I am absolutly thrilled with this book. It is jam packed with the best tips and info on how to simply apply Spiritual tools which aren't always easy to get a grasp on. A perfect book for a beginner on a seeking path or an old hand. It is fresh and light and written very clearly and too the point. Its a perfect gift for any one in your life: boss, child, parent or friend...its very helpful and safe for people who might freak out at a book thats TOO "spiritually." I want to give it to everyone...its a real winner. Using your heart to guide you through life...who wouldn't want to learn that?! Thanks to all involved in creating this little gem!

It is so exciting! Another book by John-Roger! He has helped me so much in my life and daily living. I highly recommend him. His books are the best on the planet!

John-Roger's books are so great! They have helped me tremendously in my life and daily living. I highly recommend them. They are the best on the planet!

I read this book about 2 years ago, and am still fascinated by its premise and the well-reasoned approach used to support that premise. Mauck's writing is clear and compelling, and got me thinking about the Book of Acts in a far different way than I ever had before. To the best of my knowledge, there is no other book that treats Acts as a legal document and Mauck's arguments gripped me to read further and revisit the Bible itself in light of this idea.

I am neither a law student nor Bible scholar, just a Christian interested in learning more about my faith. I highly recommend Paul on Trial to anyone who is interested in more fully exploring the early Christian church and Paul's challenges in spreading the Gospel.

I am still reading this book, but want to provide a comment. This book is worth the effort to read,study, and contemplate. I agree with all of the preceding reviews. For me, Mr. Mauck's book is functioning like a good brass or gold polish. It is stripping away the grime and tarnish of twenty centuries as well as my own understanding and appreciation of the Book of Acts, cleaning and polishing it right down to it's original design details and shape. I am now seeing things in Acts and the Gospel Of Luke that either I never was aware of before or have always wondered about but didn't know more. This book is wonderful because in its way, it reveals Christianity as it is, a uniquely radical, powerful phenomenon that is supernaturally guided and fueled, not the pervasive, almost ambient cultural Christianity that we all tend to take for granted, for good or ill.

I found that this is not a book that can be read quickly, it is more like a text book that I could only take in smaller portions in conjunction with going through ACTS in a small group Bible Study. I would like to know who the people are that are slamming this author, I would really like to know their arugments against his theory, because this is very powerful stuff, Canonization of the Bible speaking...not even Chuck Missler or Hal Lindsey thought of this theory before Mr. Mauck.

I simply can't think of a reason why anyone would doubt his theory that Luke wrote what has become to be known as Acts as a defense of Paul and the earliest Jesus/Gospel followers...and he pulls the book of Luke into the same theory, although the title doesn't mention this fact. At a minimum, Acts should have been titled "Acts of the Holy Spirit", more so than "Acts of the Apostles", as many refer to it. But now after reading this book, Acts should be retitled in all new pressings of Protestant Bibles to more reflect this book's arguments.

This will probably be his only book, unless someone un-earths some new letters or documents in an archeology dig in the middle east that were written for the same trial-type cause. This was a job well-done, by someone who gets it that we worship the Jewish faith fulfilled. God Bless.

This book gives a terrible tarnished picture of the Vatican, even if the author is wrong and there was no murder or active murder (they could have let Pope John Paul I die, by not administering him his medicine).
A Vatican controlled by a bunch of corrupt, merciless, avid for power, 'holy' cardinals (Villot, Cody, Marcinkus, Baggio), implicated in a web of depraved banking, masonic and Mafia figures like Calvi, Gelli and Sindona. (I recommend for the 'banking' part also the book by Richard Hammer 'The Vatican Connection').
What is also intriguing, or should I say 'demonic', is the fact that the next pope didn't remove anybody entangled in these murky affairs from his office.
The author gives also very plausible hints why, besides personal career interests, there were moral (the issue of birth control, for instance) and financial (money laundering to help friendly unions or parties) motives.
A devastating book. Not to be missed.

Back in 1958, when I was a student in a Catholic school, Pope John XXIII was elected. One of the lay teachers said that Pope Pius XI was bumped off to allow a "German Pope" to be put into power. That was before I was born and of little interest to me. Little did I realize that in twenty years another Pope would be bumped off to put another reactionary Pope into power.

This book points out the politics and personalities that went into the decision to eliminate Pope John Paul I. Afterwards, some of the reforms did go thru, perhaps due to the banking scandals of the 1980s, and other events that followed Vatican II.

Back in 1981 a State Dept. employee was kicked out of Nicaragua because she tried to poison their Foreign Minister (also a cleric). The poison to be used was said to be undetectable unless they knew what to look for. The symptoms made it look like the flu, and the cause would likely be overlooked. I wonder how many times this was used in other time and places?

David A. Yallop wrote four previous works (one caused the British government to reopen a twenty-year old murder case, another freed a man serving a life sentence for murder). This investigates the mysterious death of Albino Luciani, Pope John Paul I. He spent three years of intensive investigation using various sources in Rome, New York, London, and South America; they cannot be publicly identified.

Luciano Albini opposed the looting of Banco Ambrosiano while Bishop of Venice. As Pope he would rid the Vatican Bank of swindlers, money launderers, drug dealers, and their allies. But these had connections with organized crime and certain intelligence agencies. Pope John Paul I was as doomed as President John F. Kennedy's attempts to curtail the military-industrial complex, and Big Oil.

In 1981 there was an attempt to poison the Foreign Minister of El Salvador: the poison was to be put into his alcoholic drink. Nothing would happen for a week, then he would develop a flu-like disease, and die the next day. This poison could not be detected unless the coroner knew what to look for. This plot was exposed by the double agent recruited for the job, and a US diplomat was expelled from the country. The newspapers did NOT compare this to the death of Pope John Paul I.

Pages 40-49 tell of a swindle using counterfeit bonds worth $635 million. They would be sold to the Vatican Bank, and the money used for payoffs, and buying control of a company. The bank would write this off as a loss. You can be sure of high-level corruption and collusion in the bank!

The murder of Pope John Paul I may never be solved officially. Perhaps another Pope would continue his proposed reforms; we'll see in the near future.

Pope John Paul II has given us one of the best (if not the best) books of modern theology today. This book is a compilation of many weekly addresses the Pope gave in the early 80's. Now compiled into this one work, we can view the absolute genius of the mind of Pope JPII. His insights into humanity, creation, the human person and the body are without equal. In fact, he may be known for this work more than any other when history judges him in the future. He has given the Church new insights into the dignity of the human person, marriage,... and made it challenging to all of us.

If you haven't read any of the Pope's writings, I suggest you start with his encyclicals, and study them hard, before jumping into this work. The Theology of the Body has already started several grass-roots evangelism projects and my guess is that we are only starting to see the fruit this book will bear.

The Theology of the Body is comparable in depth of thought to the works of Augustine and Aquinas.

The writings speak to a reader at numerous levels: the personal, the organizational, global, sacramental, familial, paternal, maternal, fraternal, vocational, scriptural, anthropological and many others. The beauty is the integration of teachings at and across each level!

The teachings encapsulated within this work synthesize many truths about humanity and Catholic Christianity.

The book's writings shed light on the fullness of Truth revealed in and over the fullness of time. What was implied in the truth of the Gospel is revealed in a more explicit way in the Pope's analysis.

Topics of interest include: the dignity of the human person, the human body in art versus pornography, the intended relationship between man and woman from the beginning - in the present - and future, what the physical human body reveals about the nature of the person and God, the call to Chastity and Modesty, the universal call to holiness, the mystery of Body of Christ, the mystery of the priesthood, celibacy, and the mystery of the Eucharist and much, much more.

The book is a difficult read if you are not familiar with the Pope's method... but well worth it!!

Those with a philosophical background may regard JPII's leaning toward phenomenology as either a peripheral "quirk" or a departure from traditional (i.e., Aristotelian-Thomist) realism. "Theology of the Body" should dissuade of either conclusion. JPII's approach to phenomenology is foundational to his celebration of human personhood, and totally realist and thus thoroughly compatible with traditional Christian philosophy. The theological significance of JPII's philosophical approach is clearly demonstrated in his phenomenological exegesis of the existential signficance of man's transition from "original solitude" (before Eve's creation) to "original nakedness" (Adam's encounter with Eve). JPII's meditation on how man's personal self-awareness - and thus his personhood - is fulfilled through the bodily disclosure of another person literally "fleshes out" the teaching of the universal Catechism: God is an eternal exchange of Love, in which man is destined to participate (CCC 221). I only regret that the Pope did not develop the analogy implicit in his meditation between the purely relational Personhood of the Blessed Trinity and the nuptial meaning of the human body.

This book is for Sargent lovers. His incredible talent oozes in these pages. I can't wait for Vol 2 of this beautiful production of Yale University Press. I got me a magnifying glass and have spent hours looking at the unbelievably grand flesh tones that Sargent commanded. You'll love reading the background data of these portrait commissions during Sargent's career. I would give it six stars if I could. See it to believe it.....if I could only paint like he did or anything barely close. One of my best of collection. Hurry up Yale and give us Vol 2.

i bought this book after seeing the sargent show at the met in new york. i have been studing it ever since. mr ormand, ms. kilmurray please hurry. you have brought the works of this great american master to life as no one has done before and i look forward in anticipation to vol 2.

Now, all art books should be judged by the standard this publication sets. All colored reproductions. To reproduce paintings in black and white is just criminal, and the people responsible for this book understands that. I simply can't wait for the rest of the volumes. I can't think of another artist more deserving of this royal treatment(Well, if they can do this for J.W. Waterhouse, I'd die happy).

I suppose the easiest way to get kids to read this book would be to forbid them to, then they would steal it if they had to. All joking aside, Mary Beth's style is fresh and easy to understand. She never talks down to her intended audience. She almost seems like a cool aunt that you could talk to about anything. I myself am a 30 yrold woman who converted to the Catholic faith last year. I'm often asked about my conversion and I will tell you this: The Catholic Church was about the only Church willing to stand by the moral teachings of our Lord and not back down despite a ton of pressure from society. That impressed me and I knew I had to learn more. Even though I'm a little older than her usual audience, I read both of her books and plan to by more copies to give to teens in my area. I think that it's about time that we take back our schools and children and teach them what they need to know about what God really wants for their lives. Who knows? With a lot of prayer and a lot of action perhaps we could overturn Roe vs Wade AND bring prayer back to public school.

I bought this book for my teenagers but I couldn't read it fast enough myself. We all loved it! Bonacci writes clearly and her examples are relevant and interesting. She explains church teaching with authority but without being offensive to youth who are questioning. I have used this book to teach religious education in my parish for seventh graders. It does a great job of expanding topics in our text and for providing a tool for students to discuss important and sensitive issues with their parents. I have heard only positive comments about the book from the families I work with.

I'm in my late 20's, a revert to the Catholic Church after years of exploring other religions and dealing with questions and doubts. If someone had given me a copy of Mary Beth's book, I believe it would have helped me to return a lot sooner, and I might not have left in the first place. She explains what's really important and valuable about our faith, in a relevant, simple way.

Highly recommended! (_Real Love_ is also excellent, but read this one first.)

Firstly, it is nice and short (140p), good for those who have to study other books for college courses. There are only 4 Chapters and an introduction, with a clear numbering system for each section that should make it an easy book to discuss.

Intro: Full outline of the argument

1. The Setting in family, church, culture, and nations

2. The contemporary challenge

3. An exegetical response to the challenge

4. Conclusion

As you can see from the chapter headings it is a response to a new theology of Justification that denies the imputation of Christ's righteousness. Consequently, it has a polemical style and focusses on the issues raised by this new approach. For me, it is reminiscent of Leon Morris's two great books on the atonement.

The apostolic preaching of the cross (1984)
The atonement: It's meaning & significance (1984)

It is a slightly odd book because 3 out of the 4 chapters are very easy reading, whilst the 3rd chapter is quite dense exegesis. In the first two chapters Piper provides a great overview of the practical importance of the doctrine of imputed righteousness. The fourth chapter is just a summing up of what he has said in the whole book.

Is it worth reading? It depends on where you are at. I found it very encouraging and affirming on the crucial nature of this doctrine. It didn't really expand my thinking so much as provide a solid basis for believing. I also liked being put in the picture about current trends in theology. It will help me spot the position when reading commentaries etc.

The exegetical chapter was clear, solid and well argued but I don't think he has totally proven his case on all points.

John Piper is among the most respected American pastors of our day, in part because he comprehensively integrates pastoral theology with biblical and systematic theology in a way that produces a full-orbed Christian perspective and grounding.

In this book, Piper focuses on the imputation of righteousness that is central to the Protestant doctrine of justification by faith alone. Many giants of the faith regard the doctrine of justification as a showstopper doctrine, essential to a right understanding of Christianity. As such, it is no surprise that similar to other essential tenets of the faith such as the Trinity, the resurrection, and the inspiration and authority of Scripture, the doctrine of justification is a stumbling block for many that has resulted in various forms of retreat.

The latest retreat comes at the hands of Robert Gundry, who attempts to argue that the imputation of Christ's righteousness to the believer as a result of faith is unbiblical. He argues instead that the inherent faith of the believer is what is counted as righteous in the act of justification, rather than a transfer of Christ's righteousness to us through faith. While this might seem a nuanced difference, in reality, it goes straight to the core of what it means to be justified. Gundry's view in a number of respects is much closer to Roman Catholicism's irresponsible mixing of justification and sanctification in ways that render many sections of Scripture unintelligible. Gundry believes that the act of justification (of our inherent faith) defeats the mastery of sin over our lives (which is traditionally the separate work of sanctification), rather than a legal transfer of Christ's righteousness to us as the basis for justification and the sole grounding for subsequent sanctification. Gundry's view represents a basic retreat on the doctrine of justification, a retreat that at its core resembles all other retreats in elevating the inherent abilities of man and taking away from the work of God by wholly underestimating the pervasive nature of human sin and overestimating man's inherent abilities.

It is this position that Piper interacts with in this book. Chapter 3 of the book is clearly the most crucial, since this is where he offers an exegetical critique of Gundry and in the process, validates the imputation of Christ's righteousness to the believer that is central to justification. Piper's examination of Romans 1-6 in particular is outstanding, along with 2 Corinthians 5. He builds a logical, step by step case that reveals how Gundry's position is untenable, and provides believers with a great deal of reassurance that Christ's imputed righteousness, rather than their sin-tainted acts, is the basis of our right standing with God.

I will note some minor quibbles with the book that deserve mention but do not significantly detract from the outstanding presentation given by Piper. First, there are times when Piper tends to devote too much ink to peripheral points (at best). The book is four chapters long, yet the reader will find that a good portion of the first chapter doesn't really deal with justification as much as it is a lament by Piper on the theological emptiness that pervades many evangelical churches. And while this is certainly a view I strongly agree with, I found it a bit misplaced here. Second, in his examination of Romans 5, Piper spends several pages trying to demonstrate that Paul had infants in mind in this passage of Scripture. While the discussion is interesting, it is a peripheral point that is not central to Piper's overall argument that Romans 5 discusses the imputation of Christ's righteousness to the believer in contrast to the imputation of Adam's sin to all of humanity. Lastly, Piper avoids the often thorny topic of whether faith is a gift of God or not. While I admit that my thoughts on this are far from complete, it seems to me that this question is pertinent to the discussion on justification and has ramifications on Gundry's view and Piper's response to it. But it seems as if the whole topic is not in view in this discussion, when I think perhaps it should be.

These quibbles are clearly quite minor, and as such, should not discourage potential readers from picking up this book. The doctrine of justification is possibly the most important issue of the Christian faith that's rarely discussed, and as such, is very vulnerable to wayward error creeping in. This book plugs the leak within the body of Christ on the question of imputation and does it in a charitable yet thorough way. Given Gundry's history of doctrinal hiccups, I have rarely considered him to be an authority on doctrine and theology, but the fact is that many other people do consider him to be an authority. As such, his retreat on justification deserved a high profile response from a solidly evangelical perspective. This book is it.

John Piper is hard NOT to respect. He is among a handful of solid theologians who makes the effort to address the challenges to the evangelical faith (from within) with grace, clarity, and sincerity.

In this work, Piper defends the traditional evangelical understanding of imputed righteousness, i.e., that when a person trusts Christ, he not only has his sins forgiven but is, on the positive side, given the righteousness of Christ. This concept, imputed righteousness, is currently being challenged from within evangelicalism.

Piper quotes the leading proponent of this view, Dr. Robert Gundry, explains Gundry's perspective, and contrasts it to the traditional one. He then explores the relevant Scriptures and demonstrates why Gundry is wrong. He attempts to lead the reader to conclude that the Scriptures do in fact teach that we are counted as righteous once we are in Christ. We exchange our sin for His righteousness.

Piper is not really much of a salesman. Although his language is clear and his sincerity obvious, it is the strength of the Scriptures themselves that do the convincing. And that is not bad! I highly recommend this work. The serious laymen can understand this volume, but it is not "pop Christian" by any means, but requires the reader to think. And that's not bad, either!

As we see more and more challenges either directly toward the heart of the Gospel or the periphery, it is great to have Piper on our side! Here is my favorite quotation from this brief volume. The argument is that if Paul had taught Gundry's view in Romans 1-5, the questions of chapter 6 would never have arisen (this is more formidable than meets the eye; if our version of the Gospel does not result in these questions, we may be preaching the wrong message!):

"The doctrine of justification by faith apart from works raises the question, 'Are we to continue in sin that grace may increase?...And shall we sin because we are not under law but under grace?' The raising of these questions is a powerful indication that justification does not include liberation from the mastery of sin. For if it did, these questions would not plausibly arrive..." Good stuff!

This is a very solid effort by the author. It gave me a bit of a chill during a few parts. This is an interesting story line. I did not think it would work as well as it did. After all the Vatican is not really known for this type of activity. Never less, the author pulled it off. I think the excellent work on the story line did it for me. There were no cheap, convenient moves here. You believe each twist and turn would "of course" be there. The cast of characters is a good one with some memorable lines and personality traits. A fun book that moves fast.

I read this book years ago, and loaned it out to only lose track of its whereabouts. I have been trying to find another copy ever since to no avail. I recall absoulutely being enthralled in the book. Wish I could find it!

What a plot! The Vatican, a little known Polish intelligence organization, a plot to kill Andropov, a defector and a nun... A story so complex and imaginative, it leaves you unsure of the fact that it is really fiction. It is, to me, beyond comprehension that such a book should go out of print. Being the only Quinnell work I have ever come across (since I rarely search out a particular book), I can offer no comparisons. Nonetheless, if you enjoy tales in the genre of espionage, you cannot pass by an oppurtunity to experience the wonder of Mirek Scibor's ironic journey. Set in the mid-1980's, we experience through this character worlds which we knew little about... the religious persecution in the homeland of the Pope, the evil underworld of the Catholic Church, the terrorist training camps of northern Africa, and the political elite of the Eastern Bloc. Even more, we see first hand the inner-struggle of a woman who has dedicated her body and mind to God; and how that commitment to holiness enables her to act counter to all of her instincts in an effort to realize His "apparent" will: The death of the Soviet Premier. Should you read "In the Name of the Father" once, you will surely read it again. It is both haunting and liberating, and I would prefer to believe that it is not entirely fabricated. Mr. Quinnell states most eloquently through his efforts that even the impossible can be accomplished, and that heroes are often found in the most unlikely places. And also, let us not forget, that everyone gets what they deserve.

This is a great book for developers seeking to understand how to translate C++ datatypes in the Win32 API functions into C# and VB.NET. It's not in-depth like Dan Appleman's VB's Guide to the Win32 API in past years, but it's the first of its' kind for .NET. My only wish is that the author not have spent so much time on DirectX and instead provided more general examples of other API calls. DirectX coverage should have been left for another book aimed specifically at that technology.

Darko Martinoviæ
Croatia

This is book, I was looking for. According MSDN, Microsoft does not cover api access in the future. This book will help you if you are interesting in programming hardware specific devices or if you would like to control api behavioure.
Great book!

This book doesn't describe every Win32 API call in detail, but I don't think any single book could. What it does is provide examples of every Win32 API call type. When I needed to find some code for a callback, this book showed how to do it in detail with functional code, not the code snippets that so many books need. When I needed to write code for the serial port, this book helped too. In fact, I haven't found a single Win32 API need so far that this book doesn't answer with actual code.

The author provides code in both VB and C#, so I don't even have to translate anything. He has taken care of this need nicely. Better yet, the code comes on a CD packed with utilities that are actually demonstrated in the book. In short, unlike shovelware that I have had to wade through in the past, this book has a CD with utilities that actually complement the book content (imagine that).

If you think like me that Microsoft left too many Win32 API calls out of the .NET Framework, this book goes a long way toward making life easier.

Seldom has a book about spiritual warfare been as timely and relevant as this one.

I have read many excellent books on the subject, but this really is an absolute must read!

Spiritual warfare is an aspect that cannot be avoided by Christians, and wisdom in such matters is absolutely paramount to prevent us from unwittingly falling into Satan's snares and to protect us from Satan's onslaughts.

John Paul Jackson examines the parameters of our spiriutal authority in facing Satan and his demonic realm, together with the practical guidelines that need to be followed to proceed in such matters on a Biblical basis.

A number of real-life stories are referred to in what is a highly recommended read. All Christians need to access the information provided in this book. Kindest regards.

This book will redefine spiritual warfare for you.
You will find the material within is well written and easy to understand with timely prophetic words for the body of Christ in this season.

John Paul is a transparent servant of Christ, often highlighting his own mistakes, in order to teach us the right path to walk.

There is good fruit from this tree.

John Paul Jackson's teachings have changed my life! This book made me aware of foolish ways I had engaged in spiritual warfare. I changed them immediately! There is so much conflicting information about spiritual warfare today, especially about binding, loosing, and commanding the powers of the enemy. I had never felt completely comfortable with some of the ways I'd been taught to excercise my authority as a believer. After reading Needless Casualties of War, I went to the scriptures and asked Holy Spirit to confirm this to me. He did. Then I went to my knees in repentance. I was horrified at how some of my methods of prayer had actually empowered Satan to operate, by attributing more power to him than he has.

Now my prayers are not only more effective, but my relationship with the Father is more intimate. As I focus on staying under God's cover and listening for His instructions, He can send me on "strategic" intercessory assignments of His planning and not my presumption.

This book has actually saved many ministries and lives, who, like myself, had unknowingly thrown themselves directly in the sights of the enemy's artillery. I have given this book to many ministers and intercessors. They have thanked me for it.

Thank you, John Paul. Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!