The Empire Books

To help understand the complexity of organized crime and how it effects all of us, this is a must read. Cleveland's roots in the Labor Unions, the Jewish Crime Syndicate and modern day Mafia runs deep and Friedman was bold enough to discuss his trials and tribulations within those ranks. Schwarz captures Friedman's struggles with betrayal amongst his "family" and his quest to ultimately do the right thing. Allen Friedman was not one to pull punches- he tells it like it was.

Professor Schussler Fiorenza starts by reviewing empire studies which is a new area in the biblical field. She states concern with how the oppression and violence of the Roman Empire is inscribed in the New Testament and how this can be remedied by promoting a radical democratic ethos. Offering a critical feminist decolonizing strategy, she situates the book within the literature of this strategy. She also situates the book within the context of empire in today's world.

In discussing the oppression that takes place due to gender, class, sexual orientation, ethnicity, and nationality she offers the concept of "an ekklesia (democratic assembly or congress) of wo/men" as an alternative hermeneutical space for transforming the church.

In chapter 3 Professor Schussler Fiorenza criticizes Pauline scholarship that valorizes Paul's voice through strategies that re-inscribe kyriarchal (kyriarchy denotes the power of emperor, husband, lord, slave-master) politics. As an alternative she recommends scholarship that seeks to particularize and relativize his voice by presenting other voices and arguments that exist in Pauline settings for instance those of slave wo/men.

Professor Schussler Fiorenza's interpretive rhetoric of Revelation recognizes "the process of the re-inscription of the language of empire that transfers the attributes of Roman power to G*d, the Lamb and its followers." She also discusses the feminine figuration of Babylon the whore as commenting on the sexual exploitation of marginalized wo/men within the Roman empire and how this continues today in the age of globalization with the international sex-trade.

In chapter 5 Schussler Fiorenza offers a "detoxifying" hermeneutics of 1 Peter. 1 Peter is the pseudomenous epistle from Rome admonishing resident aliens of Asia Minor to good conduct and subordination, for wives to submit to husbands, for slaves to suffer abuse and obey their masters, and for everyone to obey the emperor. Schussler Fiorenza argues for a the*logical hermeneutics of critical feminist decolonizing detoxification rather than one of respect and acceptance. She asks that one ask oneself about one's own social, religious, and cultural location within the kyriarchal power arrangement and how this location influences one's self-identity. This leads to the issue of "the christological legitimization of suffering and the ethical appeal to subordination ... and hence to a hermeneutics of suspicion." She offers that reading this text should be done with the caveat "Caution - could be dangerous to your health and survival".

In chapter 6 on the rhetoric of empire and G*d talk the author notes that G*d is spoken of as a "great King, heavenly Monarch, Lord of Lords, avenging Warrior, and all-powerful Father, who in imperial splendor, is ruling heaven and earth and demanding absolute obedience and obeisance from his subjects." As a result this talk internalizes kyriarchal models of domination. She notes that how to speak about G*d has become a primary problem in the*logy.

She suggests supplementing androcentric G*d talk with talk about the feminine Divine Wisdom, Sophia, in a way that doesn't simultaneously legitimize entrenched gender roles of domination-subordination. This must necessarily avoid presenting Sophia in the likeness of the White Lady. Schussler Fiorenza also suggests supplementing traditional G*d talk with reflective mythology using G*ddesses and divinities from Asia, Africa, and the Americas. In particular she discusses the Asian shape-changing divinity Kannon/Kuan Yin.

Schussler Fiorenza argues for a revamping of biblical studies programs, particularly doctoral programs with a new ethos, an ethos summarized in the last paragraph: "Wisdom's inviting biblical table with the bread of sustenance and the wine of celebration is imagined in Proverbs 9:1-6 as set in a temple with seven pillars that allow the spirit of fresh air to blow through it. This image seeks to replace the understanding of canonical and scholarly authority as limiting, controlling, and exclusive authority and "power over" which demands subordination. Instead it understands the power of the bible in the original Latin meaning of authority (augere/auctoritas), as enhancing, nurturing, and enriching creativity. Biblical studies and graduate education, renewed in the paradigm of Divine Wisdom, will be able to foster such creativity, strength, self-affirmation, and freedom in the Wisdom space of the sacred."

For those who grew up under that shadow of the iron curtain, the changes that took place around the globe in the late 1980's and early 1990's were truly amazing, none more so than the splintering of the Soviet Union. Journalist Philip Yancey writes an exciting account of his visit to the former USSR with a group called Project Christian Bridge. Formerly an atheistic society, the Soviets had actually extended an invitation to the Christian group because of the moral erosion in their society, finding that they lacked an ethical foundation for rebuilding. PRAYING WITH THE KGB tells a remarkable story. The book is short enough to be read in one sitting. Exciting and highly recommended.

Would that all books on this topic could be written with such a bewitchingly simple complexity. Brinkman weaves a mesmerizing spell around the too-fortunate reader, enveloping them in his epic masterwork. Kudos on this tour de force! What more can I say?

Here is what you get in this Selected and Edited edition Of Prescott: History of the Reign of Ferdinand and Isabella: Parts 1 and 2. History of the Conquest of Mexico. Books 2-3-4-5-6-7. History of the Conquest of Peru - Books 2-3-4. History of Philip the Second - Books 1-2-4-5-6.

Originally published in 1667 by Sweden's and Brandenburg's official state historian Samuel Pufendorf (1632-1694), The Present State of Germany is a classic volume that sparked incendiary debate in its time due to its controversial and utterly unapologetic deconstruction of mainstream German constitutional law. This edition has been meticulously assembled by comparing its 1696 translation by Edmund Bohun with Pufendorf's 1667 Latin original and Gundling's 1706 edition. The original prefaces to the two Latin editions have been translated into English for the first time, and an introduction by editor Michael J. Seidler offers historical and philosophical setting and context. An index rounds out this informative and instructive volume which is very highly recommended for classic history text reference collections.

Elizabeth Peyton's work fascinates me. She creates the art I never thought I could get a way with, and she does it beautifully. This collection of photos and drawings focus on one man who supposedly looks like a painting of Napoleon. I suppose he does, but her view of him is what is important.

She looks at him with more than a loving eye. She sees things in him that he obviously doesn't see in himself, and she shows those things to us. We are intimate partners in her adoration, never feeling voyeuristic or inappropriate. This feels natural and right, the way each of us should feel about someone.

The informality of the settings and the casual drawings - often on hotel stationery - give an "of the moment", casual feeling that adds to the intimacy and the mystery. Has she been staring at him as he sleeps? Did she quickly dash off a sketch to remember a certain attitude or expression? This is a truly beautiful collection.

Too many peoples have wrong ideas about the managerial and, more important, military capabilities of this incredible man, the only one that not only gave orders to the empire militarty elite but had the courage to pretend respect from them not by his position but for with his examples (this gained him the Mac Donald hate and his tempative to appear as the real organizer of the 1809 italian campaign.
As the president of the main italian napoleonic reenactment group, I had access to the documents and the real battlefield and this make me able to understand many facts about this man and how deep is the work done on this book.
Before the 1809 austrian aggressor, the real commander of the Italian Army had no military experience over the one in Marengo so, he understimate the enemy gaining an heavy defeat in Sacile (a battle bad planned and conduced in a hand to mouth style) but he learned from his mistakes, was so strong to admit his guilty with his stepfather and reorganize the army in a so incredible way that in the successive real battle, near Nervesa, he conduces his army over the Piave River neverthless the spring flood and broke the back of austrian army pushing it from Italy to the Raab river conquering on his way oll the austrian alpine forts guarding the alpine passages.
The author conduce you hand by hand from the arrive of Eugene in Milan to the Raab battle explaining with precision and ability the plans of both commanders let Eugene appear like a real commander, not only as the puppet that Mac Donald wanted to present.

Back cover reads:
AN OFFER SHE COULDN'T REFUSE
Deciding to focus on her thriving business as a wedding planner, Emily Parks had given up her dream of finding the perfect man. Yet when handsome Prince Lazhar Eban asked Emily to plan his royal wedding, she accepted, never guessing that she was the bride-to-be!
He'd agreed to marry Emily as part of a business deal and to please his own ailing father, but Lazhar had never expected to fall for the beautiful career woman. Soon he realized that she'd capture his heart. He knew she felt the same way--but what would she think once she discovered the false pretenses behind his proposal?

Mr Bonnabeau captures the essence of one of America's (make that the world's) most innovative and unique institutions of higher learning.

Conceived during the turbulent early seventies when bell bottoms were in, Empire State College took the unique energy of that time and turned it into college credit for you and me.

Today, institutions of all kinds have mimicked ESC's innovations and special brand of individual education such as credit for prior learning, learning contracts and one-on-one mentoring.