Worshiping In Season

Worshiping in Season guides ministers through a meaningful framework for ecologically oriented worship. Following the liturgical calendar and maintaining a Christocentric emphasis, Joseph E. Bush Jr. aligns earthly seasons with the liturgy and suggests readings, songs, and other acts of worship to amplify an ecologically informed Christology. The seasons of Lent, Easter, and Pentecost and Advent, Christmas, and Epiphany recall and reenact dramas about Jesus Christ that entail good news for the natural world and for the flourishing of earthly creatures. Bush examines the Christological and ecological importance of selections from the Roman Catholic Lectionary for the Mass and the Revised Common Lectionary that is used in ecumenical Protestant denominations. Creation and Christ weave together in concert, and Christian worship is seen as an opportunity to participate in both creation’s longing and in Christ’s saving work. Each chapter includes resources and suggestions for worship as well as biblical commentary and theological interpretation helpful to preaching. This book is a valuable companion in preparing for worship during the important seasons of the Christian year, giving voice to our faith in Christ and our hope for the Earth.

Provides all the essential seasonal liturgy for the Christian year, including material for using from Advent to Candlemas, and from Lent to Easter, as well as many other festivals and seasons throughout the year.

“What is at stake is authenticity. . . . Sooner or later Christians tire of public meetings that are profoundly inauthentic, regardless of how well (or poorly) arranged, directed, performed. We long to meet, corporately, with the living and majestic God and to offer him the praise that is his due.”—D. A. CarsonWorship is a hot topic, but the ways that Christians from different traditions view it vary greatly. What is worship? More important, what does it look like in action, both in our corporate gatherings and in our daily lives? These concerns—the blending of principle and practice—are what Worship by the Book addresses.Cutting through cultural clichés, D. A. Carson, Mark Ashton, Kent Hughes, and Timothy Keller explore, respectively:· Worship Under the Word· Following in Cranmer’s Footsteps· Free Church Worship: The Challenge of Freedom· Reformed Worship in the Global City “This is not a comprehensive theology of worship,” writes Carson. “Still less is it a sociological analysis of current trends or a minister’s manual chockfull of ‘how to’ instructions.” Rather, this book offers pastors, other congregational leaders, and seminary students a thought-provoking biblical theology of worship, followed by a look at how three very different traditions of churchmanship might move from this theological base to a better understanding of corporate worship. Running the gamut from biblical theology to historical assessment all the way to sample service sheets, Worship by the Book shows how local churches in diverse traditions can foster corporate worship that is God-honoring, Word-revering, heartfelt, and historically and culturally informed.

This revised, expanded edition of the Common Worship President’s Edition contains everything to celebrate Holy Communion Order One throughout the church year. It combines relevant material from the original President’s Edition with Eucharistic material from Times and Seasons, Festivals and Pastoral Services, and the Additional Collects.

This invaluable guide helps all who plan worship to appreciate the rich possibilities and spiritual depth of the seasonal material for All Saints to Candlemas in Common Worship: Times and Seasons. It focuses on All Saints to the Eve of Advent Sunday, Advent, the Christmas Season and the Epiphany Season. The main part of the guide provides a range of practical tips and illuminating case studies to encourage creative use at a local level. It also gives succinct background information both for seasons and individual major seasonal occasions as well as for all the liturgical texts. John Sweet's introduction explains the raison d'etre of 'Times and Seasons' and provides a helpful brief introduction to the history and theology of the Christian Year.

The outstanding gift that Richard Giles has bought to the church is his ability to link how church buildings look and what happens during services to theology. Churches like museums and static worship where a passive audience sits in pews is about as far removed as you can get from the biblical concept of the church as the pilgrim people of God, forever journeying and 'seeking a country that is to come'. When liturgy begins to embody this fundamental awareness, the effect is dramatic and worship becomes a transformative encounter in which all the senses are engaged. Richard's previous book, "Creating Uncommon Worship", gave a step-by-step guide to how the Eucharist might be celebrated with this perspective in mind. Now, in this companion "Times and Seasons" volume he suggests many practical ways of creating elements of worship that reflect the varied moods of the liturgical year - what Rowan Williams calls 'that map of the soul's seasons'.

A practical companion through the Church's year for all those planning and leading all-age worship. It offers an array of creative material designed to bring to life the seasonal liturgy of Lent, Holy Week and Easter, including Pentecost.

Seasons of Worship: A Spiritual Calendar for the Church Today emphasizes the transformative power of observing the Christian year. It provides an overview of the key components of the Christian year, along with their biblical, historical, and theological foundations. The book offers practical resources to aid in planning, programming, and implementing worship opportunities based on the Christian year, enriching the corporate worship experiences of congregations, and fostering spiritual growth among worshipers.