Peter Stanford Book order

A unique history of Christianity in the British Isles, told through its sacred buildings - from ancient, wooden churches to lofty cathedrals

A thought-provoking reflection on the practice and history of pilgrimage, and a compelling exploration of its relevance today. Pilgrimage, a global ritual embraced by nearly all faiths, is one of civilization’s most enduring traditions. In this compelling book, author and journalist Peter Stanford reflects on the reasons people have walked along the same sacred paths through the ages. Through this history, Stanford explores how the experiences of the first pilgrims to Jerusalem, Mecca, and Santiago de Compostela compare to the millions of people who embark on life-changing physical and spiritual journeys today. Pilgrimage traverses sacred landscapes around the world, from the Basilica of Our Lady of Guadalupe in Mexico City to the monolithic rock-cut churches of Lalibela, Ethiopia and the riverbanks of the Kumbh Mela in India. Stanford explores the historical and spiritual significance of these places of healing and reflection and discusses their roles as crossroads., Although pilgrimage is usually viewed as an individual’s escape from the everyday to refocus the mind and soul, institutional and national struggles for power have always had an impact on the way pilgrims experience their own personal journey. Guiding readers through the global history of pilgrimage, this thought- provoking book educates a new generation that may seek solace, clarity, and wonder by following in the footsteps of travelers from the past.

A thought-provoking and entertaining twenty-first century look at what was once referred to as 'angelology', which searches out the origins of angels in religious thought, history, psychology and wider culture, and asks why, in an age of disbelief, they remain more compelling and comforting for many than God.

Interviews with people of faith including Sara Maitland | Sister Wendy Beckett | Delia Smith | The Revd Richard Coles | Dermot O'Leary | Cherie Blair | Archbishop Desmond Tutu | Bronwen Astor | Amos Oz | Nick Cave

The 31st of October 2017 marks the 500th anniversary of Martin Luther pinning his 95 'Theses' - or reform proposals - to the door of his local university church in Wittenberg. Most scholars now agree that the details of this eye-catching gesture are more legend than hammer and nails, but what is certainly true is that on this day (probably in a letter to his local Archbishop in Mainz), the Augustinian Friar and theologian issued an outspokenly blunt challenge to his own Catholic Church to reform itself from within - especially over the sale of 'indulgences' - which ultimately precipitated a huge religious and political upheaval right across Europe and divided mainstream Christianity ever after. A new, popular biography from journalist Peter Stanford, looking at Martin Luther from within his Catholic context, examining his actual aims for Catholicism as well as his enduring legacy - and where he might fit within the church today.

GET ALL THE ANSWERS FAST IN THIS ULTIMATE ONE-STOP GUIDECatholicism: A Complete Introduction is a comprehensive guide to the history, key beliefs and practices of the Catholic faith. Written by a leading expert, it gives you everything you need to know quickly and easily.

Judas: the most famous traitor in all of human history. But who was he really - and what does he mean for us today?

Death is the one certainty in life, yet, with the decline of religion in the West, we have become collectively reluctant to talk about it. Our contemporary rituals seek to sanitise death and distance us from our own inevitable fate. If we want to know how previous generations dealt with death, graveyards (famous and not) tell us the history -- if we are able to read them. If we want to know how we struggle today with understanding or facing up to death, then graveyards provide a starting point. And, if we want to escape the present taboo on acknowledging our mortality and contemplate our own end, then graveyards offer a rare welcome. From Neolithic mounds to internet memorials via medieval corpse roads and municipal cemeteries, war graves and holocaust memorials, Roman catacombs, Pharaonic grave-robbers, Hammer horrors, body-snatchers, Days of the Dead, humanist burials and flameless cremations, Stanford shows us how to read a graveyard, what to look out for in our own, and how even the most initially unpromising exploration can enthral.

This title addresses the rarely discussed topic of child death, offering perspectives from parents, siblings, grandparents, and godparents. It is aimed at those who have experienced the shock and loss associated with such tragedies.