This 30th anniversary edition presents the unique approach of Listening Hearts to the spiritual practice of discernment for a new generation. Written to make the often elusive and usually clergy-centered spiritual practice of discernment accessible to all people, Listening Hearts features simple reflections and exercises drawn from scripture and from Quaker and Ignatian traditions. The seminal work in the Listening Hearts Series, this book has been a beloved resource for tens of thousands of individual readers, retreat participants, small groups, and church leaders listening for and responding to God's call in their lives.

William Perkins and the Making of Protestant England presents a new interpretation of the theology and historical significance of William Perkins (1558-1602), a prominent Cambridge scholar and teacher during the reign of Queen Elizabeth I. Though often described as a Puritan, Perkins was in fact a prominent and effective apologist for the established church whose contributions to English religious thought had an immense influence on an English Protestant culture that endured well into modern times. The English Reformation is shown to be a part of the European-wide Reformation, and Perkins himself a leading Reformed theologian. In A Reformed Catholike (1597), Perkins distinguished the theology upheld in the English Church from that of the Roman Catholic Church, while at the same time showing the considerable extent to which the two churches shared common concerns. His books dealt extensively with the nature of salvation and the need to follow a moral way of life. Perkins wrote pioneering works on conscience and 'practical divinity'. In The Arte of Prophecying (1607), he provided preachers with a guidebook to the study of the Bible and their oral presentation of its teachings. He dealt boldly and in down-to-earth terms with the need to achieve social justice in an era of severe economic distress. Perkins is shown to have been instrumental to the making of a Protestant England, and to have contributed significantly to the development of the religious culture not only of Britain but also of a broad range of countries on the Continent.

The perfect book for inquirers and new members, as well as current Church members who may be unfamiliar with some of the Church s history, beliefs, and practices. This new introduction to the history, polity, spirituality, worship, and outreach of the Episcopal Church is written in an easy-to-read conversational tone, and includes study questions at the end of each chapter, making it an excellent resource for adult parish study and inquirers' classes."

A survey of the huge importance of Thomas Tallis, the `Father of Church Music', on Victorian musical life. In Victorian England, Tallis was ever-present: in performances of his music, in accounts of his biography, and through his representation in physical monuments. Known in the nineteenth century as the 'Father of English Church Music', Tallis occupies a central position in the history of the music of the Anglican Church. This book examines in detail the reception of two works that lie at the stylistic extremes of his output: Spem in alium, revived in the 1830s, though generally not greatly admired, and the Responses, which were very popular. A close study of the performances, manuscripts and editions of these works casts light on the intersections between the antiquarian, liturgical and aesthetic goals of nineteenth-century editors and musicians. By tracing Tallis's reception in nineteenth-century England, the author charts the hold Tallis had on the Victorians and the ways in which Anglican - and English - identity was defined and challenged. Dr SUE COLE is a research associate at the Faculty of Music, University of Melbourne.

Once Henry VIII declared the Church of England free of papal control in the sixteenth century and the process of Reformation began, the Church of England rapidly developed a distinctive style of ministry that reflected the values and practices of the English people. In Ministry in the Anglican Tradition from Henry VIII to 1900, John L. Kater traces the complex process by which Anglican ministry evolved in dialogue with social and political changes in England and around the world. By the end of the Victorian period, ministry in the Anglican tradition had begun to take on the broad diversity we know today. This book explores the many ways in which laypeople, clergy, and missionaries in multiple settings and under various conditions have contributed to the emergence of a uniquely Anglican way of responding to the call to serve Christ and the world. That ministry preserved many of the insights of its Reformation ancestors and their heritage, even as it continued to respond to the new and often unfamiliar contexts it now calls home.

After slavery was abolished, how far would white America go toward including African Americans as full participants in the country's institutions? Conventional historical timelines mark the end of Reconstruction in the year 1877, but the Methodist Episcopal Church continued to wrestle with issues of racial inclusion for decades after political support for racial reform had receded. An 1844 schism over slavery split Methodism into northern and southern branches, but Union victory in the Civil War provided the northern Methodists with the opportunity to send missionaries and teachers into the territory that had been occupied by the Methodist Episcopal Church, South. To a remarkable degree, the M.E. Church succeeded in appealing to freed slaves and white Unionists and thereby built up a biracial membership far surpassing that of any other Protestant denomination. A Long Reconstruction details the denomination's journey with unification and justice. African Americans who joined did so in a spirit of hope that through religious fellowship and cooperation they could gain respect and acceptance and ultimately assume a position of equality and brotherhood with whites. However, as segregation gradually took hold in the South, many northern Methodists evinced the same skepticism as white southerners about the fitness of African Americans for positions of authority and responsibility in an interracial setting. The African American membership was never without strong white allies who helped to sustain the Church's official stance against racial caste but, like the nation as a whole, the M.E. Church placed a growing priority on putting their broken union back together.

An examination of Puritan iconoclasm, the reasons which led to it, and the forces which sustained it. This work offers a detailed analysis of Puritan iconoclasm in England during the 1640s, looking at the reasons for the resurgence of image-breaking a hundred years after the break with Rome, and the extent of the phenomenon. Initially a reaction to the emphasis on ceremony and the 'beauty of holiness' under Archbishop Laud, the attack on 'innovations', such as communion rails, images and stained glass windows, developed into a major campaign driven forwardby the Long Parliament as part of its religious reformation. Increasingly radical legislation targeted not just 'new popery', but pre-Reformation survivals and a wide range of objects (including some which had been acceptable tothe Elizabethan and Jacobean Church). The book makes a detailed survey of parliament's legislation against images, considering the question of how and how far this legislation was enforced generally, with specific case studies looking at the impact of the iconoclastic reformation in London, in the cathedrals and at the universities. Parallel to this official movement was an unofficial one undertaken by Parliamentary soldiers, whose violent destructivenessbecame notorious. The significance of this spontaneous action and the importance of the anti-Catholic and anti-Episcopal feelings that it represented are also examined. Shortlisted for Historians of British Art Book Prize for2003 Dr JULIE SPRAGGON is at the Institute for Historical Research, University of London.

The author's unusual spiritual journey transformed him from a Royal Marine Commando, trained to kill or be killed, to the director of the healing ministries of Christ the King Spiritual Life Center, where he now teaches people to heal and be healed.

This long-awaited sequel to "Hand to Hand: From Combat to Healing, " Mumford's experience of healing in the trenches, offers vivid snapshots of God at work in the world. These true tales from the author's healing ministry and prayers gives the reader insight into the little-known world of modern miracles.

Inspiring to Christians and non-Christians alike, these accessible stories challenge us to explore the depths of our faith. They will encourage healers in their ministry of prayer and those who are ill to seek physical and spiritual healing for themselves.

Peter Ball looks at some of the leading figures from the past to illustrate the roots and development of Anglican spiritual direction: George Herbert, Lancelot Andrewes, John Wesley, Somerset Ward, and Evelyn Underhill. More recent influences in the revival of interest in the subject have been Kenneth Leech, Alan Jones, Gordon Jeff, and Margaret Guenther. This is an updated version of a book first published as Journey Into Truth. New material will include developments in Australia and the US, and the increasing role played by women, as well as updated resources.

The Spiritual Directors International Series This book is part of a special series produced by Morehouse Publishing in cooperation with Spiritual Directors International (SDI), a global network of some 6,000 spiritual directors and members."

Down through the centuries, people of faith have known that prayer has many languages, and not all of them have words. Here in Prayer of the HeART, readers will learn to use art as a way to open up a deep conversation with God. This book is not about "art" in the sense of making pretty pictures, or even about expressing an experience of God. Rather it opens readers to new possibilities. The art they create here is the visual result of an experience with God through visual imaging. Those who use this technique invite God to be the director, writer, and artist of their hearts as they are introduced to the concept of "heart spirituality." Prayer of the HeART is a wonderful exploration- for both the experienced artist and the novice- of the role of creativity in the life of prayer. Readers will find a variety of drawing techniques and media, and ways of dialoguing with the images they create. Each chapter, developed around a theme, features a visual exercise and a way to journey deeper into the heart of God.

For centuries Lent has been a time when Christians stop and take stock of their lives. It is a time for revisiting the story of Jesus' life, death, and resurrection. It is a time of focusing on our sinfulness and the need to repent, as well as a season in which we focus on putting aside our luxuries and making sure that others have what they need. All of these themes, and more, are explored in this collection of Anglican readings that begin with Ash Wednesday and end on the Saturday of Easter Week.

These readings are arranged in a regular sequence through each week of Lent. Sunday readings focus on God s love, Mondays on the need for discipline, Tuesdays on fasting, Wednesdays on prayer, Thursdays on sin, Fridays on the cross, and Saturdays on baptism.

A Time to Turn draws on the best sermons, books, poems, and hymns of Anglican writers throughout the centuries, with a reading for each day, followed by the brief suggestion for focusing the reader's meditations. Writers include Christina Rossetti, John Donne, Philips Brooks, John Keble, Thomas Traherne, Harriet Beecher Stowe, and many others. Brief biographies are included, along with a bibliography for those who would like to read more from a given writer. "

First text to place sexual ethics in a sacramental/liturgical context. Designed to meet the General Convention mandate for "theological reflection" around issues of sexuality and marriage. Appropriate for study regardless of gender or orientation. Before Christian communities try to address sexual ethics, the more fundamental theological question demands attention: What can sexual intimacy tell us about God? This book invites reflection on sexual relationships within a broad theological framework marked by creation, fall, and redemption. These classical hallmarks of Christian faith are proclaimed and enacted at every liturgical celebration of the Eucharist, which offers a compelling way to engage the link between sexual intimacy and the longing for God, or the hoped-for promise of "divine communion."

2012 is the 350th anniversary of the 1662 Book of Common Prayer, now widely used in the Church of England and throughout the Anglican Communion. Comfortable Words draws together some of the world's leading liturgical scholars and historians who offer a comprehensive and accessible study of the Prayer Book and its impact on both Church and society over the last three and a half centuries. Comfortable Words includes new and original scholarship here about the use of the Book of Common Prayer at different periods during its life. It also sets out some key material on the background to the production of both the Tudor books and the seventeenth-century book itself. The book is aimed at scholars, students in theological colleges, courses and universities, but there is sufficient accessibility of style for it to be accessible to others who are interested in the Prayer Book more widely in the church and to intelligent lay people. The book is unique in the way that it studies the Prayer Book and looks at the impact of it, both on the Church and on English society.

Today, the statement that Anglicans are fond of the Fathers and keen on patristic studies looks like a platitude. Like many platitudes, it is much less obvious than one might think. Indeed, it has a long and complex history. Jean-Louis Quantin shows how, between the Reformation and the last years of the Restoration, the rationale behind the Church of England's reliance on the Fathers as authorities on doctrinal controversies, changed significantly. Elizabethan divines, exactly like their Reformed counterparts on the Continent, used the Church Fathers to vindicate the Reformation from Roman Catholic charges of novelty, but firmly rejected the authority of tradition. They stressed that, on all questions controverted, there was simply no consensus of the Fathers. Beginning with the "avant-garde conformists" of early Stuart England, the reference to antiquity became more and more prominent in the construction of a new confessional identity, in contradistinction both to Rome and to Continental Protestants, which, by 1680, may fairly be called "Anglican." English divines now gave to patristics the very highest of missions. In that late age of Christianity--so the idea ran--now that charisms had been withdrawn and miracles had ceased, the exploration of ancient texts was the only reliable route to truth. As the identity of the Church of England was thus redefined, its past was reinvented. This appeal to the Fathers boosted the self-confidence of the English clergy and helped them to surmount the crises of the 1650s and 1680s. But it also undermined the orthodoxy that it was supposed to support.

Our major sources for the life and death of Thomas Becket are rigorously examined in this major new book. In the wake of his murder in December 1170, an extraordinarily large number of Lives of Thomas Becket were produced.They provide an invaluable witness to the life and death of Thomas and the dramatic events in which he was involved, but they are also works of great literary value, more complex and sophisticated than has been recognised. This book, the first to be devoted to the biographers and their works, consists of an examination the individual Lives,followed by an analysis of the biographers' treatment of the major themes in Thomas's life - conversion, conflict, trial, exile and martyrdom - in the light of contemporary hagiographical, historical and theological writing and canon law. It raises points of major significance for the study of intellectual and literary life in the central middle ages and provides an important reassessment of the Becket conflict and Thomas Becket himself. Dr MICHAEL STAUNTON is Lecturer in Medieval History, School of History and Archives, University College Dublin.

In The Excommunication of Elizabeth I, Aislinn Muller examines the excommunication and deposition of Queen Elizabeth I of England by the Roman Catholic Church, and its political afterlife during her reign. Muller shows that Elizabeth's excommunication was a crucial turning point for both Catholics and Protestants, one that irrevocably changed attitudes towards the queen, widened political participation and resistance, and posed a destabilising threat to her regime. The Excommunication of Elizabeth I demonstrates how this event exacerbated religious tensions in England's foreign and domestic politics, and how Elizabeth's conflict with the papacy shaped the development of anti-Catholicism in post-Reformation England.

Unique account of the affairs of the Church of England during a period of colossal change and controversy. This is the first comprehensive historical picture to be published of the life and work of the Church of England in the second half of the twentieth century. It traces the evolution of the Church in a period of immense upheaval, giving not only a detailed portrait of the work of its archbishops and bishops, but also exploring the Church's relationship with the State, the changes within its central institutions, and the response of the wider community to those changes. Placing the Church of England in its social context, Andrew Chandler examines the parochial reforms which arose in response to the realities of domestic and international migration, multi-culturalism and secularization. Other themes explored are the administration of property (particularly bishops' houses and the work of the cathedrals), 'ethical investment', and the recent crises which are still the subject of argument. Included among theseare the financial speculations of the late 1980s and early 1990s, from which flowed controversies about the reform of the Church of England itself and the nature of its relationship with the state. ANDREW CHANDLER is Director of the George Bell Institute, Birmingham, and Honorary Lecturer at the University of Birmingham.

This study examines the major themes and personalities which influenced the outbreak of a number of Evangelical secessions from the Church of England and Ireland during the first half of the nineteenth century. Though the number of secessions was relatively small their influence was considerable, especially in highlighting in embarrassing fashion the tensions between the evangelical conversionist imperative and the principles of a national religious establishment.

Michael Giffin offers a reading of Austen's six published novels against the background of a 'long 18th century' that stretched from the Restoration to the Regency. He demonstrates that Austen is a neoclassical author of the enlightenment who writes through the twin prisms of British Empiricism and Georgian Anglicanism. Giffin's focus is on how Austen's novels mirror a belief in natural law and natural order and how they reflect John Locke's theory of knowledge through reason, revelation, and reflection on experience.

Originally published in 1943, the aim of this concise book was 'to consider generally the theological principles involved in the relation of the Anglican Communion to non-episcopal churches, making clear the relevance of these principles to the issues raised in South India'. This book will be of value to anyone with an interest in the Anglican Communion and India.

Originally published in 1921 as part of the Cambridge Plain Texts series, this volume contains two sermons by John Donne, delivered in 1621 and 1625, on the theme of death and resurrection. A short editorial introduction is also included. This book will be of value to anyone with an interest in Donne and his religious writings.