Religious Biographies

Six-year-old Ludwig was sitting at the table, reading his Bible and praying, when Swedish soldiers stormed through the castle door. Ludwig looked up at the soldiers and then returned to his prayer and reading. The soldiers stopped and stared--then left. They said they could not ransack a place that God watched over.

This is not your typical Zen book. Brad Warner, a young punk who grew up to be a Zen master, spares no one. This bold new approach to the "Why?" of Zen Buddhism is as strongly grounded in the tradition of Zen as it is utterly revolutionary. Warner's voice is hilarious, and he calls on the wisdom of everyone from punk and pop culture icons to the Buddha himself to make sure his points come through loud and clear.

R. C. Sproul (1939-2017) was a pastor, a professor, an author, and the founder and president of Ligonier Ministries. His contributions in the areas of biblical studies, theology, worldview and culture, Christian living, and church history continue to be held in high regard. In this audiobook read by Tom Parks, Stephen J. Nichols offers an in-depth look at Sproul’s life and ministry.

As Charles Strobel, beloved Nashville priest and champion of the unhoused, reached the end of his life in 2023, he began to contemplate the last message he wanted to leave his family, friends, and community. With the help of his niece, Katie Seigenthaler, and his colleague, Amy Frogge, Strobel began to dictate The Kingdom of the Poor. He wrote, “Mark Twain, the great American folk hero and writer, has said, ‘The two most important days of your life are the day you are born and the day you find out why.’ The following pages help to explain why I was born.”

Discover the extraordinary life of Umar ibn al-Khattab, the second caliph of Islam whose leadership transformed the early Muslim world. From his dramatic conversion to Islam to his decade of revolutionary rule, this definitive biography explores how Umar expanded the Islamic empire, established groundbreaking administrative systems, and lived with legendary justice and humility.

An instant best-seller in Italy, Vita di Gesù Cristo ("Life of Jesus Christ") was also highly praised by Catholic peer journals worldwide and has never since been out of print. The author, Giuseppe Ricciotti, was an archaeologist and Biblical scholar. After his seminary studies and completing mandatory military service, he was ordained a priest in 1913 and continued his studies at the University of Rome.

Do you feel like your life is a series of shattered dreams? Have you bought into the lie that you'll never amount to anything? In Think Big, Dr. Ben Carson is here to tell you some good news: none of that is true.

Nagel tells a remarkable story of an astonishing woman, from her birth, to her upbringing by doting parents, through to Revolution, imprisonment, exile, Restoration, and, finally, her reincarnation as saint and matriarch.

This now classic story tells how the Charismatic Movement began and swept into churches across America. Father Dennis is still hailed as one of the central figures in the early renewal movement. Nine O'Clock in the Morning is Father Dennis's testimony that God can and will release His power to His people if we allow Him to truly become the King of our lives.

In this seemingly loveless world of ours, we might wonder if true love is attainable. Is it real, or is it perhaps a dancing illusion captured on Hollywood screens? And if this love dares to exist, does it satisfy as the poets say, or fade in our hearing like a passing whisper? The souls are few who have discovered these answers, and one of them is Nicolina, a feisty, flirtatious girl who fell in love with the most romantic man in all of post-war Germany. Little did they imagine the places where love would take them.

Lex Luger, wrestling mega-sensation and three-time world heavyweight champion, ruled the ring for years as "The Total Package." Yet backstage, he was wrestling with addictions to sex, drugs, and alcohol - things he clung to even when his mistress died suddenly of a drug overdose and Lex went to jail. In Wrestling with the Devil, Lex Luger reveals never-before-told stories from his career, his struggle with personal demons, and how, through unexpected faith, grace, and redemption, he overcame all odds to fight the only battle that really matters.

The great movements of God in history were often led by well-known preachers and pioneering missionaries, but few of us have heard the behind-the-scenes stories of the men and women who partnered with them, funded them, and contributed to many amazing works of God.

When a patient first asked Dr. Reggie Anderson to sit at her bedside as she passed from this life, something miraculous happened. As he held her hand, the veil between this world and the next parted…and he received an astonishing glimpse of what awaits us in heaven. Little did he know this was just a foretaste of what was to come - a lifetime of God-given "appointments with heaven." Join Reggie as he shares remarkable stories from his life and practice, including the personal tragedy that nearly drove him away from faith forever.

Dean Braxton was hospitalized due to kidney stones. The procedure to break down the stones caused an infection which eventually made his heart stop. When Dean died, he was taken to heaven, where he met Jesus, family members, and saw God, the father of creation! He should have been a vegetable or dead, when in fact Dean Braxton's heart had been stopped for 1 hour and 45 minutes. After he came back from heaven, he was instantly healed of 29 medical conditions, and today he is called the Miracle Man, and has written a book of his complete account of heaven in the afterlife.

Vida es un viaje extraordinario por la historia del mundo a través de la mirada de un hombre excepcional. Con observaciones agudas y reflexiones profundas, el papa Francisco nos transporta a los sucesos más significativos de los últimos tiempos, desde el Holocausto hasta la caída del Muro de Berlín, pasando por el golpe de Videla en la Argentina y el Mundial de 1968, cuando Maradona marcó el famoso gol de la «mano de Dios».

In this deeply personal account of her first year as a missionary, Elisabeth Elliot shares what it was like to work in the jungles of Ecuador with a small group of women, bringing the Word of God to the indigenous tribe that martyred her husband. With fascinating detail, she captures the stark realities of life among these complex people and reflects upon the "strange ashes" that can result when an act of obedience is passed through the fires of God's perfect--yet mysterious--will.

In Seven More Men, the sequel to the enormously successful Seven Men, number one New York Times best-selling author Eric Metaxas offers more captivating stories of some of the most inspiring men in history. A gallery of greatness comes to life as Metaxas reveals men who faced insurmountable struggles and challenges with victorious resolve.

Now, with an updated preface, the latest edition of the definitive biography of Pope John Paul II that explores how influential he was on the world stage and in some of the most historic events of the 20th century that can still be felt today.

In the Shadow of Enlightenment is the gripping story of Carroll’s childhood inside the Osho Rajneesh cult—one of the most controversial spiritual movements of the 20th century. While in the commune, Sarito was submerged in a world where devotion and freedom clashed with manipulation, sexual misconduct, and neglect. This was the life she knew until the movement collapsed amid scandal and criminal charges in 1985, when sixteen-year-old Sarito was thrust into a society she knew little about.

At the age of five, Megan Phelps-Roper began protesting homosexuality and other alleged vices alongside fellow members of the Westboro Baptist Church in Topeka, Kansas. Founded by her grandfather and consisting almost entirely of her extended family, the tiny group would gain worldwide notoriety for its pickets at military funerals and celebrations of death and tragedy.