The Christian Priest Today

The Christian Priest Today
Author: Arthur Michael Ramsey
Publisher: SPCK
Total Pages: 119
Release: 2020-05-21
Genre: Religion
ISBN: 0281082316

'Michael Ramsay's profound simplicity leaps off the page . . . The Christian Priest Today can be read with great and lasting benefit by anyone interested in this strange and magnificent vocation.' John Pritchard, author of The Life and Work of a Priest Of all Michael Ramsey's many books, The Christian Priest Today is perhaps the best loved and most enduring. The main part of the volume is composed of charges to ordination candidates, with an emphasis on the intellectual and devotional life of the minister in an increasingly self-sufficient world. Later chapters reflect on the ministry of the laity, the theology of priesthood and the roles of bishop and presbyter in the context of the practical meaning of divine vocation.

Being a Priest Today

Being a Priest Today
Author: Christopher J. Cocksworth
Publisher: Canterbury Press
Total Pages: 256
Release: 2006-06-30
Genre: Religion
ISBN: 1848253443

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, Being a Priest Today is essential reading for priests, priests in training, and everyone considering the ministry. Part One “roots” a priest’s human and church life in the theological convictions derived from the Christian understanding of God as being for and with others. Part Two explores the “shape” of priestly life in relation to worship, word, and prayer, each supported by the three key virtues of love, faith, and hope. Part Three examines the “fruit” of priestly life by focusing on three fundamental features of priestly identity: holiness, reconciliation, and blessing. With its applicability to various denominations, this exciting book offers welcome new perspectives on what it means to be a priest today.

Liturgy of the Ordinary

Liturgy of the Ordinary
Author: Tish Harrison Warren
Publisher: InterVarsity Press
Total Pages: 189
Release: 2016-11-01
Genre: Religion
ISBN: 0830892206

Framed around one ordinary day, this book explores daily life through the lens of liturgy, small practices, and habits that form us. Each chapter looks at something author Tish Harrison Warren does in a day—making the bed, brushing her teeth, losing her keys—and relates it to spiritual practice as well as to our Sunday worship.

Teaching and Learning the Love of God

Teaching and Learning the Love of God
Author: Joseph Ratzinger
Publisher: Ignatius Press
Total Pages: 386
Release: 2017-07-13
Genre: Religion
ISBN: 1681497735

This inspiring collection of homilies delivered by Joseph Ratzinger (Benedict XVI) over six decades offers deep theological and historical insights on the meaning of the life and the witness of a Catholic priest. When Pope Benedict XVI inaugurated the Year for Priests in 2009, he did so in conjunction with celebrating the 150th anniversary of the death of John Vianney, the patron saint of all parish priests. Benedict's purpose for that special year is the same purpose of this book of homilies—to deepen the commitment of all priests to interior renewal for the sake of a stronger and more incisive witness to the Gospel in today's world. As St. John Vianney would often say, "The priesthood is the love of the heart of Jesus." This touching expression makes us reflect on the immense gift that priests represent, not only for the Church but for all mankind. Contemporary men and women need priests to be distinguished by their determined witness to Christ. These homilies are meant to illuminate and to inspire priests to renew their commitment to "teaching and learning the love of God". The homilies cover a wide variety of important topics on the priesthood, all deeply rooted in Scripture, including acting in persona Christi, becoming an offering with Christ for the salvation of mankind, being there for God's mercy, and witnessing Christian joy.

Called to Communion

Called to Communion
Author: Joseph Ratzinger
Publisher: Ignatius Press
Total Pages: 172
Release: 2010-10-21
Genre: Religion
ISBN: 1681490676

This is a book of wisdom and insight that explains how providential are the trials through which the Catholic Church is now passing. The need of the Papal Primacy to ensure Christian unity; the true meaning of the Priesthood as a sacrament and not a mere ministry; the necessity of the Eucharist as the Sacrifice of the Savior now offering Himself on our altars; the role of the Bishops as successors of the Apostles, united with the successor of St. Peter, the Bishop of Rome; the value of suffering in union with Christ crucified; the indispensable service of the laity in the apostolate - all these themes receive from Cardinal Ratzinger new clarity and depth. Learn more about Pope Benedict! Visit the

The Life and Work of a Priest

The Life and Work of a Priest
Author: John Pritchard
Publisher: Society for Promoting Christian
Total Pages: 164
Release: 2007
Genre: Religion
ISBN: 9780281057481

In this lively and hopeful volume, John Pritchard realistically maps out the life and work of those called to serve God in the ordained ministry. He looks in turn at the only three things he believes need be of concern: the glory of God, the pain of the world, and the renewal of the Church. From these flow the priest's many roles, such as spiritual explorer, multi-lingual interpreter, wounded companion, friendly irritant, creative leader and mature risk-taker. This book pays homage to Robert Martineau's The Office and Work of a Priest, published in 1972, and much valued as a wise account of the duties of a priest at that time. "Dipping again into John Pritchard's The Life and Work of a Priest for this review reminded me what a remarkable, wise, and humane book it is. It covers just about everything parish life might throw at clergy. Well, not quite everything. If you're troubled by sylvan revels or cohabiting bandits, I'm afraid you're on your own." Paul Handley, Church Times

Being a Deacon Today

Being a Deacon Today
Author: Rosalind Brown
Publisher: Church Publishing, Inc.
Total Pages: 162
Release: 2005-07
Genre: Religion
ISBN: 9780819222015

A theological explanation and practical handbook for those preparing for a diaconate in today’s church. All too often the time spent as a deacon is seen simply as the prelude to priestly ordination. Yet the Bible defines three orders of ministry - deacon, priest, and bishop - each with its own distinctive characteristics and responsibilities. In Being A Deacon Today, Brown explores the three places where deacons minister (the church, the world, and at the margins), the three strands of their ministry (in liturgy, in pastoral care, and as catechists), and the three actions of their ministry (praying, loving, and remembering). This book, excellent for classroom use and for transitional and permanent deacons, will restore a fuller understanding of the diaconal ministry and nurture deacons in their work and spiritual life.

The Universal Christ

The Universal Christ
Author: Richard Rohr
Publisher: Convergent Books
Total Pages: 250
Release: 2019-03-05
Genre: Religion
ISBN: 1524762105

NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • From one of the world’s most influential spiritual thinkers, a long-awaited book exploring what it means that Jesus was called “Christ,” and how this forgotten truth can restore hope and meaning to our lives. “Anyone who strives to put their faith into action will find encouragement and inspiration in the pages of this book.”—Melinda Gates In his decades as a globally recognized teacher, Richard Rohr has helped millions realize what is at stake in matters of faith and spirituality. Yet Rohr has never written on the most perennially talked about topic in Christianity: Jesus. Most know who Jesus was, but who was Christ? Is the word simply Jesus’s last name? Too often, Rohr writes, our understandings have been limited by culture, religious debate, and the human tendency to put ourselves at the center. Drawing on scripture, history, and spiritual practice, Rohr articulates a transformative view of Jesus Christ as a portrait of God’s constant, unfolding work in the world. “God loves things by becoming them,” he writes, and Jesus’s life was meant to declare that humanity has never been separate from God—except by its own negative choice. When we recover this fundamental truth, faith becomes less about proving Jesus was God, and more about learning to recognize the Creator’s presence all around us, and in everyone we meet. Thought-provoking, practical, and full of deep hope and vision, The Universal Christ is a landmark book from one of our most beloved spiritual writers, and an invitation to contemplate how God liberates and loves all that is.

The Shattering of Loneliness

The Shattering of Loneliness
Author: Erik Varden
Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing
Total Pages: 118
Release: 2018-09-20
Genre: Religion
ISBN: 1472953274

The experience of loneliness is as universal as hunger or thirst. Because it affects us more intimately, we are less inclined to speak of it. But who has not known its gnawing ache? The fear of loneliness causes anguish. It prompts reckless deeds. To this, every age has borne witness. No voice is more insidious than the one that whispers in our ear: 'You are irredeemably alone, no light will pierce your darkness.' The fundamental statement of Christianity is to convict that voice of lying. The Christian condition unfolds within the certainty that ultimate reality, the source of all that is, is a personal reality of communion, no metaphysical abstraction. Men and women, made 'in the image and likeness' of God, bear the mark of that original communion stamped on their being. When our souls and bodies cry out for Another, it is not a sign of sickness, but of health. A labour of potential joy is announced. We are reminded of what we have it in us to become. That our labour may be fruitful, Scripture repeatedly exhorts us to 'remember'. The remembrance enjoined is partly introspective and existential, partly historical, for the God who took flesh to redeem our loneliness leaves traces in history. This book examines six facets of Christian remembrance, complementing biblical exegesis with readings from literature, ancient and modern. It aims to be an essay in theology. At the same time, it proposes a grounded reflection on what it means to be a human being.