These newly authorized rites are intended to be a supplement to the burial services in the Book of Common Prayer, adding a rich variety of new material from many sources, including prayers for one who has died in military service, for one of unknown faith, for an unbeliever, and for a member of an inter-faith family. All of the major pastoral issues of the Prayer Book rites are addressed from the reception of the body to the consecration of the grave and the interment but with a freshness of language in new texts that the speak to contemporary sensibilities.

CONTENTS

Introduction with planning information Two vigil rites before a funeral Rites for the reception of the body Collects, prayers and readings for the burial service, including a celebration of the Eucharist Rites of committal Burial of one who does not profess the Christian faith Additional prayers Committal at a crematory A service of remembrance Suggested hymns and songs

Christians who want to see Matthew's Gospel in a fresh and exciting way. Are you looking for a study to help you understand and use Matthew's Gospel? Will help individuals and groups to understand and use Matthew's Gospel in a small study or devotional setting. Journeying with Matthew' is a book to accompany the readings in year A of the Common Worship Lectionary. It aims to help individuals and groups to understand and use Matthew's Gospel.James Woodward is a Canon of Windsor, and the general editor of the book. He has written extensively in the area of pastoral and practical theology. His recent publications include Valuing Age (SPCK 2008).

The Western image of Tibet as a sacred land is in many ways a mythical construction. But the Tibetans themselves have traditionally mapped out their land in terms of areas of sacred space, and pilgrimage, ensuring a high degree of mobility within all classes of Tibetan society. Pilgrims travelled to local, regional, and national centres throughout recorded Tibetan history. In recent years, pilgrimage has resumed in areas where it had been forbidden by the Chinese authorities, and has now become one of the most prominent religious expressions of Tibetan national identity. In this major new work, leading scholars of Asian pilgrimage traditions discuss historical and contemporary aspects of pilgrimage within the Tibetan cultural world. Myths and legends, material conditions, textual sources, a modern pilgrim's impressions, political and economic influences, biographies and contemporary developments - all these and many other issues are examined here. The result is an informative and often entertaining work which contributes greatly to our knowledge of the history and culture of Tibet as well as the wider issues of religious power and practice.

The Spanish Camino de Santiago, a pilgrimage rooted in the Medieval period and increasingly active today, has attracted a growing amount of both scholarly and popular attention. With its multiple points of departure in Spain and other European countries, its simultaneously secular and religious nature, and its international and transhistorical population of pilgrims, this particular pilgrimage naturally invites a wide range of intellectual inquiry and scholarly perspectives. This volume fills a gap in current pilgrimage studies, focusing on contemporary representations of the Camino de Santiago. Complementing existing studies of the Camino's medieval origins, it situates the Camino as a modern experience and engages interdisciplinary perspectives to present a theoretical framework for exploring the most central issues that concern scholars of pilgrimage studies today. Contributors explore the contemporary meaning of the Camino through an interdisciplinary lens that reflects the increasing permeability between academic disciplines and fields, bringing together a wide range of theoretical and critical perspectives (cultural studies, literary studies, globalization studies, memory studies, ethnic studies, postcolonial studies, cultural geographies, photography, and material culture). Chapters touch on a variety of genres (blogs, film, graphic novels, historical novels, objects, and travel guides), and transnational perspectives (Australia, the Arab world, England, Spain, and the United States).

Many people want to "take on" a discipline for Lent rather than "give up" something. One of the disciplines that many Episcopalians--and other Christians--wistfully think about taking on is the regimen of structured daily prayer that includes the course-reading of Scripture. "Forty Days: The Daily Office for Lent" offers an accessible, doable, toe-in-the-water introduction to the private recitation of Morning and/or Evening Prayer . CONTENTS Rite two morning and evening prayer the Book of Common Prayer The collects, and all Bible readings for both lectionary years, from Ash Wednesday through Holy Saturday The Psalter as prescribed and edited for each day in Lent An office proper for St. Joseph March 19] and the Annunciation March 25]

A must-read for anyone who has ever asked God, "Why me?" It's easy to trust God when things are going our way and the world makes sense. But when suffering strikes--especially seemingly senseless suffering--we are filled with doubt and stunned by events spiraling beyond our control. In the midst of suffering, we often question the very foundation of our faith--our belief in the God who says he loves us. Since our trust and obedience rest on God's character, the questions that life's tragedies force us to face are difficult, even frightening: Who is God? Can he really be trusted? What are his purposes in the face of suffering? If he can stop suffering, why doesn't he? Joni Eareckson Tada, a woman who has lived in a wheelchair for more than thirty years, and Steve Estes, a pastor and one of Joni's closest friends, explore the answers. When God Weeps is not so much a book about suffering as it is about God. It tackles tough questions about heaven and hell, horrors and hardships, and why God allows suffering in this life. Through a panoramic overview of what the Bible says about suffering, the authors make clear who God is, why he permits so much heartache and pain, and how it is we can trust him. With both a practical edge and heartfelt warmth, When God Weeps offers dependence on his love and mercy in spite of our doubts, fears, longings, and questions.

Perhaps nothing expresses the mystery of our search for the divine as well as the labyrinth. A circular pathway based on spirals found in nature, the labyrinth is a time-honored spiritual tool in faith traditions as varied as Native American, Jewish, and Celtic. As seekers walk to the center of the labyrinth, their minds quiet and turn to God. Walking out again, they bring into the world the spiritual gifts they've received.
In A Labyrinth Year, Kautz guides readers on a labyrinth pilgrimage that winds through the seasons of the liturgical year with devotions (to be used while walking the labyrinth) based on the thoughts and emotions of biblical characters whose stories are recalled in the seasonal scripture readings. As readers explore the journeys of these people of faith, they connect with the deeper meaning of the stories and learn to live them out in their own experience.

This volume provides a theoretically- and empirically-grounded study of the significance of landscape, its intersection with cultural heritage, and associated implications for tourism, in Christian pilgrimage. It provides an international and interdenominational perspective on these issues, drawing on a wide range of examples and using three detailed case studies: Meteora, Greece; Subiaco, Italy; and the Isle of Man, British Isles. These case studies have been chosen for their international and denominational diversity, as well as rich landscape and heritage contexts. They include Greek Orthodox, Roman Catholic and Ecumenical/ Protestant denominations, incorporating different Christian theologies, practices and perspectives on the nature and purpose of pilgrimage. None have received significant attention within pilgrimage literature and thus provide a wealth of new comparative data to evaluate in relation to existing studies of Christian pilgrimage. They draw on rich participant experiential accounts and interviews with clergy, laity and local stakeholders.

The volume provides analysis of this original data which is inflected by careful attention to theoretical and conceptual engagement with literature on mobilities, sacred place and practice, place-temporalities, aesthetics, embodiment and performance, "communitas," emotion and affect, theology and spiritualities, multi-faith and post-secular society, cultural heritage, consumption and commodification, and the pilgrim-tourist continuum.

In discussions of worship, the term 'participation' covers a lot of ground. It refers not only to concrete acts in gathered liturgy, but also to some of the loftiest claims of Christian theology. In this book, Alan Rathe probes the ways in which North American evangelicals have in recent years regarded the landscape of participation. Rathe presents a broad review of evangelical worship literature through a lens borrowed from medieval theology. This brings into surprising focus not only evangelical understandings but also evangelical identities and the historical traditions they reflect, and offers fresh perspectives on such current theological concerns as God's triunity, missio Dei, and the practical theology of participation. Offering a fresh contribution to a young but important discipline, the liturgically-informed study of evangelical worship practice, this book reconnects the evangelical tradition to the 'Great Tradition' and in the process re-appropriates classic concepts that are full of promise for contemporary ecumenical dialogue.

If the future is creative, is it any wonder that sometimes the church seems stuck in the past? Now is the time for the church to reclaim its role as a center of creativity. Among your members are artists, musicians and other creatives whose gifts can enhance your worship, inform your theology and impact your community. Christian arts advocate J. Scott McElroy gives a comprehensive vision and manual for unleashing creativity in your congregation so you can connect with the more visual, aural, participatory and expressive generation that is rising up within the church today. In this handbook you'll find clear direction for: Mobilizing and managing artists and other creatives in your congregation Establishing structures and parameters for arts ministry Leading and supporting staff and church members in creative changes Enhancing the worship service Adding creative elements to your sermons Engaging the broader community Activate your church in every avenue of worship with this practical guide for arts ministry.

Exploring how the Bible may be appropriately used in practical and public theology, this book looks at types of modern practical theology with specific emphasis on the use of the Bible. Bennett juxtaposes the diversity of modern practical theology with the work of leading nineteenth-century public 'theologian', John Ruskin, and then assesses the contribution of this analysis to some modern issues of public importance in which the Bible is used. The final chapter offers a framework for a biblically informed critical practical theology which draws on the writer's experience and invites the readers to engage their own.

Tried-and-tested collection of creative resources for the Church's year

NT Wright offers reflections on the Sunday readings in the Revised Common Lectionary for Year C. This book brings together his widely read columns in the Church Times, and also contains new pieces, to cover all the Sundays and major festivals. Scholar-ship, history, insights into the world and language of the Bible are woven together to give a deeper understanding of the Word of the Lord. This book will be invaluable for anyone who wants to gather their thoughts in preparation for Sunday worship, or for regular Bible study throughout the year.

Features the popular inductive study approach Includes helpful notes for group leaders Convenient workbook format for groups or individuals Approach questions help get you thinking or start group discussion Application questions help you act on what you have learned Field-tested by individuals and groups prior to publication

Lectionary texts for reading the daily office using the Revised Standard Version translation of the Bible.

We all have a little bit of Pharisaism in us.

Pharisaism is one of the sins that angered Jesus the most. Yet we are often in bondage to it without realizing it. How can we recognize the warning signs in our own hearts and lives and be set free?

Do you consider yourself a better Christian than others? Do you enjoy pointing out others' faults while ignoring your own? Do you fail to practice what you preach? If so, you might be a Pharisee--a modern-day version of the religious leaders in Jesus' day whom He condemned for their legalism and self-righteousness. It's time to take a hard look at your attitudes and behavior and allow the Holy Spirit to set you free.

You will learn the following:

• Twenty-five signs that indicate you might be a Pharisee
• Why the sin of pharisaism angered Jesus
• The opposite character trait Jesus modeled
• Steps to take to rid pharisaism from your heart and mind

Offers a lively blend of liturgical history, sacramental theology, and practical hints to help parish altar guilds carry out their ministry.

A leading expert shares important benchmarks for leading liturgy. Grounded in Christian liturgical theology and how ritual forms the people who practice it, this book offers the principles at work in good liturgical practice, guidance for making liturgical choices, and best practices in leading and presiding over liturgical worship. Topics include curating liturgy and leading with excellence, principles for liturgical planning and presiding, and best practices for the Eucharist and Baptism. The author draws on his wide-ranging work in ritual theory to provide a practical guide that clergy and lay leaders in the Episcopal Church will find to be an essential resource. Those in other denominations will also find this book to be a useful reference in standard setting.

This uniquely comprehensive reference work provides a global account of the history, expansion, diversity, and contemporary issues facing the Anglican Communion, the worldwide body that includes all followers of the Anglican faith. * An insightful and wide-ranging treatment of this dynamic global faith, offering unrivalled coverage of its historical development, and the religious and ethical questions affecting the church today * Explores every aspect of this vibrant religious community from analyzing its instruments of Unity, to its central role in interfaith communication * Spans the Anglican Communion s long history through to 21st century debates within the church on such issues as sexual-orientation of clergy, and the pastoral role of women * Features a substantial articles on the Church s 44 provinces, including a brief history of each * Brings together a distinguished and international team of contributors, including some of the world s leading Anglican commentators

With the twelve-volume series Feasting on the Word, Westminster John Knox Press offers one of the most extensive and well-respected resources for preaching on the market today. When complete, the twelve volumes will cover all of the Sundays in the three-year lectionary cycle, along with moveable occasions.The page layout is truly unique. For each lectionary text, preachers will find brief essaysA'aEURO"one each on the exegetical, theological, pastoral, and homiletical challenges of the text. Each volume will also contain an index of biblical passages so that nonlectionary preachers may make use of its contents. The printed volumes for Ordinary Time include the complementary stream during Year A, the complementary stream during the first half of Year B, the semicontinuous stream during the second half of Year B, and the semicontinuous stream during Year C. Beginning with the season after Pentecost in Year C, the alternate lections for Ordinary Time not in the print volumes will be available online at feastingontheword.net.

Exploring how the Bible may be appropriately used in practical and public theology, this book looks at types of modern practical theology with specific emphasis on the use of the Bible. Bennett juxtaposes the diversity of modern practical theology with the work of leading nineteenth-century public 'theologian', John Ruskin, and then assesses the contribution of this analysis to some modern issues of public importance in which the Bible is used. The final chapter offers a framework for a biblically informed critical practical theology which draws on the writer's experience and invites the readers to engage their own.

In hope, Christian faith reconfigures the shape of what is familiar in order to pattern the contours of God's promised future. In this process, the present is continuously re-shaped by ventures of hopeful and expectant living. In art, this same poetic interplay between past, present and future takes specific concrete forms, furnishing vital resources for sustaining an imaginative ecology of hope. This volume attends to the contributions that architecture, drama, literature, music and painting can make, as artists trace patterns of promise, resisting the finality of modernity's despairing visions and generating hopeful living in a present which, although marked by sin and death, is grasped imaginatively as already pregnant with future.