Kirstie Blair explores Victorian poetry in relation to Victorian religion, with particular emphasis on the bitter contemporary debates over the use of forms in worship. She argues that poetry made significant contributions to these debates, not least through its formal structures. By assessing the discourses of church architecture and liturgy in the first half of the book, Form and Faith in Victorian Poetry and Religion demonstrates that Victorian poets both reflected on and affected ecclesiastical practices. The second half of the book focuses on particular poets and poems, including Browning's Christmas-Eve and Tennyson's In Memoriam, to show how High Anglican debates over formal worship were dealt with by Dissenting, Broad Church and Roman Catholic poets and other writers. This book features major Victorian poets - Tennyson, the Brownings, Rossetti, Hopkins, Hardy - from different Christian denominations, but also argues that their work was influenced by a host of minor and less studied writers, particularly the Tractarian or Oxford Movement poets whose writings are studied in detail here. Form and Faith presents a new take on Victorian poetry by showing how important now-forgotten religious controversies were to the content and form of some of the best-known poems of the period. In methodology and content, it also relates strongly to current critical interest in poetic form and formalism, while recovering a historical context in which 'form' carried a particular weight of significance.

A House of Praise brings together the collected hymn texts of one of the most respected and widely published contemporary English hymn-writers. Timothy Dudley-Smith has been writing hymn texts for more than 50 years and is represented in countless hymnals throughout the English-speaking world. This second part to the collected edition A House of Praise contains hymns written since 2002 (hymn Nos.286-435) and texts from three earlier books (A Door for the Word, Praise to the Name, and Beyond our Dreaming), revised and updated. The volume presents the definitive text of hymns, arranged thematically, and Notes and comprehensive Indexes.

Although these Graces are mostly drawn from the great Christian tradition, they are all directed to the present time, to life as we lead it. Every day we make unexpected discoveries about ourselves and the world around us. Likewise, in a spirit of serendipity, these Graces are not categorized. They are to dip into whenever you need the comfort of words that show us that we are not alone and that our private joys and sorrows, irritations and minor triumphs, have been, and always will be, common to humankind. In this book each Grace has its own minute prayer mat on which you may, perhaps, in your imagination, kneel down and rest your spirit for a while.

God's Word is the strongest weapon in a believer's spiritual artillery. Quin Sherrer and Ruthanne Garlock, bestselling authors of A Woman's Guide to Spiritual Warfare, believe that when Christians use the Bible in intercession and warfare, they bind the power of the evil one and declare God's promises and victory for their lives and for those they love. In The Spiritual Warrior's Prayer Guide, they show the reader how to apply biblical promises to every area of life, whether in illness, financial trouble, depression, concern for wayward loved ones, unemployment, or spiritual confusion.

'This journey, of course, is not without its challenges . . . And yet facing those challenges also lends enchantment to the journey.' Join Professor Roderick Strange as he presents the core doctrine of the Catholic faith in a warm and accessible way. Using the liturgical calendar as a roadmap for the journey, Roderick invites us to follow Jesus of Nazareth from Advent through the Church's festivals to Pentecost. Through meditative reflection and powerful personal anecdotes, Journey into Light is the perfect introduction for those new to the Catholic faith.

Prayers are windows--windows on eternity. Through the prayers in the Bible we look into the profoundest issues of life and death, and the deepest longings of our own hearts. And we learn about the God to whom we pray, the one who wants to talk with us, the one who takes the initiative in our relationship with him. In this classic book on prayer, John White helps us listen to Abraham plead for Sodom and Gomorrah. We watch Jacob wrestle with the Angel of the Lord. We hear David confess his sin. We also see him dance before the ark of the covenant. We hear Hannah ask for a child. Finally, John White shows how Jesus' prayers on the cross present a model for facing our last hours as well. The ten prayers in this book will take you near to the holy one of the universe, the personal God of each person in the world.

ECPA Christian Book of the Year Christianity Today Book of the Year Foreword INDIES Book of the Year Award Finalist IVP Readers' Choice Award How can we trust God in the dark? Framed around a nighttime prayer of Compline, Tish Harrison Warren, author of Liturgy of the Ordinary, explores themes of human vulnerability, suffering, and God's seeming absence. When she navigated a time of doubt and loss, the prayer was grounding for her. She writes that practices of prayer "gave words to my anxiety and grief and allowed me to reencounter the doctrines of the church not as tidy little antidotes for pain, but as a light in darkness, as good news." Where do we find comfort when we lie awake worrying or weeping in the night? This book offers a prayerful and frank approach to the difficulties in our ordinary lives at work, at home, and in a world filled with uncertainty.

Penitential practice in the Holy Roman Empire 900-1050, examined through records in church law, the liturgy, monastic and other sources. This study examines all forms of penitential practice in the Holy Roman Empire under the Ottonian and Salian Reich, c.900 - c.1050. This crucial period in the history of penance, falling between the Carolingians' codification of public and private penance, and the promotion of the practice of confession in the thirteenth century, has largely been ignored by historians. Tracing the varieties of penitential practice recorded in church law, the liturgy, monastic practice, narrative and documentary sources, Dr Hamilton's book argues that many of the changes previously attributed to the twelfth and thirteenth centuries can be found earlier in the tenth and early eleventh centuries. Whilst acknowledging that there was a degree of continuity from the Carolingian period, she asserts that the period should be seen as having its own dynamic. Investigating the sources for penitential practice by genre, sheacknowledges the prescriptive bias of many of them and points ways around the problem in order to establish the reality of practice in this area at this time. This book thus studies the Church in action in the tenth and eleventh centuries, the reality of relations between churchmen, and between churchmen and the laity, as well as the nature of clerical aspirations. It examines the legacy left by the Carolingian reformers and contributes to our understanding of pre-Gregorian mentalities in the period before the late eleventh-century reforms. SARAH HAMILTON teaches in the Department of History, University of Exeter.

Why is prayer so hard? Many of us have asked that question. We want to pray. We intend to pray. But, as spiritual director and professor MaryKate Morse notes, "We don't pray as consistently or as meaningfully as we might like." And yet prayer offers us such spiritual riches. Prayer draws us to experience love and to be love increases our faith expands our vision of God helps us grow in self-understanding gives us perspective on life and death Morse continues: "Through prayer, we experience forgiveness, guidance and peace. We are healed physically and emotionally. We experience the mystery of God, see truth and receive spiritual gifts. We receive vision and courage for God's mission. Faith becomes more beautiful, more real." This guidebook is designed to move you from lamenting over prayerlessness to the joy of praying. Whether you are a beginner or a lifetime person of faith, you will find a treasure trove of riches here to guide you into a deeper experience of prayer. Each chapter explores a different angle of prayer with sections focusing on each of the persons of the Trinity--Father, Son and Holy Spirit. And each chapter offers specific ways to pray both on your own, with a partner or in a group. Sprinkled throughout are reflections from the author's former students describing on their own experience with these practices. A treasure trove of both resources and encouragement, you will find this book to be an indispensable guide to your life of prayer.

This book presents the complete texts of the gospel readings for every Sunday throughout the three-year cycle of the Sunday lectionary in the Catholic Church during the season of Ordinary Time, and for the solemnities and feasts which fall on Sundays. It may be used for personal study to enhance understanding and appreciation of the Sunday gospel. Each reading is accompanied by a short commentary, two questions for personal reflection and two prayers, to enable the gospels to be read in the contemplative tradition of Lectio Divina. These reflections have been written by the Revd Dr Adrian Graffy, a member of the Pontifical Biblical Commission. The gospels are from the Revised New Jerusalem Bible, a bold new rendition of the scriptures designed for study and proclamation, and acclaimed for the richness, accuracy and inclusivity of its language. A companion to this volume, The Sunday Gospels for Advent, Christmas, Lent and Easter, is to be released in November 2021.

Companion volume to SS 5 and SS 17, completing the set

"God wants to answer ALL your prayers! "If He had planned it any other way, He would never have required you to pray. But He'll hear and answer only when you're 'PRAYING THE RIGHT WAY.' Discover the secrets and principles of effective prayer in this concise, yet comprehensive book by Chris Oyakhilome and rid yourself of any wrong mindsets, doctrines, perceptions, practices and prayers that may have clogged the wheels of your prayer life.

When you talk to God, do you ever feel as if you are not getting through? You're not alone. At some point, most believers find themselves grappling with difficult questions like Would God really talk to me personally? and How do I know it's truly God talking, and not my own thoughts? But here's the good news: Hearing God is simpler than you think. It's possible to have a relationship with God that involves both speaking and listening. In fact, it's God's desire; He wants to talk to you. In this revised and expanded edition of a classic work, author and teacher Steve Sampson shows you how to pray not just wishing you'd hear God's voice--but expecting to hear it. Sampson's uncomplicated, practical perspective will help you cultivate the two-way conversation with God you've always longed for. Before long, you'll hear Him speaking into your circumstances and relationships, expressing His love for you and showing you the next steps to take in your life. Don't settle for a one-sided conversation with God. Break through this barrier and develop a sensitive heart that hears--and responds to--God's still, small voice. "With clarity and humor, Steve takes you on a journey to the place of profound simplicity in Christ where hearing Him is as natural as breathing."--Bishop Mark J. Chironna, M.A., Ph.D., Church on the Living Edge, Orlando, Florida

A wartime prayerbook written for dangerous days like ours - made to fit in pocket or purse Our parents before us understood that strife is rarely far from even the best of us, and they girded themselves for warfare, actual and spiritual. Among the wisest of men who shepherded them was Archbishop Fulton Sheen, who won their hearts with his warm, engaging broadcast personality . . . but in secret he put on the armor of God. World War II thrust temptation, fear, danger, and death on the men and women Archbishop Sheen had formed through his popular radio shows in the 1930's. Knowing that many of his listeners were now beyond the sound of his voice, fighting and dying on battlefields afar, he wrote this pocket-sized prayerbook so that they, too, could put on the armor of God as they faced their new trials, physical and spiritual. Recently, a friend showed us his tattered World War II copy. We recognized immediately that with the new dangers we face since September 11, the time had come to draft this old prayer book back into service. Yes, it's for soldiers (and you should send it to every soldier you know so he will have have it in his breast pocket when he needs it), but it's for you and me, too. Archbishop Sheen knew that no matter what our circumstances may be, the deadliest enemy we face is armed not with a gun but with temptation. In dangerous, uncertain times like ours, the Devil lures us quickly into lust, anger, hatred, and despair. Fulton Sheen's Wartime Prayer Book will help keep you from these vices so that you, too, can put on the armor of God and triumph over evil in our day.

This is a selection of 250 of the best-known hymns in the English language, including texts translated from Greek, Latin, and German. An introduction discusses the hymn as a historical and literary artifact and each hymn is printed with notes that set it in context, identify significant sources, and provide explanatory and critical material.

Amnon Linder, professor of medieval history at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem has published two seminal studies in the history of the Christian Holy Land and in Jewish-Christian relations in Late Antiquity and the Middle Ages (Jerusalem-Toronto, 1987 and 1997 respectively) but in recent years has dedicated himself to the study of medieval liturgy, particularly Crusader liturgy of the liberation and destruction of Jerusalem. The essays gathered here from friends, colleagues and students of Prof. Linder pick up the themes of Linder's publications - medieval law, liturgy and literature. The papers deal with a variety of sources, and encompass the fourth to fifteenth centuries, and span from the Holy Land to the British Isles, and present different methodologies.

A three-year pattern of lectionary readings has come into widespread use over the past generation within many churches. Since its release in 1992 the three-year Revised Common Lectionary has had a significant influence ecumenically on worship and its preparation. Now the ecumenical consultation responsible for the Revised Common Lectionary is releasing a set of proposed prayers specifically designed for use with the calendar of readings in the RCL. The Consultation on Common Texts sought to prepare a truly ecumenical set of prayers that represent the full spectrum of Christian tradition in all its diverse richness.

In Simply Surrender, readers meet one of the modern world's best-loved saints and spiritual guides, Therese of Lisieux. Day after day readers will slowly discover the profound truths in the Little Way, the insights about prayer and holiness that this great saint shared in her autobiography, The Story of a Soul. A written invitation to a spiritual journey with a kind and gentle mystic, it is part of the popular and beautifully redesigned spirituality series, 30 Days with a Great Spiritual Teacher.

BBC Songs of Praise is a compilation of the greatest traditional hymns, the best hymns from today's writers, and the finest examples of contemporary worship songs. It offers to churches and schools the core music required for worship in a wide range of situations. The breadth and diversity of the material ensures the BBC Songs of Praise can be the key resource for any worshipping community.