Contains all the advice, guidance and resources a church needs to discuss admitting children to Holy Communion before confirmation Includes a ready-to-use preparation course for the whole family Also includes answers to the most common objections from parishes and an outline admission service Authors have many years' experience of advising and resourcing parishes on this issue

Calling All God's People offers a theological starting point to reflect on your calling and the calling of all God's people. It shows that whoever we are, whether young or old, wherever we are from, we are all invited to join in with God's life-affirming and transforming work. Calling All God's People explores three key themes from the Christian tradition - calling, discipleship and ministry - and includes real-life stories to help you imagine what calling looks like for different people in different contexts, as well as questions to ponder individually or in groups. It aims to broaden your imagination and help you ask how God might involve you in a transforming vision for the whole of life.

In periods of recession, churches frequently respond to social need in practical ways. These responses are often driven by pastoral concern rather than a theology of church and society. But without theological roots, such social action can be vulnerable and episodic. This volume, commissioned by a group of Bishops in hard-hit dioceses, looks to develop strong theological foundations for local social action initiatives by churches, especially for activists who are not familiar with the Church of England's tradition of social theology, developed by William Temple and others a century ago. In exploring what a renewed Anglican social theology might look like, this also draws on the impact of Catholic Social Teaching and focuses on the core topics of multiculturalism, economics, family patterns, ecology and other key issues.

This Is A New Release Of The Original 1844 Edition.

Part of One Church offers a classical understanding of the Church of England's identity and its place as part of the 'One, Holy, Catholic and Apostolic Church'. Though not opposed in principle to women's ordination to the priesthood, Roger Greenacre articulates with creative courtesy the ecclesiological reasons why so many cannot accept its implementation in the Church of England when it lacks the consent of the wider Church. In doing so he addresses issues that remain topical and significant. Roger's frame of reference is wide: his thinking and writing are deeply enriched by the Anglican tradition and his hope is that its distinctive heritage might be brought into communion with the Church Catholic.

Is the Church of England in terminal decline, as some have forecast, or does it have a vigorous future? Reports of dwindling congregations, and waning influence, contrast with stories of motivated leadership, and solid growth. The Church Times decided it was time to give the C of E a thorough medical. Thirty-five specialists, including academics, researchers, parish priests, missioners and commentators, were asked to take the Church's temperature. They looked at its congregations, leadership, governance and social influence. And then they were invited to prescribe some remedies. Not everyone agreed, either about what is wrong or what needs to be done, but a serious, and alarming consensus has emerged - the patient does needs treatment, and it needs it urgently.

Title: America and the American church.Author: Henry CaswallPublisher: Gale, Sabin Americana Description: Based on Joseph Sabin's famed bibliography, Bibliotheca Americana, Sabin Americana, 1500--1926 contains a collection of books, pamphlets, serials and other works about the Americas, from the time of their discovery to the early 1900s. Sabin Americana is rich in original accounts of discovery and exploration, pioneering and westward expansion, the U.S. Civil War and other military actions, Native Americans, slavery and abolition, religious history and more.Sabin Americana offers an up-close perspective on life in the western hemisphere, encompassing the arrival of the Europeans on the shores of North America in the late 15th century to the first decades of the 20th century. Covering a span of over 400 years in North, Central and South America as well as the Caribbean, this collection highlights the society, politics, religious beliefs, culture, contemporary opinions and momentous events of the time. It provides access to documents from an assortment of genres, sermons, political tracts, newspapers, books, pamphlets, maps, legislation, literature and more.Now for the first time, these high-quality digital scans of original works are available via print-on-demand, making them readily accessible to libraries, students, independent scholars, and readers of all ages.++++The below data was compiled from various identification fields in the bibliographic record of this title. This data is provided as an additional tool in helping to insure edition identification: ++++SourceLibrary: Huntington LibraryDocumentID: SABCP04106400CollectionID: CTRG02-B865PublicationDate: 18390101SourceBibCitation: Selected Americana from Sabin's Dictionary of books relating to AmericaNotes: Collation: xviii, 368 p., 5] leaves of plates (1 fold.): ill., map

For many people today, the events of Good Friday and Easter Sunday raise more questions than solutions. Likewise, people are often unmoved or confused by 'atonement theories' seeking to explain the purpose of Christ's death. In this thoughtful and heartfelt book, Alison Goodlad turns from abstract argument to poetic imagination for illumination, finding fresh inspiration in the poems of R. S. Thomas. With a Foreword by Lord Harries of Pentregarth, the former Bishop of Oxford, Leaving the Reason Torn offers a compelling exploration of the foundational mysteries of the Christian faith, made real again through the searching words of one of Britain's (specifically Wales') greatest poets. The author brings poetry and theology into synthesis, showing how the depths of the biblical witness can be rediscovered through human questioning and experience. Alison Goodlad is a new voice in the overlapping areas of poetry and religious exploration, but one whose work has already been commended by Archbishop Rowan Williams and by biblical scholar Walter Brueggemann, among others. She lives in Exeter.

Is there life after death? This question is raised by many people, both believers and non-believers alike. Surveys in the Netherlands have shown that 57% of church members (Roman-Catholic and Protestant) and 55% of the unchurched believe in a life after death.1 It is remarkable that so few members and so many non-members believe this. Even more remarkable is that in both categories more people believe in life after death than in God (40% among church members and 7% of non-members). Consider that church attenA--ders, whenever they recite the Nicene Creed, affirm in the first line their belief in 'God, the Father, the Almighty' and in the last line their belief in 'the resurrection of the dead, and the life of the world to come'. All this appears to indicate a considerable degree of 'wishful thinking' among the unchurched on the one hand and a rather confused belief among many church members on the other. This seems to me sufficient reason to reconsider the question of life after death extensively and critically. The biblical grounds for the belief in life after death will be discussed. Other religions are also considered. In this context, I also discuss reincarnation belief that has come to us from eastern religions and that is accepted by 25% of church members in the Netherlands. Special attention is paid to the interim period between death and resurrection, a subject about which the Bible tells us little and on which most theologians remain silent. I consider therefore what we can learn from the so-called 'near-death experiences' about which there has been much discussion lately due to the work of scientists such as Pim van Lommel, whose recent book, Consciousness Beyond life: The Science of the Near-Death Experience, has received much attention. It appears to provide information about the interim period between death and resurrection, a subject about which the Bible tells us little and on which most theologians remain silent. It is also to consider our scientific knowledge of life and its inescapable limitation. This further requires a discussion of the images that bible and science present of the human person. In this way I arrive at a novel answer to the question: "Is there life after death?"

This collection of literature attempts to compile many of the classic, timeless works that have stood the test of time and offer them at a reduced, affordable price, in an attractive volume so that everyone can enjoy them.

About the Contributor(s): George Hobson is an Episcopal priest and Canon to the Bishop for Theological Education in the Convocation of Episcopal Churches in Europe. He has taught theology in seminaries and theological colleges in many developing countries, including Rwanda, Burundi, Haiti, Armenia, and Pakistan. He is author of a volume of poems and photographs, Rumours of Hope (2005), and contributor to a collective book of poetry, Forgotten Genocides of the Twentieth Century (2005).

Thirty Nine New Articles offers a vision of a fresh, generous, contemporary Anglican faith and life. Inspired by the original Thirty Nine Articles of Religion, the Church of England's historic statement of belief, it explores thirty-nine beliefs and practices that characterize Anglicanism today and the issues it grapples with. Recognizing difference and urging generosity of spirit , author Martin Percy focuses on Anglican understanding of key Christian doctrines; personal faith; our shared life with each other, with other churches and with society around us. He also celebrates some of Anglicanism's guiding spirits, from St Columba to George Herbert. Warm, engaging and inspiring, Thirty Nine New Articles offers crucial and critical insights, proclaiming the Christian faith today and offering an apologia for the Anglican Church. It is essential reading for all seeking fresh and relevant ways of articulating their faith.

James Joseph Walsh, M.D., LL.D., Litt.D., Sc.D. (1865-1942) was an American physician and author, born in New York City. He graduated from Fordham College in 1884 and from the University of Pennsylvania (M.D.) in 1895. After postgraduate work in Paris, Vienna and Berlin he settled in New York.

This Is A New Release Of The Original 1896 Edition.

The wife of an Anglican bishop could expect a life of peace and comfort. But Benjamin Kwashi is the bishop of Jos in Nigeria, a place that is torn by Muslim-Christian violence. Gloria Kwashi has had her home burnt down and has endured rape and beatings. One of the beatings left her blinded, until surgery was able to restore her sight. Despite this, she continues to reach out to widows and orphans and supports her husband in his remarkable ministry in Northern Nigeria. This book is a record of love and endurance that should stimulate us to examine our own lives and how we respond to adversity.

This short history of Christianity in England since the close of the Middle Ages was first published for the Religious Book Club in 1953* It was immediately welcomed. The Church Times called it 'a miracle of accomplished comprehension', and the (Manchester) Guardian 'quite extraordinarily good'. The Times Educational Supplement commented on its 'abounding momentum and not a single dull page'. The author has now revised the book for this cheap edition, and an Epilogue continues the story of the English churches down to 1960.

A collection of talks and sermons from Rowan Williams, one of the finest theological minds of our day, covering a range of issues from war, social justice and sexuality to prayer, spirituality and evangelism. Williams shows the connections between contemporary issues, biblical texts and the Christian tradition, each element drawing new and often surprising things out of the others, and challenges us to make our own connections between the gospel, contemporary problems and our personal struggles.