Culture

The Idea of North CD RRP: $29.95 In this, the fifth album from a cappella vocal quartet The Idea of North, the additions of a band and choir on some tracks show the next phase in the group’s career. The Gospel Project is a step away from the group’s more jazz inspired other albums, but shows a different side of ...

By Gerrit Scott Dawson T & T Clark, London, 2004 RRP $49.95 Gerrit Scott Dawson’s book Jesus Ascended effectively draws together what many might consider an obscure theological doctrine with the life and mission of the church. Dawson himself recognises that, “The doctrine of the ascension is not readily in the hearts and minds of church members” (p. 185). Nonetheless ...

The Radical Kingdom By Bill Adams Privately published by Bill Adams Retired Uniting Church Minister Rev Dr Bill Adams provides a fresh and inspiring look into the sayings and parables of Jesus in his latest book The Radical Kingdom. The book is designed to provoke and excite readers with the counter cultural impact of Jesus’ message about the ever in-breaking ...

Does My Head Look Big In This?By Randa Abdel-FattahPan AustraliaRRP:  $16.95 High school is never easy at the best of times, but imagine facing up to your classmates after a school holiday break as a Muslim teenage girl who has decided that now is the time to start wearing her hijab fulltime. This is the start of a rollercoaster ride ...

Animism: Respecting the Living World Graham Harvey Wakefield Press RRP $29.95 Although I had previously understood animism to mean those religions that worship animals, that was never what the word meant. The word animism is used to describe that which all religions have in common, the belief in souls or spirits but became associated with Indigenous religions thought to represent ...

Finding Naasicaa – letters of hope in an age of anxiety Charles Ringma Regent College Publishing RRP $32.95 Finding Naasicaa is written as a series of letters by Charles Rigma to his 19 year old granddaughter Naasicaa. Ringma is an Australian scholar, activist and deeply spiritual thinker who is Professor Emeritus of Missions and Evangelism at Regent College in Vancouver, ...

I have just discovered two fascinating books by Uniting Church lay person Emeritus Professor Rod Jensen from Brisbane. He says that like so many other laypeople, he has been saddened by the apparently inevitable decline of most of the Christian churches in the Western world, and the apparent reluctance of the churches to come to terms in a positive and ...

Compassionate Community Work By Dave Andrews Piquant EditionsRRP $39.95 This is a dangerous book. It looks clean and safe and predictable. But it isn’t. It’s sneaky. It starts to mess with your head and your heart in unsettling ways. I’d only got to page six before I started to feel deeply stirred inside – an unsettling combination of a deep ...

Mighty to Save Hillsong RRP CD $29.95 DVD $39.95 Leading over 10,000 worshippers at the Sydney Entertainment Centre with what must be the world’s best behaved mosh-pit Darlene Zschech and the Hillsong team present 14 songs that will be the benchmark for much of Australian worship music for the next 12 months. Mighty To Save, the latest live worship album ...

Voting for Jesus- Christianity and Politics in Australia Quarterly Essay Issue 22 2006 Amanda Lohrey Black Inc. RRP $14.95 or by subscription In Voting for Jesus Tasmanian essayist Amanda Lohrey takes an in-depth look at the Christian revival in Australia, its impact on politics and public life, and explores the world of evangelical Christianity. Starting and finishing in conversations with ...