From a World War to a personal war this is the profoundly personal story of a preacher with PTSD and major depressive disorder. Don Baker shares his journey into the darknessthe black hole, as he calls itand how its shadow has haunted him for over seventy years. Insightful, vulnerable, and honest, this is a human story for human readers, for people who have tasted life and found it too often bitter and perplexing.
Tasan Chŏng Yagyong (1762–1836) is one of the most creative thinkers Korea has ever produced, one of the country’s first Christians, and a leading scholar in Confucian philosophy. Born in a staunchly Neo-Confucian society, in his early twenties he encountered writings by Catholic missionaries in China and was fascinated. However, when he later learned that the Catholic Church condemned the Confucian practice of placing a spirit tablet on a family altar to honor past generations, he left the small Catholic community he had helped found and ostensibly returned to the Neo-Confucian fold. Nevertheless, the Christian ideas he studied in his youth influenced his thinking for the rest of his life, stimulating him to look at Neo-Confucianism with a critical eye and suggest new solutions to problems Confucian scholars had been addressing for centuries. A Korean Confucian’s Advice on How to Be Moral is an annotated translation of Tasan’s commentaries on the Confucian classic Zhongyong (usually translated as The Doctrine of the Mean) in which he applies both Confucianism and Christianity to the question of how to best develop a moral character. Written as a dialogue with King Chŏngjo (r. 1776–1800), these texts reveal how Tasan interpreted his Confucian tradition, particularly its understanding of how human beings could cultivate morality, while the king’s questions illustrate the mainstream Neo-Confucianism Tasan was reacting against. Tasan challenged the non-theistic standard, insisting that living a moral life is not easy and that we need to be motivated to exert the effort necessary to overcome our selfish tendencies. He had abandoned his faith by the time he wrote these commentaries but, influenced by Catholic works and determined to find a more effective way to live a moral life than non-theistic Neo-Confucianism provided, Tasan constructed a Confucian philosophy of moral improvement centered on belief in God. This translation, helpfully annotated for context and analysis, is an exploration of early Korean engagement with the West and a powerful guide to all those interested in Confucianism, Christianity, and morality.
Baker's autobiography recounts his boyhood in rural South Dakota in the 1930s and his search for meaning, which led to amazing revelations from God. He found that anyone can experience closeness with God, and he urges the reader to Rgo for it!
Photographer and avid basketball fan Don Baker provides an inside look at New Mexico's twelve seasons of professional minor league basketball. The inner workings of the various team franchises are revealed through his interviews with owners, coaches, players, and sportscasters, all interspersed with Baker's many outstanding photographs of action on the court, on the sidelines, and in the locker rooms. Ex-UNM Lobo players who went professional are featured along with minor league players who went on to fame and fortune in the NBA (see Chris "Birdman" Andersen without tattoos!). Few fans have "gone renegade" to explore the inside stories of the teams and the personal stories of the players to the extent that Don Baker has done in this unique book.
Korea’s first significant encounter with the West occurred in the last quarter of the eighteenth century when a Korean Catholic community emerged on the peninsula. Decades of persecution followed, resulting in the deaths of thousands of Korean Catholics. Don Baker provides an invaluable analysis of late-Chosŏn (1392–1897) thought, politics, and society to help readers understand the response of Confucians to Catholicism and of Korean Catholics to years of violent harassment. His analysis is informed by two remarkable documents expertly translated with the assistance of Franklin Rausch and annotated here for the first time: an anti-Catholic essay written in the 1780s by Confucian scholar Ahn Chŏngbok (1712–1791) and a firsthand account of the 1801 anti-Catholic persecution by one of its last victims, the religious leader Hwang Sayŏng (1775–1801). Confucian assumptions about Catholicism are revealed in Ahn’s essay, Conversation on Catholicism. The work is based on the scholar’s exchanges with his son-in-law, who joined the small group of Catholics in the 1780s. Ahn argues that Catholicism is immoral because it puts more importance on the salvation of one’s soul than on what is best for one’s family or community. Conspicuously absent from his Conversation is the reason behind the conversions of his son-in-law and a few other young Confucian intellectuals. Baker examines numerous Confucian texts of the time to argue that, in the late eighteenth century, Korean Confucians were tormented by a growing concern over human moral frailty. Some among them came to view Catholicism as a way to overcome their moral weakness, become virtuous, and, in the process, gain eternal life. These anxieties are echoed in Hwang’s Silk Letter, in which he details for the bishop in Beijing his persecution and the decade preceding it. He explains why Koreans joined (and some abandoned) the Catholic faith and their devotion to the new religion in the face of torture and execution. Together the two texts reveal much about not only Korean beliefs and values of two centuries ago, but also how Koreans viewed their country and their king as well as China and its culture.
In 1970, pampered, naïve, Philly-born Frannie is overwhelmed by the responsibilities of nursing school and college life in Dallas. A love-hate relationship erupts when Robin, her fiery, red-headed roommate, arrives from Chicago to find Frannie's belongings covering every inch of space in their room, and Frannie nowhere in sight. Adding fuel to the fire, Frannie pursues a relationship with a sophomore hunk whom Robin insists is pond scum. She ignores her suitemates' pleas to join their study group, insisting her high school achievements will guarantee her success in college. Frannie's wake-up call comes after nearly two semesters of disastrous decision-making. She finds herself flunking out and her nursing career ending before it begins. With support from an unexpected source, she faces the biggest decision of her life - one that no matter the outcome will upend her future.
Korea has one of the most dynamic and diverse religious cultures of any nation on earth. Koreans are highly religious, yet no single religious community enjoys dominance. Buddhists share the Korean religious landscape with both Protestant and Catholic Christians as well as with shamans, Confucians, and practitioners of numerous new religions. As a result, Korea is a fruitful site for the exploration of the various manifestations of spirituality in the modern world. At the same time, however, the complexity of the country’s religious topography can overwhelm the novice explorer. Emphasizing the attitudes and aspirations of the Korean people rather than ideology, Don Baker has written an accessible aid to navigating the highways and byways of Korean spirituality. He adopts a broad approach that distinguishes the different roles that folk religion, Buddhism, Confucianism, Christianity, and indigenous new religions have played in Korea in the past and continue to play in the present while identifying commonalities behind that diversity to illuminate the distinctive nature of spirituality on the Korean peninsula.
Katie, a stoic young Native American, faces family pressures, a developing distant romantic relationship, and stress from nursing school clinicals during her junior year at Crestmont University in Dallas. Her dream of becoming a nurse is challenged when her mother suffers an injury that could force her to stay on the farm, assume her mother’s duties, and postpone her education, perhaps permanently. Compounding her stress, Katie’s childhood friend and soulmate’s demand for a greater level of commitment drives her into an emotional spiral as she tries to balance her dream of becoming a nurse and her love for John. The academically sound Katie finds that book learning is not sufficient for success in the clinical setting. Her frustration grows as she encounters difficulty in implementing her carefully crafted patient care plans. Her relationship with the Nurseketeers, her best friends and support system, deteriorates as she tries unsuccessfully to cope. She struggles in silence, turning in secret to alcohol to quell the chaos of clinical practice and putting herself in jeopardy of failing out of nursing school.
What is the influencer lifestyle? How do influencers win their fight for relevance and create a brand that catches fire, while still leading an authentic, healthy life? Influencing is a business built around likes and hate, which can take a huge psychological toll on those who choose to play the game. An Influencer’s World pulls back the curtain and shines a light on the often-misunderstood realities of this dynamic industry. Featuring dozens of interviews with trending influencers, CEOs, leading industry insiders, brands, mental health professionals, and celebrities, this book provides an unconventional look at both the business side of influencing and the personal lives of influencers and creators. INTERVIEWEES INCLUDE: Isabella Avila (17.7m on TikTok) Jacques Bastien (cofounder, SHADE) Mark Cuban (8.6m on Twitter) Mary Fitzgerald (1.8m on Instagram) GloZell Green (4.6m on YouTube) Tim Karsliyev (1.7m on Instagram) Kevin Kreider (431k on Instagram) Max Levine (cofounder, Amp Studios) Cindy Pham (468k on YouTube) Michael Schweiger (CEO, Central Entertainment Group) LaToya Shambo (CEO/founder, Black Girl Digital) Joshua Suarez (14.4m on TikTok)
Almost forty years after the publication of Hobsbawm and Ranger’s The Invention of Tradition, the subject of invented traditions—cultural and historical practices that claim a continuity with a distant past but which are in fact of relatively recent origin—is still relevant, important, and highly contentious. Invented Traditions in North and South Korea examines the ways in which compressed modernity, Cold War conflict, and ideological opposition has impacted the revival of traditional forms in both Koreas. The volume is divided thematically into sections covering: (1) history, religions, (2) language, (3) music, food, crafts, and finally, (4) space. It includes chapters on pseudo-histories, new religions, linguistic politeness, literary Chinese, p’ansori, heritage, North Korean food, architecture, and the invention of children’s pilgrimages in the DPRK. As the first comparative study of invented traditions in North and South Korea, the book takes the reader on a journey through Korea’s epic twentieth century, examining the revival of culture in the context of colonialism, decolonization, national division, dictatorship, and modernization. The book investigates what it describes as “monumental” invented traditions formulated to maintain order, loyalty, and national identity during periods of political upheaval as well as cultural revivals less explicitly connected to political power. Invented Traditions in North and South Korea demonstrates that invented traditions can teach us a great deal about the twentieth-century political and cultural trajectories of the two Koreas. With contributions from historians, sociologists, folklorists, scholars of performance, and anthropologists, this volume will prove invaluable to Koreanists, as well as teachers and students of Korean and Asian studies undergraduate courses.
Finding acceptance and love are at the heart of this collection of three bestselling works--Depression, Pain's Hidden Purpose, and Acceptance--which describe the private prisons from which we must liberate ouselves in order to achieve true self-freedom and personal growth.
Did the miracles of God stop centuries ago? I do not believe that is the case. I am convinced that he is still positively and powerfully intervening in the lives of those that love him. Many people believe that God is cloaked in mystery far, far away. But the bible says that God is near to those who love him. And, I believe that the bible, his Holy Spirit, and the works of his creation all provide ample confirmation that it is his desire that we truly know him. I believe that God is still miraculously intervening in the lives of his creation. But my beliefs are substantially deeper than that. I believe that God's interventions come with a level of predictability. I do not believe in random acts of thunderstorms, nor random acts of showers of blessings.
BLOOD VISION A new American nightmare has been unleashed: nearly a thousand injured and more than 500 dead at Washington's biggest airport in a show of terror that was just a sneak preview of the main event. Mack Bolan leads a strike force that includes the warriors of Stony Man in a race to root out a virulent enemy: a blood-soaked American militia group holding hands with Jihad terrorists — sharing a common bond of destruction: the U.S government. The enemy's got a field force to rival Stony Man: black ops assassins — killers without peer. The technology they've managed to steal is top secret, and gives them a clear shot at any worst-case scenario they choose. United, the Hand of Christ and the Fist of God are ready to accomplish what neither group can do alone: rewrite history.
In this study guide Don Baker explores the letters Paul wrote to new believers in Thessalonica. Their questions are still on the minds and hearts of Christians today. And Paul's answer's are still a source of strength and comfort.11 studies
Learn blues-style harmonica with one of the world's greatest players, Don Baker. Discover the techniques of cross-playing, note bending, triplet tonguing and tone control to create all those bluesy sounds.
Budgies, budgies, budgies. Beautiful and cheeky, delightful and enchanting, wild or tamed budgerigars are Australia's gift to the bird world. They sing and dance, and yawn as contagiously as humans. They are masters of mimicry. They grasp simple grammar, can count to six and have memories that belie their size. They've been coveted by royals and been companions to the great and famous as well as grannies in suburban kitchens around the world. They've been painted by masters, rendered in the finest porcelain and graced fashionable hats and earrings of the highest order. Their image has been used to sell whisky, stamps and laundry detergent and everything in between. Surprising, charming and occasionally alarming, Budgerigar is the book that at last opens the cage door on the incredible story of the little bird that grew.
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