In a brief introductory chapter, the author addresses the question of why we need to confess our sins, and offers three reflections in response: Sin as Pride, Sin as Violation of Boundaries, Sin and the Possibility of Forgiveness. The book includes seventy prayers of confession and words of assurance, with accompanying liturgies and music suggestions (Scripture and hymn indexes included!). The prayers are offered in three sections, confession and pardon related to: The Human Condition, The Holy Scriptures, The Liturgical Year. The Just in Time! Series offers brief, practical resources of immediate help for pastors at an affordable price.

Based on the Revised Common Lectionary and broadly ecumenical, this addition tothe Just In Time " "series provides: Sitting with the Text: Scripture commentary for each of the three lectionary years; Worship and Preaching Themes; Creating the Environment: ideas for decorating and preparing the worship space; Shaping the Worship Service: prayers, liturgies, dramas, music suggestions; Scripture Index; and more.

Beginning with Ash Wednesday, "Lenten Services" aids the reader in planning and implementing transformative worship services throughout the Lenten journey."

Nicholas Taylor provides an Anglican theological approach to the controversial questions surrounding the demand for allowing lay ministers to preside at the Eucharist. This is a pressing issue thoroughly reviewed and addressed.The demand for allowing lay ministers to preside at the Eucharist has become a pressing issue in many churches, not only in Anglicanism. Within the Anglican Communion, this issue seems to be potentially divisive as most provinces refuse to accept lay presidency, but some - as the Archdiocese of Sydney - are discussing schemes to introduce it.In "Lay Presidency at the Eucharist" an Anglican theological approach to controversial questions is articulated. Taylor investigates in particular what allegiance to Scripture entails, and how its authority is to be applied in the Church today. The evidence of the New Testament and early Church on the Eucharist and ministry, and how critical scholarship relates to the authority of Scripture in the life of the Church, are explored, whilst the Reformation and subsequent developments in Anglican theology and Eucharistic practice are considered. Pressure to authorize lay presidency is largely a response to a shortage of clergy to meet demand for Eucharistic worship, and alternative provision for this need is discussed, before going on to consider specific schemes. The theological issues, to do with the Church, the Eucharist, and the ministry, are reviewed, and outstanding questions identified."Affirming Catholicism" is a progressive movement in the Anglican Church, drawing inspiration and hope from the Catholic tradition, confident that it will bear the gifts of the past into the future. The books in this series aim to make the Catholic element within Anglicanism once more a positive force for the Gospel, and a model for effective mission today.

Christians are identified by their participation in liturgy. In this primer, Catherine Vincie introduces readers to current liturgical theology by providing them with the foundational themes of the field. She explains that liturgy draws us into the paschal mystery of Jesus Christ, that it should create a space in which we attempt to name toward God by employing an abundance of metaphors and images, and that the sacraments are communicated and understood through the use of symbols. Vincie is grounded in the liturgical reforms of the Second Vatican Council. As such, "Celebrating Divine Mystery" seeks to draw readers into full, conscious, and active participation" in the liturgy by informing them about recent scholarship and challenging them to enter the divine mystery as informed and engaged participants.

"Catherine Vincie, RSHM, PhD, is professor of sacramental and liturgical theology at the Aquinas Institute of Theology in St. Louis. She is also author of "The Role of the Assembly in Christian" Initiation and many articles on initiation, Eucharist, and liturgy and justice. As a practicing liturgical musician, she is also interested in the role of the arts in past and current liturgical celebration.""

From the rich tradition of the Anglo-Saxon Church of the sixth, seventh, and eighth centuries, Benedicta Ward has selected prayers and passages for meditation from both Latin and Anglo-Saxon sources. The mixture of Latin and Celtic Christian cultures, distilled and appropriated by the Germanic Anglo-Saxons, produced a distinctive English spiritual tradition which embraced kings and princesses, abbesses and monks, cowherds and poets, soldiers and beggars, and birds and animals. It is possible through these passages to walk with these men and women as friends and see how their lives became filled with the life of Christ, in pain and desolation as well as in wonder, love, and praise. '

"Benedicta Ward is Reader in Spirituality at Harris Mansfield College Oxford, and a member of the Community of the Sisters of the Love of God. Among her many books are "The Venerable Bede, "and"High King of Heaven, Aspects of Early English Spirituality.

"2009 Catholic Press Association Award Winner "

A decade after the untimely death of renowned Scripture scholar Father Raymond E. Brown, SS, he continues to inspire and inform scholars and preachers, students and pastoral ministers, lay and ordained. It was only days after Father Brown's death that his final book was published by Liturgical Press. That book, "Christ in the Gospels of the Ordinary Sundays, " completed his six-volume series on preaching the Scriptures, a series that had begun in the mid-1970s with the publication of his popular "An Adult Christ at Christmas." Those six volumes are collected here in one convenient commemorative edition to mark the tenth anniversary of Brown's death. Brown's work is left largely untouched, and readers will find that his wisdom is lasting. Yet Brown, being a scholar's scholar, would recognize the need for some enhancement in a work being republished some thirty years after the first volume appeared. Appropriately, then, this edition contains introductory essays by Brown's colleagues and friends John R. Donahue, SJ, and Ronald D. Witherup, SS, as well as useful indexes and a bibliography of resources for preaching the word of God in the context of the lectionary.

As Witherup notes in his preface, Brown had the rare capacity to simplify complex biblical studies in a manner that did not 'dumb down ' the material but allowed it to be understood by a wide audience. . . . He did this in a fashion that was both inspiring and educational. That very broad audience 'those who grew up with Brown, so to speak, as well as a whole new generation of readers and preachers of the word 'will find this book to be a source of inspiration and knowledge that they will turn to again and again.

"Raymond E.Brown, S.S., (1928 -1998) was the Auburn Distinguished Professor of Biblical Studies at Union Theological Seminary in New York City. He was author of some forty books on the Bible and past president of three of the most important biblical societies in the world. By appointment of two popes (Pal VI in 1972, John Paul II in 1996) Brown was a member of the Roman Pontifical Biblical Commission. "Time" magazine called him probably the premier Catholic Scripture scholar of the U.S."

In these pages Archbishop Piero Marini reveals the Vision, courage, and faith of the pastors and scholars who struggled to implement the Second Vatican Council's teachings on the liturgy. While in some circles it is fashionable to propose a reform of the liturgical reform, any such revision needs to take into account the history of the consilium 'the organism established by the Holy See to carry out the initial liturgical changes. This story of the work of the consilium offers a fascinating glimpse into the struggles and tensions that accompanied the realization of the council's dream to promote the full, conscious and active participation" of the faithful in Roman Catholic worship.

"Piero Marini was ordained on June 27, 1965. He became the personal secretary for Archbishop Annibale Bugnini in 1975 and in 1987 was appointed the head of the Office for the Liturgical Celebrations of the Supreme Pontiff, a position he currently holds. In 1998, Marini was appointed Titular Bishop of Martirano, Italy, and was ordained bishop the following month. In 2003, Marini was appointed Titular Archbishop of Martirano. He also served as the Master of Pontifical Liturgical Celebrations from 1987-2007.""

This is a quality prayer book in the tradition of Catholic primers and devotional manuals. For each day of the year there is a scripture reading and an inspiring example from the lives of the many men and women in history who have made holiness visible lead into prayers of thanksgiving and intercession. Each month has a particular focus and is introduced by the leading Catholic laywoman, the Duchess of Norfolk. The foreword is provided by Cardinal Cormac Murphy O'Connor.

This is a probing study on the history and meaning of the liturgy that also questions how Christian worship will change in the future.The publication by Benedict XV1 of the motu proprio has put the question of the history and meaning of the liturgy back into centre stage, not just for Catholics but for many Christians as well. Dr Hemming seeks to provide an intelligent background to the Pope's decision, addressing himself to a number of questions about the nature and character of Catholic worship that opens a wide-ranging historical discussion which will inform and persuade a wide audience.The chapter on liturgy and revelation is the turning point in the book and shows how an understanding of time that is presumed in all modern philosophical thought is challenged by the understanding of divine self-revelation. This is something the young Fr Joseph Ratzinger focussed on early on in his career. This forces us to ask what our relation to liturgical events are and how we experience them. Dr Hemming therefore advocates a 'high' theology of the liturgy with the profoundest understanding of the numinous and the mysterium of faith. How will Christian worship change now, asks Dr Hemming in his concluding chapter? He offers a sketch of what may happen in the coming decades and long after the Papacy of Benedict XV1.

In Peculiar Crossroads, Farrell O'Gorman explains how the radical religiosity of both Flannery O'Connor's and Walker Percy's vision made them so valuable as southern fiction writers and social critics. Via their spiritual and philosophical concerns, O'Gorman asserts, these two unabashedly Catholic authors bequeathed a postmodern South of shopping malls and interstates imbued with as much meaning as Appomattox or Yoknapatawpha. O'Gorman builds his argument with biographical, historical, literary, and theological evidence, examining the writers' work through intriguing pairings, such as O'Connor's Wise Blood with Percy's The Moviegoer, and O'Connor's A Good Man Is Hard to Find with Percy's Lancelot. An impeccable exercise in literary history and criticism, Peculiar Crossroads renders a genuine understanding of the Catholic sensibility of both O'Connor and Percy and their influence among contemporary southern writers.

Intercessory prayer is a key part of the liturgy of the Eucharist. Intercessory prayers need to reflect a response to the preached Word and topical concern for the world and need to be prepared afresh for each service. Intercessory prayer is also known as 'the prayer of the people' and is often said by a member of the congregation, not a priest. For anyone with this ministry in their local church, here is a complete companion handbook that includes: a simple theology of intercessory prayer; an explanation of its purpose within the liturgy and its relation to the readings of the day; the difference between public and personal prayer; a guide to writing intercessory prayers that connect with the whole service; technical advice: use of language, addressing God, vocal expression; common errors to avoid: excessive length or detail, breaches of confidence; prayerful preparation; using other resources; developing a personal style; and, ready to use intercessory prayers.

Bieler and Schottroff bring together the best of contemporary scholarship on ritual theory and practice, Eucharistic origins, the Eucharist and eschatology, the Eucharist and world hunger, the global economy, and the dynamics of torture in a dramatic new vision of the transformative power of the Eucharist for our world. It includes reflection questions that lead readers into the issues raised in each chapter.

This edition of the 1979 Book of Common Prayer features imitation leather binding, and is an ideal gift for celebrating special occasions.
The Gift Edition offers all of the unique supplementary features available in Oxford's prayer books - The Revised Common Lectionary, historical and theological background materials, answers to commonly asked questions about the church, and more. All of this is bound in a beautifully-constructed cover - a perfect gift at an affordable price.

Based on the Revised Common Lectionary and broadly ecumenical, this addition tothe Just In Time " "series provides creative liturgies, sermon helps, and prayers for Easter Vigil, Easter Sunday, and the 40 days of Easter."

The definitive guide to the meaning of today s most popular praise and worship songs.
Few things influence Christians understanding of the faith more than the songs they sing in worship. The explosion of praise and worship music in the last fifteen years has profoundly affected our experience of God. So what are those songs telling us about who God is? In what ways have they made us more faithful disciples of Jesus Christ? In what ways have they failed to embody the full message of the gospel?
Working with the lists of the most frequently sung praise and worship songs from recent years, the authors of this book offer an objective but supportive assessment of the meaning and contribution of the Christian music that has been so important in the lives of contemporary believers.

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Although originally intended for use by Catholics, "Preaching the Lectionary" has become truly ecumenical in intention and tone. It is based on the "New Revised Standard Version" and integrates the Revised Common Lectionary to enhance the versatility of the preacher's task of proclaiming the Word of God as effectively and as broadly as possible.

This third edition of "Preaching the Lectionary" will appeal to homilists and others who have a ministerial or preparatory role in the Sunday liturgy. Written with the needs of the active pastor, homilist, and liturgist in mind, it offers brief, technical discussions balanced with practical insights and reflections. This new edition of a classic approach to the Lectionary has been updated to reflect the thinking of a wide range of biblical scholars and theologians.

"Reginald H. Fuller, STD, DD, a former parish priest and seminary professor with a specialty in New Testament literature, has written numerous books. He lives in Richmond, Virginia."

"Daniel Westberg, D Phil, is a former parish priest who teaches moral theology and Christian ethics at Nashotah House Episcopal Seminary in Wisconsin. He is the author of "Right Practical Reason," a book on the ethics of Thomas Aquinas."

A collection of fresh, new liturgies and prayers, closely targeted at different age ranges from 5yrs to 18yrs old, plus material for all-age. All the material has arisen from experience and has been written to be used or adapted with confidence. Includes material for: 'Sunday School' and mid-week children's services; Youth services, clubs and events; School assemblies; Family services.

Liturgy in a Post-Modern World grapples with the future of liturgy at a time of exceptional uncertainty in the Christian Churches. In the summer of 2002 a conference in Rome met to look at liturgical renewal and this book is the result. Cardinal Danneels set the tone of the conference and thus of the book. After evaluating the liturgical reforms of Vatican II, he tackles the problem of incomprehensibility in a world whose symbolic system has been lost. Includes a international scholars such as Timothy Radcliffe OP, Robert F. Taft SJ, Peter C. Phan, Francisco F. Claver SJ and is edited by Keith Pecklers SJ. An Anglican perspective is contributed by Canon Donald Gray. 'Liturgy in a Post-Modern World' will be essential reading for anyone concerned with the future of liturgy.

As Christianity has boomed in the non-Western world, several significant questions have emerged regarding how worship and culture relate. Charles Farhadian here presents a timely investigation of the interaction between culture and worship.

Leading scholars ? experts in history, mission, culture, and liturgy ? offer diverse essays addressing worship in the context of worldwide Christianity. At the heart of Christian Worship Worldwide are several case studies from Africa, Asia, Latin America, and the Pacific that explore the contours of particular nations, cultures, and liturgical actions. These essays show how Christian plurality is most vividly exemplified in the context of worship, where language, song, culture, and indigenous theology come together.

Contributors: M. L. Daneel
Samuel Escobar
Charles E. Farhadian
C. Michael Hawn
Seung Joong Joo
Ogbu U. Kalu
Thomas A. Kane
Miguel A. Palomino
Robert J. Priest
Dana L. Robert
Lamin Sanneh
Bryan D. Spinks
Andrew F. Walls
Philip L. Wickeri
John D. Witvliet

Consisting of out-of-print essays, and hard-to-access readings in biblical studies, Patristics, historical theology, and history of doctrine, "Primary Readings on the Eucharist" is an ideal text for courses on the Eucharist, as well as for professors, scholars, seminary students, and graduate students. In one convenient volume, this book combines Scripture, theology, and ritual elements to create a valuable resource.

Essays and contributors are: Israel's Theology of Memory" by Brevard S. Childs; "Toward a Theology of the Christian Feast" by Robert F. Taft, S.J.; "The Development of the Private Mass" by Cyrille Vogel, William G. Storey, and Niels Krogh Rasmussen; "The Process of Independence of the Eucharist" by G.J.C. Snoek; "The Dogma of the Council of Trent on Transubstantiaion: Its Development and the Categories in Which It Is Expressed" by Edward Schillebeeckx, O.P.; "Cranmer and the Angelican Eucharist"; by Louis Bouger;"The Roman Canon: The Theological Significance of its Structure and Syntax" by Dominic E. Serra; "Receiving Communion - A Forgotten Symbol" by Robert F. Taft, S.J.; "Communion and Intercommunion" by Kalistos Ware; and "Eucharist and Catholicity" by John Zizioulas."

A complete prayer book in the Slavonic language printed with the Cyrillic (old orthography) alphabet. Includes morning and evening prayers, the liturgy of St. John Chrysostom, various Akathists and Canons annd much more besides.

This book provides ready-to-use worship and preaching resources for themes related to Advent and Christmas. It offers ready-to-use worship and preaching resources for the four Sundays in Advent including Christmas Eve and Christmas Day. It includes biblically-based sermon briefs, suggested Scriptures, hymns, prayers, and litanies for lighting the Advent Wreath. It intends to help pastors minister more effectively during this important church season. The contents include: Introduction: The Ways We Know Jesus; First Sunday in Advent: Emmanuel; Second Sunday in Advent: Son of Man; Third Sunday in Advent: Example; Fourth Sunday in Advent: Lord; Christmas Eve: Son of God; and Christmas Day: Word of God.

Many churches today are caught in the worship war. Services are split into styles--contemporary, traditional, liturgical. Discussions and sometimes arguments arise over whether or not to have a pulpit, use drums, sing hymns, or use movie clips for illustration. These varying styles and preferences have caused many to change churches or even skip worship all together. This division of the Body of Christ is a cause for great concern and is jeopardizing the true meaning of worship for future generations. In The Worship Plot, Dan Boone exposes the distorted motives of battling over worship styles. Instead, he attests we should strive to combine our diversity to celebrate our common story. Boone explains that worship is not about personal preference or platform performance. Worship flows from the heart of God through His Son and His Spirit. Worship invites us to step into this flowing stream of celebration, thanksgiving, and love--a stream that connects us to God and to each other. Boone encourages churches to use the differences of their people to tell and celebrate the story God has plotted for us--the unifying story of the love of Christ. He affirms that when we move through worship together, through specific stages that have been plotted out to follow, we can go out with blessing and boldness, empowered by grace--ready to serve the people of the world and share with them God's amazing story.