Howard A. Snyder – författare

A re-examination of the Pocahontas story, probing self-serving myths to reveal a complex tale that sheds light on the interplay between mission and culture.Most Americans know the story of Pocahontas, but not the fact that she was a Christian, and the reasons for her dramatic conversion. Pocahontas had a history-altering encounter with Jesus Christ. A key figure was Alexander Whitaker, pioneer Anglican missionary in Virginia, who taught Pocahontas the Christian faith - but is almost totally unknown today. This story of Pocahontas has never fully been told. Or it has been ridiculed. Yet it is true, as this book now documents. In these pages the real Pocahontas comes alive as a flesh-and-blood person with her own thoughts and decisions. This book shows the beauty, the romance, and the tragedy of Pocahontas's short life. It also traces the way the Pocahontas story has been used and misused over the past 400 years, opening the door to the larger issue of the suppression of native peoples in US history. The real story of Pocahontas presents a timely case study both in the history of missions and the history of America - an investigation of the interplay between gospel, culture, and national mythology.

John Wesley Redfield (1810-1863), controversial "lay" evangelist in the Methodist Episcopal and later Free Methodist churches, was the cofounder of the Free Methodist Church and in the 1840s and 50s had a broad ministry in the M.E. Church and beyond. An outspoken abolitionist, Redfield was controversial among Methodist leaders and in the M.E. press as his revivals typically were marked by dramatic emotional manifestations, including people being slain in the Spirit and dramatic conversions.This book makes available for the first time his autobiography, a 425-page handwritten manuscript Redfield wrote shortly before he died. Redfield's manuscript details (briefly) his early life; his conversion; his brief stormy marriage and divorce; his abolitionist activities; his contacts with Phoebe Palmer, one of the founders of the Holiness Movement; his occasional practice of medicine; and his remarkable revivals, which are further clarified and documented by the author's footnotes. This book presents Redfield's manuscript in its entirety-with critical and contextual notes-and serves as an important primary source for the study of the Wesleyan Holiness tradition, American Methodism, revivalism, and abolitionism.

Fifty-two readings on living in intentional Christian community to spark group discussion.Gold Medal Winner, 2017 Illumination Book Awards, Christian LivingSilver Medal Winner, 2017 Benjamin Franklin Award in Religion, Independent Book Publishers AssociationWhy, in an age of connectivity, are our lives more isolated and fragmented than ever? And what can be done about it? The answer lies in the hands of God’s people. Increasingly, today’s Christians want to be the church, to follow Christ together in daily life. From every corner of society, they are daring to step away from the status quo and respond to Christ’s call to share their lives more fully with one another and with others. As they take the plunge, they are discovering the rich, meaningful life that Jesus has in mind for all people, and pointing the church back to its original calling: to be a gathered, united community that demonstrates the transforming love of God.Of course, such a life together with others isn’t easy. The selections in this volume are, by and large, written by practitioners—people who have pioneered life in intentional community and have discovered in the nitty-gritty of daily life what it takes to establish, nurture, and sustain a Christian community over the long haul.Whether you have just begun thinking about communal living, are already embarking on sharing life with others, or have been part of a community for many years, the pieces in this collection will encourage, challenge, and strengthen you. The book’s fifty-two chapters can be read one a week to ignite meaningful group discussion.Contributors include from John F. Alexander, Eberhard Arnold, J. Heinrich Arnold, Johann Christoph Arnold, Alden Bass, Benedict of Nursia, Christoph Friedrich Blumhardt, Leonardo Boff, Dietrich Bonhoeffer, Joan Chittister, Stephen B. Clark, Andy Crouch, Dorothy Day, Anthony de Mello, Elizabeth Dede, Catherine de Hueck Doherty, Fyodor Dostoyevsky, Jenny Duckworth, Friedrich Foerster, Richard J. Foster, Jodi Garbison, Arthur G. Gish, Helmut Gollwitzer, Adele J Gonzalez, Stanley Hauerwas, Joseph H. Hellerman, Roy Hession, David Janzen, Rufus Jones, Emmanuel Katongole, Arthur Katz, Søren Kierkegaard, C. Norman Kraus, C.S. Lewis, Gerhard Lohfink, Ed Loring, Chiara Lubich, George MacDonald, Thomas Merton, Hal Miller, José P. Miranda, Jürgen Moltmann, Charles E. Moore, Henri J. M. Nouwen, Elizabeth O’Connor, John M. Perkins, Eugene H.Peterson, Christine D. Pohl, Chris Rice, Basilea Schlink, Howard A. Snyder, Mother Teresa, Thomas à Kempis, Elton Trueblood, and Jonathan Wilson-Hartgrove.

Most Americans know the story of Pocahontas, but not the fact that she was a Christian, and the reasons for her dramatic conversion. Pocahontas had a history-altering encounter with Jesus Christ. A key figure was Alexander Whitaker, pioneer Anglican missionary in Virginia, who taught Pocahontas the Christian faith--but is almost totally unknown today.This story of Pocahontas has never fully been told. Or it has been ridiculed. Yet it is true, as this book now documents.In these pages the real Pocahontas comes alive as a flesh-and-blood person with her own thoughts and decisions. This book shows the beauty, the romance, and the tragedy of Pocahontas''s short life. It also traces the way the Pocahontas story has been used and misused over the past four hundred years, opening the door to the larger issue of the suppression of native peoples in U.S. history.The real story of Pocahontas presents a timely case study both in the history of missions and the history of America--an investigation of the interplay between gospel, culture, and national mythology.

Everywhere the church is rediscovering Jesus' call to live under God's rule. What the world needs, however, is not just greater kingdom awareness but more kingdom action. How can the church stabilize families, revitalize, neighborhoods, create just societies and a peaceful world? How can we hasten the day when the kingdoms of this world will become the kingdom of our Lord?

The Bible promises the renewal of all creation--a new heaven and earth--based on the incarnation, life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ. For centuries this promise has been sidelined or misunderstood because of the church''s failure to grasp the full meaning of biblical teachings on creation and new creation.The Bible tells the story of the broken and restored relationship between God, people, and land, not just God and people. This is the full gospel, and it has the power to heal the church''s long theological divorce between earth and heaven. Jesus'' resurrection in the power of the Holy Spirit is the key, and the church as Christ''s body is the primary means by which God is reconciling all things through Jesus Christ. Jesus'' ultimate healing of all creation is the great hope and promise of the gospel, and he calls the church to be his healing community now through evangelism, discipleship, and prophetic mission.