The CCCW is delighted to announce that the new Archbishop of Canterbury’s Lent Book 2019, authored by our director, Muthuraj Swamy, is to be released tomorrow!

Available for £9.99 from Amazon and the publisher SPCK.

Global in scope, but homing in on the role ordinary people play in conflict and division, Reconciliation enables Christians to engage confidently in a ministry bequeathed to us by Christ himself.

The book issues a vibrant call to the church to support and strengthen relationships amongst church members; to cross borders to build connections with different denominations, and to maintain open attitudes towards our neighbours from other religions and ideologies.

Forty biblically-based meditations introduce topics such as Impediments to reconciliation, risking the self, humility and self-criticism, radical openness to the other andpeace with justice. Questions for reflection are included, making Reconciliation suitable for use at weekly gatherings or for everyday devotion during Lent.

SPCK, Publisher

A thoroughly biblical guide to reconciliation – its passions and problems, its complexity and utter cruciality. Dr Swamy offers new angles on old stories, prophetic messages, and a gospel wisdom on becoming people of peace.

PROFESSOR DAVID F. FORD, University of Cambridge

The CCCW will close on Friday 21 December at 1pm and reopen on Monday 7 January at 9am.

The staff at CCCW wish you all a very peaceful, happy, and relaxing Christmas.  See you in the New year!

6 months Research Associate on ‘The role of the local church in contributing to well-being in conflict affected fragile states.’

The research will identify a) the impact of conflict on the local church and b) how and why churches choose to engage in response to conflict, c) the roles and practices churches take on in responding within their communities and conflicts d) the churches’ own perspectives on opportunities, constraints and barriers.

For further information click here.

Full-time research degrees supervised through the Cambridge Theological Federation and awarded by  Anglia Ruskin University.

To find out more click pdfs 1 & 2

There is also information on our website on the  Study with Us page

The Cambridge Centre for Christianity Worldwide library is continually growing: purchasing new books throughout the year and adding donated ones to the collection. Here is a selection of six new ones just in:

Moreau, A. Scott (2018) Contextualizing the faith: a holistic approach Baker Academic

This major statement by a leading missiologist represents a lifetime of wrestling with a topic every cross-cultural leader must address: how to adapt the universal gospel to particular settings. This comprehensive yet accessible textbook organizes contextualization, which includes “everything the church is and does,” into seven dimensions. Filled with examples, case studies, and diagrams and conversant with contemporary arguments and debates, it offers the author’s unique take on the challenge of adapting the faith in local cultures. — publisher

Peterson, Paul Silas, editor (2018) The decline of established Christianity in the Western world: interpretations and responses (Studies in World Christianity and Interreligious Relations) Routledge

While Church attendance in the West is often cited as being in decline, it is argued that this applies primarily to the older established forms of Christianity. Other expressions of the faith are, in fact, stable or even growing. This volume provides multidisciplinary interpretations of and responses to one of the most complicated and controversial issues regarding the global transformation of Christianity today: the decline of “established Christianity” in the Western world. It also addresses the future of Christianity in the West after the decline. — publisher

Ross, Cathy and Smith, Colin (2018) Missional conversations: a dialogue between theory and praxis in world mission SCM Press

Missional Conversations introduces the reader to key themes in contemporary mission through global conversations between theory and praxis. Exploring emergent themes in missiology, the book takes the form of a conversation between reflective practitioners – both those in academia and with those who are practically engaged. — publisher

Ross, Kenneth R., Tadros, Mariz and Johnson, Todd M., editors (2018) Christianity in North Africa and West Asia (Edinburgh Companions to Global Christianity series) Edinburgh University Press

This comprehensive reference volume covers every country in North Africa and West Asia, offering reliable demographic information and original interpretative essays by indigenous scholars and practitioners. It maps patterns of growth and decline, assesses major traditions and movements, analyses key themes and examines current trends. — publisher

Shaw, R. Daniel and Burrows, William R., editors (2018) Traditional ritual as Christian worship: dangerous syncretism or necessary hybridity? (American Society of Missiology Series, No. 56) Orbis Books

Highlighting the voices of non-Western scholars, this collection recognizes the importance of ritual and ceremony in the life of communities that seek to worship God in ways that reflect culturally appropriate responses to Scripture. The contributors―some of missiology’s leading lights―offer expositions of rituals, beliefs, and practices of diverse peoples, all supporting the conclusion that orthodox Christianity is hybrid Christianity. — publisher

Zink, Jesse A. (2018) Christianity and catastrophe in South Sudan: civil war, migration, and the rise of Dinka Anglicanism (Studies in World Christianity) Baylor University Press

Christianity and Catastrophe in South Sudan is rooted in extensive fieldwork in South Sudan, complemented by research in the archives of South Sudanese churches and international humanitarian organizations. The result is a detailed profile of what Christianity means to a society in the middle of intense crisis and trauma, with a particular focus on the roles of young people and women, and the ways in which the arrival of a new faith transformed existing religious traditions.

Christianity and Catastrophe in South Sudan stakes out a new field of inquiry in African Christianity. Jesse Zink has written a must-read for all interested in the ongoing crises in Africa and, in particular, the vexed relationship between violence and religion. — publisher

Do come and see these for yourself in the library, and feel free to borrow them. Two are still waiting to be catalogued but should be completed by the end of next week.

Look out for a future post with all our new books added to the collection throughout the year.

Ruth MacLean, Librarian

To find out how to apply for an encounter scheme bursary, which enables recipients to spend a sustained period of time in a Christian community in a culture other than their own, overseas, or in the UK, click here.

The new dates for deadlines have just been released too!

Revd Colin Chapman gave a seminar at the Divinity Faculty on Tuesday 9 October, on ‘Can Religion and Politics be Separated in the Middle East?’

This was part of the CCCW & Divinity Faculty series on World Christianity.

Click here to listen to the talk.

The CCCW, in collaboration with the Divinity Faculty, University of Cambridge have a brand new series of seminars for the forthcoming academic year.  Click here to read more.

The seminars will be held on TUESDAYS.

Have you noticed the black and white photo challenge for libraries that has been taking Twitter by storm? It appears to have started in America, as far as my research goes, and has come over to England and spread rapidly through the Cambridge University libraries.

The Cambridge Centre for Christianity Worldwide library was challenged by the Divinity Faculty library, which was challenged by the Haddon library, which was challenged by Trinity library, which was challenged by Christ’s library, which was challenged by both Queens’ library and the ARU library, and so it goes on…

The idea is to post a black and white photo of library life each working day for seven days, challenging a new library each day. No people. No explanations. Just library life as we know it. You can see our response to the challenge on Twitter. Here are the gallery of photos now turned into colour:

Ruth MacLean