Religion & Liturgie

“A beautifully observed and thrillingly honest novel about the dark corners of family life and the long, complicated search for understanding and grace.” —Jenny Offill, author of Dept. of Speculation and Weather“The Fourth Child is keen and beautiful and heartbreaking—an exploration of private guilt and unexpected obligation, of the intimate losses of power embedded in female adolescence, and of the fraught moments of glancing divinity that come with shouldering the burden of love.” —Jia Tolentino, New York Times bestselling author of Trick Mirror“A remarkable family saga . . . The Fourth Child is a balm—a reminder that it is possible for art to provide a nuanced exploration of life itself.” —Rumaan Alam, author of Leave the World Behind and Rich and PrettyThe author of Break in Case of Emergency follows up her “extraordinary debut” (The Guardian) with a moving novel about motherhood and marriage, adolescence and bodily autonomy, family and love, religion and sexuality, and the delicate balance between the purity of faith and the messy reality of life.Book-smart, devoutly Catholic, and painfully unsure of herself, Jane becomes pregnant in high school; by her early twenties, she is raising three children in the suburbs of western New York State. In the fall of 1991, as her children are growing older and more independent, Jane is overcome by a spiritual and intellectual restlessness that leads her to become involved with a local pro-life group. Following the tenets of her beliefs, she also adopts a little girl from Eastern Europe. But Mirela is a difficult child. Deprived of a loving caregiver in infancy, she remains unattached to her new parents, no matter how much love Jane shows her. As Jane becomes consumed with chasing therapies that might help Mirela, her relationships with her family, especially her older daughter, Lauren, begin to fray. Feeling estranged from her mother and unsettled in her new high school, Lauren begins to discover the power of her own burgeoning creativity and sexuality—a journey that both echoes and departs from her mother’s own adolescent experiences. But when Lauren is confronted with the limits of her youth and independence, Jane is thrown into an emotional crisis, forced to reconcile her principles and faith with her determination to keep her daughters safe. The Fourth Child is a piercing love story and a haunting portrayal of how love can shatter—or strengthen—our beliefs.

Paperback

Paperback

Six short plays performed between 2009 and 2019. "Potions and Pets" is a one-act comedy on the theme of "if your pets could talk." "One Step Braver" is the true story of Ellory Schempp's protest against the reading of Bible passages and The Lord's Prayer in his Abington, Pennsylvania, high school in 1956, which led to a U.S. Supreme Court decision in 1962. "The Reunion that Wasn't" tells the story of an American veteran of World War II who returns to the town on Italy where he fell in love with a local girl, but his meeting with the girl-turned-woman forces him to face a picture of himself completely at odds with his self-image. "Remembrance" is a family story centered on a woman nearing death in a hospice, who talks for her nephew about the meaning of life and death, and who reveals a secret to her brother that makes him realize he isn't the only person dealing with unbearable memories. "Was Justice Served?" contrasts the actions of a World War II veteran who liberated a German prison camp with his court-martial for mistreating an SS officer. "Male Bonding" is a humorous look at the shallowness of men's emotional lives. <BR><BR>

The Journey records the spiritual adventures of a young Believer's progressive walk in Christ that brings him into contact with many confessing "Christians" as he travels God's holy path. He determines to learn from the mistakes of others as revealed and vows to let nothing hinder him as he gains spiritual ground. But his progress in not going unnoticed, for there are forces that suffer agonizing defeat over every soul that he retrieves out of their grip, and for this he must be stopped, and those opposing him devise plans to accomplish just that.

All they wanted was to know how. I could do this, I could invent something . . .It is 1991, and on a trip to the United States to research a new novel, British artist and writer Brinsel Thomas discovers she has more to deal with than just writing. When two police officers show up at her door with questions, her next stop is the police station. One little lie intended to extricate herself from what she is certain is a terrible mistake instead snowballs into a story she cannot get out of, trapped with a secret she cannot risk giving away.Instead of working on her novel, Brinsel finds herself enlisted to help solve a murder, attempting to fabricate an incriminating correspondence, shedding a few copyrights, and dodging insistently prying questions. There is one person who she is convinced might be able to help her: a private detective and sometime-professional musician named Max Thompson. Then again, he might not. Because there is one enormous, indisputable complication . . .

The author dreams of a death warning. She texts about it. Those who read her text call her crazy. Then, much to their shock, the dream comes true. The author miraculously cheats death. This book contains the picture of the prediction. Seeing affects deeper than reading. Fantastic is a fast-paced true story that will instantly connect with the reader by showing proofs of telling the future. Seeing is believing. We know what we see. The reader will see. Truth is scarier than fiction. So this true story will dare to make the reader scratch their heads, after surprising them into wondering, "what just happened?"

A live baby is found in the manger in a small church. This play tells how this baby brings about a miraculous change in the lives of many people. This is just one of six "elastic" Christmas plays, each climaxing in a miraculous display of love, healing, understanding, and forgiveness. Small churches that do not have the amenities that large churches have will find these plays easy to produce. They can be stretched to accommodate bigger casts or shrunken to fit fewer casts depending on the particular need of a church.

George MacDonald (10 December 1824 – 18 September 1905) was a Scottish author, poet and Christian minister. He was a pioneering figure in the field of fantasy literature and the mentor of fellow writer Lewis Carroll. In addition to his fairy tales, MacDonald wrote several works on Christian apologetics.His writings have been cited as a major literary influence by many notable authors including W. H. Auden, J. M. Barrie, Lord Dunsany, Hope Mirrlees, Robert E. Howard, L. Frank Baum, T.H. White, Lloyd Alexander, C. S. Lewis, J. R. R. Tolkien, Walter de la Mare, E. Nesbit, Peter S. Beagle, Neil Gaiman and Madeleine L'Engle.C. S. Lewis wrote that he regarded MacDonald as his "master": "Picking up a copy of Phantastes one day at a train-station bookstall, I began to read. A few hours later", said Lewis, "I knew that I had crossed a great frontier." G. K. Chesterton cited The Princess and the Goblin as a book that had "made a difference to my whole existence".Elizabeth Yates wrote of Sir Gibbie, "It moved me the way books did when, as a child, the great gates of literature began to open and first encounters with noble thoughts and utterances were unspeakably thrilling."Even Mark Twain, who initially disliked MacDonald, became friends with him, and there is some evidence that Twain was influenced by him. The Christian author Oswald Chambers wrote in his "Christian Disciplines" that "it is a striking indication of the trend and shallowness of the modern reading public that George MacDonald's books have been so neglected".Lilith is considered among the darkest of MacDonald's works, and among the most profound. It is a story concerning the nature of life, death, and salvation. In the story, MacDonald mentions a cosmic sleep that heals tortured souls, preceding the salvation of all. MacDonald was a Christian universalist, believing that all will eventually be saved. However, in this story, divine punishment is not taken lightly, and salvation is hard-won. (wikipedia.org)

With few exceptions, the Oberammergau Passion Play has been presented by the inhabitants of the village of Oberammergau, Bavaria, Germany every 10 years since 1634. The play is a staging of Jesus' Passion story, covering the final period of his life from his visit to Jerusalem to the journey to the cross.. In his new book and study, The Passion Play: Living the Story of Christ's Last Days, author and pastor Rob Fuquay follows the biblical story of the Passion and how it has been experienced through the centuries against the backdrop of this amazing play. Perfect for Lent, this book and study takes you on a journey to the origins of the Passion Play and helps you understand how the play has been used both as a ritual of praise and later as a weapon through its anti-Semitic past. The book and study help readers and small groups feel a sense of connection to the play while recognizing their own place in the story of Jesus. The Leader Guide contains everything needed to guide a group through the six-week study including session plans, activities, and discussion questions, as well as multiple format options.

The author dreams of a death warning. She texts about it. Those who read her text call her crazy. Then, much to their shock, the dream comes true. The author miraculously cheats death. This book contains the picture of the prediction.Seeing affects deeper than reading. Fantastic is a fast-paced true story that will instantly connect with the reader by showing proofs of telling the future.Seeing is believing. We know what we see. The reader will see.Truth is scarier than fiction. So this true story will dare to make the reader scratch their heads, after surprising them into wondering, "what just happened?"

Tom Bollinger came from a bitter and troubled background. Growing up, he had experienced a myriad of horrible situations, but had managed to turn his life around despite the odds against him. Now he had everything to live for, he was blessed with a wonderful wife and loving children. He had just finished a long overseas military assignment and it was good to be home. But, something had changed within him. There was this strange sense of urgency tugging at him inside and he wasn't sure what was going on. There were unresolved issues that began to stir deep within him that had to be confronted. Little did he realize something was headed his way which would alter the course of his life forever. Truth, was indeed, stranger than fiction.

One of the biggest problems faced by those working with very young children at Christmas is how to involve pre-readers in the nativity story with the minimum of fuss and manageable preparation. Here is an ideal solution that will delight teachers and parents alike. In this book, popular author Brian Ogden offers three very diverse plays - all of which can be performed with groups of any size. Each one tells the story of the first Christmas from a difference perspective, using well-known nursery rhyme turnes to bring the storyline to life. Simple directions, costumes and props ensure that the children are given the opportunity to participate fully in the performance. Includes photocopy permission.

Break a Leg During ChurchDramatic sketches take your congregation to new places without loading up the church bus. They help your church connect heart, soul, and mind with your pastor's teaching from the Bible.Life Scripts for the Church: Volume II includes 24 more sketches from church drama expert Paul Joiner. These performance-tested sketches will drive your Sunday message home. You'll find dramas designed to tickle your funny bone, bring a tear to your eye, or make your brain think twice.Every script contains dramatic cautions and cues to make production less stressful. Plus, in this volume, Paul coaches you on how to find and write the best scripts for your drama ministry.Compelling drama for your church. Less stress for you.

"The Lost Feeling of Christmas" echoes themes from Charles Dickens' A Christmas Carol to the extent that a grumpy senior citizen is forced, through a confrontive dream, to come to terms with what the time of Christ's nativity is really all about. The messenger who speaks most forcefully to him is, of all things, his cat."A Lot of Christmas Love" speaks to a world where poverty and broken families are too painfully in evidence. A family has suffered the disappearance of husband and father. Those who are left to help mother and children cope find their relationships are strained, particularly as the Christmas season comes again. Like God, who comes disguised at Christmastime, this play includes a visit from a stranger in extraordinary dress.These two Christmas plays combine traditional biblical content from the Christmas cycle of stories with contemporary life. Each is a full program, taking approximately one hour to produce, and each involves a wide spectrum of participants from the congregation, including one or more choirs or singing groups. Those who purchase this two-play set will have a pair of excellent Christmas dramas from which to choose, both created by a professor of theatre arts at Penn State University at Mount Altos, Pennsylvania.Nancy Funk received the Bachelor of Fine Arts degree from Boston University and Master of Arts degree from the University of Iowa. Currently pursuing the PhD degree at New York University, she is Assistant Professor of Theatre Arts at Pennsylvania State University, Mount Alto Campus. She and her daughter Jhondra live in Waynesboro, Pennsylvania, where the two plays in this book were presented, having been commissioned for use in Lutheran and Methodist congregations. Having worked as director and producer for television drama and commercial work on both public and commercial network television, she is well qualified to combine insights of a secular age with the abiding truths of scripture.