Rohadi Nagassar

Awaken your senses to a life beyond survival In an age of conflict, disparity, and uncertainty, do we really need more church practices built around self-denial, grief, suffering, penance, and fasting? For individuals and communities on the margins, we don't need weekly or daily reminders about grief--we have enough already. Instead, we need traditions that oppose death and decay with resurrection and triumph. We need to shout "Increase " for access and collective participation with the deep and wide ethic of radical love. In Whole and Human, author Rohadi Nagassar offers 40 meditations on our relationships with land, body, spirit, and justice with invitations to engage life-giving spiritual practices rooted in the five senses. In this guide for spiritual cultivation, we're not ignoring the hard times or any losses. But in the midst of heavy things, we can learn to counter daily challenges with restorative possibilities that help us not only survive calamity but thrive toward a new way of life. It's time to nourish our bodies instead of denying them. It's time to cherish simple and beautiful moments, reengage our curiosity, amplify our wonder, pursue justice, and most of all seek ways to love ourselves and one another well. One day at a time.

Step into a journey toward liberation, belonging, and a faith that makes you whole again. We need belonging to survive and thrive, but too often the church is an impediment. For Christians who know the pain, isolation, and loss of identity that comes with the ongoing struggle to be seen in churches and institutions full of barriers to belonging, you are not alone. Sometimes it can feel easier to walk away from faith completely. But there is another way. When it feels as though there's no place left to belong, Jesus invites us into a love that knows no bounds and a community that truly liberates. In this hope-filled book, author Rohadi Nagassar brings the margins to the center to help readers rediscover a reality of love, belonging, and beauty through the journey of deconstructing, decolonizing, and reclaiming faith. For those on the margins struggling to find belonging, for everyone who wants to join in building radically inclusive communities where all people can live fully in their own skin--now begins a journey to find this freedom.

You already know the problem. Christianity in North America has been pushed to the margins. Society is less religious, church attendance is mostly stagnant, resources are drying up, and leaders are struggling to find answers to stop the exodus. Most of the ideas addressing these challenges rely on reclaiming Christendom, a time when the church could rest at the centre of cultural attention. But we can't go back in time. Rather, we need to move forward with new ideas." Thrive," is a guide to help unlock features in you, and your church, to emerge as leaders and co-creators in our cities, neighborhoods, and beyond. With the increasing number of people claiming no religious affiliation, it may be surprising to learn core values like purpose, justice, spirituality, and love remain important. The stage is set. Today's culture presents a great opportunity for the church that seeks to live out the Gospel in a post-Christian world. It's time to live out the fullness of God's dream for you and the church. Respond to the call to join the unfolding mission in your midst.