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There are some persons who suppose that the freedom of the will is denied whenever God's grace is maintained, and who on their side defend their liberty of will so peremptorily as to deny the grace of God. This grace, as they assert, is bestowed according to our own merits. It is in consequence of their opinions that I wrote the book entitled On Grace and Free Will. This work I addressed to the monks of Adrumetum, in whose monastery first arose the controversy on that subject, and that in such a manner that some of them were obliged to consult me thereon. The work begins with these words: "With reference to those persons who so preach the liberty of the human will."

The "City of God" is the masterpiece of the greatest genius among the Latin Fathers, and the best known and most read of his works, except the "Confessions." It embodies the results of thirteen years of intellectual labor and study (from A.D. 413-426). It is a vindication of Christianity against the attacks of the heathen in view of the sacking of the city of Rome by the barbarians, at a time when the old Græco-Roman civilization was approaching its downfall, and a new Christian civilization was beginning to rise on its ruins. It is the first attempt at a philosophy of history, under the aspect of two rival cities or communities- the eternal city of God and the perishing city of the world. This was the only philosophy of history known throughout Europe during the middle ages; it was adopted and reproduced in its essential features by Bossuet, Ozanam, Frederick Schlegel, and other Catholic writers, and has recently been officially endorsed, as it were, by the scholarly Pope Leo XIII. in his encyclical letter on the Christian Constitution of States (Immortale Dei, Nov. 1, 1885); for the Pope says that Augustin in his De Civitate Dei, "set forth so clearly the efficacy of Christian wisdom and the way in which it is bound up with the well-being of States, that he seems not only to have pleaded the cause of the Christians of his own time, but to have triumphantly refuted the false charges [against Christianity] forever."

THE writer informs us himself at the beginning of his treatise that he felt moved by the example of St. Paul, after speaking about virgins, to continue with the subject of widows. But there was also another matter in his own diocese which touched him personally, and caused him at once to take up the matter. A certain widow who had several daughters, some married already and others of marriageable age, began to think of a second marriage for herself. St. Ambrose, partly for her own sake, partly that it might not be supposed that he had in any way advised the step, published the following treatise. In the first place he affirms that the profession of widowhood comes very close to that of virginity, and is to be esteemed far above the married state. He proves this by the testimony of St. Paul and by his description of one who is a widow indeed; also by many examples taken both from the old and New Testament. Having mentioned St. Peter's wife's mother, he turns more particularly to the widow for whose sake he is writing, though he avoids mentioning her name, pointing out how really empty and insufficient are all the reasons she is setting before herself for marrying again. The marriage bond is, indeed, he says, holy and good, and the married and single are as various kinds of flowers in the field of the church. There is, however, more corn produced than lilies, more that is married than virgin. He points out that widowhood has been held in dishonor by idolaters alone, for which reason it may well be held in honor by Christians. St. Ambrose does not condemn a second marriage, though placing widowhood before it, as being bound to aim at leading those committed to his loving care to the highest possible degree of perfection. The treatise was written not long after that concerning Virgins, that is, soon after A.D. 377.

THE state of Virginity is undoubtedly commended in Holy Scripture; both by our Lord and St. Paul, but learned men have differed in their opinions as to the original customs and rules observed by virgins in the earliest ages. Some suppose that from the very beginning it was the custom for them to make a solemn profession of the virgin life, and to live together in common. Others consider that their vows were private, and they lived sometimes together, sometimes in the homes of their parents. Others, again, believing that there was no more than a simple purpose on the part of the virgins signified by the veil, and the simplicity of their dress, attribute the first commencements of community life to St. Ambrose himself. From the days of the apostles there were some who devoted themselves to God in a life of chastity, and that later on the promise or vow was made in the presence of others-the bishop, clergy, and friends. These virgins lived at home with their parents, whilst the times of persecution endured, making it practically impossible for them to live elsewhere. Common life amongst them would seem to have commenced in the East, and St. Athanasius, when, seeking refuge from the Arians, he came to Rome, introduced the custom to the Western Church.

One night, the night intruders from beyond the stars enter a valley called Dora Valley, causing a great stir in the countryside. These night intruders hail and call an unlikely hero, Akim on a mission that changes his life forever. This secret mission would protect the world from impending destruction. On this journey, Akim and the Star Men meet new people and some even join them. They encounter dangers, trials, go through treacherous mountains, ghoulish forests, break the power of the enchanted island and go to the island of darkness to help the people there, fight battles,and overcome very wicked powerful people with the unusual weapons of the Star Men.   They cross the Seven Seas and finally reach the Island of Skilk where people are greedy, selfish and mean. They find the place where they have to take back the unearthly mysterious treasure guarded by the evil Green Snake. With a tricky plan, they escape with the treasure. With treasure brought back, it starts to change the people in the Island of Skilk and and protect the Earth from disaster and bring change to the people. In the end, Akim and the others travel back to Dora Valley with this unearthly treasure. Akim becomes a powerful new boy to share a message that would change the world along with many others.

The Book of Job, perhaps one of the greatest pieces of poetic wisdom in both ancient and modern literature, has had countless commentators. One wonders whether there is anything left to say, or whether any new theme of the book could be offered.  Winson Elgersma, in this, A NEW PERSPECTIVE ON THE BOOK OF JOB, has a surprising new take on the theme of Job, one that many Christians will find both enlightening and joyful.  In a book with such depth of wisdom and complexity as the Book of Job, Elgersma, with his trained legal mind, brings out its beauty and insight, long obscured in its complicated presentation, and makes its thoughts more fully knowable. The complicated constructs and poetic language, of the arguments between Job and his three friends, are now presented simply, clearly and concisely. Many of us miss the subtle point that Job’s friends slandered God. With a lawyer’s understanding of the legal term of slander, Elgersma argues that God does not make faulty products, and that His Creation, including people, have the capacity to unfold in accordance with the creative potential, beauty and good with which it was initially imbued. Most important, this book will be a revelation for many Christians, and will bring hope and joy to their lives.  John William Zylstra Retired Journalist, Publisher and Assistant Deputy Minister for Tourism

In the Beginning: A Look at our World Through the Lens of Environmental Science and Christian Theology is a book that presents creation myths from ancient cultures around the world. It then examines the first creation story in the book of Exodus and goes into detail explaining how the Old Testament was written. Then the book follows the seven-day creation day by day to explain what was created and why. Finally, the authors tackle the issues of climate change and the destruction of the environment we human beings were charged to protect. The book can be used in small groups or simply read for one's own edification. The combination of mythological, biblical and scientific information should inspire and challenge all who read it.Christopher Farabaugh was born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania and lived in that area until his family moved to Virginia Beach, Virginia. He enjoyed academics, music and musical theater. Chris obtained a BS in Biology from The College of William and Mary, and an MS and PhD in Environmental Science and Public Policy from George Mason University. Chris works in the drug development industry in which he initially focused in genetic toxicology; he is currently serving in managerial and leadership roles in that industry. In his free time, Chris enjoys bird watching and spending time with his family. Timothy Farabaugh was born in Greensburg, Pennsylvania and graduated form Penn-Trafford High School located nearby. Along with his academic life, Tim was a class officer, a member of the chorus, and a drummer in the band. Tim obtained a bachelors degree from Alderson-Broaddus College in Secondary Education and a Masters of Divinity and a Masters of Arts in Christian Education from the Methodist Theological School in Ohio. Upon graduation, Tim served as the pastor of three churches in the Western Pennsylvania area before beginning a twenty-eight-year career in long-term care administration. Tim has authored five previous books.

Tucked away between the pages of Nehemiah and Job is the intriguing story of Esther, a young orphan girl who suddenly finds herself in a beauty contest to become the next queen of Persia. It has all of the ingredients of a delightful fairy tale, yet reveals important truths from God's Word.  What would the story of Esther look like today? What relevant issues would Esther face in today's culture? How would God use her for a time such as this?  Meet Estella, a modern-day Esther. Orphaned at a young age, she is taken in by a devoted uncle who raises her to love and trust the Lord. Her faith is challenged when she is uprooted from her high school mid-year to attend an elite, private school where she feels anything but welcome. As she is elevated to a prestigious position, she is met with envy and threats. Yet God is faithful. Estella’s plight has not gone unnoticed. She is befriended by an unlikely ally who proves more than trustworthy.  Then Estella realizes that all is not as it seems in this school. When she learns that Christians have been accused of intolerance and targeted for systematic removal, she is forced to make a choice: risk her future by revealing her faith or remain safely silent.  Find how God uses her decision in ways she could never have imagined.

Room for Grace by Sharon CassanoLochman is a vivid portrayal of a girl facing personal and emotional trials as she makes room in her heart and life for someone in need. Sharon CassanoLochman is the award-winning, #1 best-selling author of Stranded on Thin Ice, Man with the Sand Dollar Face, and Spiritual Verse Today. To learn more about Sharon CassanoLochman, visit www.sharoncassanolochman.com "Room for Grace is a heart-warming story about the power of compassion and acceptance. Although intended for young people, this tale will resonate with all ages, since its message is too seldom heard. The narrator is a young girl who is forced by her mother to share her world with Grace, an unkempt and scruffy stranger her own age who needs temporary shelter. She hates the thought of having Grace for a roommate and having to drag her along with her to school. Once in school, her actions make it clear to Grace that she is unwanted and unwelcome. Grace is secluded, not only from her but from her classmates, who quickly pick up on her disdain for her new friend. Then, she has a moment of insight. She experiences Grace's pain and suffering and her own indifference and hostility. As empathy replaces contempt, she sees Grace, not as a stranger, but as another human being. She is open now to Grace's corresponding motions of comfort and friendship. The walls of reservation and resentment have been knocked down upon the commonality of their humanity." -Pamela Jean Horter-Moore author of LoveQuest and Brief Candles "Sharon CassanoLochman proves she can touch the heart of her readers in Room for Grace, the charming short tale of Sarah's middle school confusion as her mother forces her to accept a new young girl into their home, and pushes her to learn that love is something that needs to be shared." --Jane Minard, Writer "More than 250,000 children in the U.S. enter the foster care system every year. Room for Grace is a much-needed book by a fantastic storyteller with a very kind heart. It packs a powerful message in very few words. The main character grows in understanding as she opens her mind and heart to a neglected, abused little girl placed in her family's care. -Nancy Pistorius, M.A., Writer

After the death of his mother, the future First Family embraces the twelve-year old Buck as their own and happily provides all the love and care their old friend, the Virginia senator’s son requires. Soon after his departure for Westpoint, Buck abruptly & inexplicably terminates contact with his ersatz family. The sexually matured young man falls hopelessly in love with Melanie, the future First Lady, and subjects himself to deliberate exile. As his father begs him to attend Trent and Melanie’s inauguration as First Family, however, his secret is revealed to her. Melanie’s task now is to master the circumstances without hurting any of the affected parties even as she discovers Buck’s feelings are not without resonance in her heart.   A European-style romance in the tradition of Bovary and Karenina, set in the American White House, this would-be adultery novel offers a return to the big moral questions concerning the passions and the battle between sacred duty and neighborly love.   The novel revisits the grand narratives of the age of innocence as it updates them with reflections on the moral quandaries of contemporary existence.

Eusebius praises the pastoral fidelity of the primitive pastors, in their unwearied labours to protect their flocks from the heresies with which Satan contrived to endanger the souls of believers. By exhortations and admonitions, and then again by oral discussions and refutations, contending with the heretics themselves, they were prompt to ward off the devouring beasts from the fold of Christ. Such is the praise due to Theophilus, in his opinion; and he cites especially his lost work against Marcion as “of no mean character.”   He was one of the earliest commentators upon the Gospels, if not the first; and he seems to have been the earliest Christian historian of the Church of the Old Testament. His only remaining work, here presented, seems to have originated in an “oral discussion,” such as Eusebius instances. But nobody seems to accord him due praise as the founder of the science of Biblical Chronology among Christians, save that his great successor in modern times, Abp. Usher, has not forgotten to pay him this tribute in the Prolegomena of his Annals.

If anyone will piously and soberly consider the sermon which our Lord Jesus Christ spoke on the mount, as we read it in the Gospel according to Matthew, I think that he will find in it, so far as regards the highest morals, a perfect standard of the Christian life: and this we do not rashly venture to promise but gather it from the very words of the Lord Himself.

The character of the times in which we live is such as to call forth from us even this admonition, that we ought not to be astonished at the heresies (which abound) neither ought their existence to surprise us, for it was foretold that they should come to pass; nor the fact that they subvert the faith of some, for their final cause is, by affording a trial to faith, to give it also the opportunity of being "approved."

The heretics against whom this work is directed, were the same who maintained that the demiurge, or the god who created this world and gave the Mosaic dispensation, was opposed to the supreme God. Hence they attached an idea of inherent corruption and worthlessness to all his works—amongst the rest, to the flesh or body of man; affirming that it could not rise again, and that the soul alone was capable of inheriting immortality.

The Second Class of Tertullian's works, is that which includes his treatises against the heresies of his times. In these, the genius of our author is brilliantly illustrated. Here, we venture a remark on the ambiguity of the expressions concerning our author's Montanism. In the treatise against Marcion, written late in his career, Tertullian identifies himself with the Church and strenuously defends its faith and its apostolic order. In only rare instances does his weakness for the "new prophecy" crop out, and then, it is only as one identifies himself with a school within the church.

"It happened very recently a dispute was held between a Christian and a Jewish proselyte. Alternately with contentious cable they each spun out the day until evening. By the opposing din, moreover, of some partisans of the individuals, truth began to be overcast by a sort of cloud. It was therefore our pleasure that that which, owing to the confused noise of disputation, could be less fully elucidated point by point, should be more carefully looked into, and that the pen should determine, for reading purposes, the questions handled." -Tertullian

In this book, Tertullian Defends, in all Essential Points, the Doctrine of the Holy Trinity, stating that Praxeas' beliefs are heresy: "In various ways has the devil rivalled and resisted the truth. Sometimes his aim has been to destroy the truth by defending it. He maintains that there is one only Lord, the Almighty Creator of the world, in order that out of this doctrine of the unity he may fabricate a heresy." Praxeas was a Monarchian from Asia Minor. He believed in the unity of the Godhead and vehemently disagreed with any attempt at division of the personalities or personages of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit in the Christian Church.

Female habit carries with it a twofold idea-dress and ornament. By "dress" we mean what they call "womanly gracing;" by "ornament," what it is suitable should be called "womanly disgracing." The former is accounted (to consist) in gold, and silver, and gems, and garments; the latter in care of the hair, and of the skin, and of those parts of the body which attract the eye. Against the one we lay the charge of ambition, against the other of prostitution; so that even from this early stage (of our discussion) you may look forward and see what, out of (all) these, is suitable, handmaid of God, to your discipline, inasmuch as you are assessed on different principles (from other women), -those, namely, of humility and chastity.

As persecutions in increasing number threaten us, so the more are we called on to give earnest thought to the question of how faith ought to receive them, and the duty of carefully considering it concerns you no less, who no doubt, by not accepting the Comforter, the guide to all truth, have, as was natural, opposed us hitherto in regard to other questions also. We have therefore applied a methodical treatment, too, to your inquiry, as we see that we must first come to a decision as to how the matter stands in regard to persecution itself, whether it comes on us from God or from the devil, that with the less difficulty we may get on firm ground as to our duty to meet it; for of everything one's knowledge is clearer when it is known from whom it has its origin. It is enough indeed to lay it down, (in bar of all besides,) that nothing happens without the will of God. But lest we be diverted from the point before us, we shall not by this deliverance at once give occasion to the other discussions if one make answer-Therefore evil and sin are both from God; the devil henceforth, and even we ourselves, are entirely free. The question in hand is persecution. With respect to this, let me in the meantime say, that nothing happens without God's will; on the ground that persecution is especially worthy of God, and, so to speak, requisite, for the approving, to wit, or if you will, the rejection of His professing servants. For what is the issue of persecution, what other result comes of it, but the approving and rejecting of faith, in regard to which the Lord will certainly sift His people?