Buddhist Catholic Contemplative Evangelical General Christian Hindu Jewish Latter-day Saint Muslim New Visions Progressive Christian

Beliefs

Topics

Columnists

Resource Library

Research Tools

Video

Podcasts

Thought Readers

Faith In Media Tracker

Newsletters

Ad-Free & Subscriber Log-In Subscription Support

Follow Patheos

Cosmos The In Lost

Home
Catholic
TOP10 Booklist: What Theology, Science & Philosophy Should Be Under Your Christmas Tree?

TOP10 Booklist: What Theology, Science & Philosophy Should Be Under Your Christmas Tree?

Last updated on: December 12, 2016 at 3:54 pm by Artur Rosman

TOP10 Booklist: What Theology, Science & Philosophy Should Be Under Your Christmas Tree? 2016-12-12T15:54:20-07:00 Artur Rosman

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

Relax, there's so much theology luxury to go under your Christmas tree (Max Kurzweil, Lady in a Yellow Dress, 1899; Source: Wikimedia, PD-Old-100)

Relax, there’s so much theology luxury to go under your Christmas tree (Max Kurzweil, Lady in a Yellow Dress, 1899; Source: Wikimedia, PD-Old-100)

Theology buffs have more of a Christmas gift dilemma than science and philosophy readers. The latter do not subscribe as much to the decline narratives as much as the former. For way too many Catholic theology readers Vatican II was a decline in theological quality and now the age of Francis is a decline from the decline. Rubbish.

Admittedly, refuting this theory would take the luxury of a longer series in about contemporary theology for which I probably don’t have time for (but it would start with William T. Cavanaugh for sure).

I don’t have time for it, because I’m too busy working a second job translating books. My first translation of the year, The Archparadox of Death: Martyrdom as a Philosophical Category, is currently 55% off on Amazon (these price reductions don’t last long, so grab it while you can), which makes it a prime Christmas gift candidate, well, that and its content:

The book deals with martyrdom understood as a philosophical category. The main question pertains to the evidential value of the Christian witness through death. The author approaches an answer through a philosophical interpretation of the belief in the evidential role of martyrdom. Numerous historical documents confirm that ancient martyrdom might have been considered as a kind of proof also by people unaffiliated with the Church. The author observes the theology and the reality of martyrdom through the perspective of the ancient philosophy of death and radical personal transformation. He believes that the Christian stance in the face of persecutions could have been understood as the realization of the unrealized ambitions of philosophy, thereby proving indirectly the veracity of the teaching revealed by Jesus Christ.

It will take a couple of more months before my other Karlowicz translation on early Christian theology as a philosophical way of life, Socrates and Other Saints, makes its way onto your bookshelves, despite what the Amazon publication date says. So go with The Archparadox of Death: Martyrdom as a Philosophical Category so long as the Amazon gods smile upon your wallet.

Here are other strange and wonderful books whose titles are odd enough to cause scandal at your Christmas Day breakfast table:

The Sexuality of Christ in Renaissance Art and in Modern Oblivion by L. Steinberg
The World from Dust by B. McFarland
Noah’s Flood: The Genesis Story in Western Thought by N. Cohn
Wandering in Darkness: Narrative and the Problem of Suffering by E. Stump
Sinning in the Hebrew Bible: How the Worst Stories Speak for Its Truth by E. Segal
Laughter at the Foot of the Cross by M. Screech
Mediaeval Socialism by B. Jarrett, OP
Hope Without Optimism by T. Eagleton
Miracle Cures: Saints, Pilgrimage, and the Healing Powers of Belief by R.A. Scott
Sacred Pain: Hurting the Body for the Sake of the Soul by A. Glucklich

If you, or someone you know, is a fan of HBO’s Westworld, then you might want to check out The Master and His Emissary: The Divided Brain and the Making of the Western World for a contemporary theory of the bicameral mind that makes sense of the series better than the original bicameral theory in Jayne’s The Origin of Consciousness in the Breakdown of the Bicameral Mind (frequently mentioned and used in the show).

Oh, and for something truly gross, but unintentionally funny, you can turn to the Heidegger-Arendt love letters.

If these books aren’t enough, you can always reach for my other thematic TOP10 booklists:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EsEH578NiWY

Since the secular holiday was yesterday you might want to read: The Medieval Catholic Origins of Human Rights (Day)

Consider making a donation to this blog through the donation button on the upper right side of its homepage. Think of it as humanitarian aid.

Stay in touch! Like Cosmos the in Lost on Facebook:

Cosmos the in Lost

Previous Post

December 10, 2016

The Medieval Catholic Origins of Human Rights (Day)

Next Post

January 11, 2017 Zygmunt Bauman Goes to Eternity from Liquid Modernity

Browse Our Archives

Select a Category #WhyRemainCatholic Abortion Advent Anti-Catholicism Arts Atheism Beauty Benedict XVI Bible Book Review Catholic Cinema Comedy Cosmos: A Space-Time Odyssey Czesław Miłosz Dariusz Karłowicz Devil Easter Eastern Orthodoxy Economics Environment Family Famous Atheists Who Weren't Atheists Guest Post Hans Urs von Balthasar HHS Mandate History Imagination Interview Islam Jean-Luc Marion John Paul II Judaism Just War Lent Literature Little Sisters of the Poor Liturgy Martyrdom Music News Paganism Patristics Phenomenology Philosophy Pierre Hadot Poetry Poland Pop Culture Pope Francis Poverty Prayer Protestantism Rabelais Race Remi Brague Rene Girard Russia Sam Rocha Science & Religion SCOTUS Secularization Sexual Abuse Sexuality Silence Solidarity Stratford Caldecott Synod14 Terrorism Top 10 Uncategorized Walker Percy War Weakened Edition World War II World Youth Day WYD Krakow

Select a Month July 2017 June 2017 May 2017 April 2017 March 2017 February 2017 January 2017 December 2016 October 2016 September 2016 August 2016 July 2016 June 2016 May 2016 April 2016 March 2016 February 2016 January 2016 December 2015 November 2015 October 2015 September 2015 August 2015 July 2015 June 2015 May 2015 April 2015 March 2015 February 2015 January 2015 December 2014 November 2014 October 2014 September 2014 August 2014 July 2014 May 2014 April 2014 March 2014 February 2014 January 2014 December 2013 November 2013 October 2013 September 2013 August 2013 July 2013 June 2013 May 2013

TAKE THE

Religious Wisdom Quiz

What was Jesus’ first recorded miracle in Mark?

Select your answer to see how you score.

Raising a widow’s son Casting out an unclean spirit Healing a leper Turning water into wine