Ravished by Beauty

Ravished by Beauty
Author :
Publisher : Oxford University Press
Total Pages : 328
Release :
ISBN-10 : 9780199831685
ISBN-13 : 0199831688
Rating : 4/5 (688 Downloads)

Book Synopsis Ravished by Beauty by : Belden C. Lane

Download or read book Ravished by Beauty written by Belden C. Lane and published by Oxford University Press. This book was released on 2011-04-21 with total page 328 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In this novel exploration of Reformed spirituality, Belden C. Lane uncovers a "green theology" that celebrates a community of jubilant creatures of all languages and species. Lane reveals an ecologically sensitive Calvin who spoke of himself as ''ravished'' by the earth's beauty. He speaks of Puritans who fostered a ''lusty'' spirituality in which Christ figured as a lover who encouraged meditation on the wonders of creation. He presents a Jonathan Edwards who urged a sensuous ''enjoyment'' of God's beauty as the only real way of knowing God. Lane argues for the ''double irony'' of Reformed spirituality, showing that Calvinists who often seem prudish and proper are in fact a people of passionate desire. Similarly, Reformed Christians who appear totally focused on divine transcendence turn out at times to be closet nature mystics, exulting in God's glory everywhere. Lane also demonstrates, however, that a spirituality of desire can be derailed, ending in sexual excess and pantheism. Ecologically, holy longing can be redirected from a contemplation of God's splendor in the earth's beauty to a craving for land itself, resulting in disastrous misuse of its resources. Between the major chapters of the book are engaging personal essays drawn from the author's own love of nature as a Reformed Christian, and providing a thoughtful discussion of contemporary issues of species diversity and the honoring of an earth community.


Ravished by Beauty Related Books

Ravished by Beauty
Language: en
Pages: 328
Authors: Belden C. Lane
Categories: Religion
Type: BOOK - Published: 2011-04-21 - Publisher: Oxford University Press

GET EBOOK

In this novel exploration of Reformed spirituality, Belden C. Lane uncovers a "green theology" that celebrates a community of jubilant creatures of all language
Ravished
Language: en
Pages: 401
Authors: Amanda Quick
Categories: Fiction
Type: BOOK - Published: 1992-06-01 - Publisher: Bantam

GET EBOOK

From the cozy confines of a tiny seaside village to the glittering crush of the a fashionable London soiree comes an enthralling tale of a thoroughly mismatched
The Great Conversation
Language: en
Pages: 345
Authors: Belden C. Lane
Categories: Body, Mind & Spirit
Type: BOOK - Published: 2019 - Publisher: Oxford University Press, USA

GET EBOOK

In the face of climate change, species loss, and vast environmental destruction, Belden C. Lane's spiritually centered environmentalism suggests that we must lo
A Great and Terrible Beauty
Language: en
Pages: 351
Authors: Libba Bray
Categories: Juvenile Fiction
Type: BOOK - Published: 2010-05-01 - Publisher: Simon and Schuster

GET EBOOK

It's 1895, and after the death of her mother, 16-year-old Gemma Doyle is shipped off from the life she knows in India to Spence, a proper boarding school in Eng
Ravished by Beauty
Language: en
Pages: 328
Authors: Belden C. Lane
Categories: Religion
Type: BOOK - Published: 2011-05-05 - Publisher: OUP USA

GET EBOOK

Belden Lane weaves autobiographical essays that illuminate his own experience of nature into a "green theology" drawn from the unexpected resources of Reformed