Recommendations from the CTS bookstore and faculty for your enrichment and reading pleasure

 

 

“A love song to the feast at the altar and the feast of a food pantry written with grit, authority and integrity,” says Nora Gallagher about this book. This is the story of how the author lives out her faith through the Eucharistic practice of welcoming everyone to the table by starting a food pantry, not in the fellowship hall, but in the sanctuary of the church around the altar.

 

In this book Martha Moore-Keish seeks to place the Reformed tradition in conversation with liturgical theology and ritual theory to move toward a fuller appreciation of the ritual dimension of the Lord’s supper.

 

This trailblazing volume juxtaposes traditions of faith from the Old Testament with themes of communion I the early church to produce rich new understandings of the eucharist for today’s worshipers.

 

In this engrossing analysis, Cavanaugh contends that the Eucharist is the Church’s response to the use of torture as a social discipline.

 

Remember Who You Are: Baptism as a Model for Christian Life

In this book baptism is used as a foundation for a larger study of the Christian faith. Willimon explores the significance of the sacrament in day-to-day living and provides a model for living a Christian life. Pastors will find this book especially helpful for new Christians and for confirmation classes.

 

The Sourcebook series of anthologies gathers prose and poetry, hymns and prayers from various times and traditions, all centered on a particular theme, from the seasons of the church year to the foundational moments in the life of a Christian. Each collection offers a treasury of wisdom for use in homilies, prayer services and personal meditation.

 

These two books are designed for clergy and lay leaders to use in preaching to children from kindergarten through upper elementary school. Using selected Scripture passages, the 30 sermons presented in each book focus on biblical stories and theological themes regarding Holy Communion and Baptism. The authors also include helpful cross reflection for hymns, Scripture, teaching, tools, and themes.

 

OTHER BOOKS ON SACRAMENTS TO FEATURE ON THE WEB SITE

 

Often the subject of debate, the sacraments are likewise neglected and superficially understood. In this book, Vander Zee not only opens up a Christ-centered approach to the sacraments but also provides guidance on the practical matters that pastors and parishioners face in the pursuit of a renewed and authentic Christian worship.

 

Each chapter of the book pairs an element of the worship service with related Christian teachings: the opening of worship with the doctrine of the Trinity, confession and assurance with sin and grace, creeds and prayers with ecclesiology, proclamation of the Word with revelation and Christology, Eucharist with eschatology, and the ending of worship with ethics. Structuring the book in this way demonstrates how the great confessions of the faith find their natural expression in worship and how the liturgy in turn finds its corollary in doctrine.

 

The author concentrates on Protestantism, exploring the Calvinistic Eucharist traditions of the Presbyterians, members of the United Church of Christ, and Methodists (of whatever Wesleyan type). He also provides material pertinent to preaching, study of the Eucharist by laity, and practical local reform that implements recent revision of denominational rites.

 

How can we bring together two of our most powerful vehicles for communication and transformation? Storytelling and ritual making are not merely something that humans do-they are essential for becoming human. Together they enable us to create a world that is both habitable and hospitable. For believers, they are the fundamental means for shaping and sustaining our journey into the Divine.

 

This is a book that develops new services for corporate worship including a Psalter, hymns, and other worship aids. It was assembled by a task force in response to a mandate from the 1981 General Assembly in order to assist the church in discovering a new appreciation for the sacrament of baptism that is central to the church and the Christian life.