September 17, 2004

MINNEAPOLIS - The essence of spirituality is loving God, says Mark Allen Powell in his new book, Loving Jesus. The Bible, the Talmud, and the Qu'ran all direct their followers not merely to believe in God, to trust God, to obey God, and to serve God-but to love God. Can we learn to love God?

In this biblical spirituality for today, Powell's earnest plea is for Christians to revisit their faith not by blazing in religious enthusiasm but by harboring a steadier flame and deeper commitment. Living at the poetic heart of faith, he argues, entails seeing the coordinates of religious life in a new way. Powell espouses the old-fashioned idea of piety. Drawing on his wide knowledge of the Bible and Christian tradition, as well as insights from his own journey, he shows how simple religious practices move us beyond the old certitudes of a naîve and youthful faith into the less certain but more bracing terrain of a second naîveté, a closer walk with Jesus. Mark Allan Powell is Robert and Phyllis Leatherman Professor of New Testament at Trinity Lutheran Seminary, Columbus, Ohio. His publications include Fortress Introduction to the Gospels (1997) and God with Us (1995), both from Fortress Press.

''This book is a sublime love feast! Powell enthralls us with how lovely Jesus is and how love-worthy we are by God's grace. His book quickens our faith and outreach by teaching us how desperate for true love our world is and how thoroughly our spirituality can be imbued with love as it becomes more deeply formed by the Scriptures, prayer, and worship.'' - Marva J. Dawn, author of Unfettered Hope and Teaching Fellow in Spiritual Theology, Regent College, Vancouver

To order Loving Jesus please call Fortress Press at 1-800-328-4648 or visit the web site at http://www.fortresspress.com/.