More than any other European city, Baroque Naples was dominated by convents. Behind their imposing facades and highly decorated churches, the convents of Naples housed the daughters of the city's most exclusive families, women who, despite their cloistered existence, were formidable players in the city's power structure. Invisible City vividly portrays the religious world of seventeenth-century Naples, a city of familial and internecine rivalries, of religious devotion and intense urban politics, of towering structures built to house the virgin daughters of the aristocracy. Helen Hills demonstrates how the architecture of the convents and the nuns' bodies they housed existed both in parallel and in opposition to one another. She discusses these women as subjects of enclosure, as religious women, and as art patrons, but also as powerful agents whose influence extended beyond the convent walls. Though often ensconced in convents owing to their families' economic circumstances, many of these young women were able to extend their influence as a result of the role convents played both in urban life and in art patronage. The convents were rich and powerful organizations, riven with feuds and prey to the ambitions of viceregal and elite groups, which their thick walls could not exclude. Even today, Neapolitan convents figure prominently in the city's fabric. In analyzing the architecture of these august institutions, Helen Hills skillfully reads conventual architecture as a metaphor for the body of the aristocratic virgin nun, mapping out the dialectic between flesh and stone.
Jake Stevens and Chloe Mayer have been inseparable since they were little kids. Both are children of broken and abusive homes, and they quickly learn to rely on each other in order to survive the cold, heartless world in which they live. The strength and support they find in one another bonds them forever as best friends. As young adults, they discover that life is not as simple as when they were kids. The neglect and abuse from their unloving parents worsen. They begin experiencing heartaches and regrets from external relationships. And they discover that amidst everything else, complex feelings are beginning to develop between them that both terrify and exhilarate. For Jake and Chloe, life is changing fast. And the changes are leading them down a road full of unpredictable twists and turns where they quickly learn that nothing is ever certain.
This book investigates baroque architecture through the lens of San Gennaro’s miraculously liquefying blood in Naples. This vantage point allows a bracing and thoroughly original rethink of the power of baroque relics and reliquaries. It shows how a focus on miracles produces original interpretations of architecture, sanctity and place which will engage architectural historians everywhere. The matter of the baroque miracle extends into a rigorous engagement with natural history, telluric philosophy, new materialism, theory and philosophy. The study will transform our understanding of baroque art and architecture, sanctity and Naples. Bristling with new archival materials and historical insights, this study lifts the baroque from its previous marginalisation to engage fiercely with materiality and potentiality and thus unleash baroque art and architecture as productive and transformational.
Spiritual Living: What Matters - and What Doesn't is for the person who wants a more rewarding spiritual life. Written in a lucid, conversational style, the book focuses on issues that really matter, clearing away linguistic and doctrinal stumbling blocks that often prevent spirituality from developing into religion. Pertinent questions after each chapter make this book ideal for discussion groups and spiritual retreats, as well as for the individual. It includes an annotated bibliography. "Without promoting a particular theological agenda, Helen Hills explores a wide range of questions with candor, clarity, and freshness. I heartily recommend this book as a mature starting point for deepening the journey of faith and a resource for discussion groups." Rev. Andrew Foster, Rector, Church of the Ascension, New York, N.Y. "Spiritual Living will be helpful not only to spiritual directors, clergy, and faith communities, but also, and perhaps especially for secular souls yearning for affirmation and advice beyond the boundaries of a particular religious tradition." Rev. K. Jeanne Person, Grace Church, Brooklyn, N.Y. "Helen Hills leaves room for skeptics to become believers and for believers to be skeptical. Her definition of spirituality is expansive rather than narrow. The book is written in a way that invites the reader into a dialogue with the author." Esther Haskell, Charlemon Federated Church, Charlemont, MA
Early modern Naples has been characterized as a marginal, wild and exotic place on the fringes of the European world, and as such an appropriate target of attempts, by Catholic missionaries and others, to ’civilize’ the city. Historiographically bypassed in favour of Venice, Florence and Rome, Naples is frequently seen as emblematic of the cultural and political decline in the Italian peninsula and as epitomizing the problems of southern Italy. Yet, as this volume makes plain, such views blind us to some of its most extraordinary qualities, and limit our understanding, not only of one of the world's great capital cities, but also of the wider social, cultural and political dynamics of early modern Europe. As the centre of Spanish colonial power within Europe during the vicerealty, and with a population second only to Paris in early modern Europe, Naples is a city that deserves serious study. Further, as a Habsburg dominion, it offers vital points of comparison with non-European sites which were subject to European colonialism. While European colonization outside Europe has received intense scholarly attention, its cultural impact and representation within Europe remain under-explored. Too much has been taken for granted. Too few questions have been posed. In the sphere of the visual arts, investigation reveals that Neapolitan urbanism, architecture, painting and sculpture were of the highest quality during this period, while differing significantly from those of other Italian cities. For long ignored or treated as the subaltern sister of Rome, this urban treasure house is only now receiving the attention from scholars that it has so long deserved. This volume addresses the central paradoxes operating in early modern Italian scholarship. It seeks to illuminate both the historiographical pressures that have marginalized Naples and to showcase important new developments in Neapolitan cultural history and art history. Those developments showcased here include bot
AUTUMN LIGHT is the ideal bedside book for the thoughtful reader. It is inspirational without being shallow. Its insightful anecdotes, stories, and fables are sometimes poignant, often humorous, and always thought provoking. The author converses with the reader, sharing her often intimate musings and observations in a direct, frank, and engaging manner.
This family history is a companion volume to "On the Shoulders of Generations: A Hill Family Remembrance." This book focuses on the life of Hazel Margaret Wickard Hill (1902-1962), and includes her Wickard and Tufts ancestors. She married Oliver W. Hill and was the mother of the authors of this book.
This is the second in the Forest Hills series, following the families whose lives are experiencing trials and look to God for an answer. Hope is all they have left and faith is the key that opens the door to possibilities.
The residents of Forest Hills are sensing an eerie presence that fills hearts with fear and suspicion. Can Pastor Hayden and his congregation rid the town of this evil entity or will the community prepare for the loss of a powerful Christian? And how will the trust and faith be restored?
Thank you for visiting our website. Would you like to provide feedback on how we could improve your experience?
This site does not use any third party cookies with one exception — it uses cookies from Google to deliver its services and to analyze traffic.Learn More.