Bookshelf.

America's Battle for God: A European Christian Looks at Civil Religion Geiko Muller-Fahrenholz (Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co., 2007, 203pp)

Muller-Fahrenholz, a theologian of German descent, examines the course that the United States has taken since September 11, 2001, as one that has been paved by a civil religion that has evolved more out of national history than out of Christianity. As an onlooker, the author avoids outright condemnation or criticism, but presents a view that begs a re-evaluation of the values and religious narratives that are driving, or at least being used to justify, the global role of the U.S. in the "War on Terrorism."

Care, Justice & Gender: A New Harmony for Family Values Gail Grossman Freyne (Veritas Publications, 2006, 151pp)

A psychotherapist and family counselor offers this resource to marriage counselors and couples alike as a guide to understanding how to build equitable and satisfying marital relationships. The author looks at the institution of marriage through the lenses of ecofeminism and gender dynamics.

Health Care Ethics: A Catholic Theological Analysis Benedict M. Ashley, O.P., Jean Deblois, C.S.J., and Kevin D. O'Rourke, O.D. (Georgetown University Press, 2007, 328pp)

In its fifth edition, Health Care Ethics adds discussions of contemporary issues such as the Human Genome Project, genetic modification, stem cell research and cosmetic surgery to a vast compendium on health care ethics from a Catholic perspective.

History of a Tragedy: The Expulsion of the Jews from Spain Joseph Perez (University of Illinois Press, 2007, 176pp)

Translated from the Spanish by Lysa Hochroth, History of a Tragedy documents the Jewish community in Spain from the Middle Ages until 1492, when they were forced to leave a newly unified Spain by Ferdinand and Isabella. The author suggests that the expulsion was sparked by the remarkable cultural and religious instability of the time, but that anti-Semitism had deeper roots in the country.

Inventing Human Rights: A History Lynn Hunt (W.W. Norton & Company, 2007, 320pp)

A UCLA history professor and former president of the American Historical Association problematizes Thomas Jefferson's assertion that human rights are "self-evident" and traces the changing definitions of, and emphasis on, human rights through shifting cultural and political backdrops since the late 18th century. She argues that the concept began to crystallize as a result of changing notions of the self, the individual and the body and the rise of empathy--changes ushered in by a proliferation of novels, other literature and visual arts. The book closes with a look at the state of human rights today.

Is there a God in Health Care?: Toward a New Spirituality of Medicine William F. Haynes Jr. and Geffrey B. Kelley (Haworth Pastoral Press, 2006, 222pp)

A physician and a theology professor come together to offer both religious and scientific explanations of the importance of spirituality in health care for patients and providers alike. They argue that faith fosters holistic healing and helps in dealing with suffering and loss and in providing services with compassion, out of social responsibility to those in need.

Religious Freedom and the Constitution Christopher L. Eisgruber and Lawrence Sager (Harvard University Press, 2007, 333pp)

Eisgruber and Sager pose that a fair and constitutionally supported understanding of religious freedom has been long delayed by the belief in a wall between church and state. They offer "equal liberty" as a framework for defining the parameters of religious freedom and for approaching problems that have cast doubt on the prospect of cooperation among diverse religious groups.

Sacred Causes: The Clash of Religion and Politics, from the Great War to the War on Terror Michael Burleigh (HarperCollins, 2007, 576pp)

Sacred Causes follows Earthly Powers in a two-part study of the nexus of religion and politics throughout the history of Europe. Picking up at World War I and carrying the discussion to the present, Burleigh says religious currents informed the "secular" politics of even the most totalitarian regimes during World War II and that, likewise, global politics has impacted churches.

Sex, Priests, and Secret Codes: The Catholic Church's 2,000-Year Paper Trail of Sexual Abuse Thomas P. Doyle, A.W.R. Sipe and Patrick Wall (Volt Press, 2006, 383pp)

The authors demonstrate that clerical sexual abuse has plagued Catholic communities globally throughout history. They mine the hierarchy's deep-seated penchant for hiding such transgressions and suggest that the recent disclosures and discussion surrounding this phenomenon could be a major step toward the church's re-envisioning its dysfunctional sexual ideology and mending its rift with Catholic laity and society.

Sons of the Earth: The Witnessing of Gay Catholic Men Thomas Stevenson (Harrington Park Press, 2006, 103pp)

The testimonials of over 40 gay Catholic men help Stevenson ray bare the experiences of a lifetime spent trying to weave one's personal sexuality with a religious tradition that speaks of homosexuality as an "objective disorder." Stevenson discusses being gay and Catholic in childhood before walking the reader through how the integration of these two identities was mediated by a spiritual maturing process and serf-rove through faith, not without.

A Theology of Gay and Lesbian Inclusion: Love Letters to the Church Donald G. Hanway (Haworth Pastoral Press, 2006, 114pp)

Written as a series of 10 letters, this book puts forward a Christian perspective that counters the traditional teaching that homosexuality is immoral. Hanway uses scripture and testimony from gay men and women who have been the victims of the church and some straight Christians' prejudices to begin building a theology that grants full acceptance to gays and lesbians and recognizes that love is never wrong.

Toward a Theory of Human Rights: Religion, Law, Courts Michael J. Perry (Cambridge University Press, 2006, 272pp)

After malting the case that the morality of human rights is based in religion above anything else, Perry delves into questions as to how that relates to the legal framework of human rights and how they should be interpreted and legislated. Capital punishment, abortion and gay marriage are timely and important examples.