Renegade religion: Christianity and action collide in 'Book of Eli'

"The Book of Eli" is the first Christian blockbuster since "The Passion of the Christ." It's a high-budgeted action bonanza with faith aflame in its heart and gunfire on its mind.

Denzel Washington stars as the titular Eli, an arbiter of Christianity in a world now 31 years removed from a nuclear holocaust. A fierce warrior toting what may be the world's last copy of the Bible, he travels perpetually west on America's shattered highway network, butchering bandits and marauders along the way. God's orders, you see: Eli heard a voice and is following its instructions to a "t."

His travels finally bring him to a community headed by Carnagie (Gary Oldman), a warlord whose men scour the land for a copy of the very book Eli devoutly studies every evening after his meal of desert cat. The literacy rate has taken a turn for the worse, and Carnagie reminds viewers of the enormous power that religion can offer an unscrupulous leader.

So our soldier of God protects the good book with machete swings, handgun fire and a seemingly divine immunity to injury. He picks up a companion in Solara (Mila Kunis), Carnagie's step-daughter who's in awe of Eli's habit of prayer.

CAIR caught selling Jihadist & anti-Judeo-Christian books to public

The Council on American Islamic Relations CAIR is caught red handed selling Sayyid Qutb (the father of Jihad) books and anti-Judeo-Christian ...

The Big Book of Christian Mysticism: The Essential Guide to Contemplative Spirituality

Hampton Roads Publishing

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Product Description

In popular usage, "mysticism" typically refers to New Age or Eastern forms of spirituality. However, the mystical tradition is also an important component of the Christian tradition. At its heart--and much like its expression in other faith traditions--Christian mysticism is an ancient practice that incorporates meditation, contemplation, worship, philosophy, the quest for personal enlightenment, and the experience of Divine presence.

This volume is a comprehensive introduction and guide to Christian mysticism. It is a big book about a big possibility: the hope of achieving real, blissful, experiential unison with God. Among the topics covered here are a general introduction to mysticism, the Bible and mysticism, the history and types of Christian mysticism, biographical sketches of leading Christian mystics, and practical instructions about practicing mysticism today.

This is a breathtaking work that explores a form of spirituality that has changed lives over the course of 2,000 years. Learning about Christian mysticism and how it has been articulated through the centuries will prove inspirational for today's seekers, regardless of the faith tradition.

"The mystic is not a special kind of person; every person is a special kind of mytic." --William McNamara

The Big Book of Christian Mysticism: The Essential Guide to Contemplative Spirituality

Hampton Roads Publishing

List Price: $21.95

Product Description

In popular usage, "mysticism" typically refers to New Age or Eastern forms of spirituality. However, the mystical tradition is also an important component of the Christian tradition. At its heart--and much like its expression in other faith traditions--Christian mysticism is an ancient practice that incorporates meditation, contemplation, worship, philosophy, the quest for personal enlightenment, and the experience of Divine presence.

This volume is a comprehensive introduction and guide to Christian mysticism. It is a big book about a big possibility: the hope of achieving real, blissful, experiential unison with God. Among the topics covered here are a general introduction to mysticism, the Bible and mysticism, the history and types of Christian mysticism, biographical sketches of leading Christian mystics, and practical instructions about practicing mysticism today.

This is a breathtaking work that explores a form of spirituality that has changed lives over the course of 2,000 years. Learning about Christian mysticism and how it has been articulated through the centuries will prove inspirational for today's seekers, regardless of the faith tradition.

"The mystic is not a special kind of person; every person is a special kind of mytic." --William McNamara

Prayer: A Windham Hill Collection

RCA

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Songs From The Book

Word Entertainment

The Ultimate Gift

20th Century Fox

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When his wealthy grandfather dies, trust fund baby Jason Stevens inherits his grandfather's crash course on life: 12 tasks-or gifts-designed to challenge Jason in improbable ways. The "course" sends Jason on a journey of self-discovery that forces him to reevaluate his priorities and determine what he thinks the most important things in life really are.
The Ultimate Gift is a tale of one man's tumultuous journey toward personal growth and fulfillment. Surrounded in life, and death, by avaricious family members fueled by a sense of entitlement, billionaire Red Stevens (James Garner) wants to bequeath at least one member of his extended family "the ultimate gift": something he perceives as immensely more valuable than material wealth. Red's arrogant grandson Jason (Drew Fuller) holds a deep-seated hatred for his newly-deceased grandfather, so he's surprised to learn from his grandfather's friend and lawyer Mr. Hamilton (Bill Cobbs) and assistant Miss Hastings (Lee Meriwether) that he's been mentioned in his late grandfather's will. Far from a straightforward gift of cash, land, or stock, Red's bequest comes in the form of a series of mysterious recorded instructions, the first of which requires Jason to hop on a plane for Texas the very next morning without a hint of the trip's purpose or the nature of the gift that awaits him. Dropped into a life of hard physical labor on a ranch in the middle of nowhere, Jason's bad-tempered fury eventually turns to resignation and he finds himself engaged in, and even taking pride in, the first real manual labor he's ever done in his life. Unbeknownst to him, his journey toward claiming the ultimate gift has only just begun. When he returns from Texas, Jason finds his home cleared out, his car confiscated, and instructions to produce one true friend. While Jason is reduced to sleeping in the park, a young child name Emily (Abigail Breslin) and her mother Alexia (Ali Hillis) make his acquaintance and lead him to re-examine his personal prejudices and perceptions of what's truly important in life. Jason's journey of self-discovery continues throughout a series of other trying experiences and, in the end, Grandpa Red's "ultimate gift" of life lessons profoundly and permanently improves the quality of Jason's life. What's more, Jason's new perspective of his place in society has a very positive affect on the larger community. This very powerful film is funny, heartbreaking, and intensely thought-provoking. --Tami Horiuchi



Stills from The Ultimate Gift (click for larger image)