Project and content management for Contemporary Authors volumes
WORK TITLE: Misfit Faith
WORK NOTES:
PSEUDONYM(S):
BIRTHDATE:
WEBSITE: http://jasonstellman.com/
CITY: Seattle
STATE: WA
COUNTRY:
NATIONALITY:
http://www.drunkexpastors.com/faq/ * http://www.patheos.com/blogs/sickpilgrim/2016/07/interview-with-a-drunk-ex-pastor/
RESEARCHER NOTES:
LC control no.: n 2009011290
LCCN Permalink: https://lccn.loc.gov/n2009011290
HEADING: Stellman, Jason J.
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100 1_ |a Stellman, Jason J.
670 __ |a Stellman, Jason J. Pilgrim theology, 2009: |b ECIP t.p. (Jason J. Stellman) data view (pastor, Exile Presbyterian Church, Woodinville, Wash.)
953 __ |a rc05
PERSONAL
Born in CA.
EDUCATION:Westminster Seminary California, M.Div., 2004.
ADDRESS
CAREER
Mentor, speaker, and author. Calvary Chapel, pastor, 1992-2000; Presbyterian Church in America, pastor, 2004-2012. Worked previously as a missionary. Host of Drunk Ex-Pastors podcast.
AVOCATIONS:Clean eating, getting up early.
WRITINGS
Contributor to periodicals, including Modern Reformation, Nicotine Theological Journal, Evangelion, and Tabletalk.
SIDELIGHTS
Jason J. Stellman has devoted the majority of his professional life to religion. He is a graduate of Westminster Seminary California, and performed missionary work from 1991 to 2000 under the direction of the Calvary Chapel of Costa Mesa. After that, he began work as a pastor. During this period of his life, he served for the Presbyterian Church in America and Calvary Chapel. He held these positions up until the year 2012, when he decided to retire, convert to Catholicism, and redirect his career. Stellman now works as a speaker and writer on faith. He is also aligned with the “Drunk Ex-Pastors” podcast, which he hosts with a fellow member of his faith and field. Stellman’s writing has appeared in several periodicals, including Evangelion and Tabletalk. He has also authored several books discussing faith and religion.
One of his books, Misfit Faith: Confessions of a Drunk Ex-Pastor, deals with how Christianity is viewed and practiced in the modern day. The book is partly autobiographical, as Stellman devotes a portion of it to anecdotes about his own experiences within his religion. He also probes the word of the Bible, his ultimate goal being to demonstrate the idea that Christians view God through the wrong lens. God is a loving figure, Stellman theorizes, rather than a spiteful punisher. In presenting and constructing this alternate viewpoint of God, Stellman also advises that Christians come to see the world and their place in it in a kinder light as well. Stellman explains how this change of perspective came to influence his own religious views and practices, as it played a hand in his conversion from Protestantism. Stellman takes the time to detail just what elements of Protestant Christianity generate the wrong impression of how God and religion work, as well as which areas of the Bible and other belief systems under the Christian family rectify these mistaken ideas. He also ultimately describes Protestant Christianity as being much harsher in its interpretation and doctrine than other forms of Christianity—particularly Catholicism—for these same reasons. In making his points, Stellman draws not only from his own experiences as a Christian and from Scripture itself, but also uses contemporary culture to make his points easier to understand and digest for the contemporary reader. A Publishers Weekly reviewer expressed that Misfit Faith presents “a broader, more hospitable Christianity that has room for all our failed attempts and plenty of hope.” In an issue of Library Journal, Sandra Collins and James Wetherbee remarked: “This honest account will find resonance among consumers of popular faith narratives.”
BIOCRIT
PERIODICALS
Library Journal, April 1, 2017, Sandra Collins and James Wetherbee, “Spirituality & religion,” review of Misfit Faith: Confessions of a Drunk Ex-Pastor, p. 71.
Publishers Weekly, January 9, 2017, review of Misfit Faith, p. 61.
ONLINE
Jason Stellman Website, http://jasonstellman.com (October 19, 2017), author profile.
Religion Dispatches, http://religiondispatches.org/ (October 19, 2017), author profile.
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Jason J. Stellman
Jason Stellman, cohost of the podcast Drunk Ex-Pastors, is a Southern California native and transplant to Seattle who wishes he still lived in Europe. He served as a missionary with Calvary Chapel of Costa Mesa in Uganda ('91-'92) and in Hungary ('94-2000). Ordained In the Presbyterian Church in America, he was called to plant Exile Presbyterian Church in the Seattle area where he served from 2004-2012. In September 2012, he was received into the Catholic Church. He drinks and questions his faith regularly.
MARCH 13, 2017
FAITH FOR FUCK-UPS? A NEW BOOK EXPLORES A BROADER VISION FOR CHRISTIANITY
BY JASON J. STELLMAN
In his new book, Jason Stellman, the cohost of the popular podcast, Drunk Ex-Pastors, explores…
READ MORE
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About
pic OldJason Stellman is a Southern California native and transplant to Seattle who wishes he still lived in Europe.
He is a gifted and provocative writer, thinker, and speaker who has grown accustomed to the disruption and fallout that result from questioning established plotlines and challenging inherited paradigms (especially his own).
Jason’s forthcoming book, Misfit Faith (Convergence/Random House, March 2017), explores spirituality as displayed by those whose lives are a mess, who don’t have their acts together, and who have every reason to quit believing but (for some reason) can’t.
On his popular weekly podcast, Drunk Ex-Pastors, Jason and his agnostic co-host sit down over drinks and discuss everything from religion to pop culture, bringing their own unique camaraderie to issues both weighty and shallow.
Jason is a former pastor in Calvary Chapel (1992 – 2000) and the Presbyterian Church in America (2004 – 2012), and a former missionary to Uganda (1991 – 1992) and Hungary (1994 – 2000). He received his Masters of Divinity from Westminster Seminary California in 2004. In 2012, Jason stepped down from the ministry to embark on a career as a writer, speaker, mentor, and really bad Catholic (concerning that last one, he comforts himself by daily remembering Chesterton’s maxim that “Anything worth doing is worth doing poorly”).
Jason values things like rising early, eating whole foods, and “loving thy neighbor,” even though he rarely does any of them.
***
Literary Publications
Misfit Faith: Musings of a Drunk Ex-Pastor (Random House, 2017)
The Destiny of the Species: Man, and the Future that Pulls Him (Wipf and Stock, 2013)
Dual Citizens: Worship and Life between the Already and the Not Yet (Ligonier/Reformation Trust, 2009)
“A Sacrificial Ethic” (Tabletalk, July 2011)
“Missionalism, Church Style” (Modern Reformation, May/June 2011)
“On Civil Religion” (Tabletalk, Feb. 2011)
“Works, Grace, and the Danger of ‘Golawspel’” (Tabletalk, Jan. 2011)
“On the Evils of Over-Strategizing” (Nicotine Theological Journal, Sept. 2010)
“From Eternity to Here: Baptism, Eschatologically Considered” (Tabletalk, Aug. 2010)
“The Destiny of the Species” (Modern Reformation, Nov./Dec. 2009)
“When Are We?” (Tabletalk, Oct. 2009)
“Whither the PCA?” (Nicotine Theological Journal, June 2009)
“The Letter to the Church in Sardis” (Tabletalk, May 2009)
“Where Grace is Found” (Modern Reformation, July/August 2007)
“The Unlikely Calvinist” (Evangelion, 2004)
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Print Marked Items
Misfit Faith: Confessions of a Drunk Ex-pastor
Publishers Weekly.
264.2 (Jan. 9, 2017): p61.
COPYRIGHT 2017 PWxyz, LLC
http://www.publishersweekly.com/
Full Text:
Misfit Faith:
Confessions of a Drunk Ex-pastor
Jason J. Stellman. Convergent, $24 (176p)
ISBN 978-0-8041-4062-1
Stellman, cohost of the Drunk Ex-Pastor podcasc, advocates moving beyond mainstream Christian ideas in this
encouraging work of popular theology. Drawing on his personal journey from evangelicalism to Catholicism to a more
complicated relationship to faith, he argues that most Christians misunderstand the nature of God. In place of a stern,
sadistic stickler for law, he urges an understanding of God as father. This orientation opens Christians to a stronger
sense of grace, a more universal idea of salvation, and a less hostile approach to the world. His wit and popular culture
references disguise and cushion the seriousness of his claims. He carefully draws from the doctrine of the Trinity, the
incarnation, and New Testament texts, explaining their still relevant and originally shocking claims. Stellman manages
to find a middle ground between liberal Christianity's broad toleration and conservatives' push for boundaries and
textual adherence. The work ends somewhat abruptly but provides a vision for a broader, more hospitable Christianity
that has room for all our failed attempts and plenty of hope. (Mar.)
Source Citation (MLA 8th
Edition)
"Misfit Faith: Confessions of a Drunk Ex-pastor." Publishers Weekly, 9 Jan. 2017, p. 61. General OneFile,
go.galegroup.com/ps/i.do?
p=ITOF&sw=w&u=schlager&v=2.1&id=GALE%7CA477339353&it=r&asid=db971b5c27b75a1a0210cd580dbd7ced.
Accessed 3 Oct. 2017.
Gale Document Number: GALE|A477339353
---
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Spirituality & religion
Sandra Collins and James Wetherbee
Library Journal.
142.6 (Apr. 1, 2017): p71.
COPYRIGHT 2017 Library Journals, LLC. A wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution
permitted.
http://www.libraryjournal.com/
Full Text:
INTROSPECTION AND INTIMACY are recurring themes in this month's selections. We see an unexpectedly intimate
side of the relationship between journalist/activist Dorothy Day and God in The Reckless Way of Love. That
association between the divine presence and action is taken up by Marcus J. Borg in Days of Aive and Wonder.
Conversations, confessionals, and the complexities of daily life are investigated by authors such as Lauren Casper,
Anna LeBaron, Jason J. Stellman, and Tony and Bart Campolo. Looking at the sociology of religion, Jenna Weissman
Joselit uses the Ten Commandments as a touchstone to reflect on American culture in Set in Stone, Tanya Erzen
examines the role prison ministries play in God in Captivity, and Robin M. Jensen explores the enduring legacy of the
cross.
[ILLUSTRATION OMITTED]
HISTORY & PHILOSOPHY
* Batchelor, Stephen. Secular Buddhism: Imagining the Dharma in an Uncertain World. Yale Univ. Feb. 2017.296p.
notes, bibliog. ISBN 9780300223231. pap. $27.50. REL
Batchelor (Buddhism Without Beliefs) has long advocated that Buddhism would flourish best in Western societies as a
secular practice without such religious doctrines as karma or the cycle of rebirth. This anthology spans the 1990s to the
present, showing the development of the author's ideas and how the principles he proposes are lived. Although none of
the articles in this volume go into the critical depth needed to evaluate his overall project of reimagining Buddhism, it's
clear from the literary methods he used to approach Buddhist texts (particularly the Pali canon) that the author is not
intending to refashion Buddhism simply to meet his secular tastes. Even some of his most controversial contentions,
such as a radical reevaluation of the Four Noble Truths, depend on an attempt to recover the texts rather than recasting a
religion as a pragmatic philosophy. VERDICT Aimed at a broad audience, this work should appeal to anyone interested
in exploring Buddhism within a rigorous framework that is both conversant with and challenging to a Western
intellectual heritage.--JW
Erzen, Tanya. God in Captivity; The Rise of Faith-Based Prison Ministries in the Age of Mass Incarceration. Beacon.
Mar. 2017. 248p. notes. bibliog. ISBN 9780807089989. $26.95; ebk. ISBN 9780807089996. REL
Reminding us that the United States has an extensive system of correctional institutions, Erzen (religion, gender
studies, Univ. of Puget Sound, WA; Zero Tolerance) suggests the shift in theological perspective that came with the
Second Great Awakening, along with the theological justification of slavery in the South, had a profound impact on
prison reform in the 19th century. She argues that these effects are still felt today within the conservative Protestant
ethos regarding sin and redemption, crime and criminals, prisons and correctional institutions. In a series of case studies
drawn from visits to various correctional facilities, Erzen provides the perspectives of those serving in prison ministries,
prison officials, and (most particularly) prisoners themselves. Free of sentimentality, the author presents a picture of
these three interests interacting and reinforcing one another, often to the detriment of the inmates and society at large.
VERDICT Anyone interested in criminology, women's and family studies, sociology of religion, or criminal justice
reform will find this to be a powerful and thought-provoking study.--JW
Jensen, Robin M. The Cross : History, Art, and Controversy. Harvard Univ. Apr. 2017. 280p. bibliog. index. ISBN
9780674088801. $35. REL
Jensen (theology, Univ. of Notre Dame) follows the cross from its ignoble Christian beginnings through its
manifestations as a focus of art, poetry, and theater, into its reevaluation during the Protestant Reformation and up to
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modern perspectives from non-Christian groups. The cross has served as "artifact, religious symbol, miraculous agent,
devotional object and mass-produced collectible," resulting in a fascinating metaphor for the changing dynamics of
faith and culture. For instance, in the seventh century, as emphasis on Christ's physical agony on the cross grew,
iconoclasm clashed with religious iconography of the crucifix, with the unadorned cross emerging as an acceptable
image: "an abstract symbol, the simple cross is deemed acceptable for both liturgical as well as decorative purposes."
Rich in artistic imagery and well researched in both Western as well as Eastern Christian traditions, Jensen might be
faulted for offering only a single chapter covering the New World as well as Islam and the modern era, each of which
could have been an entire chapter. VERDICT This erudite history illuminates the social, cultural, as well as theological
developments of the cross over time.--SC
Joselit, Jenna Weissman. Set in Stone: America's Embrace of the TenCommandments. Oxford Univ. May2017. 232p.
iIIus. notes. bibliog. ISBN 9780190253196. pap. $29.95. REL
The Ten Commandments are, according to Joselit (Judaic studies, George Washington Univ.; The Wonders of
America), something of an American curiosity. They hold a pride of place enjoyed by few other texts, yet few can
actually enumerate them. Using media in which the commandments have been set forth--stone, stained glass, and
celluloid--Joselit presents narratives of how they have been woven into American culture and identity from the mid-
19th century into the 20th century. Delving into the Jewish immigrant experience, the author examines the tension
between maintaining one's heritage while embracing an American identity. She then explores how the Commandments
worked as metaphor and guide to forge a sense of a common civic virtue. Final essays deal with Cecil B. DeMille's film
The Ten Commandments, both the 1923 and 1956 versions. These are an exercise in contrast between how the laws
functioned after World War I and later, when Americans faced the horror of the Holocaust and perceived threat of
communism. VERDICT While not providing an explanation for the commandments' prominence in the American
imagination, Joselit has unearthed themes in the collective psyche, showing them to be more ubiquitous than one might
have thought.--JW
Mack, Burton L. The Rise and Fall of the Christian Myth: Restoring Our Democratic Ideals. Yale Univ. Feb. 2017.
320p. bibliog. index. ISBN 9780300222890. pap. $28; ebk. ISBN 9780300227895. REl
That the United States is a Christian nation and its status as such should be upheld is almost an article of faith for some
in the Christian Right. Mack (theology, Claremont Sch. of Theology; Myth and the Christian Nation) counters that
while the story of Christianity is embedded in the nation's social psyche, the United States has never been Christian,
and that the Christian myth is inadequate for a democratic society. He argues that the religion as it developed from the
time of Constantine served the needs of an empire and a feudal system. While the myth was largely quiescent in earlier
U.S. history, it started to reemerge with the onset of the Cold War. However, this framework has been unable to inform
or address the ideologies found in science or capitalism. The author uses a number of concrete examples to underscore
his theoretical argument. VERDICT This study requires attentive reading. Those with an interest in anthropology or the
sociology of religion along with readers inclined to social or national policy will enjoy.--JW
SPIRITUAL GROWTH
Alsup, Wendy. Is the BibleGood for Women? Seeking Clarityand Confidence Through a Jesus-Centered Understanding
of Scripture. Multnomah. Mar. 2017. 224p. notes. pap. ISBN 9781601429001. $15.99; ebk. ISBN 9781601429018.
REL
Blogger and writer Alsup (Practical Theology for Women) offers what she calls "a Jesus-centered" approach to the
Bible in order to redeem the trenchant misogyny often associated with its stories. Her reading of both testaments is
thoroughly intertextual: "no outside commentary offers as much insight on Scripture as the Bible offers about itself."
Her methodology employs a generalized spiritual allegory through the lens of the Christian message. For example,
marriage as given in Genesis 2 is not merely for procreative purposes, but rather presents an imperfect human image
that finds its ultimate perfection in Christ, where we read that "Jesus is the only true Groom." A woman's value, seen in
the light of Pauline patriarchy ("she shall be saved in childbearing" 1 Timothy 2:15), is not in reducing her to a womb,
but instead as the hope of salvation which comes through women, thereby redeeming the fallen Eve. VERDICT
Thoroughly orthodox in her approach, Alsup's latest work will appeal to Christocentric communities seeking to
accommodate a less gender-bifurcated faith.--SC
Borg, Marcus J. Days of Awe and Wonder: How To Bea Christian in the 21stCentury. HarperOne. Mar. 2017. 288p.
notes. ISBN 9780062457332. $25.99; ebk. ISBN 9780062457356. REl
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Borg (religion & culture, Oregon State Univ.; Meeting Jesus Again for the First Time) may be best known for his
association with the Jesus Seminar. However, this collection of sermons, book chapters, articles, interviews, and blog
posts is only tangentially connected with that endeavor. Instead, it addresses questions that informed Borg's scholarship
and practical convictions. Borg's focus is on wonder, that deep-seated conviction and experience that there is more to
life than we can know or hope to know, and though beyond our grasp, this knowledge is available to us. Borg, who died
in 2015, was a mystic, and his experiences with the numinous animate his writings. His kind of mysticism embraces
reason, as evidenced by discussions over the divinity of Jesus, religious pluralism, the new atheists, and issues of social
justice. Although Borg starts to repeat himself, the volume manages to portray a Christianity that is reasonable, full,
expansive, and life affirming. VERDICT For those interested in Borg's scholarship, this work provides a hand-held
guide for understanding him and his critics. It is also valuable for those wishing to engage their own spiritual
aspirations.--JW
Campolo, Tony & Bart Campolo. Why I Left, Why I Stayed: Conversations on Christianity Between an Evangelical
Father and His Humanist Son. HarperOne. Feb. 2017. 176p. ISBN 97B0062415370. $24.99; ebk. ISBN
9780062415424. REL
It is all too easy for believers and secularists to caricature each other. Such an easy out was not available for the
Christian apologist Tony Campolo (emeritus, sociology, Eastern Univ.; The Kingdom of Cod is a Party) and his son
Bart (Humanist Chaplain, Univ. of Southern California; Kingdom Works), who have been grappling with issues of faith
and reason for decades. While each aims at persuasion, they also take on the daunting task of affirming the other's
intellectual integrity, honesty, and human decency. With father and son alternating chapters, one gets the feeling o f a
conversation developing new points of view. Each account is personal, charged, and sometimes pointed, but leaves
readers wishing that the dialog would continue. It is clear that each intends to listen to and learn from the other and t o
hope (and work for) the best. VERDICT With the son articulating to his father his place in the world, and the father
seeing the world he bequeathed to his son being realigned, both Campolos invite readers into something deeper than a
simple clash of worldviews.--JW
Casper, Lauren. It's Okay About It: Lessons From a Remarkable Five-Year-Old About Living Life Wide Open.
HarperCollins. May2017. 240p. notes. ISBN 9780718085421. pap. $16.99; ebk. ISBN 9780718085537. REL
Blogger Casper (LaurenCasper.com) has taken some of her homespun insights on family and parenting and presents
them here, organized around the simple wisdom of her special-needs son, Mareto. After suffering from infertility,
Casper and her husband eventually adopted two Ethiopian children: one with recognizable issues, and one with
unknown issues that over time led to a diagnosis of autism. The overarching theme--life doesn't always go the way you
thought it would--resolves into a generalized sense of "Let go and let God." The author's unaffected voice is reflective
of a realized, everyday spirituality. Many of her ideas find common cause with new parents walking the path of
discovery as their children mature into their unique selves, if only parents take the time to stop and notice. That
idealized parental expectations often have to conform to each child results is a subtle and simple joy. VERDICT A
personal account of Christian parenting for those who are harried yet hopeful.--SC
Day, Dorothy. The Reckless Way of Love: Notes on Following Jesus. Plough. Mar. 2017. 149p. ed. by Carolyn Kurtz.
notes. bibliog. ISBN 9780874867923. pap. $8 ; ebk. ISBN9780874867930. REl
Day (1897-1980) is remembered as a radical and the founder of the Catholic Worker Movement, but one sees very little
of that here. These snippets from nearly a dozen larger collections explore what animated Day. While the sources are
noted, it is better to take in this title before consulting others. What emerges is the portrait of a woman of deep but
conventional Catholic piety. Professional theologians might dismiss Day's reflections as unsophisticated until being
brought back to her extraordinary personality. Day had no patience with those who called her a saint. Saints are not like
the rest of us, but the Day in these pages is. Her reflections leave one wondering whether what made her so fascinating
was that she took the simple teaching of her faith at face value and to heart. VERDICT While it cannot stand on its
own, this work can serve as a pocket companion to Day or as a source of quiet meditation.--JW
Stellman, Jason J. Misfit Faith: Confessions of a Drunk Ex-Pastor. Convergent. Mar. 2017. 176p. ISBN
9780804140621. pap. $24; ebk. ISBN 9780804140614. REL
While the subtitle teases that this is a confessional of sorts, in truth, social media personality Stellman's (cohost of
Drunk Ex-Pastors podcast) book is hardly memoiras-confessional, since readers learn little about the author. For that
information, it seems one should become familiar with his podcast. What Stellman does confess is his conversion from
rigid, Bible-thumping evangelical to an incarnationally informed lay Catholic who better tolerates the ambiguities and
paradoxes of faith. His misfit faith--loosely characterized in cheeky vernacular as "sucking at something awesome
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rather than being awesome at something that sucks"--is his artless defining apologia against unyielding Protestant
dogmatism in light of his fresh Catholic perspective. The author transfers his considerable missionary fervor to
defending a liturgically and sacramentally informed faith, which encodes his self-definition as a "crash and burn misfit."
However, he turns Evangelical Protestantism into a straw man in a manner that communicates much more about his
faith journey than Protestantism in general. VERDICT This honest account will find resonance among consumers of
popular faith narratives.--SC
MEMOIRS & BIOGRAPHIES
LeBaron, Anna with Leslie Wilson. The Polygamist's Daughter : AMemoir. Tyndale House. Mar. 2017. 320p. ISBN
9781496417558. pap. $15.99 ; ebk. ISBN 9781496417589. MEMOIR
Similar to recent memoirs (Elissa Walls's Stolen Innocence or Carolyn Jessop's Escape) about life within and ultimately
leaving a cult, LeBaron's account tells of being one of 50 children of rogue polygamist Ervil LeBaron. Her story is one
of maternal disaffection, geographic dislocation, and an appalling paucity of education and meaningful relationships
until she breaks away at age 13 to live with one of her nonpolygamist sisters. While her personal courage is laudatory,
this work lacks historical context, raising such questions as how her father and mother came to embrace this radical
Mormon belief system, and whether her father was an originator of the cult's blood atonement justification for the
murder of wayward members. Also missing is enough personal introspection to transform the retelling from life
vignettes into a sustained narrative, rendering this a superficial sharing of events and feelings from her childhood
perspective. VERDICT Only for exhaustive readers and collectors of faith memoirs.--SC
By Sandra Collins & James Wetherbee
Sandra Collins (PHD, MLS, Univ. of Pittsburgh) is Library Director and Professor at Byzantine Catholic Seminary, PA.
James Wetherbee (MA, Trinity Evangelical Divinity Sch.; MSLS, Univ. ojKentucky) is Network and Library Systems
Administrator at Wingate University, NC, and Library Liaison for the departments of religion and philosophy
Source Citation (MLA 8th
Edition)
Collins, Sandra, and James Wetherbee. "Spirituality & religion." Library Journal, 1 Apr. 2017, p. 71+. General
OneFile, go.galegroup.com/ps/i.do?
p=ITOF&sw=w&u=schlager&v=2.1&id=GALE%7CA488260007&it=r&asid=3ce03b7910ada03331139a5385b16ef2.
Accessed 3 Oct. 2017.
Gale Document Number: GALE|A488260007