Cleveland Browns quarterback Baker Mayfield is a Heisman Trophy winner and the 2018 first overall draft pick. As a rookie, he proved himself with an amazing comeback in his first National Football League (NFL) game. Read his story
From playing college football at Buffalo to becoming the highest paid defensive player in National Football League (NFL) history with the Chicago Bears, Khalil Mack has always been a standout. Readers will love learning how he became a superstar linebacker.
Born in the US and raised in a Haitian and Japanese household, Naomi Osaka is the first Asian player to hold the top ranking for singles tennis. Learn how she became a rising star in the tennis world.
Thirteen-year-old Luke Morgan is living a charmed life on his Grandpa Theo's farm, sheltered from the noise of the world by endless, rural beauty. But, his country innocence is quickly shattered one late afternoon as he watches an approaching thunderstorm with his grandfather at his side. Something other than churning clouds are in the sky that day. A twisting, black, mass of evil that his grandfather is not unfamiliar with. Upon seeing the strange spectacle, Theo tells Luke that the two of them must travel to their neighbor's home-and kill the entire family. Luke quickly learns there is much he doesn't know about his kindly grandfather, as he is plunged into a nightmarish world of demons and human suffering.
Film festivals, comic conventions, music festivals and cultural events dominate the modern cultural landscape. Every attendee, vendor, exhibitor, panelist, and organizer needs a player's handbook to navigate the rapidly changing worlds of cons and festivals. The Pop Culture Business Handbook for Cons and Festivals provides a real-world guide and reference for these exhilarating experiences, providing rules, strategies, and insights for the people who attend, work, and develop these fantastical worlds. The book is written by JON M. GARON, law dean and professor at Nova Southeastern University Shepard Broad College of Law who specializes in entertainment law, technology law, business law, and intellectual propertyWith discussions on cosplay, selling autographs, film festival submissions, organizing panels, policing bootlegs as well as insurance, crowdfunding, budgeting, pyrotechnics, safety and Con planning, the Handbook provides the definitive guide to "Con Law." It is an essential planning tool for any road trip for a convention and a must for anyone launching or managing a Con or festival.Preface; Introduction; Part 1 - Cons and Festivals1. The Theories Underlying the Con Environment; 2. Con Revenues;3. Con Expenses and Budgeting; 4. Contracts and Agreements to Operate a Con; 5. From Celebrities to Stall Operators - Vendors and Exhibitors; 6.The Reel Story: Film Festivals and Markets; 7. Attendee Basics - Survival Guide for Patrons, Customers, Guests, and Goers; 8. Safety, Security, and Insurance; 9. Legal Structure of the Con; 10. Financial Structure of the Con; Part 2 - Special Considerations11. Free Speech, the First Amendment, and the Comic Book Legal Defense Fund; 12. Copyright Protection for the Works at the Cons; 13. Fandom and Creativity - Including Fan Art, Fan Fiction, and Cosplay; 14. Gambling, Raffles, Door Prizes, and Competitions; 15. Cons as Social Action; 16. When Things Go Wrong; 17. Cons and Transformation of Media Distribution; Part 3 - Resources and References18. Crafting a Legal System in a Fictional Work; 19. Boilerplate - Key Terms of the Standard Agreement20. Sample Agreements; 21. Insurance22. Federal Employment Law Requirements; 23. Regulations for Crowdfunding: A Small Entity Compliance Guide for Issuers24. Sample Nonprofit Corporation Articles of Incorporation25. Contact Information26. Index27. Bibliography; About the Author
This warm-hearted little book is a window into the soul of St. Francis, one of the most passionate and inspiring followers of Jesus. "Prayer was to Francis as play is to a child: natural, easy, creative, and joyful," author Jon Sweeney tells us. "Before it became common to speak in personal terms of a relationship with God, Francis did so and made it seem natural." With this guide, readers will:Pray the words that Francis taught his spiritual brothers and sisters to pray.Explore Francis's time and place and feel the joy and earnestness of the first Franciscans.Experience how it is possible to live a contemplative and active life, at the same time.
For all who love St. Francis and his spirit of passionate creativity and devotion to God, this prayer book is an invitation to experience the spiritual gifts of one of his closest companions. Clare was a deep, ready source of wisdom—a well to Francis's river. Discover the spirituality of St. Clare and how it complements that of St. Francis. Enter into a week of morning and evening prayer centered on themes from Clare's life. Pray with Clare's own words in a variety of occasions. And enjoy a special appendix that dramatizes what it might have been like to be there on that first night when Clare fled to the little chapel called Portiuncula to become a brother, and much more.
Meister Eckhart (1260-1328) was a priest, a mystic, and nearly a heretic (he died before the Church court's verdict). In the 20th century, the Roman Catholic Church rehabilitated him and the late Pope John Paul II spoke of his work with fondness.However, what makes him of particular interest is the fact that he has influenced a wide range of spiritual teachers and mystics both inside and outside the Christian tradition. Erich Fromm, Eckhart Tolle, Richard Rohr, D. T. Suzuki, and Rudolf Steiner have all credited Eckhart as being an important influence on their thought. In addition, his work has influenced the development of 20th century American Buddhism and the Theosophical tradition.Eckhart wrote at a time--much like our own--when society appeared to be coming apart at the seams. In the midst of all that chaos and uncertainty, he captured the many forms and stages of the love of God, the mystic path, and the journey of transformation--in language so startling that he, too, was often accused of heresy.Now, seven centuries later, this fresh, stunning rendering of his work translates the essence of one of Christianity's greatest poetic and spiritual voices. Here is a book that conveys the heart of Eckhart's teaching on what it means to love God and embark on an authentic spiritual journey--a journey that is characterized by mystery, paradox, and an embrace of the unknown.
This joint biography illuminates the lives of Francis and Clare and their way of life. It shows how they were bound together by devotion to God as well as the violent objections of their families to religious life. It explores a variety of issues they faced, including the treatment of lepers in medieval society, corruption in the church, and attitudes toward the created world. You will learn how Clare's spirituality influenced that of other prominent women, how Francis lost control of his own movement, and why Francis's body was secretly buried after his death.
In the tradition of The St. Francis Prayer Book, Jon Sweeney offers an ancient-medieval way of understanding and experiencing the Gospel: the Holy Fool. This countercultural approach is exemplified in the life and teachings of Francis of Assisi, the most popular Saint in history, and his good friend, Brother Juniper. What does it mean to be a fool for Christ? It meant to St. Francis: being small not strong, valuing joy over pleasure, avoiding positions of power, and enjoying rather than avoiding moments of insecurity, fear, and awkwardness. These practices revealed to the first Franciscans how being foolish in the eyes of the world is a sure way to discover a renewed sense of the presence of God. Includes a week of daily offices focused on the concept of the Holy Fool and spiritual practices for countercultural living.
These stories of St. Francis and his first followers have inspired millions of people over the centuries. Since they were first committed to paper, they were told to inspire people to become better followers of Jesus (not St. Francis). For that reason, they have endured unlike any other early Franciscan literature. This new paperback edition edition of The Little Flowers is unique in its physical beauty as well as its editorial arrangement. For the first time, the stories have been arranged in the most likely chronological ordering of when they happened—rather than following the traditional ordering of them handed down for centuries. As a result, today’s reader is now able to read The Little Flowers as a biographical narrative of the life of St. Francis and the world-transforming movement that he founded.
“A heartwarming tale, which gives the papacy a human touch.” –Christopher Lamb, Rome correspondent, The Tablet "I give it one million stars!" —Luca, Mrs. Gilman's class, St. Margaret Mary School (Omaha, NE) Meet Margaret — the Pope's cat — in the very first book in this best-selling series by Jon M. Sweeney! This is the story of a stray born on the Via della Conciliazione in Rome, how she’s adopted by the Pope, and then “rules” the Vatican from museum to floorboard! First in a new series. No one has a closer view of what’s happening in the world’s tiniest nation, Vatican City, than Margaret, the Pope’s new cat. But she wasn’t always Margaret, and she wasn’t always the Pope’s cat. She started out as a stray on the streets of Rome, and there are those in the Vatican who wish she’d never been allowed inside. This fun, adorable new character will appeal to all kids! Here is a cat who does what she likes regardless of what others, even someone like the Pope, expects of her—even when the Queen of England comes on a state visit! This new fiction series is intended for Catholic schools, elementary school teachers, Catholic librarians, superintendents of schools, reading specialists, educators, catechists, school principals, Catholic homeschoolers, and parents.
Margaret — The Pope's Cat — is back! Illustrated in full color. Bang! Slam! Boom! Loud sounds in St. Peter's Square had been going on for nearly an hour already. Margaret was annoyed, because as you may know, cats like to sleep. A lot. The apartment where Margaret lives with the Pope, ever since he adopted her off the streets of Rome, looks out onto St. Peter’s Square. And the noises down there kept waking Margaret up. She rolled over, covering her ears with her paws. A few minutes later, the sounds began again, as more trucks arrived to unload even more chairs. Beep, beep, beep, beep went the trucks as they backed up to where men in yellow jackets were waiting to unload them. Then came Bang! Slam! Boom! all over again, as the men arranged the chairs in rows facing the portico of St. Peter’s Basilica. All of this was in preparation for a special event to take place the following day, Christmas. ____________ In this delightful new story from their lives, the Pope takes Margaret on a tour of St. Peter's. But when he's called away to work, Margaret gets lost in the world's largest church. She meets saints, children, tourists, and the artist Michelangelo's famous statue, The Pieta, before being reunited with the Pope as Midnight Mass is about to begin.
The story of Margaret and her friend the Pope continues with Book 3 in The Pope’s Cat series. This adventure has Margaret experiencing the prayers, penitence, liturgy, and excitement of Holy Week in the Vatican and Rome—from the joy of Palm Sunday in St. Peter's Square, to foot-washing in a Roman prison, the solemnity of Good Friday, and the expectation of Easter. She learns about Jesus and the meaning of his Passion, visits important new places such as The Sistine Chapel, where she seems to pray beside the Pope, and the Roman Colosseum, where she learns that many early Christians were martyrs for their faith. Margaret's friends, the Swiss Guards, are watching over her, and she manages to eat (she still loves to eat!) some interesting foods, even though it's Holy Week. Oh yes, and she sleeps a lot.
The Passion narratives contain painful anti-Semitic tropes--particularly the Gospel of John, which is read world-wide every Holy Week. These readings have been used over the centuries to brand the Jewish people as Christ-killers and to justify discrimination and violence. Here, religious scholars and writers address the historical, theological, and exegetical considerations to be addressed by every Christian in order to move beyond this toxic history. Contributors include Walter Brueggemann, Mary Boys, Richard Lux, Wes Howard-Brook, Massimo Faggioli, Bishop Richard J. Sklba, Gregg Garret, and Rabbi Sandy Eisenberg Sasso.
Collecting anecdotes from several of Thomas Merton's former novices, this book offers readers an opportunity to meet the famous monk and writer as a monastic brother, confessor, spiritual director, and friend. The title, reflects a way of being in the world, familiar to millions of readers of Merton's books. It was Merton who first made the treasures of monastic life and monastic spirituality accessible to people outside the cloister. In many respects, what he did for his students at the Abbey of Gethsemani, he did for those who read him still, hear his recorded lectures, and continue today to follow his path.
In this fourth installment of "The Pope's Cat" series, Margaret and the Pope travel for the first time together away from the Vatican and out of Rome. They go by train to the Umbrian hill town of Assisi, a place of pilgrimage for Christians all over the world who want to remember the life of St. Francis of Assisi. Together they visit the great Basilica named for St. Francis, greet Franciscan friars at the monastery, attend a World Day of Prayer for Peace, meet religious leaders (each, it seems, with a very different hat!) from around the world, and see evidence of the spirit of St. Francis all over town. Most of all, the Pope shows his love and care for his vulnerable creature friend, as at the beginning of the book when someone from the Curia has frightened Margaret and she's hiding in a closet in the Pope's apartment. “Don’t worry, il mio amore.” (Il mio amore means “My love.”) “People can be so fussy, can’t they?” the Pope says, picking her up in his arms.