The Oxford History of Christian Worship is a comprehensive and authoritative history of the origins and development of Christian worship to the present day. Backed by an international roster of experts as contributors, this new book will examine the liturgical traditions of Orthodox, Catholic, and Protestant, and Pentecostal traditions throughout history and across the world. With 240 photographs and 10 maps, the full geographical spread of Christianity is covered, including Europe, North America, Latin America, Africa, East Asia, and the Pacific. Following contemporary trends in scholarship, it will cover social and cultural contexts, material culture and the arts.
Written to be accessible to the educated layperson, this unique and beautiful volume will also appeal to clergy and liturgists and more generally to students and scholars of the liturgy, Christian theology, church history, and world history.

"Catholic Press Association Award Winner "The commentaries on the Lectionary readings in "Hearing the Word of God" are an attempt not only to hear the Word of God in Scripture but also to suggest ways that the Sunday readings might continue to nurture faith and life. Inevitably, they reflect the time in which they were first written - as a popular weekly column in America from November 2000 to Advent 2001.

"Hearing the Word of God" includes Scripture readings for the Sunday, followed by a reflection on the reading, and concludes with Praying with Scripture," a series of questions and meditations to guide readers in making a personal application of the reflection.

"John R. Donahue, SJ, PhD, is the Raymond E. Brown Distinguished Professor of New Testament Studies at St. Mary's Seminary and University, Baltimore. He is the coauthor, with Daniel Harrington, SJ, of the "Sacra Pagina" commentary on "The Gospel of Mark," published by the Liturgical Press.""

A detailed instruction manual for all Eucharistic ministers This is a handbook to the Eucharist looking in detail at the principles of liturgical celebration as well as ritual instructions. This approach to the rite will show ministers how to enable the community to gather, encounter Christ in word and sacrament and be sent out in response to that encounter. This will help ministers to hold the liturgy together, with a sense of momentum which moves the community from the gathering to the dismissal, and which allows various members of the community to exercise individual ministries within the gathered setting.

'Love' is an anthology of readings that celebrates the ideal and the humorously down to earth in relation to love, friendship and marriage across the centuries. Sonnets, poems, wedding blessings, readings from the Bible, and the reflections of various ancient and contemporary writers, together create a tapestry of wisdom about the joys of love and its occasional struggles. Offering, quite literally, something for everyone, 'Love' offers plenty of choice for those looking to personalise their wedding service.

The sacred Spanish-language hymns known as alabados originated in colonial New Spain in the eighteenth century. The Alabados of New Mexico includes a selection of the most beloved and most often sung hymns, in English and Spanish, as well as a basic explanation of the alabado. Introductory material discusses the sources of alabados and the form's origin in late medieval spirituality. Thomas Steele defines terms and discusses the alabado as poetry, music, and oral tradition. The 126 bilingual alabados are organized by theme, including the Christ child and holy family, passion narratives, sacraments, and prayers, etc. Steele includes complete texts and extensive commentaries. He has devoted decades to collecting and studying New Mexico's alabados and his annotations are enriched by his access to many versions of each hymn.

In an engaging style--characteristic of the author, Walter Brueggemann--this Essential Guide describes the leading motifs of ancient Israel s worship traditions in the Old Testament. The author guides the reader through the themes, central texts, prayers, festivals, and practices of that worship. He sees throughout the Old Testament a central emphasis on worship as a covenantal gesture and utterance by the community in the presence of God. In addition to being an essential guide to this subject, this book is intended to be in the service of current theological and practical issues concerning worship of the church in its ecumenical character."

2006 Catholic Press Association Award Winner

After suffering an eclipse during the post-Vatican II liturgical reform, popular piety has regained its vital role in the spiritual life of Catholics. In response to its re-emergence, the Congregation for divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments issued the "Directory on Popular Piety and the Liturgy" on December 17, 2001. The "Directory" was written for bishops and their collaborators as a pastoral guide addressing the relationship between liturgy and popular piety. "Directory on Popular Piety and the Liturgy: Principles and Guidelines, A Commentary" by Peter C. Phan provides a chapter-by-chapter commentary on the "Directory," summarizing its contents, highlighting its strengths and weaknesses, and offering suggestions on how devotional practices can be implemented in the United States. For liturgists, religious educators and students, pastoral leaders, and other interested Christians, this volume is helpful toward promoting a vigorous and authentic devotional life in the community, while respecting the preeminence of liturgical worship.

"The Commentary" begins with a preface by Peter C. Phan and an introduction by James Empereur, entitled Popular Piety and the Liturgy: Principles and Guidelines." Chapters in Part One: "Emerging Trends: History, Magisterium, Theology" are *Liturgy and Popular Piety in a Historical Perspective, - by Mark R. Francis; *Liturgy and Popular Piety in the Church's Magisterium, - by Peter Fink; and *Theological Principles for an Evaluation and Renewal of Popular Piety, - by Nathan Mitchell. Chapters in Part Two: "Guidelines for the Harmonization of Popular Piety with the Liturgy" are *The Liturgical Year and Popular Piety, - by Keith F. Pecklers; *Veneration of the Holy Mother of God, - by Joyce Ann Zimmerman; *Veneration of the Saints and Beati, - by Rail Gomez; *Suffrage for the Dead, - by Peter C. Phan; *Shrines and Pilgrimages, - by Ana Maria Pineda. Concludes with a bibliography that presents the most significant recent writings on popular piety and liturgy, by Robert Brancatelli.

"Peter C. Phan, PhD, is the Ignacio Ellacuria Professor of Catholic Social Thought at Georgetown University.""

Catholic meditations for each day in the liturgical season of Advent

More Liturgies for Post-Primary Schools

This very practical resource offers a well-informed guide to an aspect of ministry that every single priest or minister will encounter. It is one of the most difficult tasks, yet many embark on it with very little theological or practical training. They will encounter a wide range of beliefs about death and the afterlife in today's secular society, such as can be seen in the death notices of local newspapers - grandma goes to sleep, is reunited with grandpa, becomes an angel or a star in heaven. They need a resource that equips them to deal sensitively and wisely with the variety of demands that will be made of them in the planning and conduct of funerals and in helping the bereaved to understand that resurrection is God's response to death's terrible finality.

Preachers and liturgy planners will find "The Cultural World of the Prophets" a companion to John Pilch's "The Cultural World of Jesus Sunday by Sunday" series and "The Cultural World of the Apostles" series. Each essay offers historical, literary, and Eastern Mediterranean cultural information about the first reading and responsorial psalm of the liturgy of each Sunday.

"The Cultural World of the Prophets" relates the first reading and responsorial psalm to the Gospel as intended by the architects of the Lectionary. It encourages readers to pursue in-depth study and helps them appreciate the specific verses of the first reading and the responsorial psalm in their own right.

"John J. Pilch, PhD, teaches Scripture at Georgetown University. His other Liturgical Press publications include "The Cultural World of Jesus" series; "The Cultural World of the Apostles" series; "The Cultural World of the Prophets" series; "Cultural Tools for Interpreting the Good News; The Cultural Dictionary of the Bible"(Catholic Press Association award winner); "The Triduum and Easter Sunday: Breaking Open the Scriptures; Choosing a Bible Translation; Galatians and Romans in The Collegeville Bible Commentary"; and articles in "The Modern Catholic Encyclopedia, The Collegeville Pastoral Dictionary of Biblical Theology," and "The Bible Today.

Origins of the Eucharist explored in a new way which questions traditional opinion A different picture of the origins of the eucharist from the traditionally received one. The author argues that the Last Supper did not play as important a part in the formulation of the Eucharist as is popularly thought. The book will cover topics including: the last supper and New Testament narratives; the Didache and early Christian ritual meals; Justin Martyr; Irenaeus; Cyprian; the emergence of the eucharistic prayers and the transformation of the eucharist in the fourth century.

Most ecumenical work on worship has been greatly influenced by those traditions which use written liturgical texts and who give a normative place to the Eucharist. Here Free Church worship however is studied on its own terms allowing its ecumenical contribution to be fully appreciaed. Using a study of Baptist worship, Gathering explores the spirituality implicit in a worship tradition which to dated has received little theological or historical attention. "What makes this book refreshing is that Ellis] is not a prisoner to the view that the job of the liturgical movement is really to formalize "free" worship in some way, and introduce a weekly eucharist.(...)Ellis's source-use, together with his sensitivity to context, architecture and hymnody included, provides a rich picture of an evolving tradition, with its own theological emphases and its own way of doing the liturgy.(...)He is to be congratulated not only on the account he has given of a story that many of us have only known in shreds and snatches, but in the ambitious way in which he has provided a truly ecumenical underpinning." Kenneth Stevenson, Anglican bishop of Portsmouth, England, The Ecumenical Review. April 2005. "There is no doubt that Ellis has done us a service in providing us with a magisterial study of Free Church worship that will probably become a standard work for some time to come. The production of the book is exemplary. The bibliography is extensive and impressive, and the notes (...) are also full. It is pleasing that there are separate indices for names and subjects and for biblical references.(...) I do warmly commend this book to readers of Ministry Today. Philip Clements-Jewery, Ministry Today, Summer 2005. "This stimulating, well-documented study will doubtless capture the attention of liturgical scholars in various traditions, but it especially merits careful reading by Baptists and others in the Free Church tradition who would like to gain new insight into their own gathering. Although focused on English Baptists, it contains critical insights for Baptists everywhere." Glenn Hinson, Baptist Theological Seminary, Richmond, Virginia, Worship July 2005. "This is a signifiacnt study of Free Church Worship, combining detailed historical analysis with rich theological reflection. (...)Chris Ellis'scholarly yet accessible book is essential reading." Ian Randall, Spurgeon's College, London, The Expository Times, vol 117, n 3. Dec.2005 "This is an excellent study, combining historical detail bith current theological reflection." Bryan Spinks, Institute of Sacred Music, New Haven, Ecclesiastical History, Vol.57/2, April 2006. "Ellis is a fine scholar whose rigorous and often groundbreaking work deserves careful attention. (...) The benefit of being the first to do scholarly work in an area is in knowing that your work will spur on further work. In this respect Ellis has laid out a solid and sizable foundation for further work to be built upon. His historical work in particular is worthy of much study and expansion. (...) Ellis has made a significant contribution to both the free church tradition and to liturgical theology. In my own teaching, his book was the cornerstone for our conversation in a recent doctoral seminar in liturgical theology, and excerpts of his work have been helpful introductory pieces in master's level courses. Ellis work deserves a wide and frequent reading, but even more deserves a lively idscussion and thoughtful scholarly reflection." Todd Johnson, Fuller Theological Seminary, Pasadena, CA, Doxology 2006.

This colourful and wide-ranging worship anthology brings together material from writers around the world. Celebratory, reflective, challenging and at times humbling, it affirms the goodness of creation, marvels at the miracle of growth and encourages us all to work for a fairer distribution of the fruits and gifts of the earth. Harvest for the World is a versatile resource that can be used throughout the year, wherever the themes of creation, harvest, fair trading, relief work, international debt and poverty, development, the politics of land ownership or food production are the focus of worship, prayer and work. A selection of simple recipes is included for those who wish to produce a harvest supper with a difference.

Readings for Weddings' is an inspirational collection of Bible quotations, poems, hymns and prose for secular weddings, church ceremonies and services of blessing. Mark Oakley includes such "wedding classics" as 1 Corinthians 13 and Khalil Gibran's 'The Prophet', the poetry of Shelley and Elizabeth Barret Browning, and verse by Wendy Cope and other witty, contemporary poets. Mark Oakley takes a fresh approach to preparing couples for their big day. He re-thinks the church wedding and puts humour, aspiration, poetry and love at the heart of the service. ""'Readings for Weddings' puts poetry where it should be: at the heart of a great defining moment. Mark Oakley's selection is exemplary: surprising but appropriate, tender but unsentimental, dignified but vivacious. Every happy couple, let alone their guests, will be grateful."" Andrew Motion, Poet Laureate

We have all experienced hunger, whether it's a need for spiritual guidance or physical nutrition. Our hunger for God's Word can benefit those needing material sustenance. God's Word calls us to nourish the physically hungry and poor just as it nourishes our faith and sustains us in our struggle for justice. "Hunger for the Word explores the Lectionary with a focus on anti-hunger advocacy, social activism, and political issues affecting marginalized people. Using insights, images and stories from pastors, professors and lay people who are active in anti-hunger campaigns, this ecumenical book offers devotional connections to inequality issues, as well as themes to help in our struggle to understand and eliminate injustice. "Hunger for the Word, edited by Larry Hollar of Bread for the World, brings concern for hunger and fairness into our daily religious life. With weekly sermon/homily reflections, "Hunger for the Word is an invaluable resource for pastors, liturgical ministers and those interested in justice-oriented Bible study and spiritual growth. Also includes suggestions for musical worship, and ideas for children's sermons to help spread God's Word of activism, compassion, and integrity throughout the congregation.

Season of Ash and Fire will help pastors and worship planners prepare for Lent and Easter. The author provides corporate prayers for each Sunday and Holy Day in the Easter Cycle, including: Ash Wednesday, 1st through 5th Sundays in Lent, Passion/Palm Sunday, Holy Thursday, Good Friday, Easter Vigil, Easter Sunday Morning, Easter Evening, 2nd through 7th Sundays of Easter, Ascension Day, and Pentecost.

Additional prayers and liturgies for use during the season by small groups and families help extend and unify the congregation s celebration.

"Blair Meeks, gifted with an evangelical heart, an emancipated imagination, and a life settled in liturgy, offers a first rate resource as the church learns again to pray. Meeks not only guides the prayer of the church through the depth of Lent and the wonder of Easter, she also interprets and instructs along the way. Out of her long reflection on the mystery of worship, this book will serve pastors and all those in the church who live by faith that is funded through prayer. -- Walter Brueggemann, Professor Emeritus, Columbia Theological Seminary"

Exploring fundamental ways in which verbal expression in worship relates to aesthetic expression, Clayton Schmit provides a vitally important book for all homiletics students and scholars. Schmit explains that worship isn't just a sequence of "holy" words, and he reflects theologically on the relationship between verbal and aesthetic expression, demonstrating the aesthetic significance of verbal liturgical expression and the aesthetic responsibility of those who preach, pray, and lead in public worship.

This practical volume explores every aspect of serving as a eucharistic minister in the Catholic church. It offers in-depth teaching on the meaning of the Eucharist; personal preparation for the rite of commissioning; an explanation of the practical skills required; pastoral advice on giving communion at home or in hospital as well as help for those unexpected moments when something may go wrong. A warm and encouraging companion for all who serve in this ministry.

Worship renewal is now on the agenda of many Reformed churches, as the need for adaptation and new approaches is acutely felt all over. How can the church faithfully worship God in the midst of rapidly changing situations? How can it constructively relate to widely differing cultural contexts? What is its place in the wider ecumenical scene? In preparing a sweeping survey of Reformed worship across time and place, this volume provides some help to those engaged with vital questions like these.

Written by theologians and liturgical scholars from a wide range of churches and countries, these chapters explore the history of Reformed worship on every continent from the sixteenth century to the present. Surveying the most significant developments in the growth of Reformed worship, the book identifies the major "ingredients" that make the Reformed worship tradition distinctive and highlights those aspects of Reformed worship that are particularly relevant to present efforts at renewal. Indeed, an important component of this book is the inclusion of "A Common Reflection on Christian Worship in Reformed Churches Today, " the result of a major consultation in January 2001 at the International Reformed Center John Knox.

Revealing the rich variety of forms and diversity of perspectives that have made and do make up Reformed worship worldwide, this volume will be a valuable resource for church and worship leaders both in and outside the Reformed family.

CONTRIBUTORS: Horace T. Allen Jr.
Emily R. Brink
Livingstone Buama
Coenraad Burger
Bruno Burki
Gerson Correia de Lacerda
Alan D. Falconer
Kasonga wa Kasonga
Baranite T. Kirata
Elsie Anne McKee
Seong-WonPark
Ester Pudjo Widiasih
Alan P. F. Sell
Joseph D. Small
Bryan D. Spinks
Leonora Tubbs Tisdale
Lukas Vischer
Isaiah Wahome Muita
Geraldine Wheeler
Marsha M. Wilfong
John D. Witvliet

In studying the history of the vernacular in worship beginning with the Christian Scriptures, Dynamic Equivalence uncovers the power of a living language to transform communities of faith. How we pray when we come together for common worship has always been significant, but the issue of liturgical language received unprecedented attention in the twentieth century when Latin Rite Roman Catholic worship was opened to the vernacular at Vatican II. Worshiping in one's native tongue continues to be of issue as the churches debate over what type of vernacular should be employed. Dynamic Equivalence traces the history of liturgical language in the Western Christian tradition as a dynamic and living reality. Particular attention is paid to the twentieth century Vernacular Society within the United States and how the vernacular issue was treated at Vatican II, especially within an ecumenical context. The first chapter offers a short history of the vernacular from the first century through the twentieth. The second and third chapters contain a significant amount of archival material, much of which has never been published before. These chapters tell the story of a mixed group of Catholic laity and clergy dedicated to promoting the vernacular during the first half of the twentieth century. Chapter Four begins with a survey of vernacular promotion in the Reformation itself, explores the issue of vernacular worship as an instrument of ecumenical hospitality and concludes with some examples of ecumenical liturgical cooperation in the years immediately preceding the Council. The final chapter treats the vernacular debate at the Council with attention to the Vernacular Society's role in helping with theimplementation of the vernacular. Chapters are "A Brief History of the Vernacular," "The Origins of the Vernacular Society: 1946-1956," "Pressure for the Vernacular Mounts: 1956-1962," "Vernacular Worship and Ecumenical Exchange," "Vatican II and the Vindication of the Vernacular: 1962-1965" Keith F. Pecklers, SJ, SLD, is professor of liturgy at the Pontifical Gregorian University in Rome and professor of liturgical history at the Pontifical Liturgical Institute of Sant 'Anselmo. He is the author of The Unread Vision: The Liturgical Movement in the United States of America 1926-1955, and co-editor of Liturgy for the New Millennium: A Commentary on the Revised Sacramentary, published by The Liturgical Press.

Worship and Christian Identity argues that sacramental and liturgical practices are the central means by which a church shapes the faith, character, and consciousness of its members. Consequently, for any church to set aside such practices as outdated or irrelevant is to set aside the means by which the church nurtures and sustains its theological identity. From this perspective, Anderson explores the following questions: What is the relationship between worship and belief? What is the relationship between corporate worship and the formation of Christian persons and communities? What is the relationship between worship and our knowledge of ourselves, our world, and God? How might our attention to the reform and renewal of worship and sacramental practice provide a framework for theological, evangelical, and sacramental renewal? Questions of sacramental practice, inclusive or transformative language, and the renewal of congregational hymnody have been largely displaced by marketing questions and conflicts between "traditional" and "contemporary" worship. The hour of worship is subdivided now into increasingly specialized "target audiences" of singles, seekers, boomers, and "X-ers" with worship carefully packaged as "traditional" or "contemporary." What at various points has been understood as a "means of grace" is now seen primarily as a "means of numerical growth." Missing in the conflict between "traditional" and "contemporary" worship is significant discussion of what is at stake for the identity of Christian persons and communities in the shape and practice of worship. Perhaps more surprising, discussion of the theological shape and practice of worship also has been absent in discussions concerning theological standards. These absences suggest that for many in the church today, worship is a means for expressing a community's belief but has little to do with the shape and character of that belief. The assumption that worship is only or primarily a pragmatic means for expressing a community's belief stands in sharp contrast to the Christian tradition. This assumption also contrasts with the insights provided by recent work in ritual studies, psychology, and faith development. Worship and Christian Identity is an important book for faculty and students in seminary and graduate programs in liturgical studies and religious education, particularly those interested in the relationships between liturgical studies and practical theology, ritual studies and liturgical theology, as well as the role of worship in Christian formation. Chapters are "Making Claims About Worship," "Worship as Ritual Knowledge," "Worship as Ritual Practice," "Trinitarian Grammar and the Christian Self," "Trinitarian Grammar and Liturgical Practice," and "A Vision of Christian Life."

Daily Catholic meditations for the liturgical season of Lent.

"Reading the Bible in Faith" gathers the deepest reflections of leading pastor-theologians dealing with the heart of Holy Scripture - the restoration of the proper relationship between God and his people. Speaking ecumenically, pastor to pastor, the contributors to this very special book provide sound encouragement, rooted in both the Bible and experience, to other church leaders who are also called to stand as the theologians of their local congregations. Seeing the present "crisis of the church" more truly as a crisis of faith that compels too many pastors to major in the minors, this volume confidently reaffirms the Christian gospel as the trustworthy and dynamic basis for the church's mission and ministry. Short, insightful writings by respected leaders of local congregations urge church renewal through scripturally grounded preaching, teaching, pastoral care, and church administration.

Begun as a practical pastoral guide to worship, this book balances theory and praxis to create a compelling case for a biblical, aesthetic, and covenantal worship service as the place where the Triune God and His people renew the bonds of love and loyalty. Jeffrey Meyers begins laying out a case for a covenant renewal service by means of Old Testament sacrificial liturgics, biblical typology, and covenant theology. He then guides us through the stages of a covenant renewal liturgy, explaining from Scripture the meanings of each step of the service. The final section addresses miscellaneous issues in worship, such as the use of creeds, the "regulative principle," and ministerial clothing. Meyers provides not only a compelling biblical, theological, and historical case for covenant renewal worship, but also shows that it is beautiful, profound, edifying, and liberating.