LITMIR.BIZ

This practical handbook for homes and church communities helps to enrich the Christian celebration of Advent through the creation and use of an Advent calendar. Written for people of all skill levels, Baumgarten provides instructions for a calendar made of paper or junk mail, a no-sew felt version, and a fabric version for more advanced sewers.
Teach Us To Number Our Days, however, is more than a simple crafts book. Baumgarten provides readers with a brief history of the development of Advent in the Christian calendar, as well as detailed explanations of the various Christian symbols that can be used during the season. Paying attention to both the Old and New Testament symbols, as well as the Sundays of Advent and the Great ‘O’ Antiphons from December 17-23, this book is a complete guide to Advent for individuals, families, and churches.

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The term «Protestant spirituality» is sometimes considered to be an oxymoron. Spirituality has traditionally been seen as the domain of the Catholic faith, and not of the Protestant reformation and its offshoots. That perspective is in error, as Dr. Joseph Driskill demonstrates in Protestant Spiritual Exercises, a book that introduces readers to the spirituality that evolved from Calvin, Luther, and many other Reformers.
This book, geared to use by seminary students and clergy and lay leaders within Protestant congregations, helps readers discover their rich spiritual heritage through an examination of its history and practice and the theological affirmations that undergird it. For use either as a textbook for training future clergy, or within the congregation itself to further develop the spiritual life of the parish, this book is practical on many levels. Actual practices (the Prayer of Examen, Luther's Four-Stranded Garland and others) can be used in spiritual formation of individuals and groups. Driskill also helps leaders learn how to use the exercises, making them become aware of gender and age issues, the role of the setting in which they are used, and good leadership skill.

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There are many powerful women in the Bible, but their descriptions are almost always tantalizingly brief. If they had the chance to tell their own stories in their own voices, what would they have said? Basing her interpretation of these women on extensive research, Katerina Whitley puts herself in their shoes, giving today’s listeners a fuller understanding of each of their stories.
The women explored, some well-known and others less familiar, include the Virgin Mary, Miriam, Mary Magdalene, Elizabeth, the Syrophoenician or Canaanite woman, Lydia, Ruth, Martha, Gomer, Michal, Tamar, and Peter’s wife. Each woman speaks for herself in these monologues, in a way that brings the biblical issues and questions into contemporary focus. An introduction to each woman and study questions at the end of each piece make this an ideal book for individuals and groups.

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These simple and inviting reflections on the Rule of St. Benedict take as their starting point our search for wholeness in a world that is fragmented and increasingly polarized. Many people today struggle to balance the demands of professional and personal lives, and find little satisfaction or peacefulness in either. Yet the ancient wisdom of St. Benedict offers a clear and helpful pathway that leads directly to healing, transformation and new life.
Written in de Waal's inimitable style, this book is for old friends of the Rule of St. Benedict and novices alike. Holding up segments of the Rule, de Waal's meditations on Benedict's words illuminate the wisdom of the Rule not only for those of Benedict's time, but for all of us today as well.

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Every Friday in Jerusalem, Franciscan monks take groups of pilgrims down the Via Dolorosa, the road Christ may have walked on his way to the cross. Stopping at each of fourteen locations that mark events in the final days of Christ’s life, the pilgrims recall the Passion story and offer prayers for the world.
In A Walk in Jerusalem, The Rev. Canon John L. Peterson, Secretary General of the Anglican Communion, brings new life to this centuries-old ritual known as the Stations of the Cross. Illustrated with a map, 14 black-and-white photographs, and 14 pen-and-ink drawings, this helpful guide provides the appropriate episode of the Passion story along with a meditation and brief liturgy that apply that story to today’s world.
Designed for use on Good Friday or general devotions, A Walk in Jerusalem offers new insight into the Passion Narratives and encouragement to live as Christ taught.

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"Only the strong can forgive. God, who is strongest, forgives best," writes Dr. L. William Countryman in this fresh look at forgiveness. Unlike most books on the subject, Forgiven and Forgiving is not about a step-by-step process. Rather, it is about conversion. Once we truly understand the depths of God's love for us and know deep-down that we are forgiven, we begin to see the world anew through God's eyes. Only when we are able to accept God's forgiveness for ourselves can we offer forgiveness to others. Biblically based with sound academic research, yet written in a conversational style, Forgiven and Forgiving offers valuable insights for clergy, laity, and church study groups.

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Help couples make informed decisions and plan for their marriage service with this practical workbook. Includes a tear-out worksheet to help clergy and couples with their planning. Includes possible readings for wedding service.

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This guide for clergy, parish musicians, lay readers, and congregational representatives covers all the stages of organizing worship services for the entire year. Using The Book of Common Prayer and Hymnal 1982 as primary resources, it explores the rich variety of options—both time-honored traditions and accepted innovations.
Times and seasons covered in depth include Advent, the Twelve Days of Christmas, Lent and Holy Week, Easter and the Great Fifty Days, and the Sundays after Epiphany and Pentecost. Planning the Church Year explains the preparations that make for meaningful holy days and special occasions, such as Lesser Feasts, Thanksgiving Day, Vigils, Michaelmas, All Saints’ Day, the bishop’s visitation, the Patronal and Dedication Festivals.
Even summer Sundays can become “liturgical opportunities.” Details such as liturgical colors, music, and church decorations for each season and occasion make this the most complete handbook for those called to be at the heart of parish life and worship.

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These meditations, based upon the principle articles of the Nicene Creed, were originally presented by Evelyn Underhill (1875 – 1941) at a retreat she conducted at her beloved Pleshy, a small village in England that was the site of her conversion to the Christian faith. The renewed interest in mysticism and spirituality today among Christians of all communions draws heavily from her work.

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An exploration of the history of the Book of Common Prayer and its revisions, beginning with the 1549 English Prayer Book and continuing up to the present. This revised and expanded version of The Story of the Real Prayer Book (this book’s original title) finishes the story of the final adoption of the 1979 Book of Common Prayer. Sydnor explores why each revision was necessary, what was changed, added, omitted, as well as what was retained in the “new” book.
By understanding the delicate balance between the need for change and the preservation of what is timeless, William Sydnor believes that Episcopalians will “find anew that common ground of common prayer which is our legacy, our inspiration, and our joy.”

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