of the first century (whose followers were also rounded up and slaughtered), John did not gather people in order to march on Jerusalem. He did believe that the Kingdom was coming -- and thus that the powers-that-be would soon "get their due" -- but his methods were less seditious, as he sent people home to await the Kingdom after they were baptized. But Herod Antipas no doubt worried that this "Baptist movement" could flower into the popular form of prophetic revolution, and so John's criticism of his marriage was just the excuse he needed to do away with him. Finally, Taylor explores the relationship between John and Jesus, suggesting that Jesus counted himself among the followers of the Baptist who needed repentance, and who upon immersion had a prophetic calling, went out into the wilderness himself...and then began his own movement, in which he continued the practice of baptizing.

This book is satisfyingly through, about twice the length of other books in this series, whose titles so far are: "Pure Kingdom" by Bruce Chilton, "God's Final Envoy" by Marinus de Jonge, and "Jesus Outside the New Testament" by Robert Van Voorst. May there be many more installments to come.

I am reading the chinese version of this book now,very good

Dr. Fraioli presents an in depth analysis of the early debate surrounding Joan. Drawing on many contemporary sources, such as the writings of Christine De Pizan and those letters atributed to Joan, the author backs up her arguments. There are also appendices which include sources in French for those scholars who prefer to check their own translations against the authors. It's a great book for historians, theologians, and others. It is slightly advanced, but should not pose a problem for college students and above. Overall, a great read and a great aid for Joan-related research.

St John of the Cross was Teresa of Avila's spiritual advisor. Her mystical writings always were difficult for me to understand so I was leery of John of the Cross's work figuring that he was even less accessible. However, Kavanaugh presents his work clearly and with good references to understandable concepts. This book has been enlightening to the point that I find it hard to put down ... and that is much more than I expected. This is a wonderful opportunity to understand the work of an intellectual master who nevertheless was firmly grounded in the realities of daily life and understood the average person's struggles.

Joseph Cornell has become a favorite of many art-lovers. His assemblage boxes of materials on topics ranging from rabbits to Lauren Bacall to the ornaments and symbols of childhood make for fascinating viewing. Cornell is a curious personality. On the one hand, he self-documented to a far greater extent than many artists, so that a relatively rich record of "what the artist was thinking" exists. On the other hand, he lived his life in a reclusive, introspective, elusive way, so that the viewer never quite feels that s/he has "gotten one's arms" around his perspective.

Lindsay Blair's "Joseph's Cornell's Vision of Spiritual Order" uses as its critical basis the foundations of Cornell's beliefs and influences, in an effort to help make the more elusive aspects of his work a bit clearer. She writes excellent passages about the way in which Cornell was influenced by, but certainly not at all co-opted by, the surrealist artists. She adroitly uses passages from Cornell's own writings, as well as analogies from his personal history, to provide cogent criticism which is less "art critic projection" and more a sincere, highly readable attempt to "get into" the mind of a man whose mind assiduously resisted such invasions.

Ms. Blair recognizes that Christian Science, Mr. Cornell's faith, has an impact on his work. In this respect, her writing is less revelatory, as her summation of the new thought ideas of Christian Science are a bit reductive. Mr. Cornell's work obviously has strong religious roots. Although Ms. Blair seems to have read up on some basic ideals of the faith, the passages in which she discusses Mr. Cornell's faith's influence on his work seem much less insightful than her discussion of the effects of other aspects of his personal life upon his work. One wonders if Mr. Cornell had been from a more "mainstream" faith if the explicitly religious motivation for some of his work (as revealed in his own writings) might have gotten a more comprehensive and detailed treatment than Ms. Blair accords here.
This is a very fine book, certainly one worth owing, but ironically, the reader is left wanting a bit more discussion of the actual "vision of a spiritual order" and perhaps a bit less traditional art criticism.

This book has wonderful photographs of Cornell's work, and functions well as criticism, as biography, and as a thought-provoking piece on Cornell's curious place in the art world. If one is familiar with Cornell's work, this is a fascinating inroad further into its meaning. If one is, as I am, less a hard-core Cornell devotee than one who has encountered his work relatively recently, this is a well-done introduction to his art and thinking. The book is relatively free of that self-serving "look how smart the critic is" art talk that besieges so much of this genre. Despite my quibbles about its "flaws", I highly recommend this book.

I have bought most of this series for my nephew, and everytime i give him a new volume, he gets excited. It's really amazing to see the little guy get so enthused about something other than pokeman or nintendo. I found this volume in the series particularly good, it's written in a way that apeals to a child's natural curiosity. The book is educational, while being lighthearted.

My review will be somewhat biased due to the fact that Raphael Jacob Moses was my Great Grandfather. I thought that this book was excelletly researched and edited by Mr. Young. I found that as I read and got deeper in to my family history I could not put it down. For someone who is very interested in life during the Civil War either from a military perspective or from a deeply personal perspective this book will not dissapoint.

This book is a must for effective classroom management! Your students will understand why we need rules and procedures. It will promote a sense of personal responsibility by teaching social skills, how to resolve conflicts, positive and negative consequences, and acceptance of accountability. I used this book with my assertive disciple plan the first day of school. The students eagerly listened as I read and we discussed this book. I plan to use WHO CARES ABOUT LAW AND ORDER? throughout the school year.