Books - New releases
GOD Next Door: Spirituality & Mission in the Neighbourhood by Simon Carey Holt. Acorn Press Melbourne
Across the Divides Chile: A Different Perspective by Gill Williamson Smith. Melrose Books UK
Good Night and God Bless: A Guide to Convent and Monastery Accommodation in Europe, by Trish Clark
Australian Christian Book of the Year 2008
The Winner of the SPCKA Book of the year is GOD Next Door: Spirituality & Mission in the Neighbourhood by Simon Carey Holt.
GOD Next Door brings to life Jesus’ command to 'love your neighbour as yourself’ and explains how living Jesus’ words will transform neighbourhoods.
It is a timely and necessary challenge to all Australian Christians who are busy 'doing church' and to churches where a program-focus may have inadvertently dulled ideas of mission.
It shows how to understand Jesus’ call on your life regardless of your context.
Holt shares practical wisdom on the 'how to' of engaging neighbours and neighbourhoods, by thinking about the distinctives of one’s own neighbourhood. He demonstrates the value of reclaiming the neighbourhood, in an era in which we retreat into homes with large TVs and small front yards. He shows a sound knowledge of typical Australian neighbourhoods and puts compellingly Jesus’ call to mission in our own local neighbourhood.
God Next Door is a book which will provoke action: one judge found it life-changing!
It is a book which churches could explore together with a view to living like Jesus in their neighbourhood. Readers will gain a better understanding of their surroundings, a higher degree of engagement with their neighbours and a more authentic mission, by bringing Christianity and Jesus out of the church building and into the neighbourhood.
GOD Next Door: Spirituality & Mission in the Neighbourhood by Simon Carey Holt. Acorn Press Melbourne
Across the Divides Chile: A Different Perspective by Gill Williamson Smith
Gill Williamson Smith is a mother, midwife and one of the second wave of women ordained into the Anglican priesthood. This book is a rich and highly entertaining account of life in Chile spanning a turbulent period which encompasses Allende's Marxism through to the terror of the Pinochet years.
What an intriguing book! Almost hard to classify. Is it a history book? (Yes, and very factual). Is it a travel book? (Yes, with fascinating accounts of travel to places most people only dream of). Is it a missionary book? (Yes, and a fantastic example of what God can do with someone who says they're 'willing to be made willing' - p.20).
Gill writes with candid honesty and the reader cannot help but laugh and cry with her. Perhaps the greatest lesson the book taught me is that, although the pathway to fulfilling God's mission for us in life may twist and turn, yet we can trust God and find Him in the unexpected. Highly recommended.
Blog Review by Alan Harris. Contact Melrose Books for more details.
Across the Divides Chile: A Different Perspective by Gill Williamson Smith, Melrose Books UK
Good Night and God Bless: A Guide to Convent and Monastery Accommodation in Europe, by Trish Clark
The modern traveller's bible. Travellers and pilgrims seeking a unique experience can now uncover the ancient secrets of convents and monasteries around Europe.
We reveal these atmospheric and affordable places that accommodate tourists or those pursuing a pilgrimage or spiritual retreat.
Suitable for the traveller, the pious and the curious alike, this user-friendly travel guide provides accommodation, local tourist information, places of pilgrimage, travel tid-bits and anecdotes against a fascinating backdrop of history and religion.
More details.