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The Secrets of Alchemy (Synthesis)
by Lawrence M. Principe"This elegant, readable book…covers the history of alchemy from its shadowy origins in Hellenistic Egypt to its scholarly recovery in the 20th century&” (Anthony Grafton, Science). In The Secrets of Alchemy, science historian and practicing chemist Lawrence M. Principe dispels commonly held misconceptions about alchemy and sheds light on what it was, how it began, and how it influenced a range of other ideas and pursuits. Principe demonstrates the importance of alchemy during its heyday in early modern Europe, and explores its enduring place in literature, fine art, theater, and religion as well as its recent acceptance as a serious subject of study for historians of science. Principe also introduces readers to some of the most fascinating alchemists, such as Zosimos and Basil Valentine, whose lives dot alchemy&’s long reign from the third century and to the present day. Through his discussion of alchemists and their times, Principe pieces together clues from obscure texts to reveal alchemy&’s secrets, and uses them to recreate many of the most famous recipes in his lab, including those for the &“glass of antimony&” and &“philosophers&’ tree.&”
The Secrets of Angel Healing
by Sabi HilmiUnveil the secrets of angelic guidance and turn your life aroundAre you feeling unfulfilled? Are you often ill and run down? Do you suffer from lack of confidence? Have you had a string of heartbreaking relationships?Sabi Hilmi had her first divine experience when a close relative was seriously ill ten years ago and an angel appeared by her side. From that day on, she began training as an angel practitioner.By following angelic guidance, Sabi changed her life around, and the emotional rollercoaster she'd been suffering turned eventually to happiness and contentment. In this remarkable book, she shows you how to channel your angels and gain strength and guidance from them. She shares her story of finding true love, so that you will learn the secrets given to her by the Angelic Realm and be guided to find your soulmate.
The Secrets of Flight: A Novel
by Maggie LefflerAn elderly Jewish widow revisits her past as a World War II pilot with the help of a teenage girl in this captivating debut novel.Estranged from her family since just after World War II, Mary Browning has spent her entire adult life hiding from her past. Now eighty-seven years old and a widow, she is still haunted by secrets and fading memories of the family she left behind. Her one outlet is the writing group she’s presided over for a decade, though she’s never written a word herself. When a new member walks in—a fifteen-year-old girl who reminds her so much of her beloved sister, Sarah—Mary is certain fate delivered Elyse Strickler to her for a reason.Mary hires the serious-eyed teenager to type her story about a daring female pilot who left home for the sky and gambled everything for her dreams—including her own identity.As they begin to unravel the web of Mary’s past, Mary and Elyse form an unlikely friendship. Together they discover it’s never too late for second chances and that sometimes forgiveness is all it takes for life to take flight in the most unexpected ways.
The Secrets of Happiness: Three Thousand Years of Searching for the Good Life
by Richard SchochUnhappy is the story of happiness. More than two thousand years ago, when the ancient Greeks first pondered what constitutes "the good life," happiness was considered a civic virtue that demanded a lifetime's cultivation. Not just mere enjoyment of pleasure and mere avoidance of suffering, true happiness was an achievement, not a birthright. Now, in an age of instant gratification and infinite distraction, history professor Richard Schoch takes a refreshingly contemplative look at a question that's as vital today as ever: What does it mean to be happy? Schoch consults some of history's greatest thinkers -- from Aristotle to Thomas Aquinas to Buddha -- in his quest to understand happiness in all its hard-won forms. Packed with three thousand years' worth of insights, many long forgotten, The Secrets of Happiness is a breath of ancient wisdom for anyone who yearns for the good life.
The Secrets of Judas: The Story of the Misunderstood Disciple and His Lost Gospel
by James M. RobinsonProfessor Robinson’s new book, The Secrets of Judas, should be read alongside the National Geographic volumes for another perspective. — New York TimesAmerica’s leading expert on ancient religious texts from Egypt. — Lisa Ko, author of The Leavers
The Secrets of Mary: Gifts from the Blessed Mother
by Janice T. ConnellThrough the centuries, the Virgin Mary has appeared to ordinary people of every race and culture, bringing forth her messages of love, peace, and comfort. In these trying times, Mary's protection is needed more than ever. In The Secrets of Mary, Janice T. Connell chronicles messages Mary has brought from God, drawn from scripture, experts, and eyewitness accounts. Mary's voice provides a guiding light for modern times, as she explains how to solve problems that are surfacing throughout the world. Janice T. Connell's newest collection of stories includes: • Saint Augustine's discovery of Mary's power • Insight from the world-famous children of Medjugorje in Bosnia • A famous Washington, D.C. media anchor's touching encounter with the Blessed Mother • The author's own awe-inspiring experience with Mary in Japan • And much more. Filled with beauty, wonder, and joy, The Secrets of Mary provides comfort and inspiration to all those who desire Mary's gifts.
The Secrets of Paper and Ink
by Lindsay HarrelBrought together by a charming bookstore in England, three women fight to defy expectations, dream new dreams, and welcome love into their lives. As a counselor, Sophia Barrett is trained to help people cope with their burdens. But when she meets a new patient whose troubles mirror her own, she realizes she hasn’t dealt with the pain of her recent past. After making a snap decision to get away for the summer, Sophia moves overseas to an apartment above a charming bookstore in Cornwall, England. She is hopeful she will find peace there surrounded by her favorite thing: great literature. Bookstore owner Ginny Rose is desperate to save her business without asking for help from a husband who’s decided to take a break from their marriage. Ginny never imagined she’d be solely responsible for keeping afloat her husband’s dream, but the unexpected friendship with her new renter has her feeling more optimistic. Between the two of them—and Ginny’s brother-in-law, William—the bookstore might stand a chance. Then Sophia finds a notebook in the bookstore that contains journal entries from Emily Fairfax, a governess who lived in Cornwall more than 150 years ago. Sophia learns that Emily harbored a secret passion for becoming an authoress—as well as a deep love for her childhood friend, Edward, whose station she dared not dream to touch. Eager to know more of Emily’s story, Sophia goes on a quest—dragging Ginny and William with her—to discover the heart of the woman behind the beautiful entries. Soon Ginny’s need to save the bookstore becomes more than a way to save her marriage, and Sophia finds new purpose of her own. Together they find that sometimes both heartache and hope can reach across the centuries.
The Secrets of Spiritual Healing: A Beginner's Guide to Energy Therapies
by Elsie WildWould you like to learn how spiritual energies influence your life?Are you interested in natural healing methods to boost your emotional and physical well-being?Do you wish you could feel more in tune with the world around you?Discover how to embrace natural and vibrational energies with this beginner’s guide to spiritual healing. Exploring the fascinating history behind holistic healing techniques, and providing practical advice for trying them yourself, this book will teach you how to achieve true balance in your life. Develop an understanding of energies in the universeExplore natural healing methodsCultivate your own spiritual practice
The Secrets of Spiritual Healing: A Beginner's Guide to Energy Therapies
by Elsie WildWould you like to learn how spiritual energies influence your life?Are you interested in natural healing methods to boost your emotional and physical well-being?Do you wish you could feel more in tune with the world around you?Discover how to embrace natural and vibrational energies with this beginner’s guide to spiritual healing. Exploring the fascinating history behind holistic healing techniques, and providing practical advice for trying them yourself, this book will teach you how to achieve true balance in your life. Develop an understanding of energies in the universeExplore natural healing methodsCultivate your own spiritual practice
The Secrets of Spiritual Power: Strength for Life's Battles
by Joyce MeyerSpending time in the secret place of God's presence changes you from what you are to what only He can make you to be. If you want to experience the life God intends for you, then you must continually open every area of your heart to be transformed by His power.
The Secrets of Suffering: The Biblical Formula to Understanding Suffering
by T. A. NalianThe moment we find ourselves in adversity, we tend to quickly react in two ways: "Lord would you deliver me and deliver now?" And, "Why is this happening to me?" Often, deliverance will not come immediately, and the epic question "why" is truly the big reason for this book. In your lifetime, suffering will be inescapable. This is why it's so important we learn to navigate our way through the thick, dark forest of suffering. If we do not learn this ourselves and neglect to teach those coming after us, we will forego many blessings and experiences with God and expose our children, students and parishioners to the same. The uniqueness of this book is positioned in the fact that its author has experienced suffering beginning at the age of three to the writing of this work. Therefore, the substance of this book rests not in hypothesis, but rather in real-time experience. If you are suffering, this book can help you for the simple reason that the author will compel you to put yourself in the presence of His Majesty, the Lord Jesus! He is the one who has suffered the most. The one who suffered the most can help you the most! Why? Because He is the Almighty Eternal God. He loves you with an everlasting unconditional love. The Lord can identify with your every hurt. He will show you in your suffering, that He is close, intimate, and He cares! Everyone knows someone who is struggling and suffering. This book would be the perfect gift and resource, equipping them to persevere, while, at the same time, experiencing the glorious blessings of God in the process!
The Secrets of a Vatican Cardinal
by Celso Costantini Bruno Pighin Laurence MussioOn 19 April 1940 Celso Costantini prophetically wrote in his diary that if Italy followed Hitler into war, it would be allying itself with the "Anti-Christ." Within weeks, Mussolini's fascist regime plunged Italy into the destructive maelstrom of global military conflict. The ensuing years brought world war, the fall of fascism, occupation, liberation, and the emergence of a new political order. The Secrets of a Vatican Cardinal is an extraordinary and detailed behind-the-scenes account of crucial episodes in Europe's wartime history from a unique vantage point: the Vatican and the Eternal City. Costantini, a close advisor to Pope Pius XII, possessed a perspective few of his contemporaries could match. His diaries offer new insights into the great issues of the time - the Nazi occupation, the fall of Mussolini, the tumultuous end of the Italian monarchy, the birth of republican democracy in Italy, and the emergence of a new international order - while also recounting heartbreaking stories of the suffering, perseverance, and heroism of ordinary people. Less than a century later, with the world's attention gripped by the first papal resignation in six hundred years, The Secrets of a Vatican Cardinal presents a clear-eyed, fascinating, and complex portrait of the Roman Catholic Church's recent history.
The Secrets of the Bulletproof Spirit: How to Bounce Back from Life's Hardest Hits
by Azim Khamisa Jillian QuinnIn Secrets of the Bulletproof Spirit, internationally honoured promoter of peace, Azim Khamisa, and inspirational speaker Jillian Quinn reveal the 30 keys to emotional resiliency and the corresponding strategies they themselves have used to transcend their own heart-wrenching personal losses. Everyone is vulnerable to life's physical, emotional and financial hits, but there are some people who seem emotionally thicker skinned, undeterred, and perhaps even empowered by setbacks. People with this kind of super-resiliency don't have better luck or better karma. They lose jobs, relationships, health, and money just like the rest of us. But they think differently: they understand what kinds of responses and behaviours contribute to spiritual fragility and which ones breed strength; they make life-affirming choices instead of defeatist ones; they look for and find purpose where most of us see meaningless loss. Fortunately, their valuable and powerful kind of thinking can be learned. Secrets of the Bulletproof Spiritopens with Azim's and Jillian's own personal stories and they are heart-wrenching indeed: Azim Khamisa's son was caught in the cross-fire of gang violence, but instead of seeking revenge or harbouring bitter anger, Azim reached out to the shooter and his family because he was sure there were 'victims at both ends of that gun'. Azim and the shooter's grandfather give a moving and cautionary presentation to school kids regularly. When Jillian Quinn lost her daughter late in pregnancy, she recovered and moved on by travelling to China to adopt a daughter who had lost her mother. 'Here we find the wisdom, practical help, and comfort we need to rebound from any kind of hardship, crisis, or adversity. This book is a gift to anyone in need of solace; I pray it finds its way to every heavy heart. ' - Marianne Williamson, bestselling author of Everyday Grace
The Secrets of the Heart
by Kahlil GibranAn early collection of Kahlil Gibran&’s writings, showcasing the many styles of this prolific thinker, all profoundly beautiful Kahlil Gibran reveals his vision of the soul and understanding of the world—past, present, and future—in this rich sampling of more than twenty works. Prose tales, fables, and poems evoke the mystic East and form a world at once powerful, tender, joyous, and melancholy. This collection, penned when Gibran was still a young writer, reveals many of the themes and styles plumbed throughout his life, including his lifelong struggle against injustice in &“The Crucified,&” his heart-wrenching lament for a Lebanon shackled by tradition and politics in &“My Countrymen,&” and his masterful use of symbolism and simile in &“The Secrets of the Heart.&” A writer with infinite abilities, Gibran continually seeks true beauty, no matter the form.
The Secrets of the I Ching: Ancient Wisdom and New Science
by Joseph K. Kim Dr. David S. LeeA comprehensive guide to the mysteries of the I Ching. Originally discovered around 3,000 BCE, the I Ching is a collection of symbols that explain how patterns in the universe change and shift. These sixty-four symbols contain within them one of the most powerful keys to understanding the world around us. The Secrets of the I Ching is the definitive guide to understanding the ancient mysteries and foundations of the I Ching.Authors Dr. David Lee and Joseph K. Kim guide the reader from the very beginning of Eastern thought, the concepts of Tao and Tai Chi, through the theory of Yin-Yang, Trinity, the Five Elements, and other critical concepts that will unlock the full meaning of the I Ching. Instead of simply re-interpreting the myriad of meanings ascribed to the I Ching, they focus on the symbols themselves, offering a new way of understanding its unique power.Filled with over three hundred images and backed by in-depth research and study, The Secrets of the I Ching is the ultimate guide to the I Ching and essential reading for anyone interested in exploring the power of this ancient source of wisdom and knowledge.
The Secrets to Deliverance: Defeat the Toughest Cases of Demonic Bondage
by Alexander PaganiIn recent years deliverance ministry has become increasingly difficult. Even the most seasoned ministers struggle to locate and expel demons. Individuals think they're free from demonic bondage only to be blindsided by another oppressive force. But for New York pastor Alexander Pagani, one experience changed everything. He realized how demons lodge themselves in hidden areas of our lives. First, a demon can quite literally reside in an area of the body. Second, demons can live deep in the soul and remain undetected. Deliverance is like a labyrinth with trap doors, backward stairs, and secret rooms. In The Secrets to Deliverance Pagani shares biblical strategies and his own experiences for evicting the demons in the "rooms" of your soul and body. Featuring prayers and declarations, this book will instruct you how to strategically and powerfully overtake the enemy so that you can live the life God intended for you.
The Secrets to Generational Curses: Break the Stronghold in the Bloodline
by Alexander PaganiFROM THE AUTHOR OF THE SECRETS TO DELIVERANCEGenerational curses are one of Satan&’s weapons of mass destruction.This book will help you identify and dismantle a range of generational curses in your family and others. FEATURES AND BENEFITSPrayers to break the toughest and most hidden generational cursesInsights into how generational curses gain legal access to a person&’s life and how they can evolve over timeIn the follow-up to his best-selling book, The Secrets to Deliverance, apostle Alexander Pagani shows readers how to dismantle generational curses, likening them to the electrical wiring in the room where the root of the curse lies.Generational curses are one of Satan&’s weapons of mass destruction, and this book tackles some of the most prevalent—including vanity, gluttony, slothfulness, racism, dysfunction, dishonor, legalism, procrastination, homosexuality, and personality disorders. This book will help those who are struggling with habitual sin or feel as if something is keeping them from reaching their full potential. Learn to identify and break free from the powerful generational curses that may be keeping you bound. Keep the curses out for good.
The Secrets to Maintaining Your Deliverance: Strategies for Lasting Freedom!
by Alexander PaganiFreedom isn&’t found, it&’s maintained. This book will guide me into a deeper understanding of the steps that come after deliverance so that my freedom will not be a one-time experience, but rather I will live out my freedom each and every day. After you&’ve been set free and delivered, what happens next? In this book, respected deliverance minister Alexander Pagani reveals crucial strategies to ensure that once an unclean spirit is cast out, it never returns to wreak havoc. The Secrets to Maintaining Your Deliverance goes beyond the initial experience of deliverance and equips believers with the tools needed to stand firm against demonic adversaries. Pagani&’s expertise and genuine passion for helping others shine through, making this book an indispensable resource for anyone seeking lasting freedom from demonic oppression. In this practical guide, Pagani offers the following: A deep understanding of the spiritual principles behind deliverance and the subsequent need for guarding against re-entry Actionable steps and real-life examples to empower readers on their journey to lasting freedom Strategies to help believers fortify the spiritual walls of their lives to prevent the return of unclean spirits It&’s time for believers to stop letting the enemy rob them of their freedom! This book will empower readers with the wisdom to experience lasting deliverance. The path to victory starts here!
The Secular City: Secularization and Urbanization in Theological Perspective
by Harvey CoxSince its initial publication in 1965, The Secular City has been hailed as a classic for its nuanced exploration of the relationships among the rise of urban civilization, the decline of hierarchical, institutional religion, and the place of the secular within society. Now, half a century later, this international best seller remains as relevant as when it first appeared. The book's arguments--that secularity has a positive effect on institutions, that the city can be a space where people of all faiths fulfill their potential, and that God is present in both the secular and formal religious realms--still resonate with readers of all backgrounds. For this brand-new edition, Harvey Cox provides a substantial and updated introduction. He reflects on the book's initial stunning success in an age of political and religious upheaval and makes the case for its enduring relevance at a time when the debates that The Secular City helped ignite have caught fire once again.
The Secular Enlightenment
by Margaret C. JacobA major new history of how the Enlightenment transformed people’s everyday livesThe Secular Enlightenment is a panoramic account of the radical ways that life began to change for ordinary people in the age of Locke, Voltaire, and Rousseau. In this landmark book, familiar Enlightenment figures share places with voices that have remained largely unheard until now, from freethinkers and freemasons to French materialists, anticlerical Catholics, pantheists, pornographers, readers, and travelers.Margaret Jacob, one of our most esteemed historians of the Enlightenment, reveals how this newly secular outlook was not a wholesale rejection of Christianity but rather a new mental space in which to encounter the world on its own terms. She takes readers from London and Amsterdam to Berlin, Vienna, Turin, and Naples, drawing on rare archival materials to show how ideas central to the emergence of secular democracy touched all facets of daily life. Human frailties once attributed to sin were now viewed through the lens of the newly conceived social sciences. People entered churches not to pray but to admire the architecture, and spent their Sunday mornings reading a newspaper or even a risqué book. The secular-minded pursued their own temporal and commercial well-being without concern for the life hereafter, regarding their successes as the rewards for their actions, their failures as the result of blind economic forces.A majestic work of intellectual and cultural history, The Secular Enlightenment demonstrates how secular values and pursuits took hold of eighteenth-century Europe, spilled into the American colonies, and left their lasting imprint on the Western world for generations to come.
The Secular Landscape
by Kevin MccaffreeThis book proposes a comprehensive theory of the loss of religion in human societies, with a specific and substantive focus on the contemporary United States. Kevin McCaffree draws on a range of disciplines including sociology, psychology, anthropology, and history to explore topics such as the origin of religion, the role of religion in recent American history, the loss of religion, and how Americans are dealing with this loss. The book is not only richly theoretical but also empirical. Hundreds of scientific studies are cited, and new statistical analyses enhance its core arguments. What emerges is an integrative and illuminating theory of secularization.
The Secular Paradox: On the Religiosity of the Not Religious (Secular Studies #5)
by Joseph BlankholmChoice Outstanding Academic Title 2023A radically new way of understanding secularism which explains why being secular can seem so strangely religiousFor much of America’s rapidly growing secular population, religion is an inescapable source of skepticism and discomfort. It shows up in politics and in holidays, but also in common events like weddings and funerals. In The Secular Paradox, Joseph Blankholm argues that, despite their desire to avoid religion, nonbelievers often seem religious because Christianity influences the culture around them so deeply. Relying on several years of ethnographic research among secular activists and organized nonbelievers in the United States, the volume explores how very secular people are ambivalent toward belief, community, ritual, conversion, and tradition. As they try to embrace what they share, secular people encounter, again and again, that they are becoming too religious. And as they reject religion, they feel they have lost too much. Trying to strike the right balance, secular people alternate between the two sides of their ambiguous condition: absolutely not religious and part of a religion-like secular tradition.Blankholm relies heavily on the voices of women and people of color to understand what it means to live with the secular paradox. The struggles of secular misfits—the people who mis-fit normative secularism in the United States—show that becoming secular means rejecting parts of life that resemble Christianity and embracing a European tradition that emphasizes reason and avoids emotion. Women, people of color, and secular people who have left non-Christian religions work against the limits and contradictions of secularism to create new ways of being secular that are transforming the American religious landscape. They are pioneering the most interesting and important forms of secular “religiosity” in America today.
The Secular Sacred: Emotions of Belonging and the Perils of Nation and Religion (Palgrave Politics of Identity and Citizenship Series)
by Ernst van den Hemel Irene Stengs Markus BalkenholHow do religious emotions and national sentiment become entangled across the world? In exploring this theme, The Secular Sacred focuses on diverse topics such as the dynamic roles of Carnival in Brazil, the public contestation of ritual in Northern Nigeria, and the culturalization of secular tolerance in the Netherlands. The contributions focus on the ways in which sacrality and secularity mutually inform, enforce, and spill over into each other. The case studies offer a bottom-up, practice-oriented approach in which the authors are wary to use categories of religion and secular as neutral descriptive terms. The Secular Sacred will be of interest to sociologists, anthropologists, ethnographers, political scientists, and social psychologists, as well as students and scholars of cultural studies and semiotics. Chapter 1 is available open access under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License via link.springer.com.
The Secular in South, East, and Southeast Asia (Global Diversities)
by Peter van der Veer Kenneth DeanThis innovative edited collection provides a comprehensive analysis of modern secularism across Asia which contests and expands prevailing accounts that have predominantly focused on the West. Its authors highlight that terms like ‘secular’, ‘secularization’, and ‘secularism’ do not carry the same meanings in the very different historical and cultural contexts of Asia. Critiquing Charles Taylor’s account of secularism, this book examines what travelled and what not in ‘the imperial encounter’ between Western secular modernity and other traditions outside of the West. Throughout the book, state responses to religion at different points in Chinese and South-East Asian history are carefully considered, providing a nuanced and in-depth understanding of post-secular strategies and relations in these areas. Particular attention is given to Catholicism in the Philippines, Vietnam, and Singapore, and Hinduism and Chinese religion in Malaysia, Singapore, and India. This theoretically engaged work will appeal to students and scholars of Asian studies, anthropology, religious studies, history, sociology, and political science.
The Seducer's Diary
by Søren Kierkegaard"In the vast literature of love, The Seducer's Diary is an intricate curiosity--a feverishly intellectual attempt to reconstruct an erotic failure as a pedagogic success, a wound masked as a boast," observes John Updike in his foreword to Søren Kierkegaard's narrative. This work, a chapter from Kierkegaard's first major volume, Either/Or, springs from his relationship with his fiancée, Regine Olsen. Kierkegaard fell in love with the young woman, ten years his junior, proposed to her, but then broke off their engagement a year later. This event affected Kierkegaard profoundly. Olsen became a muse for him, and a flood of volumes resulted. His attempt to set right, in writing, what he feels was a mistake in his relationship with Olsen taught him the secret of "indirect communication." The Seducer's Diary, then, becomes Kierkegaard's attempt to portray himself as a scoundrel and thus make their break easier for her. Matters of marriage, the ethical versus the aesthetic, dread, and, increasingly, the severities of Christianity are pondered by Kierkegaard in this intense work.