No matter how great Sunday's worship service was, there's always another Sunday lurking at the end of the next week that must be planned. Church leaders often fall into ruts, working on automatic pilot just trying to get things together, which does not allow for much creativity or focus on designing services that lead to transformation for those involved in them.
"Engage" is a step-by-step, stress-free guide to planning worship services that allow for and foster true life change. Comprehensive in scope, "Engage" provides teaching pastors, worship leaders, and volunteers with the tools they need to work together to develop and implement a worship planning system that improves communication, enhances creativity, and honors Jesus every week.

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.

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.

Communion and otherness: how can these be reconciled? In this wide-ranging study, the distinguished Orthodox theologian, Metropolitan John (Zizioulas) of Pergamon, seeks to answer that question. In his celebrated book, Being as Communion (1985), he emphasised the importance of communion for life and for unity. In this important companion volume he now explores the complementary fact that communion is the basis for true otherness and identity. With a constant awareness of the deepest existential questions of today, Metropolitan John probes the Christian tradition and highlights the existential concerns that already underlay the writings of the Greek fathers and the definitions of the early ecumenical councils. In a vigorous and challenging way, he defends the freedom to be other as an intrinsic characteristic of personhood, fulfilled only in communion. After a major opening chapter on the ontology of otherness, written specially for this volume, the theme is systematically developed with reference to the Trinity, Christology, anthropology and ecclesiology. Another new chapter defends the idea that the Father is cause of the Trinity, as taught by the Cappadocian fathers, and replies to criticisms of this view. The final chapter responds to the customary separation of ecclesiology from mysticism and strongly favours a mystical understanding of the body of Christ as a whole. Other papers, previously published but some not easily obtainable, are all revised for their inclusion here. This is a further contribution to dialogue on some of the most vital issues for theology and the Church from one of the leading figures in modern ecumenism.

Listening to children's understandings of a ritual First Communion is generally understood as a rite of passage in which seven- and eight-year-old Catholic children transform from baptized participants in the Church to members of the body of Christ, the universal Catholic Church. This official Church account, however, ignores what the rite actually may mean to its participants. In When I Was a Child, Susan Ridgely Bales demonstrates that the accepted understanding of a religious ritual can shift dramatically when one considers the often neglected perspective of child participants. Bales followed Faith Formation classes and interviewed communicants, parents, and priests in an African American parish and in a parish containing both white and Latino congregations. By letting the children speak for themselves through their words, drawings, and actions, When I Was a Child stresses the importance of rehearsal, the centrality of sensory experiences, and the impact of expectations in the communicants' interpretations of the Eucharist. In the first sustained ethnographic study of how children interpret and help shape their own faith, Bales finds that children's perspectives give new contours to the traditional understanding of a common religious ritual. Ultimately, she argues, scholars of religion should consider age as distinct a factor as race, class, and gender in their analyses.

Michael Brown's book helps to explain why Christians throughout the ages have interpreted texts differently, especially cultic texts. Beginning with an imagined Greco-Roman auditor of the Lord's Prayer, Brown demonstrates how a Greco-Roman's understanding of the prayer would have been different from that of a Hellenized Jew in Palestine. Brown takes the reader into discussions of early Greco-Roman Christians regarding prayer in general and the Lord's Prayer in particular. Focusing on cultic didachai of Clement of Alexandria and Tertullian of Carthage, The Lord's Prayer through North African Eyes is a window into the turbulent and sometimes confusing world of second century Christianity in Africa.

Through her writings and workshops, Julia Cameron has inspired millions to pursue their dreams. In the tradition of Heart Steps, Blessings reveals the keys she uses to reconnect herself with the source of her creative spirit. Focusing on gratitude and recognizing the power to change one's surrounding world by changing one's thinking, Cameron explains how she surrenders to the "deeper flow of life rather than willfully forcing artificial solutions."

By acknowledging the beauty, harmony, and synergy of life, readers learn through Cameron's inspiring prose how to cherish the gifts they have been given and use them to their fullest. Those who read and follow Cameron's advice and prayers and listen to Tim Wheater's healing music in the audiobook will realize how to achieve harmony in their lives and embrace the notion that they are part of a larger whole that holds them in a benevolent and protective view.

With Blessings, readers will understand the secrets of a life that is rich, beautiful, intricate, and valuable.

The current Order of Mass has been used for over twenty-five years, yet the challenge of implementing it fully and celebrating it continues. Much of what has been done, and much of what still needs to be done in many places, is simply the careful and thoughtful implementation of the official rites as they have been set forth in the Sacramentary, the Lectionary, and in other liturgical books and documents. "Worshiping Well" provides a solid foundation for liturgy planners and offers helpful insights for anyone who wishes to deepen their understanding of this central worship experience of the Catholic Church and improve that experience in their parish community.

In "Worshiping Well," Father Mick stresses the importance of reviewing the different parts of the celebration and the various options in the rite. He looks at the Order of the Mass in detail 'including the forthcoming changes in the revised Sacramentary 'for those seeking a deeper understanding of this worship experience and suggests ways to improve the experience in parish communities. Questions for reflection and discussion conclude each chapter.

"Worshiping Well" offers readers an opportunity to review their own parish's worship step by step. It answers such frequently asked questions as How well have we understood the changes we experienced? How well have we implemented those changes? What mistakes have we made in using the new ritual order? What is the history and background of each part of the Mass? Have we made full use of the options allowed in the current liturgical books? Should we have other options? Do we need a whole new Order of the Mass? How could we improve the experience of Sunday worship for the majority of parishioners? What steps might a parish take to begin a revival of liturgical renewal on the local level?

Good pastoral liturgy must flow from solid liturgical principles, based on an understanding of the purpose of each ritual element of the liturgy and the theological issues involved. "Worshiping Well" provides a solid foundation for liturgy planners, guiding them in their efforts to prepare good liturgy. Priests, musicians, and parish liturgy planners, as well as special ministers 'lectors, communion ministers, and ushers 'will discover helpful insights into their ministries, along with concrete practical suggestions for carrying them out well.

"Lawrence E. Mick is a priest of the Archdiocese of Cincinnati and a noted writer, speaker, and liturgical consultant. He has served for over twenty years in various pastoral positions, including pastor, associate pastor, retreat team member, and campus minister. He has received degrees in philosophy and theology from the Athenaeum of Ohio and a master's degree in liturgical studies from the University of Notre Dame. Author of more than 250 articles in numerous publications, Father Mick has also published "To Live as We Worship, Understanding the Sacraments Today, Penance: The Once and Future Sacrament, "and" RCIA: Renewing the Church as an Initiating Assembly" by Liturgical Press."

This book is the result of a lifetime of study of the Hebrew Bible by a mature scholar whose love of the Tanakh, and especially of the Psalter, shines through on every page.

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.

Finalmente un libro escrito por un artista para los artistas dentro de la iglesia. El ministro de musica de la reconocida iglesia de la Comunidad Willow Creek en Chicago, comparte sus experiencias y ensenanzas acumuladas desde 1984 para proveer a los salmistas, cantantes, grupos y musicos dentro de la iglesia de un terreno biblico y solido en donde sostenerse respecto a temas como: 'Ser siervo en vez de ser estrella', 'La Excelencia como lo opuesto al perfeccionismo', 'Como manejar la critica', 'Los celos y la envidia', 'Como manejar tus emociones', 'Las disciplina espiritual del artista' y 'El artista y el pecado', entre muchos otros."

A Book of Epistles for liturgical use every day of the year. As fitting for the cathedral as for the village parish. , . , .

Presents an inspirational anthology of sermons, prayers, devotions, and other religious writings by the influential Catholic cardinal, in a collection that explores such topics as how to reconcile faith and reason and the necessity to seek the holiness in life. Original. 15,000 first printing.

The Methodist Church, with its distinctive musical inheritance by which the worldwide Church has been enriched, famously expresses its theology through its singing. Its authorised hymnbook therefore means more than a hymn book does in other traditions - it expresses the central beliefs of the Church itself and is commended to congregations as their core worship resource. Seven years in development, Singing the Faith is authorised by the Methodist Conference and replaces Hymns and Psalms, published almost 30 years ago. Containing the classic, best loved hymns of the Christian tradition it also incorporates many bold and exciting elements including hymns, songs and liturgical chants from the world church. A large proportion of its 830+ items are 20th and 21st century compositions, offering congregations a feast of musical choices spanning centuries and continents. It is arranged thematically in three parts: God's Eternal Goodness - the Trinity, praise and adoration, creation, gathering for worship, Scripture and revelation God's Redeeming Work - the life of Christ revealed throughout the Christian year God's Enduring Purposes - the Holy Spirit, our life in God, prayer, the sacraments, our human journeys, the saints and the life to come. Many helpful indexes enable fitting choices to be made that will enrich all occasions of worship. This organ edition has been designed to meet the practical requirements of church musicians. With an enlarged page size and sturdily bound in three hardback volumes, it also lies flat on music stands.

Very little contemporary evidence for the diversity of Christian paschal practice that preceded the Council of Niceae has survived. A unique exception, however, is the paschal tract of Anatolius, bishop of Laodicea in modern Syria, written at least four decades before the Council. In this he vigorously expounded his own views on the specifically 'Catholic' celebration of the pasch, and supplied considerable detail regarding other paschal traditions with which he disagreed. A full Latin translation of Anatolius has survived in the text De ratione paschali, whose content, however, is technically complex, blending Biblical exegesis, calendrical science, and astronomy. As a result, the work has been generally neglected in modern times and no serious effort made to try to understand its significance. This book presents the first critical edition of the text and provides the first modern study intended to penetrate the meaning of the whole text, and to make it available to a modern reader.

Aidan Kavanagh, OSB is an influential liturgist of the post-conciliar period. This volume highlights his contributions as a teacher, writer and researcher in the liturgics by bringing together historical and theological essays by international specialists, such as Robert Taft, Kenneth Stevenson, Paul Bradshaw, James F. White and R. Kevin Seasoltz.