***NOW AVAILABLE IN PAPERBACK*** Feasting on the Word is one of the most popular lectionary commentary series in use today. This is the first in a new series of daily devotionals that draws from the wealth of writing in the commentaries to present inspirational reflections, responses, and prayers for each day of the lectionary year. Each day of the week contains Scripture passages for the coming Sunday from the Revised Common Lectionary, excerpts from the commentaries for reflection, a response, and a prayer. Additional material is provided for each Sunday.

Delight in a stunning celebration of the classic prayer Jesus taught to his disciples with this beautifully illustrated edition of The Lord's Prayer. Gorgeous images of the natural world accompany these traditional words - it's the perfect gift that will be cherished forever.

Most Christians know this beautiful prayer by heart and it is the first prayer a child learns when introduced to Jesus and God. Prayer is something anyone can do and you don't have to use complicated or flowery language, this prayer is simple and is easily memorised by children who will carry it forever throughout life.

With beautifully delicate illustrations by the fantastic Julianna Swaney, this is the perfect gift book for all Christian occasions, including christenings, first communions and confirmations.

The first of four volumes, containing the edited texts, commentaries and source notes for each of the nearly nine hundred occasions of special worship and for each of the annual commemorations in Engand and Wales, Scotland, and Ireland. Since the sixteenth century, the governments and established churches of the British Isles have summoned the nation to special acts of public worship during periods of anxiety and crisis, at times of celebration or for annual commemoration and remembrance. These special prayers, special days of worship and anniversary commemorations were national events, reaching into every parish in England and Wales, in Scotland and in Ireland. They had considerable religious, ecclesiastical, political, ideological, moral and social significance, and they produced important texts: proclamations, council orders, addresses and - in England, Wales and Ireland - prayers or complete liturgies which for specified periods supplemented or replaced the services in the Book of Common Prayer. Many of these acts of special worship and most of the texts have escaped historical notice. National Prayers. Special Worship since the Reformation, in four volumes, provides the edited texts, commentaries and source notes for each of the nearly nine hundred occasions of special worship and for each of the annual commemorations. The first volume, SpecialPrayers, Fasts and Thanksgivings in the British Isles 1533-1688, has an extended Introduction to the four volumes and a consolidated list of all the occasions of special worship. It contains texts and commentaries which revealthe origins of special occasions of national worship during the Reformation in both England and Scotland, the development of fast days and wartime prayers later in the sixteenth century, and what we know about the origins of special national worship in Ireland. It also shows how special worship became a recurrent focus and expression of religion and political contention during the seventeenth century. Edited by Natalie Mears, Alasdair Raffe, Stephen Taylor and Philip Williamson (with Lucy Bates).

A study of liturgy in Byzantium, Armenia, Syria and Palestine. The author shows how the central Christian liturgy, the Eucharist, poses all-too human problems of structure, text, history, context and meaning. For humankind's unfailing, incessant ritual repetition of the Lord's Supper down through the ages and across multiple Christian cultures in the liturgies of east and west, in obedience to Jesus' Last Supper mandate, Do this in remembrance of me, has, inevitably, given rise within the same recognizably common framework to innumerable diversities of shape, text, cultural context and theological interpretation. It has also given rise to debates, sometimes heated, among modern experts about the most suitable methods for resolving the problems arising from these differences. The work explores the theories of Anton Baumstark, Dom Gregory Dix and Josef Andreas Jungmann, and what we can derive from their insights. Their way of working, applied to the problems of cultural history, structural, historical and textual reconstruction, theological interpretation, and method involved in the modern scholarly debate on these issues, are the object of the author's studies in this volume.

The hunger for modern, relevant resources for the Christian seasons and celebrations is deep. Here is a book that will help to fill this need. Suitable for group worship or personal reflection, and with material for Shrove Tuesday, Ash Wednesday, Mothering Sunday, Palm Sunday and Holy Week, it is a collection to accompany readers through Lent and Easter for many years. Eggs and Ashes includes a Lent discipline for those who care about the environment, liturgies, responses, prayers, poems, reflections, meditations, stories, stations of the cross, sermons, monologues and songs, with some all-age resources - written by Iona Community members, associates, friends and others. Ruth Burgess is the author of A Book of Blessings and Friends and Enemies, both published by Wild Goose Publications. Chris Polhill is a frequent contributor to Wild Goose books.

'The Peace of God, which passeth all understanding, keep your hearts and minds in the knowledge and the love of God, and of his Son Jesus Christ our Lord.' The Book of Common Prayer, with local variations, is still used in churches inside and outside the Anglican Communion in over 50 countries and in over 150 languages. The Rise and Fall of the Incomparable Liturgy is the first study to trace the evolution and reception of the BCP, from the Elizabethan settlement of 1559 to the Royal Commission report of 1906, when work on a new prayer book was begun. Written by a world authority, here is an illuminating and highly readable account of the ascent and decline of a world classic, which still informs our common language as well as much of the great literature of the past four centuries. It will appeal not only to students of liturgy but also to general readers interested in history, literature, theology and cultural studies.

What is the point of the Lectionary? What are the problems and opportunities that it presents to those who use it? What are its strengths and weaknesses as an aid to worship? How can it be used and communicated most effectively today? These are among the key questions that Thomas O'Loughlin explores in this stimulating and much-needed guide.

Collection of prayers designed to help you pray more deeply during Eucharistic Adoration.

Imaginative and passionate, these prayers bring the full range of women's experiences before God. Blessings, laments, celebrations, and creeds, they use a variety of forms and can be used by individuals and/or in a liturgical setting.

The history of the Eastern liturgical rituals reveals the variety and splendour of the world of the Christian Orient, and the profundity of its theological thought. The ritual bears witness to the deep impact these liturgies made on the Mediterranean cultures and societies of Late Antiquity. Gabriele Winkler, a specialist in Oriental liturgies and Armenian studies, here explores the beginnings and early development of these rituals in their historical, philological, and doctrinal context. Her work elucidates the interdependence of the Syriac, Greek, and Armenian cultures; it also demonstrates the interest of this material for the religious and political history of the era.

Many Christians find prayer difficult - and, as a result, do not do much of it. The fact is, many simply do not know how to pray. Even St Paul notes this sad fact when, in Romans 8:26, he says, "We do not know how to pray as we ought." In this short book, written for a popular audience by well-known Catholic biblical scholar Dr. Tim Gray, we discover the secret of the saints which can enable us to enter into a lively dialogue with God. Their secret: the ancient art of Lectio Divina (divine, or sacred reading), which is reading, meditating on, and praying the Scriptures. As St. Cyprian notes, "Diligently practice prayer and lectio divina. When you pray, you speak with God; when you read [the Scriptures], God speaks to you." Here, we discover that we don't need a mystic gene or divine epiphany to hear God; we simply need to take up the Bible and read.

This work is an exceptional collection of 600 hymns. An outstanding worship resource, it contains classic anthems, beloved gospel standards and new worship favourites including: "Shine Jesus Shine"; "Christ the Lord is Risen Today"; "Go, Tell it on the Mountain"; "Hark! The Herald Angels Sing"; "Jesus Loves Me"; "O Come All Ye Faithful"; and, "Praise Him! Praise Him!" It features an extensive seasonal selection, and contains seven helpful indexes including the most thorough topical index available. Available in a variety of colours, its high quality binding ensures decades of use by congregations, small groups and individuals.

Towns reveals the power of prayer in this fascinating look at the Lord's Prayer. Each chapter examines a line from the prayer, revealing power points for every believer desiring a more dynamic prayer life. Towns says: "What would you say if you were ushered into the throne room of God with only one minute to request everything you needed, but didn't know how to put it into words? The Lord's Prayer includes everything you need to ask when you talk to God . . . it is a model prayer that teaches us how to pray."

Prayer is essential to the Christian life, bonding us to God. Yet we find it difficult in our frenetic world to keep our minds focused for long. All kinds of external noise and inner voices clamor for our attention. How can we slow down and quiet down so as to truly wait on the Lord? Nan Lewis Doerr and Virginia Stem Owens offer a solution that calls on the physical senses to break through to the spiritual ??? praying with beads. The use of prayer beads, which has a long history in practical spirituality, is now becoming more widespread among Protestants. Doerr and Owens here show readers how to use what have become known as Anglican or Christian prayer beads. Readers can then use the basic prayer structure provided by the beads to pray their way through each day ??? morning, noon, and night ??? and through the church year. These prayers can be enhanced and enriched by the mindful and meditative practice of using beads.

The book should be seen in the context of Paul Bradshaw's earlier works: The Search for the Origins of Christian Worship and Eucharistic Origins. In this book he updates his thinking in this area.

The chroniclers of medieval Rus were monks, who celebrated the divine services of the Byzantine church throughout every day. This study is the first to analyze how these rituals shaped their writing of the Rus Primary Chronicle, the first written history of the East Slavs. During the eleventh century, chroniclers in Kiev learned about the conversion of the Roman Empire by celebrating a series of distinctively Byzantine liturgical feasts. When the services concluded, and the clerics sought to compose a native history for their own people, they instinctively drew on the sacred stories that they sang at church. The result was a myth of Christian origins for Rus - a myth promulgated even today by the Russian government - which reproduced the Christian origins myth of the Byzantine Empire. The book uncovers this ritual subtext and reconstructs the intricate web of liturgical narratives that underlie this foundational text of pre-modern Slavic civilization.

Thomas Cranmer's Prayer Book of 1549 is a foundational document of the Anglican Church and a priceless part of English-speaking Christianity. Cranmer's unique gift of blending theological substance with simple, humble, and moving clarity has made the Collects (prayers) essential not only to the English liturgy but also to the pastoral tradition of the church: these prayers still remain a deep source of inspiration for Christians enmeshed in the everyday trials and testings of life.

Published on the occasion of the 450th anniversary of the Book of Common Prayer, "The Collects of Thomas Cranmer" presents this spiritually rich material in its original form and order. Compiled and presented for devotional use by C. Frederick Barbee and Paul F. M. Zahl, Cranmer's Collects are each followed by succinct commentary on their historical context and an insightful meditation crafted with contemporary Christians in mind.

Including a significant introduction to Cranmer and his work by C. FitzSimons Allison, this beautifully produced volume opens afresh Cranmer's classic devotional treasure to modern believers from all communions.

"That prayer is most likely to pierce heaven which first pierces one's own heart." For the Puritans, prayer was neither casual nor dull. Their prayers were passionate affairs, from earnestly pleading for mercy to joyful praise. These rich expressions of deep Christian faith are a shining example of holy living. The Puritan combination of warm piety and careful intellect have fueled a renaissance of interest in their movement. This combination is on display in Piercing Heaven, a collection of carefully selected prayers from leading Puritans. The language in these prayers has been slightly updated for a modern audience while still retaining the elevated tone of the Puritans. With prayers from Richard Baxter, Thomas Brooks, John Owen, and many more, each prayer reminds us that heartfelt prayer is central to the Christian life.

Part 1 of the volume is a "Book of Hours" that provides a guide for prayer in five "hours" throughout the day, to be prayed over the course of a week. It also offers a flexible alternative version of the hours that can be said on any day of the week. part 2 includes a collection of prayers expressing devotion to the Eucharist, Jesus, Mary, and the Holy Spirit. Throught the book, readers experience the heart and soul of Catholic Christianity. Leatherette vinyl binding

Liturgical ritual was a major element of the Christian cultures of Late Antiquity and the Middle Ages. This was especially true of Byzantium, where court and church ritual, often intertwined, achieved a splendour unparalleled by any other aspect of civic or religious life. In this volume Robert Taft has brought together a series of studies on the formation and development of these rites and on the meaning they had for contemporaries. Particular articles look at the role of Jerusalem, Constantinople, then Mt Athos, in this process, and at the liturgy of St John Chrysostom. Also included are two important studies focusing on the role of the bema in the Syriac Church.