Understanding God’s Word for us in present day can be a difficult challenge. Whether it is the bible itself that leaves us baffled or just the state of our community, there are resources available to help us find our way to a better tomorrow. Here are some of the books that our members and clergy recommend.
Anti-Racism • LGBTQ/Gay Marriage • Urban Ministry • Children’s Books
Americans have lost touch with their history, and in Lies My Teacher Told Me Professor James Loewen shows why. After surveying eighteen leading high school American history texts, he has concluded that not one does a decent job of making history interesting or memorable. Marred by an embarrassing combination of blind patriotism, mindless optimism, sheer misinformation, and outright lies, these books omit almost all the ambiguity, passion, conflict, and drama from our past.
Beverly Daniel Tatum, a renowned autority on the psychology of racism, tackles many of the questions that perplex today’s society: She begins with an examination of self-segregation and moves on to the other questions we and our children have about race. Using real-life examples and the latest research, Tatum presents strong evidence that straight talk about our racial identities — whatever they may be — is essential if we are serious about facilitating communication across racial and ethnic divides. This remarkable book, infused with great wisdom and humanity, has already helped hundreds of thousands of readers figure out where to start the conversation.
In the early 2000s, Mark Achtemeier embarked on a personal journey with the Bible that led him from being a conservative, evangelical opponent of gay rights to an outspoken activist for gay marriage and a fully inclusive church. Achtemeier shares what led to his change of heart: the problems with excluding groups of people and the insights into the Bible’s message that led him to recognize the fullness of God’s love and support for the lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) community. Readers will discover how reading snippets of Scripture out of context has led to false and misleading interpretations of the Bible’s message about LGBT persons. Achtemeier shows how a careful reading of the whole Scripture reveals God’s good news about love, marriage, and sexuality for gay and straight people alike
Kathy Baldock’s Walking the Bridgeless Canyon is an excellent and practical examination of Bible verses related to same-sex behavior and marriage, along with insights on reparative therapy, mixed orientation marriages, gay and transgender youth in churches, the AIDS crisis, revival in the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender church, and finally the challenge of “now what?” Baldock, an heterosexual Evangelical Christian addresses the book to her “tribe.” With an engaging and accessible tone, the author invites conflicted Christians to a holistic look at the influences and influencers that have helped shape cultural and religious views of gay and transgender people, particularly within the conservative Christian church.
In Strength for the Struggle, Joe Ellwanger shares his experiences and wisdom as a pastor in times of great social struggle, both in 1960s Birmingham and in more than three decades of ministry in Milwaukee’s inner city. This book will support and inspire seminary students, pastors, and congregational members to connect across cultural boundaries and to live and act courageously, knowing that they are called by God and surrounded by a great cloud of witnesses.
Includes many stories from Cross Lutheran Milwaukee!
Is He a wind that is never still?
Is He a rock that never moves?
Is He high above us or here among us?
Venerable Old Turtle answers quietly: God is all of these things.
Old Turtle first burst upon the publishing scene in 1992, and it was instantly recognized as a classic fable about ecology, peace, and the interconnectedness of all beings. Simple yet profound, it has since brought hope and inspiration to children and adults around the world.