In the year 726 C.E., the Byzantine emperor Leo III issued an edict declaring images to be idols, forbidden by Exodus, and ordering all such images in churches to be destroyed. Thus commenced the first wave of Byzantine iconoclasm, which ran its violent course until 787, when the underlying issues were temporarily resolved at the Second Council of Nicaea. In 815, a second great wave of iconoclasm was set off, only to end in 842 when the icons were restored to the churches of the East and the iconoclasts excommunicated. The iconoclast controversies have long been understood as marking major fissures between the Western and Eastern churches. Thomas F. X. Noble reveals that the lines of division were not so clear. It is traditionally maintained that the Carolingians in the 790s did not understand the basic issues involved in the Byzantine dispute. Noble contends that there was, in fact, a significant Carolingian controversy about visual art and, if its ties to Byzantine iconoclasm were tenuous, they were also complex and deeply rooted in central concerns of the Carolingian court. Furthermore, he asserts that the Carolingians made distinctive and original contributions to the whole debate over religious art. Images, Iconoclasm, and the Carolingians is the first book to provide a comprehensive study of the Western response to Byzantine iconoclasm. By comparing art-texts with laws, letters, poems, and other sources, Noble reveals the power and magnitude of the key discourses of the Carolingian world during its most dynamic and creative decades.

As followers of Jesus, we have been ushered into a reality that rivals the plot of any story. We are leading ladies in a thrilling tale of epic proportions-a story that is vibrant, mysterious, and beautiful! The problem is that so often we get caught up in the complacency of life and forget that our stories are intricately intertwined with that of our Lord and Savior. In this study, readers will explore what happens after they receive Christ and what it means to truly dwell in Him. They will explore how Jesus is their intimate friend, how He calls them His beloved, and how He has made some fantastic promises to them. Most of all, they will see that their lives in Christ are never-ending stories that will continue to unfold throughout eternity.

When Christine Morgan got Richard Coles, Kate Bottley and Giles Fraser together in a studio, all she had to do was plug them in and let them go. The dynamic between the three meant there were moments of real connection and poignancy alongside the laughter: 'I'm exaggerating for comic effect,' Kate announced after one particularly outrageous anecdote, 'It's one of the reasons we're here.' Each realized in the course of conversation that they favoured one of the three rites of passage: Giles: Baptism because you enter into the body of Christ Richard: Funerals because they take you into the mystery of God Kate: Weddings because you get to wear nice shoes Engagingly introduced by Christine Morgan, the book ends with the profoundly moving episode (recorded remotely in the three vicars' homes) that was broadcast on Easter Sunday 2020, to a world in crisis.

Einerseits lassen die jungsten Neuentdeckungen von Augustinus-Predigten angesichts des Umfangs seiner Verkundigungspraxis auch in Zukunft weitere Funde erwarten, insbesondere mit Hilfe der modernen Informationstechnik auch in bereits katalogisierten Handschriften. Andererseits stellen die Neufunde Vorstellungen von eher mechanischen Motiven und Methoden der handschriftlichen UEberlieferung grundlegend in Frage. Die vorliegende Studie zeigt durch die Identifizierung von neuen Textzeugen zu 43 Sermones ad populum sowie zu 57 als Predigten verwendeten Exzerpten anderer Schriften Augustins, dass Auswahl und Form der UEberlieferung wesentlich von den mittelalterlichen und neuzeitlichen Redaktoren nach Kriterien der liturgischen Verwendbarkeit der Texte zu ihrer Zeit mitbestimmt wurden.

Gegenstand der Arbeit ist das Phanomen der arteigenen Religion/Religiositat, welches in Deutschland seit dem ausgehenden 19. Jahrhundert bis ins erste Drittel des 20. Jahrhunderts zu beobachten ist. Die Arbeit befasst sich sowohl mit den verschiedenen theoretischen Ansatzen prominenter Ideologen und Wegbereiter als auch mit den zahlreichen Stroemungen und Gemeinschaften, die in gegenseitiger Konkurrenz standen. Anhand von Kriterien wie Aufbau und Organisation, soziale Basis oder Lehre wird herausgearbeitet, wo die Gemeinsamkeiten und Unterschiede zwischen Deutschen Christen, Neugermanen oder okkulten Ariosophen liegen. Gleichzeitig wird der Frage nachgegangen, weshalb die artreligioesen Gemeinschaften ausgerechnet im Dritten Reich ihr Ende fanden. Der Autor nahm im Vorfeld an, dass es sich bei den Entwurfen arteigener Religion primar um eine Reaktion auf eine als bedrohlich empfundene Gegenwart, also um ein Symptom der Zeit handelt. Ziel der empirisch-deskriptiven Studie ist es daher, anhand des Quellenmaterials diese These zu be- oder auch zu widerlegen. Arteigene Religion - ein Symptom der Zeit? Ein Versuch, der Moderne mit ihren sozialen, kulturell-religioesen und oekonomisch-politischen Krisen eine nationale, der deutschen Art und Rasse gemasse religioese Ordnung entgegenzusetzen?

Handel's Israelite oratorios are today little known among non-specialists, but in their own day they were unique, pioneering and extremely popular. Dating from the period 1732-1752, they combine the musical conventions of Italian opera with dramatic plots in English that are adaptations of Old Testament narratives. They constitute a form of biblical interpretation, but to date, there has been no thoroughgoing study of the theological ideas or the attitudes towards the biblical text that might be conveyed in the oratorios' libretti. This book aims to fill that gap from an interdisciplinary perspective. Combining the insights of present-day biblical studies with those of Handelian studies, Deborah W. Rooke examines the libretti of ten oratorios - Esther, Deborah, Athalia, Saul, Samson, Joseph and his Brethren, Judas Macchabaeus, Solomon, Susanna and Jephtha - and evaluates the relationship between each libretto and the biblical story on which it is based. Rooke comments on each biblical text from a modern scholarly perspective, and then compares the modern interpretation with the version of the biblical narrative that appears in the relevant libretto. Where the libretto is based on a prior dramatic or literary adaptation of the biblical narrative, she also discusses the prior adaptation and how it relates to both the biblical text and the corresponding oratorio libretto. In this way the distinctive nuances of the oratorio libretti are highlighted, and each libretto is then analysed and interpreted in the light of eighteenth-century religion, scholarship, culture and politics. The result is a fascinating exploration not only of the oratorio libretti but also of how culture and context determines the nature of biblical interpretation.

Designed to empower preachers as they lead their congregations to connect their lives to Scripture, Connections features a broad set of interpretive tools that provide commentary and worship aids on the Revised Common Lectionary. For each worship day within the three-year lectionary cycle, the commentaries in Connections link the individual lection reading with Scripture as a whole as well as to the larger world. In addition, Connections places each Psalm reading in conversation with the other lections for the day to highlight the themes of the liturgical season. Finally, sidebars offer additional connections to Scripture for each Sunday or worship day. This nine-volume series is a practical, constructive, and valuable resource for preachers who seek to help congregations connect more closely with Scripture.

The biblical title 'The Prince of Peace' leaves us in no doubt that God's purpose in Jesus Christ is to bring peace - universal peace, both with God and with our neighbours. But have we really understood what this peace might look like, especially in a world of wars and suffering? David Kerrigan sees the coming of Jesus at Christmas as central to the divine plan to bring peace to the world. Through reflection on biblical texts and mission stories he locates God at the centre of our mission and encourages us to restore the peace, joy and hope that come from accompanying Jesus.

From 1824 to 1843 Newman was an active clergyman of the Church of England; during these years he entered the pulpit about 1,270 times. He published 217 of the sermons which he wrote during these years; a further 246 sermons survive in manuscript in the Archives of the Birmingham Oratory, some only as fragments, some simply as sermon abstracts, but the majority as full texts. When completed, this series of the sermons will consist of five volumes. Volume IV contains thirty-nine sermons covering a period of sixteen years from the time when John Henry was still an Evangelical to the period immediately leading up to his departure from the Church of England. Part I contains twelve sermons on the Church, preached over a thirteen-year period from 1824 to 1837. Five of these belong to the twenty months spent as Curate of the old church of St Clement's and the other seven while Vicar of St Mary's, including the first sermon he ever preached on High Church principles. Part II contains a miscellany of twenty-seven sermons preached between 1828 and 1840. They range from five sermons on the Incarnate Christ; one to commemorate the dedication of the new church at Littlemore; one on Rome and Antichrist, two on behalf of the Church Missionary Society and the Society for the Propagation of the Gospel; two to mark the deaths of George IV and his former classic master, Walter Meyers; one also to commemorate the anniversary of the execution of Charles I.

A vital help for your Passion Play Oberammergau 2020 visit, this handy guide enables you to make the most of your time during your stay. It includes the historical background, traditions, and development of the Passion Play from 1634 to its relevance today, the organization and administration of the Play, and its impact on the village and the area. It looks behind the scenes to the wardrobe rooms and props, the stage, the history of the building, and the recent renovations and alterations. Meet the creative team behind the play and the leading actors. A synopsis of the play, including the sequence of the acts and scenes with the Old Testament Tableaux, is described. Suggestions on what to see in the village and the surrounding area include many of the places holidaymakers will visit en route to or from Oberammergau. The new expanded edition includes more of the Romantic Road, Munich, and the Austrian Tyrol.

From 1824 to 1843, Newman was an active clergyman of the Church of England. Throughout these twenty years, he entered the pulpit about 1,270 times and wrote about 604 sermons. Of these, he eventually published 217 sermons which he had written and delivered; a further 246 sermons survive in manuscript in the Archives of the Birmingham Oratory, some only as fragments but the majority as full texts. Volume I was published in 1991 and Volume II in 1993. When completed, the series will consist of five volumes.
Volume III contains a further fifty hitherto unpublished sermons belonging to this period. There are twenty-five sermons especially composed for Saints' Days and Holy Days and, with one exception, all preached at St Mary the Virgin University Church, Oxford, between 1830 and 1843. Towards the end of 1831, after years of dissatisfaction with his mode of writing and preaching sermons, Newman hit upon a new mode of delivery.
There are also twenty-five sermons which Newman categorized as General Theology. They cover such areas as: the Second Coming; the efficacy of prayer; angels; baptismal regeneration; the Trinity, religious mystery; the Creed; and the dogmatic principle. There is also one particular sermon on slavery in which Newman argues that slavery is 'a condition of life ordained by God in the same sense that other conditions of life are'.
Since many of these sermons were preached and re-preached several times over this twenty-year period, they are important for an understanding of Newman's theological and spiritual development.