Celtic Prayer

Celtic Prayer

Author David Cole (ed.)
Publisher BRF £12.99
Format pbk
ISBN 9781800390539

This engaging book of essays has been written by members of the Community of Aidan and Hilda, a dispersed ecumenical body which gains inspiration from the ancient Celtic saints. The contributions are thoughtful, well-written and accessible, and collectively they explain and promote the benefits and strengths of Celtic spirituality, especially through prayer. The aim is simple: to seek God within everyday life, in the landscape and through the seasons, for we have a God who cares for both the cosmos and the ordinary. The great truths of the Christian gospel are woven together in practical and usable prayers, like the characteristic Celtic knotwork. Individual essay themes include contemporary cultural thoughts on unity, inclusion and disability as well as the ‘eternal’ issues so familiar to the early saints, including meditation, healing, justice, pilgrimage and the Holy Spirit. There are many new and relevant prayers within the text, as well as practical creative advice on liturgy and finding God in art and music. All readers should find new inspiration here to strengthen their prayer lives, so I warmly recommend this book.

Reviewed by ELIZABETH STEPHENSON

Spirituality

 

Honest Sadness

Honest Sadness

Author John Holdsworth
Publisher Sacristy Press £12.99
Format pbk
ISBN 9781789591613

We could be forgiven for thinking that lament does not have a place in our sophisticated society. It hardly appears in the New Testament, being more associated with the Books of Lamentations and Psalms in the Old Testament. However the author takes another view, one in which it is time for us to acknowledge the significant role that lament can play in allowing us to express our emotions. These can be personal, and the author vividly describes his grief at the slow and painful deterioration of his beloved wife, Sue, due to dementia. Emotions can be communal. In each chapter he describes events, for example, protests in Beirut, a family of refugees in Cyprus and the response of the public to the first lockdown during the Covid-19 pandemic, which form the platform to explore our understanding of lament as Christians through the Bible, poetry, and song. We are challenged to reflect honestly on what emotions we have felt whilst reading each story, to think what the Bible teaches us about lament and to encourage openness in our own ministries.

Reviewed by PETER V DYER

Lamentation, spirituality

 

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