Religion Resources from the Newburgh Free Library: Christianity

There are numerous reference volumes dealing with Christianity. Remarkably, however, until now there has been no one-volume encyclopedia dedicated Christianity on a global scale. This exhaustive work presupposes no prior knowledge of Christianity, and can usefully be consulted by Jews and Muslims, people of other faiths or no faith at all. It covers all forms of Christianity throughout history and the world. Over 300 major articles by distinguished international contributors are linked through a novel series of pointers that provide different angles on topics and show the connections between them. The contributors include the leading experts on the topics under consideration, which range from regional surveys to portraits of denominations and sects, explorations of theological and moral questions, relationships with other faiths, and a "Who's Who" of Christianity. In addition to the main articles, helpful "fact boxes" present basic factual material, often in the form of lists, bringing together information that is often surprisingly difficult to find: creeds, councils, popes, miracles and parables of Jesus, religious orders, and much more. This remarkable resource, more than ten years in the making, fills a major gap in the literature on world Christianity.

"The Encyclopedia of Christianity is the first of a five-volume English translation of the third revised edition of Evangelisches Kirchenlexikon. Its German articles have been tailored to suit an English readership, and articles of special interest to English readers have been added. The encyclopedia describes Christianity through its 2000-year history within a global context, taking into account other religions and philosophies. A special feature is the statistical information dispersed throughout the articles on the continents and over 170 countries. Social and cultural coverage is given to such issues as racism, genocide, and armaments, while historical content shows the development of biblical and apostolic traditions. This comprehensive work, while scholarly, is intended for a wide audience and will set the standard for reference works on Christianity."--"Outstanding reference sources 2000", American Libraries, May 2000. Comp. by the Reference Sources Committee, RUSA, ALA.

A distinguished professor debunks the assertion that America's Founders were deists who desired the strict separation of church and state and instead shows that their political ideas were profoundly influenced by their Christian convictions. In 2010, David Mark Hall gave a lecture at the Heritage Foundation entitled "Did America Have a Christian Founding" His balanced and thoughtful approach to this controversial question caused a sensation. C-SPAN televised his talk, and an essay based on it has been downloaded more than 300,000 times. In this book, Hall expands upon this essay, making the airtight case that America's Founders were not deists. He explains why and how the Founders' views are absolutely relevant today, showing that they did not create a "godless" Constitution; that even Jefferson and Madison did not want a high wall separating church and state; that most Founders believed the government should encourage Christianity; and that they embraced a robust understanding of religious liberty for biblical and theological reasons. This compelling and utterly persuasive book will convince skeptics and equip believers and conservatives to defend the idea that Christian thought was crucial to the nation's founding--and that this benefits all of us, whatever our faith (or lack of faith).