The Episcopal Church
The Episcopal Church in the United States is a denomination comprising 2.5 million members. The word "Episcopal" means "having bishops" and reflects the importance of bishops as the outward and visible sign of our Christian unity and our heritage of the unbroken, historic faith of the first apostles. The Presiding Bishop of the Episcopal Church is the Most Rev'd Katharine Jefferts Schori.
The Episcopal Church is a part of the worldwide Anglican Communion, comprising some 70 million members. The Anglican Communion has common roots with the Church of England. It finds its unity in its common heritage grounded in Holy Scripture, the ancient creeds, the sacraments, the orders of ministry, and "The Book of Common Prayer". The Archbishop of Canterbury, the Most Rev'd Rowan Williams, is the head of the Anglican Communion.
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Books
We're Here for You
Welcome to the Episcopal Church: An Introduction to its History, Faith, and Worship
by Christopher L. Webber, Frank T. Griswold, III. The perfect book for inquirers and new members, Welcome to the Episcopal Church is also a book for 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.
Introduction to the Episcopal Church
by Joseph B. Bernardin. This classic resource, first published in 1935, offers an enlightening overview of the Episcopal Church, including its fascinating history and lore, and information about the church year, buildings, symbolism, vestments and customs. The author also explores the Episcopal Church's government, doctrine, and sacraments, as well as its view of the Bible and prayer, and moral law.
Always Open: Being an Anglican Today
by Richard Giles. Seventy million assorted individuals comprise a church family that is renowned for its rich diversity. Christians of all shades of belief together make up the Anglican Communion, a fellowship of churches that extends around the world and includes the Episcopal Church in the United States. At its best, the spirit of openness that marks this fellowship is a sign of openness to the Holy Spirit. Few Anglicans would presume to have “arrived” spiritually, and the door is always open to all who are seeking God. Whether you are a cradle Episcopalian or are exploring the denomination, Always Open is an excellent introduction to Anglican beliefs and practices. Down–to–earth and good humored, Always Open explains the essentials of the Anglican approach to authority, the Bible, social and moral questions, dialogue with people of other faiths, and much, much more.
by Michael Ramsey. Archbishop Michael Ramsey was one of the church's most remarkable twentieth–century saints––wise and humble, humorous and compassionate. These introductory lectures on Anglicanism reveal the breadth of Ramsey's theological understanding, his ecumenism, and his vision of the church and the Christian life. Informal and conversational in style, the lectures offer an overview of Anglican theology, spirituality, and history. Ramsey begins with Anglicanism's enduring characteristics, including its dependence on Scripture, tradition––the ancient writers of the church who guide us in interpreting the Bible––and reason, our God–given capacity for divine revelation.
A Dictionary for Episcopalians
by John N. Wall, Philippa J. Anderson. This illustrated dictionary for the Episcopal Church is an essential reference to its terminology, worship, structure, and polity. Originally intended as a resource for new members and confirmands in the Episcopal Church, since it was first published in 1985 the dictionary has become increasingly popular with clergy, vestries, and other lay ministers and leaders.
A Brief History of the Episcopal Church
by David L. Holmes. This is a relatively concise, highly literary 400–year history of the Episcopal Church, its successes and its failures. The author has clearly tied this history to the Anglican Reformation that emerged from Henry VIII's break with Roman Catholicism. This book, provides a readable and accurate account of the beginnings of the Anglican Church in America at Jamestown, Virginia, in 1607, to the establishment of the Protestant Episcopal Church in America after the War of Independence, to the present day.
A History of the Episcopal Church
by Robert W. Pritchard. This insightful, all–encompassing chronicle spanning 400 years traces the fascinating rise of the Episcopal Church, founded in an age of fragmentation and molded by the powerful movements of American history: the Great Awakening; the American Revolution; the Civil War; two World Wars and the Depression; and the social upheavals of the post World War II years.
by David Hein, Gardiner H. Shattuck. The story of Episcopalians in America is the story of an influential denomination that has furnished a disproportionately large share of the American political and cultural leadership. Beginning with the denomination's roots in 16th–century England, this book offers a fresh account of the Episcopal Church's rise to prominence in America. Chronologically arranged, it follows the establishment of colonial Anglicanism in the New World, the national organization of the denomination following the Revolution, its rise during the 19th century, and the complex array of forces that affected the church in the 20th century and continue to affect it today.
My Faith, My Life: A Teen's Guide to the Episcopal Church
by Jenifer Gamber and The Right Rev. Katharine Jefferts Schori. Here in My Faith, My Life, teenagers learn all about the Christian faith they've been baptized into - and the Episcopal Church that offers them a spiritual home. With lively writing that’s always informative and never condescending, the book gives them all the basics they need to know to understand their faith - and claim it as their own. Closely linked to the Book of Common Prayer, the book covers everything from scripture, church history, and sacraments, to the meaning of prayer and ministry in the lives of real teens today.
So You Think You're Not Religious: A Thinking Person's Guide to the Church
by James R. Adams. Many educated people shy away from the church because they cannot believe in certain aspects of the Christian tradition, such as the virgin birth, biblical miracles, and the second coming. And yet many of these same people search for what the church can offer as well: a caring community, supportive during periods of grief and times of joy. Adams reminds us that religious faith is not a matter of the mind, but of the heart. Faith lives in us, not when we can intellectually accept points of dogma, but when we set our hearts on loving God.
Art and Architecture
Cathedrals of the Episcopal Church in the USA
by David A. Kalvelage. In the middle ages, cathedrals were centers of pilgrimage. Virtually every cathedral had a shrine to which pilgrims came. At the Reformation, the shrines were swept away and pilgrimages ended – for a time. However, pilgrimage is a fundamental motif in our faith: the journey of Abraham to a better country, the journey of Israel to the promised land, the journey of Jesus to Jerusalem to meet his destiny, and the journey of the church with her Lord on the way to the cross. An absorbing amount of information about every cathedral of the Episcopal Church in the 50 states. Illustrated with photos and drawings. Includes an essay on the role of cathedrals today.
England's Thousand Best Churches
by Simon Jenkins. Parish churches are England's glory. They enshrine the history of a people – their art, architecture, and faith. As public monuments, they house a gallery of vernacular art, from different periods and in a wide range of styles, that are without equal in the world. Award–winning English journalist Simon Jenkins has traveled the length and breadth of England to select his thousand best churches. Each entry is prefaced by a map locating the church and illustrated with full–color photographs from the Country Life Archive. Organized by county, each church is described, often with delightful asides, and is given a star rating from one to five, with the four– and five–star churches listed as the "hundred best." This complete guide is invaluable for anyone interested in touring England's best churches.
Holy Things and Profane: Anglican Parish Churches in Colonial Virginia
by Dell Upton. In this prize–winning book, the author interweaves architectural and cultural history to create a vivid new picture of colonial Virginia. Lavishly illustrated with photographs and drawings, the book examines the architecture, decoration, and furniture of Virginia`s Anglican churches as expressions of eighteenth–century life and society.
Searching for Sacred Space: Essays on Architecture and Liturgical Desing in the Episcopal Church
John Ander Runkle, Editor. Every Sunday we walk through those (probably red) doors and enter a sacred space. It is familiar, maybe comforting, maybe not, maybe downright uncomfortable and unwelcoming. In twelve thoughtful and provocative essays, the writers ask important questions about the relationship between sacred spaces and the worship that takes place in them. How do our buildings convey a vision of God's kingdom on earth? How do our places of worship reflect our beliefs? In what visible, tangible forms do we proclaim a faith in the living God? How do our church buildings help this church bring the Gospel into a new century?
by James Simpson, George H. Eatman. A Treasury of Anglican Art features eight centuries of exquisite art and architecture, glorious works fashioned from the finest materials available, resulting in delicate fabrics, fine stained glass, icons, illuminated manuscripts, metalwork, mosaics, paintings, sculpture, and works in wood. Masterpieces from such old masters as Rubens and Canaletto are represented; as are great works from more modern artists, such as John Singer Sargent, N.C. Wyeth, Graham Sutherland, Sir Basil Spence, Sir Jacob Epstein, Edward Burne–Jones, A.W.N. Pugin, L.C. Tiffany, H.H. Richardson, and Henry Moore.
Bible
Fighting With the Bible: Why Scripture Divides Us and How It Can Bring Us Together
by Donn Morgan.In times of conflict, the Bible is often used as a club to beat those whose opinions differ from one's own. We recoil from such usage, yet the Bible actually represents many diverse and conflicting points of view. It is like a library, full of books that speak to all sides of every question. The author, president and dean of the Church Divinity School of the Pacific in Berkeley California, guides us in considering how we can do justice to this welter of disparate voices. What can the Bible teach us about living together? How can we use it as a powerful resource for understanding and for moving beyond conflict.
From Literal to Literary: The Essential Reference Book for Biblical Metaphors
by James Rowe Adams. Over 150 metaphors are examined in an effort to reveal the insights of the scriptures to the skeptic as well as the conventional Christian. The volume includes an index to Hebrew and Greek words, an index of Bible citations and a pronunciation guide for transliterated Hebrew and Greek words. Marcus Borg says, "An exceptionally fine book...a very relevant resource for recovering the rich resonances of biblical and Christian language."
The Book of Common Prayer
The Book of Common Prayer with Bible
Leather.
The Book of Common Prayer with Bible
Hardcover.
Personal size.
Commentary on the American Prayer Book
by Marion J. Hatchett. The author traces and comments upon the sources, history, and development of each of the rites and formularies of the book from the earliest known forms until the present day.
by Christopher L. Webber. This personal devotional resource contains prayers, scripture readings and psalmody for use while traveling. Christopher Webber has done a masterful job of compiling material from The Book of Common Prayer and other sources, and has added new meditation and intercessory forms. Also included are the author's adaptations of the ancient rites of prayer for beginning a journey and thanksgiving for a safe return home. This makes an excellent bon voyage or sabbatical gift for traveling friends and family. It can be tucked easily into a pocket, purse, or suitcase.
The Church's New Teaching Series
The Anglican Vision (Volume 1)
by James E. Griffiss. In this first volume to the New Church's Teaching Series James Griffiss provides an introduction to the Anglican tradition. He focuses especially on Anglicanism's ability to hold together theological continuity (especially the emphasis on the Incarnation) with social and cultural change. After discussing the Episcopal Church today and the ways in which it has changed over the past fifty years, Griffiss shows how the distinctive Anglican approach has been lived out in its history, spirituality, mission, worship, and approach to Scripture.
by Roger Ferlo. Ferlo explains why the Bible looks the way it does, the theology that lies behind the many different versions and translations, how to deal with the notes and cross–references, and the practical tools needed for studying the Bible. Above all he teaches the importance of approaching the Bible with respect -- a book with a long history, complex traditions, and diverse authorship, which must be read on its own terms.
by Michael Johnston. The companion to Volume 2 of The New Church's Teaching Series, Roger Ferlo's Opening the Bible, Michael Johnston's Engaging the Word teaches us how to use the critical and practical tools for reading the Bible described by Ferlo to interpret the Hebrew and Christian scriptures: what did they mean for their original audience and what do they mean for us today?
The Practice of Prayer (Volume 4)
by Margaret Guenther. Margaret Guenther answers many of the common questions of the spiritual life, such as How do we learn to listen to God in our prayer? and, How do we develop a life of prayer in the midst of busy, active lives? She includes practical descriptions of a number of ways Christians have prayed through the centuries. Guenther also discusses basic matters of Christian practice, such as making a confession, intercession, going on retreat, simplifying our lives, using a journal to pray, finding a spiritual director, and praying through times of desolation when God does not seem to be listening.
Living with History (Volume 5)
by Fredrica Harris Thompsett. The author, a scholar of the English Reformation, introduces us to the role that history has played in creating and shaping the Episcopal Church as we know it today. In giving us the broad lessons of Anglican history, she explores in detail both the historian's task and Anglicanism's distinctive history, from its roots in Scripture and the English language Bible and prayer book to its seventeenth century flowering in poetry and prose and the different forms it has assumed in the American landscape from the time of the Revolution right through to the late 20th century.
Early Christian Traditions (Volume 6)
by Rebecca Lyman. This book offers perceptive insights into the early church's intense conflicts that reveal the often thin line between orthodoxy and heresy, between true and false teachers, and among the many competing versions of Christianity. Lyman describes the early church's "family quarrels" – Gnosticism, Donatism, Arianism – as well as the theological, political, and linguistic issues that went into the making of the great creeds and established the apostolic tradition.
Opening the Prayer Book (Volume 7)
by Jeffrey D. Lee. This volume introduces us to the history and liturgies of The Book of Common Prayer and helps us understand why the prayer book is such an important aspect of Anglican self–understanding.
by Mark Allen McIntosh. The author presents the great mysteries of the Christian faith: the doctrines of creation, revelation, incarnation, salvation, and eschatology, which are all held together by the doctrine of the Trinity. To explain these beliefs for Christians today, particularly the Trinity, McIntosh begins with what we know: the language of relationship and mutuality, of friendship and family ties. The central theme of the book is our relationship with Jesus and our relationship with our neighbor, for such mutuality lies at the heart of every doctrine.
Ethics After Easter (Volume 9)
by Stephen Holmgren. In developing a distinctively Anglican approach to ethics, with its emphasis on holiness, sanctification, and the need for spiritual disciplines, Holmgren identifies clear axioms for Anglican moral theology and the ethos required for moral decision–making on the part of individuals and church bodies. He explains why ethical reflection is not the same as church governance, and why the institution cannot "make" its moral theology.
Christian Social Witness (Volume 10)
by Harold T. Lewis. The author surveys the teachings and witness of Anglicanism and the Episcopal Church concerning the Christian vision of a righteous social order, including the challenges of the new millennium. Beginning with the Bible's understandings of social justice, Lewis summarizes the Anglican witness of theologians like F. D. Maurice and William Temple and goes on to discuss the Episcopal Church in the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries.
Horizons of Mission (Volume 11)
by Titus Leonard Presler. Titus Presler offers a fresh vision of mission in the multicultural environment of a global community. Arguing that Christian mission expresses God's longing to embrace humanity in love, Presler explores how gospel understandings are being reshaped by Christians in Africa, Asia, and Latin America, Christianity's new centers of gravity. He explores the scriptural basis of mission, historical and contemporary Anglican approaches to mission, the encounter with other religions, and the interaction of gospel and culture.
A Theology of Worship (Volume 12)
by Louis Weil. In this exploration of the foundations of Anglican worship, Louis Weil invites the laity to claim their true baptismal role and serve alongside the ordained as ministers and celebrants of the liturgy. He explains how the contribution of the people of God has steadily diminished over the centuries and why it is necessary to reclaim it today in the midst of Anglicanism's increasing multiculturalism.
A Guide to the New Church's Teaching Series
by Linda L. Grenz. A complete reference for clergy and lay leaders, teachers and small group facilitators, the guide provides a brief overview of each book and contains suggestions for additional activities to enhance learning.
Clergy
Clergy Burnout: Recovering From The 70 Hour Week and Other Self–defeating Practices
by Fred Lehr. In this highly accessible book, Fred Lehr clarifies the nature and practice of clergy codependence. In twentytwo, short, insightful, and highly readable chapters, filled with many examples and stories from his own life and those of others he has counseled, Lehr identifies the typical forms codependence takes in the life and ministry of clergy: (1) the chief–enabler, the one who keeps things functioning; (2) the scapegoat, the one on whom everything's blamed when it goes wrong, the one who's responsible; (3) the hero, the example, the pure and righteous one; (4) the lost child, the one no one really knows or cares about; (5) the rescuer, the one who saves the day, makes the visit, fixes the problem, makes everything all right again; (6) the mascot, the cheerleader, the one who offers comic relief, brings down the tension level after a heated discussion.
Clergy Moms: A Survival Guide to Balancing Family and Congregation
by Allison M. Moore. Walking the tightrope of home and parish life for clergy parents is notoriously difficult in all the mainline Protestant denominations, but most books on ordination and vocation ignore the question of family life. The ordination of women, the prevalence of two-career marriages, the increasing need to care for aging family members, and the recognition of non-traditional families have shed new light on clergy family dynamics within the family and the church. This book uses accounts of experiences gathered through interviews and surveys of clergy and their family members, primarily in the Episcopal Diocese of Newark. Its ultimate goal is to develop a holistic theology of vocation that has implications for the church, the clergy, and all families and nourishes and protects faith and family life.
The Competent Pastor: Skills and Self–Knowledge for Serving Well
by Ronald D. Sisk. What does it mean to say that a pastor is competent? And how does a competent pastor function? This book is intended to help pastors, seminarians, and lay people who work with pastors understand and answer these two questions. Competence in ministry is a moving target. A ministry technique that works in one parish may not work in another. What works today may not work five years from now. But a competent pastor will be able to adapt to changing locations and changing times.
by Rosalind Brown. This important book on priestly identity embraces the many contemporary varieties of priestly ministry: male and female, paid and unpaid, parish and work–based, catholic, evangelical, charismatic. Examining the “root,” the “shape,” and the “fruit” of priestly identity, On Being a Priest Today is essential reading for priests, priests in training, and everyone considering the ministry.
The Peacemaking Pastor: A Biblical Guide to Resolving Church Conflict
by Alfred Poirier. Seminaries generally are not very effective in equipping pastors to be ministers of reconciliation, says pastor and experienced mediator Alfred Poirier. The result is pastors trained in biblical exposition, well–ordered worship, and good theology, but with little practical know–how about one of the most important functions they will be expected to perform: conflict resolution. The Peacemaking Pastor provides a survey of the nature and kinds of conflict typical in the pastorate to bring to light the need to recover the ministry of reconciliation.
Standing In The Whirlwind: The Riveting Story Of A Priest And The Congregations That Tormented Her
by Nancy C. James. This spiritual autobiography focuses on James's tumultuous tenure as a rector of two rural Episcopal parishes in Virginia after working at a Washington D.C. jail and teaching at Lorton Reformatory. Initially, both of James's parishes support her charitable idea of inviting homeless African American persons from Washington D.C. to join church socials. This acceptance, however, quickly changes to a malicious plot of a few parishioners who begin to mercilessly harass her, kill her pets, damage her property, and even attempt to arrange her "accidental" death. Some members of local law enforcement even take bribes, turning their backs on her cries for help.
Congregations
Reweaving the Sacred: A Practical Guide to Change and Growth for Challenged Congregations
by Carol J. Gallagher. Ideal growth and development tool for small congregations in all mainline denominations Simple, clear exercises and techniques to help leaders and members pinpoint problems and claim and identify gifts and values of their shared history, in order to engage in a ministry of renewal, welcome, and growth
by James Lemler. How can our patterns of congregational life and mission renew themselves and adjust to changing culture without selling out what Episcopalians stand for? How can local faith communities stay resilient and hopeful? What styles and practices of spirituality do most to enrich our mission? These are some of the questions James Lemler poses in this book on mission for clergy and congregational discussion. As with evangelism, there is both good and bad news about Episcopalians and mission. Lemler also provides a variety of models for moving forward in mission and hope, to a more abundant future.
Leadership
Congregational Leadership in Anxious Times: Being Calm and Courageous No Matter What
by Peter L. Steinke. With anxiety intensifying and penetrating more and more areas of our lives, leaders cannot be as anxious as the people they serve. Because they have more influence than any other group over the path a congregation takes, leaders must have a command of their own anxiety and must not let other people’s anxiety contaminate them. Steinke inspires courage in leaders to maintain the course, unearth secrets, resist sabotage, withstand fury, and overcome timidity or doubts. His insights, illustrations, and provocations will carry leaders through rough times, provide clarity during confusing times, and uplift them in joyous times.
God's Potters: Pastoral Leadership and the Shaping of Congregations
by Jackson W. Carroll. Pastoral ministry is an occupation in flux. In this comprehensive study Jackson Carroll considers the many factors — changing roles among clergy and laypeople, the opening of ordination to women, an increasing shortage of clergy, and more — that are shaping congregations and ministers today. Building on Paul’s image of Christians as “clay jars,” Carroll paints a portrait of “God’s potters” — pastors whose calling is to form their congregational jars so that they reveal rather than hide God’s treasure.
The Hidden Lives of Congregations: Understanding Church Dynamics
by Israel Galindo. Faced with crisis, lack of direction, or just plain “stuckness,” many congregations and their leaders are content to deal only with surface issues and symptoms—only to discover that the same problems keep recurring, often in different, and more serious, ways. In The Hidden Lives of Congregations, Christian educator and consultant Israel Galindo takes leaders below the surface of congregational life to provide a comprehensive, holistic look at the corporate nature of church relationships and the invisible dynamics at play.
How to Get Along With Your Pastor: Creating Partnership for Doing Ministry
by George B. Thompson, Jr. Statistics show that approximately 1,300 American pastors leave their congregations each month––unwillingly. These sudden changes have negative long–term effects on both the pastor and the congregations. Thompson believes it is extremely important to find practical, easy–to–understand ways to train pastors and churches on how to approach disagreement much more constructively, and shows how to do so in this new book.
How to Hit the Ground Running: A Quick–Start Guide for Congregations with New Leadership
by Neal Michell. The quick–start program described in this book is designed for the new rector or pastor who wants to "hit the ground running." It is also designed for principal lay leaders who will be instrumental in the transition to new leadership. The program takes the new pastor, vestry, or other leadership bodies from one month prior to the new leader's arrival through the first eighteen months afterward. Organized in a user–friendly workbook format, this guide gives step–by–step suggestions on how the sometimes stalled and directionless period of transition in a faith community can be made dynamic and purposeful, a time of true congregational development.
Leadership for Vital Congregations
by Anthony B. Robinson. Leadership for Vital Congregations is an essential leadership tool for clergy and lay leaders who wish to revitalize their leadership style and approach in order to become more effective leaders. It offers functional stategies to lead; information on developing as a spiritual leader; ways in which the congregation can understand the importance of leadership; and more.
Myth of the 200 Barrier: How to Lead Through Transitional Growth
by Kevin E. Martin. The common experience of large congregations getting larger and small congregations getting smaller has given rise to the belief that growing congregations tend to hit a barrier at the 150–200 attendance mark. The dividing line in American Church attendance is 150 people on an average Sunday. Churches below this seem to have a harder time growing. Above this, churches seem to have an easier time growing. Trying to grow a smaller church can feel like trying to break through what Martin calls the “200 barrier.” Martin explains that there is no barrier; there are just two different ways of being a church—the “Pastoral Size” church and the “Program” church. The “Transitional Church” is really a hybrid of these two cultures, and this dual nature produces stress and tension where the idea of a 200 barrier often becomes a self–fulfilling expectation.
Resurrecting Excellence: Shaping Faithful Christian Ministry
by L. Gregory Jones, Kevin R. Armstrong. Christians are of two minds about excellence. We commend excellent teaching, seek out excellent health care, and celebrate excellence in the arts. When a Christian life or congregation is described as excellent, however, we suspect that ambition or success may be getting the better of us. Resurrecting Excellence aims to rekindle and encourage among Christian leaders an unselfish ambition for the gospel that shuns both competition and mediocrity and rightly focuses on the beauty, power, and excellence of living as faithful disciples of the crucified and risen Christ.
Solomon's Success: Four Essential Keys to Leadership
by Kenneth L. Samuel. Samuel, building upon his own experience as a pastor of a mega–church, shares Solomon's four keys of leadership – wisdom, work, worship, and witness (found in 1 Kings) through a biblical model to help clergy and other church leaders understand the dynamics of good leadership so they can become more effective leaders and help to grow their congregations. Includes study questions.
Liturgy
The Ceremonies of the Eucharist: A Guide to Celebration
by Howard E. Galley. Unlike liturgical manuals that are intended specifically for the use of parish clergy, The Ceremonies of the Eucharist is for everyone who bears responsibility for the planning and conduct of public worship, including altar guild members, organists, lectors, acolytes, parish worship committees, cantors, as well as deacons, priests, and bishops. Galley gives practical ceremonial instructions for all minsters of the Eucharist, as well as the historical background and theological rationale behind his suggestions.
A Child's Guide to the Holy Eucharist, Rite II
by Sarah Horton, Cecilia M. Murdoch. The authors help children to understand the meaning of the eucharistic liturgy. A practical resource for children's leaders, clergy, and parents.
by Ormonde Plater. This little book is a how–to guide that spells out in great detail the liturgical functions of deacons. Different chapters focus on deacons in rites of Christian initiation, the Eucharist, ordinations, seasonal celebrations, daily office, and various pastoral liturgies (marriages, reconciliations, burials). It is an excellent guide for appropriate diaconal participation in liturgy.
Intercession: A Theological and Practical Guide
by Ormonde Plater. The author has gathered in this book more information, insight, and usable material on the joy and task of liturgical intercession than can be found in any other single place. He provides historical background, an analysis of the provision in the book of Common Prayer and other official sources, suggestions for using the opportunity for flexibility and creativity to which congregations are invited by the Prayer Book, and illustrative material, old and new.
Lent, Holy Week, Easter, and the Great Fifty Days: A Ceremonial Guide
by Leonel L. Mitchell. This is a companion guide to "The Ceremonies Of The Eucharist: A Guide To Celebration", for small to medium–size Episcopal churches.
Pastoral and Occasional Liturgies: A Ceremonial Guide
by Leonel L. Mitchell. Mitchell focuses on the pastoral and occasional liturgies. Beginning with the celebration of the Daily Office, he goes on to discuss the seasonal liturgies beyond the Lent–Easter cycle, including Advent Lessons and Carols, Candlemas, and Rogation processions. The pastoral offices include baptism, marriage, the blessing of homes, reconciliation, ministry to the sick, and burial. Mitchell concludes with services involving bishops, including celebrations of new ministries, consecrations of churches, and ordination rites. Like its two companion volumes, The Ceremonies of the Eucharist, and Lent, Holy Week, Easter, and the Great Fifty Days, this new guide offers clear descriptions of the ways of celebrating the rites as well as the history and theology behind them.
Planning a Funeral Service: A Guide to Planning a Funeral in the Episcopal Church
by Jedediah D. Holdorph. Planning the funeral of a loved one is often painful and confusing for those who are left behind. Times and places of the various services must be chosen, along with music and scripture, reception plans, memorial gifts, and other decisions. For the grieving parties, all of this can be overwhelming. In an inexpensive, concise and clear format, the author outlines the elements of the service and other decisions to be made in a booklet for clergy to use with grieving parishioners. With a convenient tear–out form on which to indicate preferences, and adaptable to the use of either Rite I or Rite II, this booklet guides readers through the maze of decisions they must make.
Praying Shapes Believing: A Theological Commentary on the Book of Common Prayer
by Leonel L. Mitchell. This in–depth look at The Book of Common Prayer systematically gives a theological answer to the question, "What does it mean that we act and speak these particular words of liturgy?" The book has a two–point focus. The first is to set forth the liturgical theology of a particular liturgy without importing a priori considerations from sources outside the liturgy itself. The second focus is an expansion of the theology of The Book of Common Prayer as the expression of the faith and life of the Episcopal Church.
A Priest's Handbook: The Ceremonies of the Church
by Dennis Michno. The definitive reference work that simplifies liturgical officiating and celebrating of the rites of the Episcopal Church. A Priest's Handbook explains the appropriate use of vestments, color, altar preparation, as well as gestures and movements during the various services. It also explores the particular prayer and liturgical options for the Holy Eucharist, Holy Week, Baptism, and other events in the Church's calendar.
A User's Guide to the Book of Common Prayer: Morning Prayer I and II and Holy Baptism
by Christopher L. Webber. The author concisely frames morning prayer in its historical context and provides valuable insights though the use of running commentary in a parallel page format throughout the text of the prayer service.
Welcome to Sunday: An Introduction to Worship in the Episcopal Church
by Christopher L. Webber. This is an excellent companion to the volume 'Welcome to the Episcopal Church'. The first chapter looks at architecture and space considerations. The chapter on ministry discusses the three–fold ordained ministry of bishops, priests and deacons as well as the ministry of the laity. A chapter on how to worship looks at practical items such as posture, prayer positions, silences, vestments and clothing, and other physical aspects. The final three chapters look at the liturgy from the Book of Common Prayer: the church year and the structure of the liturgy in its two primary parts, the ministry of Word and ministry of sacrament.
Meditations and Sermons
by Barbara Brown Taylor. This collection contains twenty–nine sermons about God's providential care, as symbolized by the manna given to the Israelites as they made their way through the wilderness. Divine love often makes itself known in reversals and surprises, as the Old Testament sermons on Moses, King David, Jeremiah, and Daniel eloquently show. Taylor's meditations on the life of faith and her rueful accounts of the cost of discipleship are instruction for the preacher as well as delight for the believer.
Faithful Living, Faithful Dying: Anglican Reflections on End of Life Care
by Jan C. Heller. What do faithful living and faithful dying mean as we near life's end? With all the technology and choices available to us today, making decisions about the end of life grows ever more difficult. As a result of all the theological and ethical issues that have arisen around the dying process in recent years, the 72nd General Convention of the Episcopal Church created a task force to study and report on these concerns. This is the report of the End–of–Life Task Force. The Task Force responds to the broad range of theological, ethical, pastoral and policy issues that are generated by the need to provide loving and fitting care at the end of life.
Five for Sorrow, Ten for Joy: Meditations on the Rosary
by J. Neville Ward. Since earliest times Christians have used pebbles, a string of knots, or beads on a cord to keep track of their prayers, and prayer beads can be found in virtually every major religious tradition in the world. Anglicans and other Protestants have also begun to use the rosary to help refresh a life of prayer––it creates a rhythm that helps wean us from our distractions and focus our attention so that we can more readily move into God's presence. As the beads and prayers recede into the background, the mysteries that make up the rosary come into our minds and hearts like religious pictures or icons. This unusual collection of meditations offer an entirely new approach to the rosary for all Christians.
For All the Saints: Homilies for Saints' and Holy Days
by Herbert O'Driscoll. This is a collection of meditations for the scriptural saints' and holy days throughout the church year commemorated in the Book of Common Prayer. Each meditation includes the collect and three readings for the day, followed by a brief homily. Many of the meditations take the form of imaginative encounters with the saints, and as O'Driscoll visits the places of the Holy Land the communion of saints across time and space comes to life, introducing us to familiar friends who offer grace and insight for our own day.
by Barbara Brown Taylor. Gospel medicine is Barbara Taylor's metaphor for the healing power of God seen in the active and ongoing restoration of this broken world. In this new collection of sermons she practices the old–fashioned art of gospel home remedies like a true evangelist, summoning with piercing clarity and wit the Old and New Testament stories that have the power to mend our spirits, strengthen our weaknesses, and restore us to wholeness.
by Barbara Brown Taylor. The author walks us through the church year, from the expectancy of Advent to the fires of Pentecost and beyond. Her themes arise from the particular feasts or fasts, as well as from the perennial questions of faith: doubt, grace, anger, and jubilation. These sermons are great stories well told. Whether speaking of Matthew's wise men who went "Home By Another Way" or Luke's importunate widow, known for "Bothering God," again and again Taylor opens the books of scripture before our eyes and shows us their hidden glory and power to save and transform us.
Let Every Heart Prepare: Meditations for Advent and Christmas
by Barbara Cawthorne Crafton. For centuries the words and poetry of our hymns have spoken deeply to us. Many people, in fact, find that what is heard in poetry and music sinks deeper into the soul than does ordinary prose. And so it is to the beautiful seasonal hymns that Barbara Cawthorne Crafton turns for inspiration for daily meditations during the great devotional seasons of the church year: Advent/Christmas, and Lent.
Living Lent: Meditations for these Forty Days
by Barbara Cawthorne Crafton. For centuries the words and poetry of our hymns have spoken to us of God. Many people, in fact, find that what is heard in poetry and music sinks more deeply into the soul than anything else. And so it is to the beautiful seasonal hymns that Barbara Cawthorne Crafton turns for inspiration for daily meditations during this great devotional season of the church year.
Love Came Down: Anglican Readings for Advent and Christmas
compiled by Christopher L. Webber. Webber's collection of Anglican readings for Advent and the 12 days of Christmas is a feast for the mind and the heart. He acknowledges in the introduction that some readers might be surprised at the "dark themes" in the liturgy during the four weeks leading up to Christmas, because our culture wants the whole season of Christmas to be a whirl of gift–giving and parties. But he says we must invest in serious thought, inner repentance and spiritual preparation before we are ready to celebrate Christ's birth.
by Barbara Brown Taylor. In this new edition of her earliest collection of sermons Barbara Brown Taylor brings her down–to–earth wisdom and keen perspective to the Bible readings of the lectionary cycle. Originally preached for the congregation of All Saints' Episcopal Church in Atlanta, the topics of these sermons range from conversations with Abraham and Moses in the Hebrew scriptures to our awareness of the communion of saints and how to recognize a miracle when one comes our way.
by Barbara Brown Taylor. In her bestselling preaching autobiography Barbara Brown Taylor writes of how she came to be a preacher of the gospel as a priest in the Episcopal Church. Includes thirteen sermons.
by Rowan Williams. In this collection of pastoral sermons and addresses, Archbishop Rowan Williams shows how the faith of the creeds can still equip Christians for a vigorous and critical engagement with the world of today. In his often poetic, sometimes scholarly, and always thoughtful and engaging style, Williams reflects with wisdom and empathy on the gospel connections to issues of peace, war, justice, sexuality, wholeness, suffering, loneliness, vocation, and mission.
The Undoing of Death: Sermons for Holy Week and Easter
by Fleming Rutledge. This collection reflects 26 years of preaching during Holy Week and Easter. It focuses more heavily on Holy Week than on Easter Sunday itself, which is represented by just two sermons. Rutledge includes sermons for the oft–neglected Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday of Holy Week, as well as messages for Eastertide, the "Great Fifty Days" that follow Christ's resurrection. These sermons are full of anecdotes and powerful insights into biblical passages.
A Wing and a Prayer: A Message of Faith and Hope
by The Right Rev. Katharine Jefferts Schori. This is a collection of micro-sermons grouped thematically around issues like social justice, the deep love of God, and the need for interfaith understanding, and the responsibility of all baptized persons to participate in lay ministry. Readers can take the sermons all in one sitting or digest them slowly as a daily devotional; since there are 40-odd homilies, the collection seems particularly tailor-made for Lenten practice. Jefferts Schori speaks from an Episcopalian perspective, but also draws on Orthodox, Catholic and other Protestant traditions, making this a thoughtful resource for many different Christian denominations.
A Year of Days with the Book of Common Prayer
by Edmond Lee Browning. Edmond L. Browning, former presiding bishop of the Episcopal Church, has poured the experience, wisdom, and love of a lifetime into meditations that explore our spirit, heal our hurt, and renew our spirituality. In a world of uncertainty, Bishop Browning offers a voice of clarity––and above all, of hope. Inspired by the Book of Common Prayer, and filled with companionship, grace, and blessing, this daybook is one to be cherished every day of the year.
Ministries
Calling: A Song for the Baptized
by Caroline A. Westerhoff, John Westerhoff. Westerhoff begins her exploration of the Christian life with the memory of childhood afternoons spent rocking in green wicker chairs on her grandmother's front porch, listening to the stories of the women who came to call. The image of calling–as baptismal vocation, as the sharing of time and conversation, as the Christian vision that informs our actions and choices – is vividly described through stories from her life and work. Narratives of what it means to live the Christian life provide the lyrical variations on the baptismal themes of ministry, community, and responsibility in this "song for the baptized."
The Close: A Young Woman's First Year at Seminary
by Chloe Breyer. An intimate and inspiring chronicle of a young woman entering a vocation that for centuries has been the exclusive dominion of men. Set in the context of the Church Year, The Close is an enthralling account of one young woman's spiritual journey, a personal meditation on faith, and a behind–the–scenes story of a graduate student's first year. She describes her intense immersion in daily prayer, the rigors and rewards of the academic program, and the challenging tension between secular and spiritual that marks her training, including working as a chaplain at Bellevue Hospital. She probes the day–to–day meanings of such profound issues as exaltation, enlightenment, and redemption, illuminating the unique experience of a young person of faith preparing to live and hoping to thrive in a secular modern world.
A Dresser of Sycamore Trees: The Finding of a Ministry
by Garret Keizer. An overwrought account of a churchman's daily life, written by an English teacher who serves as "lay vicar" of a small Vermont parish. Keizer seems to be a likeable and earnest young man; he is certainly guileless. We are given, at the start, an extremely meticulous account of the undefined yearnings that led him first to consider, then to reject, the vocation of an Anglican priest. He chose instead to become a schoolteacher and accepted a post in a remote area of upper Vermont.
Building Children's Ministry: A Practical Guide
by Tina Houser. A step-by-step guide to building a strong children's ministry that is a vital part of the church. People know they are called to children's ministry when they get goose bumps and butterflies from something a kid says or an idea that they know will communicate the gospel to children. Building Children's Ministry provides the practical information to transform those feelings and that calling into a successful children's ministry that is integrated into the life of the congregation.
The Complete Training Course for Altar Guilds
by Don Taylor. This course offers the best education available to altar guild members and is also extremely informative for all laity. This comprehensive training course presents "modules" of easy–to–digest information, which include everything any member would need to know about what are humorously termed the "props," the "stage," the "holy hardware," the "costumes," and other aspects of the Passion Play we all attend on Sunday.
Do You Have to Wear a Collar: Stories of an Ordained Ministry
by Bart Sarjeant. What is a priest? What is a ministry? How is one shaped or formed as an ordained minister? How does one recognize a call to ordained ministry? How does one relate the ministries of lay and ordained? These questions are explored in these short vignettes by Episcopal priest Bart Sarjeant. All of the more than 200 stories come from his own personal experiences as a priest in the Episcopal church for more than thirty–five years. The stories range from the very personal to the very pastoral, from his work with teenagers to his preparation of hundreds of couples for marriage, and from having to face a diagnosis of potentially terminal cancer to his longtime fascination with cars and motorcycles.
Living on the Border of the Holy: Renewing the Priesthood of All
by Louis William Countryman. Living on the Border of the Holy offers a way of understanding the priesthood of the whole people of God and the priesthood of the ordained in complementary ways by showing how both are rooted in the fundamental priestly nature of human life. After an exploration of the ministry of both laity and ordained, Countryman concludes by examining the implications of this view of priesthood for churches and for educating those studying for ordination.
by Timothy F. Sedgwick. This book addresses questions how the church is to order its life and ministry in the new context of a non–Christian society. Sedgwick explores the role of the sacraments in shaping identity, the teaching vocation of the church, the discernment process in ordination, the main ethical questions facing clergy, and the ways in which the church deals with authority and conflict.
A Manual for Lay Eucharistic Ministers in the Episcopal Church
by Elizabeth W. Ely. This practical guide covers everything a Lay Eucharistic Minister does, offering suggestions on how to prepare oneself spiritually to present the sacrament, what to do when visiting the sick or shut–in parishioner with the Eucharist, and how to prepare a sacred space in someone's home or hospital room. Beth Ely also traces the changing customs and canons of lay administration of communion from the early churches to the present, and discusses the riches and mystery of the Holy Eucharist through the centuries.
Manual for Acolytes: The Duties of the Server at Liturgical Celebrations
by Dennis G. Michno, Richard E. Mayberry. A valuable handbook for the server at all liturgical celebrations. Complete with illustrations, this volume covers in careful detail all the responsibilities and duties of the acolyte.
by Barbara Gent, Betty Sturges. This update of a classic work on altar guild ministry offers a lively blend of liturgical history, sacramental theology, and practical hints. The authors combine how–to advice with creative ideas on preparing for the traditional liturgies and simpler, special–occasion services.
by Christopher L. Webber. This revision of a classic manual for vestry membership brings readers up–to–date on changes in canons related to vestries, as well as providing new material on handling money and discretionary funds, dealing with sexual abuse in the parish, and managing conflict in the vestry and congregation. Sample job descriptions for various positions are now included, as well as a new chapter on the spiritual life of vestry members.
A Working Manual for Altar Guilds
by Dorothy C. Diggs. Chapters cover preparations for the various services of the Church, plus special celebrations such as Advent, Christmas, Lent, Holy Week, and Easter, weddings, burials, ordinations, consecrations, and others. A glossary of church terms is included.
Pastoral Concerns
by Sam Portaro. This book is a hopeful and creative reflection on the positive aspects of conflict in our relationships and institutions, as demonstrated throughout scripture in the life and ministry of Jesus, the early church, the church today, and within ourselves.
The Cost of Certainty: How Religious Conviction Betrays the Human Psyche
by Jeremy Young. The Cost of Certainty explores a fundamental ambiguity in mainstream Christian teaching: although the church claims that God’s love is unconditional, he only accepts those who believe in Jesus Christ and have repented of their sins. This gospel of conditional love breeds anxiety and polarization. Young shows how this demeans the true message of the gospels. He argues for the recovery of a spirituality of uncertainty and unconditional love as a basis for a renewal of contemporary Christian faith and practice.
by Edward Gleason. This book provides insight and comfort for those who seek to understand the Christian perspective of death and resurrection. Illustrated by vignettes of people who are confronting their own mortality or the death of a loved one, Dying We Live prepares readers to find meaning in the liturgy for the Burial of the Dead in the Book of Common Prayer by taking them through the service step–by–step. It is a helpful resource for those who are struggling with loss and grief within the church, and for those who are called upon to counsel the dying and the bereaved.
The First to Follow: The Apostles of Jesus
by John R. Claypool. One of the first things that Jesus did in his ministry was to reach out to twelve individuals and draw them into a circle of close companionship with him. This series is about those twelve apostles, their relationships with Jesus and with each other, and what the dynamics of that community can teach us. By studying those whom Jesus selected and what he did for them, to them, with them, and through them, we can learn much about how we can we experience the Holy in our own day. Jesus did not wait for people to be perfect in order to call them into the circle of God s love. As we look at those that Jesus called, and consider ourselves as part of that enlarging circle, we gain not only a deeper sense of our own reality, but also a deeper sense of how Christ would like to work with us.
Growing in Faith: A Guide for the Reluctant Christian
by David Yount. The author covers the common ground of basic Christian belief, ethics, history, and practice; he also includes study questions, guides to Bible reading, and a collection of prayers from various sources. Yount writes clearly and engagingly, addressing the reader in a straightforward and unsentimental tone: The two great commandments are to love God and to love one's neighbor. All the rest is footnote. He faces difficult theological issues with an unflinching honesty that should appeal to the skeptic. Occasionally, he shows his Catholic perspective, but usually he succeeds in avoiding sectarian bias.
Holy Listening: The Art of Spiritual Direction
by Margaret Guenther. Guenther uses the images of the spiritual director as host, teacher, and midwife to describe the ministry of spiritual direction today. She pays particular attention to spiritual direction for women, and addresses such down–to–earth questions as setting, time, and privacy. The stories of real people bring the practice of spiritual direction alive.
by Linda L. Grenz, Delbert C. Glover. Marriage is a journey that begins long before the formal ceremony and continues long after the guests have gone home. Journeys need provisions – plentiful stores of wisdom, common sense, nourishment, and companionship to help us along the way. The Marriage Journey provides just such help for those preparing for marriage and for couples who are in the midst of married life. The theological basis of the book is incarnational and sacramental; it assumes that marriage occurs in the midst of a worshiping community.
Patience: How We Wait upon the World
by David Baily Harned. This new study in Christian ethics explores the crucial role of patience in the moral life of people, communities, and nations. Patience is a discipline of the soul that was central to Christian tradition for centuries, but in the modern era it has been emptied of its original meaning and dismissed as passivity and apathy. Consequently, patience has lost its vital connection with Christ's passion on the cross. and Christianity has lost one of its most precious resources.
Reconciliation: Preparing for Confession in the Episcopal Church
by Martin L. Smith. Smith gives the theological and spiritual background of the sacrament of reconciliation in the Book of Common Prayer, and offers practical suggestions for the practice of hearing and making a confession.
by Edward Gleason. This book on marriage explores the vows of the marriage service: vows to God and to one another which are often heard and repeated, but which are rarely the subject of careful meditation. Through stories of real people, Gleason stresses the community context of the marriage vows, focusing on the role of the witnesses and other relationships that support the couple in their Christian life together.
Speaking of Sin: The Lost Language of Salvation
by Barbara Brown Taylor. The author brings her fresh perspective to a cluster of words that often cause us discomfort and have widely fallen into neglect: sin, damnation, repentance, penance, and salvation. She asks, "Why, then, should we speak of sin anymore? The only reason I can think of is because we believe that God means to redeem the world through us." Contrary to the prevailing view, Taylor calls sin "a helpful, hopeful word." Naming our sins, she contends, enables us to move from "guilt to grace."
Strength for the Journey: A Pilgrimage of Faith in Community
by Diana Butler Bass. New York Times syndicated religion columnist Bass delivers the ostensible goods an account of her life in eight different Episcopal churches. Her parish stories unfold in that riveting, better–than–fiction way that the best sociological case studies always do. Each chapter is more intriguing than the last, and it is a pleasure to see how their titles, such as "Competing Authorities" and "Interim," perfectly label the personal and congregational stories therein. But what strikes the heart is Bass's own journey from conservative evangelicalism to mainline liberalism.
Toward Holy Ground: Spiritual Directions for the Second Half of Life
by Margaret Guenther. The second half of life – which we can enter at any age – is that time when we begin the process essential to a mature faith: discovering who we are, exploring our relationship with God, and beginning to let go. This part of life has a depth and spirituality all its own – a need for structure and rule, a tolerance of ambiguity, an exploration of limitation and mortality, and the deep work of discipline and detachment.
by David Gortner. How can Episcopalians reclaim evangelism primarily as an enriching spiritual practice? How soon will we recognize that our traditional hands-off approach has led to a crisis of evangelism with our own children? How can we learn to practice evangelism in an multicultural and multifaith society? and to what purpose? What styles and practices of spirituality do most to enrich our sense of evangelical calling? These are some of the questions David Gortner asks in this book on evangelism for clergy and congregational discussion. He delivers both good and bad news about Episcopalians and evangelism, and provides models and spiritual practices to feed the growing hunger in our churches for good news.
by Sam Portaro. In the Episcopal Church, it seems the only real purpose and end of Christian discernment is professional ordination, either to the priesthood or to the vocational diaconate. This book deals with such questions as, How can both communities and individuals discern a call from God within the vocations and tasks in which they find themselves? How can the Church deal creatively with its confusion about the differing roles and authority of ordained and lay ministers?
Where is God Amidst the Bombs?: A Priest's Reflections from the Combat Zone
by C. Neal Goldsborough. Courage is a unique and often silent by-product of war. In this bracing look at his tour of duty at a combat support hospital in Kuwait, U.S. Navy Chaplain Neal Goldsborough brings us face to face with the men and women who live and serve in the places where life holds on by only a thin thread. Interspersing uncompromising moments of stark wartime reality with reflections on the nature of life, death, evil, and an all-powerful God of love, he uncovers the holy and divine in a lethal battle area so easily capable of shredding limb and soul.
Prayer and Spirituality
Bead One, Pray Too: A Guide to Making and Using Prayer Beads
by Kimberly Winston. Part history, part missal and part crafting how-to, this is a treasure trove of faith and spiritual contemplation. Winston takes readers on a fascinating journey through the tradition of prayer beads. From the third century B.C. through the late 20th century, she touches on a variety of world religions, including Hinduism, Buddhism, Judaism, Christianity, the Baha'i faith and others. A thorough introduction to both the Catholic and Anglican rosaries, complete with stunning photographs and instructional diagrams, rounds out the historical portion of the text. The second part, which is even more inviting, reveals myriad ways to use the tactile to reach the spiritual. From poems to psalms to saints, Winston offers bead-by-bead suggestions, all the time emphasizing that prayer beads are a tool for prayer and not an object of devotion... they are not there to be the focus of your prayers, but to help you focus your prayers. Practically, the final section provides the nitty-gritty of tools, materials and techniques necessary for creating individual rosaries and chains, complete with resources for choosing and finding particular types of beads.
Grace on the Go: Quick Prayers for Compassionate Caregivers
by Barbara Bartocci. As our population ages, the number of caregivers is rapidly increasing. Today one in 12 Americans cares for a family member who is ill, disabled, or dying. Studies show that nearly two-thirds of caregivers rely on prayer to help them cope. This book will offer an easy, practical guide to prayer that addresses the real needs and concerns of caregivers.
Monk Habits for Everyday People: Benedictine Spirituality for Protestants
by Dennis Okholm. In their zeal for reform, early Protestant leaders tended to throw out Saint Benedict with the holy water. That is a mistake, writes Dennis Okholm, in Monk Habits for Everyday People. While on retreat in a Benedictine abbey, the author, a professor who was raised as a Pentecostal and a Baptist, observed how the meditative and ordered life of a monk lifted Jesus' teachings off the printed page and put them into daily practice. Vital aspects of devotion, humility, obedience, hospitality, and evangelism took on new clarity and meaning. Paralleling that experience, Okholm guides the reader on a focused and instructive journey that can revitalize the devotional life of any Christian who wants to slow down and dig deeper.
Refuge and Strength: Prayers for the Military & Their Families
by Theodore W. Edwards. This small, pocket-sized book of prayers and short Bible readings is designed to be a companion to Christian men and women in the military, serving on bases in the U.S. and around the world and in harm's way on the battlefield. It is also intended for use by the families of military personnel, linking them through the strong bond of prayer with their loved ones across time and space. Included are brief forms of morning and evening prayer; prayers for the realities of daily life in service; prayers for protection, for the nation, for those who have died, and for a safe return home.
Sacred Attention: A Spiritual Practice for Finding God in the Moment
by Margaret D. McGee. Paying attention is rarely easy to do. It requires focus, patience and a willingness to slow down--traits that are hard to come by in this hurry-up world. But close attention to even one small piece of creation, one object, person, routine, image, word or scripture, can become a prayer to God, opening a channel of communication between you and the Divine to allow for deep spiritual growth.
Seeds of Faith: Practices to Grow a Healthy Spiritual Life
by Jeremy Langford. Langford taps into a renewed interest in such practices as solitude, meditation and spiritual direction in this handbook, which employs a gardening theme. Grouping the practices into three metaphorical parts—seeds, roots and branches—the author and director of communications for the Chicago Province of the Jesuits elaborates on tools that, he writes, help prepare the soil of our lives to receive and nurture God's seeds of faith. Langford calls this soul gardening, a term employed by a friend who is a minister and gardener.
Social Issues
Affirmative Aging: A Creative Approach to Longer Life
by Joan E. Lukens. A prominent team of experts on the elderly combine their knowledge and experience in this book on aging written for family, friends, clergy, caregivers – and the elderly themselves. Topics include: the senior's role in society; the gifts of older people; the acquisition of wisdom; intergenerational relationships, particularly adult children and aging parents; independence versus supportive care; the spiritual dimension of wellness in later life; churches performing the roles of caregiver, advocate and intervener; creative and productive aging; prayer and medication; and the psychological and spiritual preparation for dying.
All Things Human: Henry Codman Potter and the Social Gospel in the Episcopal Church
by Michael Bourgeois. In addition to being the sixth bishop of the Diocese of New York, Henry Codman Potter (1835–1908) was a prominent voice in the Social Gospel movement of the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. This book examines his career in the Episcopal church as well as the origins and legacy of his progressive social views. As industrialization and urbanization spread in the nineteenth century, the Social Gospel movement sought to apply Christian teachings to effect improvements in the lives of the less fortunate. Potter was firmly in this tradition, concerning himself especially with issues of race, the place of women in society, questions of labor and capital, and what he called "political righteousness."
Assisted Suicide and Euthanasia: Christian Moral Perspectives
by the Committee on Medical Ethics, the Diocese of Washington. For, against, and in–between – this book looks at the full range of arguments on assisted suicide and euthanasia that can be given from within the Christian tradition, with a special focus on Anglican heritage.
Being Well When We're Ill: Wholeness and Hope in Spite of Infirmity
by Marva J. Dawn. Filled with insight and practical help, each chapter of Being Well when We're Ill focuses on one particular kind of struggle such as worry, guilt, the loss of meaning, or the loss of confidence and trust that God is present and personally loving. Each chapter details one or more appropriate 'finds' - spiritual resources, emotional supports, intellectual answers, or practical solutions - that enable a person with infirmities to persevere through them and to be well in spite of them. For each issue she explores, such as loss of dreams, loneliness, physical pain, depression, ingratitude, side effects and more, Dawn includes discussions of biblical texts - not only texts that help lament losses but texts that bring wholeness. Readers will find themselves companioned in their sufferings and encouraged with new ways to surmount them.
Black Bishop: Edward T. Demby and the Struggle for Racial Equality in the Episcopal Church
by Michael J. Beary. In 1918, the Right Reverend Edward T. Demby took up the reins as Suffragan Bishop for Colored Work in Arkansas and the Province of the Southwest, an area encompassing Arkansas, Texas, Kansas, Oklahoma, Missouri, and New Mexico. Set within the context of a series of experiments in black leadership conducted by the Episcopal Diocese of Arkansas in the early decades of the twentieth century, Demby's tenure in a segregated ministry illuminates the larger American experience of segregation disguised as a social good.
Dakota Cross–Bearer: The Life and World of a Native American Bishop
by Mary E. Cochran. This is the story of Harold S. Jones, who in 1921 became the first American Indian bishop of the Episcopal Church.
Episcopalians and Race: Civil War and Civil Rights
by Gardiner H. Shattuck.
Escaping God's Closet: The Revelations of a Queer Priest
by Bernard Duncan Mayes. This memoir by a gay British priest is by turns political, confessional, and spiritual, entertaining and well written. Coming of age during the rise of Nazism in Europe, he began having affairs with boyhood chums, then moved on to seminary where the "pad, pad, pad of feet and the rustle of cassocks down the ever–creaking corridors during the night was not always evidence of devoted meditations." A gay priest in a culture where love "is damnably suppressed, denied, and hidden ... to please intellectual tyrants claiming to speak for God," Mayes eventually helped found a small congregation of like–minded gay and lesbian Christians in the Castro district of San Francisco, in the years just before the outbreak of AIDS.
The Gift of Years: Growing Older Gracefully
by Joan Chittister. Not only accepting but celebrating getting old, this inspirational and illuminating work looks at the many facets of the aging process, from purposes and challenges to struggles and surprises. Central throughout is a call to cherish the blessing of aging as a natural part of life that is active, productive, and deeply rewarding. Perhaps the most important dimension revealed lies in the awareness that there is a purpose to aging and intention built into every stage of life. Chittister reflects on many key issues, including the temptation towards isolation, the need to stay involved, the importance of health and well-being, what happens when old relationships end or shift, the fear of tomorrow, and the mystery of forever. Readers are encouraged to surmount their fears of getting older and find beauty in aging well.
Here I Stand: My Struggle for a Christianity of Integrity, Love, and Equality
by John Shelby Spong. Here I Stand is the autobiography of John Shelby Spong, the Episcopal bishop who is a lightning rod for controversy. Spong has for decades been working to popularize an inclusive version of Christianity that avoids racism, sexism, and homophobia; as a result, he has engaged leading conservatives (such as Jerry Falwell and Pat Robertson) in very public conflicts. Here I Stand, predictably, gives a blow–by–blow of Spong's high–profile battles. More surprisingly, Spong also shares some very intimate details about his life that help to explain the sources of his theology.
by Alan Bartlett. Humane Christianity examines how the institutional church, which should be a shining example of God’s love in the world, has so often throughout history been the very opposite—corrupt, oppressive, abusive, and inhumane. In analyzing why this has been so, Alan Bartlett shows the serious consequences of this inhumanity for Christian witness today. Humane Christianity suggests a way forward rooted in an open orthodoxy and a thoughtful, passionate commitment to the message of the gospels. The end result is a way of living as Christians that is more attractive, just, and above all, humane.
by Charles Reed. The events of September 11 and the war on terrorism have changed the ways in which we think about war. Is the Christian philosophy of "just war" still relevant to our times? How can it be applied to the combined threats of terrorism, rogue regimes, and weapons of mass destruction? If the theory is outdated, where will the church find guidance on issues of war and peace? Dr. Charles Reed explores the two Iraq Wars (1990, 2003) in light of just war theory, and answers some of those questions.
Our Selves, Our Souls and Bodies: Sexuality and the Household of God
This collection of essays by Anglican theologians, pastors, and ethicists addresses the urgent questions of human sexuality and the church that divide many congregations and confuse many Christians today. Topics include the theological grounding of sexual ethics, the purpose of the Christian household, spiritual direction and sexuality, parenting the gay child, same–sex unions, conflict and parish life, the ordination of gay and lesbian people, hospitality and inclusiveness in the church, the problem of secrecy, and the scriptural testimony of the New Testament, particularly the letters of Paul.
by Jennifer M. Phillips. The author offers a wealth of ideas on the ethical issues raised by science, technology, and the environment relating to all three scripture lessons for every Sunday of the three–year lectionary cycle. Providing a brief commentary on each of the lessons, she addresses a wide variety of pressing global concerns, including clean water and air, poverty and economic justice, health care, international debt, genetic engineering, the recycling of resources, toxic waste, the diversity of species, nutrition, insights from cosmology and physics, farming and food supply, human behavior, and our care for and use of the material world.
What Does a Progressive Christian Believe?: A Guide for the Searching, the Open, and the Curious
by Delwin Brown. This book came into being about two o'clock in the morning on the day after the 2004 presidential election. It arose out of the stunned realization that the historic tradition of progressive Christian thought and action had virtually disappeared from our public discourse.Progressive Christianity, writes theology professor Delwin Brown, is a family of perspectives that is united in opposing right-wing religion but also desires to go beyond "liberal" and "conservative" labels.
Wrestling with the Future: Our Genes and Our Choices
by the Committee on Medical Ethics, the Diocese of Washington. This is a practical resource that helps readers sort through relevant ethical, theological and legal concerns. It includes questions readers can ask their health care providers, case studies for parish study, and an extensive resource section full of national organizations who can help, as well as a bibliography for further reading.
Women
Blessed is She: Living Lent with Mary
by Timothy Perry. Everyone is happy to see Mary in the crčche at Christmastime, but by the time the Magi head back East after the Feast of the Epiphany, Christians of many traditions are often ready to place Mary to the side too. But Timothy Perry presents a Mary who belongs in Lent as much as in Advent, showing what it means to die and live with the crucified and risen Jesus. Drawing primarily from the Gospel of Luke, this lovely book of spiritual reflections reveals a Lenten Mary who teaches us about being disciples. The result is a complex, inviting, strong character – a disciple to be emulated by all Christians, especially during this holy season. With a study for each week of Lent, along with questions to ponder, this is a thought–provoking volume for private use or parish study.
Deeper Joy: Lay Women And Vocation in the 20th Century Episcopal Church
by Frederica Harris Thomsett and Sheryl A. Kujawa–Holbrook (Editors). Throughout the 20th century lay women in the Episcopal Church, often acting in isolation and without institutional support, offered a powerful witness of leadership, vocation, and theological resilience. Deeper Joy studies groups of women with similar callings yet located in diverse settings throughout church and society such as schools, hospitals, and other civic institutions. The topics presented here reflect new historical perspectives and unexplored primary materials, including interviews that bear on all women's ministries, hence addressing neglected and important aspects of life in the American church.
The Friendship of Women: The Hidden Tradition of the Bible
by Joan D. Chittister. Looking deeply into biblical stories of female friendships in order to extract greater truths, this compelling work explores the sacred dimension of friendship through the lenses of faith, tradition, and scripture, revealing the often overlooked voices and experiences of women in the Old and New Testaments. Recovering and reclaiming the witness and wisdom of such women as Lydia, Prisca, Phoebe, Martha, Deborah, Esther, Rachel, Ruth, Veronica, Elizabeth, Anne, and Mary Magdalene, and drawing a highly inspiring message from each of these women's lives, the book embraces friendship as it is embodied by women, between God and all of creation, and between all human beings.
by Elizabeth Rankin Geitz. Writers of scripture and theologians have used scores of images to describe God, Jesus, and the Holy Spirit. Yet only the patriarchal perspective seemed to survive and be taught. In this comprehensive reflection on the Nicene Creed, Geitz looks to the writings of theologians, mystics, and scholars throughout the centuries for a balanced and scholarly approach to an often divisive issue of Christians.
Mary: The Imagination of Her Heart
by Penelope Duckworth. In this study of Mary as prophet, matriarch, theologian, disciple, intercessor and paradigm, Duckworth, an Episcopal priest and poet, encourages readers to approach her from the classic Anglican perspective of the middle way, which "allows us to understand Mary as a model, a pattern, a paradigm and, as such, a soul friend as we proceed toward the perfection that is Christ."
by Nicola M. Slee. Praying Like A Woman is the expression of one woman’s journey through life and faith, yet its themes of struggle, suffering, and joy, are universal. It is both intensely personal, and also appealing and relevant to all women. The collection contains prayers, poems, songs, psalms, canticles, litanies, laments and creeds, as well as personal reflections. The areas covered include traditional areas for prayer, but also diverge into more specific themes, particularly relevant for women – such as the body and health. Praying Like A Woman is ideal for women who want to explore and develop their faith. The author hopes it will help other women to live into the experience of being a woman, in the particular time and place in which they find themselves, in the eyes of others and of God.
Scarred By Struggle, Transformed By Hope
by Joan D. Chittister. Everyone goes through times of pain and sorrow, depression and darkness, stress and suffering. It is in the necessary struggles of life, however, that we stretch our souls and gain new insights enabling us to go on. Building on the biblical story of Jacob wrestling with God and on the story of her own battle with life–changing disappointment, Sister Joan Chittister deftly explores the landscape of suffering and hope, considering along the way such wide–ranging topics as consumerism, technology, grief, the role of women in the Catholic Church, and the events of September 11, 2001. We struggle, she says, against change, isolation, darkness, fear, powerlessness, vulnerability, exhaustion, and scarring; and while these struggles sometimes seem insurmountable, we can emerge from them with the gifts of conversion, detachment, faith, courage, surrender, limitations, endurance, transformation, and (perhaps most important) hope.
The Story of Ruth: Twelve Moments in Every Woman's Life
by Joan D. Chittister, John August Swanson. The biblical story of Ruth is a woman's story about a woman's life. Though written thousands of years ago, it is nonetheless perennial. It calls us to reflect in every generation on what it means to be a whole woman, a spiritual woman. The authors reclaim this powerful biblical story as a model for contemporary women seeking a fully spiritual life. Through complementary texts and illustrations, Chittister and Swanson explore a series of twelve defining moments in every woman's life––moments of loss, change, transformation, aging, independence, respect, recognition, insight, empowerment, self–definition, invisibility, and fulfillment.
Fiction
by Julia Spencer-Fleming. This installment of the Clare Fergusson/Russ van Alstyne mysteries features parallel busybodies in their lives, just what they don't need. Clare, an Episcopal priest who is too fearless for her own good, is saddled with a watchdog deacon. Russ, the police chief in their small Adirondack town, is sidelined by an ambitious investigator from the state police when Russ's wife is found murdered in their kitchen. The investigator considers Russ the prime suspect and Clare a close second.
by Michelle Blake. In Blake's third Lily Connor mystery, the slightly unorthodox Episcopal priest, now a temporary chaplain at Tate University near Boston, helps an old friend from divinity school on the Tate faculty, Samantha Henderson, with a big problem. The author of several bestselling Biblical studies, Samantha reveals to Lily that her assistant has been receiving photographs of what seems to be an ancient scroll, The Book of Light, which predates the New Testament gospels and includes the words of Jesus himself. As Samantha and Lily become engrossed in discovering the source of the photos and trying to ascertain the scroll's authenticity, it soon becomes evident that others on the same quest will stop at nothing to get what they want. Eloquent prose, astute scholarship, convincing characters and vivid settings, from the streets of Harvard Square to a monastic community on the Greek island of Athos, make this a remarkable work, raising the genre of the parish mystery to new heights.
by Charles Meyer. On a chilly September night, an Episcopal priest hears a private confession in a foreign tongue from a mysterious supplicant who then tries to kill him. After his escape, the priest learns that the words he has heard are unique to the Deathangel murderer imprisoned ten years earlier. Meanwhile, Matt Beck, chaplain at Grasslands Hospital in New York, is trying to get past his own involvement with the Deathangel. The murderer strangled Matt's wife, Kate, and left a small carved wooden angel beside her body. Now, with his companion, Matt sets out on a search for the truth behind the Deathangel's crimes and murder trial. In order to solve the mystery, Matt and Anne must resolve their own relationship and determine whether they are willing to move through forgiveness to love.
by Michelle Blake. In this sequel to The Tentmaker, Blake's successful series debut, an ugly hate crime disrupts a Holocaust memorial service presided over by Episcopal priest Lily Connor, after which the event's main speaker (and Lily's good friend) goes missing. When Lily investigates, she discovers that her friend had ties to an invidious religious group. Taut and thought–provoking, with an emphasis on character development and religious reflection.
by Julia Spencer–Fleming. Nestled in the heart of the Adirondacks, Miller's Kill, New York is about as safe as it gets. That's why Episcopal minister Clare Fergusson is shocked when the July Fourth weekend brings a rash of vicious assaults to the scenic town. Even Clare's good friend, police chief Russ Van Alstyne, is shaken by the brutality of the crimes–especially when it appears that the victims were chosen because they are gay. But when a third assault of an out–of–town developer ends in murder, Clare and Russ wonder if the recent crime wave is connected to the victim's controversial plan to open an upscale spa in Miller's Kill. But not all things in the tiny town are what they seem–and soon, Clare and Russ are left to fight their unspoken attraction to one another even as they uncover a labyrinthine conspiracy that threatens to turn deadly for them both.
by Julia Spencer-Fleming. A suspected serial killer in the town of Millers Kill in Upstate New York takes a backseat to the simmering relationship between Police Chief Russ Van Alstyne and Episcopal priest Clare Fergusson in the sixth entry in this tantalizing series. Emotions are raw between the two in the aftermath of a lethal hostage situation and the death of Russ' wife, Linda, so they seek diversion and try to avoid each other. But the priest is always in the thick of things, as when bodies of Latino men start turning up. Spencer-Fleming poses the issue of immigration, showing how the hiring of undocumented migrant workers impacts the Van Alstyne family; and she introduces an appealing new character, single mother Hadley Knox, granddaughter of the Episcopal church sexton, who joins the police force. Action rachets up in a deadly shoot-out with drug-dealing Latino gangbangers, and just when resolution seems within reach, there's a final twist.
by Julia Spencer–Fleming. In this debut novel, a riveting page–turner from start to finish, born–and–bred Virginian Clare Ferguson, newly ordained priest of St. Alban's Episcopal Church in a small upstate New York town, is faced with not only an early December snowstorm and the bitter cold of her first Northern winter but also a conservative vestry, who apparently expended all their daring on hiring her, a female priest. When a baby is left on the church doorstep with a note designating that he be given to two of her parishioners, Clare calls in the police chief and the foundling case quickly becomes an investigation into murder that will shatter the lives of members of her congregation, challenge her own feelings and faith and threaten her life.
by Julia Spencer–Fleming. In the author's triumphant third novel, Clare Fergusson, Anglican priest and ex–army helicopter pilot, and Sheriff Russ Van Alstyne investigate the hidden secrets of a prominent family and must also face the hidden secrets of their own hearts. The season of Lent serves as a most fitting backdrop, starting with Ash Wednesday and culminating in the Great Easter Vigil. The author expertly portrays the power of grief, guilt, greed and love and their effect on good people in a story as chilling as the month of March in Millers Kill. A subtle sense of humor further enhances this poignant and provocative mystery.
by Michelle Blake. Michelle Blake introduces us to Lily Connor, an Episcopal priest whose own life could use a lot of prayer. Lily is smart but not smart–alecky, insecure but not weak, interested in romance but not bed–hopping or bitter. Blake has given her enough texture to interest readers without making her so quirky that she's off–putting. A tentmaker is an ordained priest who works at a trade outside the church, sometimes serving as interim priest for parishes in search of full–time rectors. Lily is a tentmaker. Just back in Boston after tending her dying father in Texas, Lily has been assigned as interim pastor at St. Mary of the Garden. It's quickly obvious that the problems at the church go beyond the parishioners' grief over the death of Father Barnes.
by Julia Spencer–Fleming. Reverend Clare Fergusson gets an early morning phone call to join the Millers Kill search and rescue operation. As a former Army helicopter pilot trained in survival skills, she can’t refuse the request—even though it’s the day of the bishop’s annual visit. Worse for Clare, the search operation will link her up with Russ Van Alstyne, the very married local police chief who is her greatest temptation. Now, as Clare and Russ race time to find Millie van der Hoeven, they soon discover the secrets of someone who is desperate to stop the sale . . . and a deadly madness waiting to destroy them all.
Music
Delos Records #3203; Audio CD, June 18, 1996; B00000070Q
Compline Service with Anthems & Motets
Guild #7108; Audio CD, May 23, 1995; B000025YOF
Evensong for the Feast of the Epiphany
Gothic Records #49106; Audio CD, April 13, 1999; B00000IJGJ
The Great Organ of the Washington National Cathedral
Gothic Records #49058; Audio CD, May 8, 1995; B000003J8X
Deutsche Grammophon #447280; Audio CD, August 15, 1995; B0000057F7
Delos Records #3176; Audio CD, July 18, 1995; B000000700
Gothic Records #49074; Audio CD, October 17, 1995; B000003J9D
Gothic Records #49112; Audio CD, February 22, 2000; B00003XB8M
Gothic Records #49204; Audio CD, January 7, 2003; B00007K2GE
Mozart Mass in C Major, KV 220
Audio CD, December 9, 2000; B000056K7T
Sing We Noel: Choral Music from St. John's Episcopal Cathedral, Denver
Delos Records #3128; Audio CD, July 6, 1994; B0000006YD
Metronome #1014; Audio CD, October 2, 2001; B000002K3Z
Links
St. Luke's Episcopal Church, Alexandria, Virginia
The Episcopal Church News Service