Argues from a wide range of evidence that the Gospels were not written each for a specific church or community, but were intended for general circulation throughout all the early churches.

This ecumenical collection of prayers, liturgies and rituals seeks to illustrate the impressive creativity fo liturgy from the ground up - from congregations, groups and individuals struggling to come to terms with change and all the celebration and loss which that involves. A wealth of human experiences is explored and expressed through experimental rituals: expressions of god, namings, affirming relationships, separating, dying, grieving, healing, retirement, abortion, miscarriage, and much more. It is hoped that this anthology will imspire and enable others to construct their own liturgies, rituals, blessings and prayers. Hannah Ward and Jennifer Wild are former members of Anglican religious orders. They are co-founders of Womanpsace, a spritituality programme. Their book Guard the Chaos: Finding Meaning in Change was published in 1995.

This collection of essays, written to commemorate their centenary, celebrates the work of the Plainsong and Mediaeval Music Society. Founded in 1888, the Society quickly established two areas of activity: the propagation of information on medieval music and the revitalization of the Anglican liturgy with the riches of the plainchant of the Roman Rite.

Of the two sides of the Society's activities, the scholarly and the practical, this collection represents the former. The essays reflect the founders' interest in medieval music, both monophonic and polyphonic, and, particularly, their concern with chant. The contributors to this volume are among the most distinguished scholars of medieval music of recent years.

Contributors: David Hiley, Ritva Jacobsson, Michel Huglo, Susan Rankin, Wulf Arlt, Ruth Steiner, David Chadd, Andrew Hughes, John Caldwell, Frank Ll. Harrison, Nick Sandon.

The central theme of the study is Christ as the sacrament of reconciliation of the human being with God. In light of this premise, the study is divided into two main parts. The first part concentrates on the human response to grace, thus personal justification. In this section different but related topics are studied: the human act and its limitations; the nature of sin in antithesis to the virtue of justice implanted in the human heart. The second part of the study takes care of the sacrament of reconciliation as understood in Catholic dogma. An historical survey of the sacrament brings into focus the teaching of the Fathers of the Church which was implemented by ecumenical and particular councils and codifications. The same historical survey prepares the reader for a better understanding of the canons on Penance. The canons of the Latin and of the astern Rite codes are presented with an explanation when necessary. Through the study of these canons it becomes clear that concern of the Church is to protect the sacredness and the dignity of the sacrament as well as the dignity of the penitent.

The Royal Abbey of Saint-Denis was founded in honour of Dionysius, one of seven missionaries sent from Rome to Gaul around 250. It grew to be one of the most powerful monasteries in western Christendom and enjoyed a central position in French history as the first Gothic abbey, royal necropolis, and place of origin of the chronicles of the kings. This is a study of the music and ritual at Saint-Denis from the sixth to the sixteenth century. It is based on an examination of the liturgical books and archival sources relating to the abbey, in particular the surviving service-books, which tell us much about the history of the music and of the Divine Office at Saint-Denis. Anne Robertson also looks at the tropes and sequences proper to the office for Saint-Denis, provides information on the performance practices, instruments, musicians, and liturgists from the abbey, and offers an account of the history of the liturgy from the Council of Tours in 567 to the pillage of the abbey by the Huguenots in 1567, thus explicating the extant liturgical codices from Saint-Denis. For the author the ritual and history of the abbey is also inextricably linked to the reconstruction of its various buildings, the decorations of the church, even the monks' ambitions. This is a fascinating and wide-ranging study of this extraordinary institution.

A reduced size of the Order of Christian Funerals, making it handy for students. "The Order of Christian Funerals" is the revised rite approved by the Catholic Bishops' Conference of England, Wales and Scotland for use at funeral services in the Roman Catholic Church. It is the culmination of a long process of revision and new composition based on many years' experience of the 1969 "Ordo Exsequiarum" and its English editions. This Rite will be mandatory from Easter Sunday 1991.

The Psalms rank among the most important books of the Old Testament, yet to many the 150 songs, prayers and poems remain obscure and inaccessible. This book offers a nwe general introduction to the Psalms. Professor Seybold guides the reader through the most important aspects of the history and form of the Psalm texts and the major questions of critical scholarship, and discusses leading writers on the subject. A wide range of specific topics is covered: historical background, literary form, classification, and parallels in other soruce of ancient literature. The section on Library Form provides a useful introduction to the speech patterns of Hebrew verse, written in such a way that students without Hebrew may also benefit. The final chapters deal with the way the Psalms have been interpreted and used in worship over the last 2000 years. This is a book to help the student find his or her bearings and to suggest directions for further study. It will be an invaluable textbook for all students of Old Testament and Biblical Studies, as well as literature generally, and of great interest to all those who approach the Psalms for the first time. Klaus Seybold is Professor of Old Testament Studies at the University of Basel. R. Graeme Dunphy is a Minister of the Church of Scotland in Culloden.

Accessible background and insights on each scripture text in the three-year Sunday lectionary cycle. An invaluable resource for preachers, lectors, liturgical musicians, catechists and more.

The liturgies of the Word and the Lord's Supper that are included in this volume range from those of the church fathers Justin Martyr and Hippolytus through the Roman Mass (in both Latin and English), to the great Reformation liturgies of Luther, Zwingli, Calvin, Knox, Baxter, and Wesley, as well as the Middleburg Liturgy of the English Puritans and the Westminster Directory. In addition to his translations, Thompson draws upon copies of many original documents to insure accuracy. An introduction, which places the liturgy within its tradition, accompanies each text.

"A modern classic."--The Christian Century

Central to every vampire story is the undead's need for human blood, but equally compelling is the human ingestion of vampire blood, which often creates a bond. This blood connection suggests two primal, natural desires: breastfeeding and communion with God through a blood covenant. This analysis of vampire stories explores the benefits of the bonding experiences of breastfeeding and Christian and vampire narratives, arguing that modern readers and viewers are drawn to this genre because of our innate fascination with the relationship between human and maker.

R.J. Urquhart provides the first systematic description of the ceremonial of the Sarum Mass in 500 years. Using a variety of sources, and tracing the Sarum rite and its occasional use from the Act of Supremacy through to modern times, Urquhart has compiled a volume that offers the best possible reconstruction and overview of these profoundly beautiful rites from the liturgical treasury of the Church. Urquhart considers Sarum in the light of Pope Benedict XVI's groundbreaking apostolic constitution, Anglicanorum Coetibus, and how this has reopened the question of the catholicity of part of the Anglican patrimony. He also considers the impact of Pope Benedict's Summorum Pontificum and its proposition that what was sacred for earlier generations remains sacred now, arguing that this supremely pastoral teaching calls for a more profound and detailed study of the rite. Urquhart covers all aspects of the ritual, beginning with an outline of the vessels, books and vestments and then moving on to outline both Low and High Mass, special forms, processions and blessings, and the ritual year. Appendices cover the role of the laity, and offer an Ordo Missae with simple rubrics.

Courage isn't something that comes naturally to most. The only way to truly be brave is to walk in the confidence that comes from knowing God and relying on him to be your strength. When you spend time with him, he will fill you with peace and hope for the future. When you finally see yourself as God sees you, you will recognize the talents and abilities you have been blessed with and start operating in the fullness of those gifts.

Be encouraged with truth as you spend time with God, reflecting on these devotions, scriptures, and prayers. Let him show you that you are beautiful, you are strong, and you were created with a purpose. Take courage in God's love for you and be ready to conquer each day!

- Exquisite faux leather cover, heat debossed and stamped with foil
- Beautifully designed full color interior on high quality paper
- Encouraging Scriptures
- Inspiring devotions
- Heartfelt prayers
- Thought-provoking questions
- Ribbon marker

Christian churches in recent decades have taken some steps in their practices of liturgy and worship toward acknowledging the graced dignity of human variety. But who is still excluded? What pernicious norms still govern below the surface, and how might they be revealed? How do texts, gestures, and space abet and enforce such norms? How might Christian assemblies gather multiple expressions of human difference to propose through Christian liturgy patterns of graced interaction in the world around them? Liturgy with a Difference gathers a broad range of international theologians and scholars to interrogate current practices of liturgy and worship in order to unmask ways in which dehumanizing majoritarianisms and presumed norms of gender, culture, ethnicity, and body, among others, remain at work in congregations. Together, the chapters in this collection call for a liturgical practice that recognizes and rehearses the vivid richness of God's image found in the human community and glimpsed, if only for a moment, in liturgical celebration. They point a way beyond mere inclusion toward a generous embrace of the many differences that make up the Christian community. With contributions from Rachel Mann, Teresa Berger, Susannah Cornwall, Miguel A. DeLa Torre, Edward Foley, W. Scott Haldeman, Michael Jagessar, Bruce T. Morrill, Kristine Suna-Koro and Frank Senn. Foreword by Ann Loades.

The Christian practice of hymn singing, says renowned biblical scholar Walter Brueggemann, is a countercultural act. It marks the Christian community as different from an unforgiving and often ungrateful culture. It is also, he adds, an "absurd enterprise in the midst of the hyper-busy, market-driven society that surrounds us. In this helpful and engaging volume, Brueggemann discusses both why we sing and what we sing. The first part of the book examines the Psalms and what they can teach us about the reasons that corporate song is a part of the Christian tradition. The second part looks at fifteen popular hymns, including classic and contemporary ones such as Blest Be the Ties That Binds, God's Eye Is on the Sparrow, Once to Every Man and Nation, Someone Asked the Question, and We Are Marching in the Light of God, and the reasons why they have caught our imagination. To know why we sing, Brueggemann writes, may bring us to a deeper delight in our singing and a strengthened resolve to sing without calculation before the God who is enthroned on the praises of Israel (Ps. 22:3).

Liturgical languages are notoriously rigid: they are fixed, sacred, and resistant to change, despite surrounding linguistic developments. This work focuses on the highly specialized and stylized liturgical language of Russian Church Slavonic (RCS). Historically, authorities strictly controlled RCS so that it would conform to established norms. Nevertheless, innovations arose in response to various conditions. One wave of innovations, spanning the 16th-18th centuries, was a long and deliberate process, leading to the codification of RCS grammar and the renovation of liturgical texts. Another wave of innovations in RCS was incidental and took place following sudden upheaval, namely the Bolshevik Revolution and subsequent emigration abroad of Orthodox Christians that resulted in an international diaspora. Detached from traditional institutional structures, the ultimate result was freedom for the hymnographer to innovate. This work analyses both waves of RCS innovations: the reforms of the 16th-18th centuries as seen in hymnography from those centuries, and the 20th century compositions of Valeria Hoecke, a self-taught hymnographer of the Russian diaspora. Hoecke's hymnography demonstrates what can happen to a liturgical language when traditional language controls are absent. In both older and newer hymnography, this work analyzes person and viewpoint, as well as participles, verbs, and overall formal structure of the compositions. Until now, the tendency has been to describe RCS through the lens of another language. In the 16th-18th centuries, for example, grammarians wrote books modeling RCS grammar on that of Greek or Latin; more recently, 20th-21st century grammarians model RCS grammar on that of Old Church Slavonic or modern Russian. The present work is unique in its demonstration that previous analyses of RCS have obscured certain grammatical and rhetorical structures. This work shows that RCS--both old and new--has its own distinct formal structure and systems of person and viewpoint, participles, and verbs.

Christians are a tiny minority in Japan, less than one percent of the total population. Yet Christianity is ubiquitous in Japanese popular culture. From the giant mutant "angels" of the Neon Genesis Evangelion franchise to the Jesus-themed cocktails enjoyed by customers in Tokyo's Christon cafe, Japanese popular culture appropriates Christianity in both humorous and unsettling ways. By treating the Western religion as an exotic cultural practice, Japanese demonstrate the reversibility of cultural stereotypes and force us to reconsider common views of global cultural flows and East-West relations. Of particular interest is the repeated reappearance in modern fiction of the so-called "Christian century" of Japan (1549-1638), the period between the arrival of the Jesuit missionaries and the last Christian revolt before the final ban on the foreign religion. Literary authors as different as Akutagawa Ryu-nosuke, Endo- Shu-saku, Yamada Fu-taro-, and Takemoto Novala, as well as film directors, manga and anime authors, and videogame producers have all expressed their fascination with the lives and works of Catholic missionaries and Japanese converts and produced imaginative reinterpretations of the period. In Holy Ghosts, Rebecca Suter explores the reasons behind the popularity of the Christian century in modern Japanese fiction and reflects on the role of cross-cultural representations in Japan. Since the opening of the ports in the Meiji period, Japan's relationship with Euro-American culture has oscillated between a drive towards Westernization and an antithetical urge to "return to Asia." Exploring the twentieth-century's fascination with the Christian Century enables Suter to reflect on modern Japan's complex combination of Orientalism, self-Orientalism, and Occidentalism. By looking back at a time when the Japanese interacted with Europeans in ways that were both similar to and different from modern dealings, fictional representations of the Christian century offer an opportunity to reflect critically not only on cross-cultural negotiation but also more broadly on both Japanese and Western social and political formations. The ghosts of the Christian century that haunt modern Japanese fiction thus prompt us to rethink conventional notions of East-West exchanges, mutual representations, and power relations, complicating our understanding of global modernity.

The writing down of music is one of the triumphant technologies of the West. Without writing, the performance of music involves some combination of memory and improvisation. Isidore of Seville famously wrote that "unless sounds are remembered by man, they perish, for they cannot be written down". This volume deals with the materials of chant from the point of view of transmission. The early history of chant is a history of orality, of transmission by mouth to ear, and yet we can study it only through the use of written documents. Scholars of medieval music have taken up the ideas and techniques of scholars of folklore, of oral transmission, of ethnomusicology; for the chant is, in fact, an ancient music transmitted for a time in oral culture; and we study a culture not our own, whose informants are not people but manuscripts. All depends, ironically, on deducing oral issues from written documents.

Though it may not be immediately obvious why articles on topics from such distantly removed areas of western Europe - the Iberian peninsula and southern Italy - should appear in the same volume (the fourth collection by Roger Reynolds), the materials covered illustrate that they are indeed closely related, both in their differences and their similarities. Both peninsulas had their own indigenous liturgies and music (Old Spanish and Beneventan), distinctive written scripts (Visigothic and Beneventan), and legal and theological traditions, and repeatedly these worked their influence on other areas of western Europe. Although there were frequent attempts by the papacy and secular rulers from the 9th to the 13th century to suppress these distinctive traditions in both areas, elements of these nonetheless survived well into the 16th century and beyond. Despite the differences in these traditions, the articles in this volume also demonstrate through manuscript evidence the continued exchange of the distinctive customs between the Iberian peninsula and southern Italian cultures from the very early Middle Ages through the 12th century.

For women of the Italian Renaissance, the Virgin Mary was one of the most important role models. "Who Is Mary? "presents devotional works written by three women better known for their secular writings: Vittoria Colonna, famed for her Petrarchan lyric verse; Chiara Matraini, one of the most original poets of her generation; and the wide-ranging, intellectually ambitious polemicist Lucrezia Marinella. At a time when the cult of the Virgin was undergoing a substantial process of redefinition, these texts cast fascinating light on the beliefs of Catholic women in the Renaissance, and also, in the cases of Matraini and Marinella, on contemporaneous women's social behavior, prescribed for them by male writers in books on female decorum.
"Who Is Mary?" testifies to the emotional and spiritual relationships that women had with the figure of Mary, whom they were required to emulate as the epitome of femininity. Now available for the first time in English-language translation, these writings suggest new possibilities for women in both religious and civil culture and provide a window to women's spirituality, concerning the most important icon set before them, as wives, mothers, and Christians.