Prayer

The Oxford Book of Prayer by George Appleton (Oxford Books of Prose: Oxford University Press) Under the expert guidance of the late Bishop George Appleton a selection of prayers has been made spanning many centuries. It includes Christian prayers from the Bible and from the saints and mystics of the past, as well as prayers from Jewish, Hindu, Buddhist, Muslim, Iranian, Shinto, Classical Greek and Latin, native American, and Baha'i religions, and also contemporary prayers from different parts of the world. The cooperation of many advisers has ensured that the choice of prayers is ecumenical in the widest sense of the word. The prayers are arranged under headings such as "Prayers from the Scriptures", "Prayers of Christians, personal and occasional", "Prayers of the Church", and "Prayers from other traditions of faith", but there is also a subject index to guide the user to prayers for particular occasions, and an index of authors and sources. The Oxford Book of Prayer   may thus be used for browsing or for more structured prayer, for private meditation or for public worship. 

A Forgiving Heart: Prayers for Blessing and Reconciliation by Lyn Klug (Augsburg Books) It may be painful, but seeking forgiveness can lead to freedom from guilt and resentment, opening the way to blessing and reconciliation.  A Forgiving Heart lets readers know they are not alone in their pain.

This collection of powerful prayers offers understanding and perspective, providing healing for our relationships with God, ourselves, family and friends, in our communities, and among nations. A Forgiving Heart gives you the words to use when words may fail.

Prayers have been gathered from a number of spiritual writers including C.S. Lewis, Mother Teresa, Henri Nouwen, and Desmond Tutu, as well as ordinary people who have struggled with offering and receiving forgiveness. Organized around situations particular to the individual, family, church, community, and world, A Forgiving Heart offers suggestions for how to use the prayers as well as the prayers themselves.

 

 

The Divine Hours: Prayers for Summertime By Phyllis Tickle (Doubleday) The first volume in a trilogy of prayer manuals compiled by Publishers Weekly religion editor Phyllis Tickle as a contemporary Book of Hours to guide Christians gently yet authoritatively through the daily offices.
The Divine Hours is the first major literary and liturgical reworking of the sixth-century Benedictine Rule of fixed-hour prayer. This beautifully conceived and thoroughly modern three-volume guide will appeal to the theological novice as well as to the ecclesiastical sophisticate. Making primary use of the Book of Common Prayer and the writings of the Church Fathers, The Divine Hours is also a companion to the New Jerusalem Bible, from which it draws its Scripture readings. The trilogy blends prayer and praise in a way that, while extraordinarily fresh, respects and builds upon the ancient wisdom of Christianity.
The first book in the set, The Divine Hours: Prayers for Summertime, filled with prayers, psalms, and readings, is one readers will turn to again and again. Compact in size, it is perfect for those seeking greater spiritual depth. As a contemporary Book of Hours, The Divine Hours: Prayers for Summertime heralds a renewal of the tradition of disciplined daily prayer, and will whet the hunger of a large and eager audience for the follow-up autumn/winter and spring volumes.
The first book in the set, The Divine Hours: Prayers for Summertime, filled with prayers, psalms, and readings, is the one readers will turn to when making their daily summertime devotions. Compact, with a ribbon marker and deluxe endpapers, it is perfect for those seeking spiritual guidance and renewal.

The Divine Hours: Prayers for Autumn and Wintertime By Phyllis Tickle (Doubleday) The second volume in a trilogy of prayer manuals compiled by Publishers Weekly religion editor Phyllis Tickle as a contemporary Book of Hours to guide Christians gently yet authoritatively through the daily offices.
The Divine Hours is the first major literary and liturgical reworking of the sixth-century Benedictine Rule of fixed-hour prayer. This beautifully conceived and thoroughly modern three-volume guide will appeal to the theological novice as well as to the ecclesiastical sophisticate. Making primary use of the Book of Common Prayer and the writings of the Church Fathers, The Divine Hours is also a companion to the New Jerusalem Bible, from which it draws its Scripture readings. The trilogy blends prayer and praise in a way that, while extraordinarily fresh, respects and builds upon the ancient wisdom of Christianity.
The second book in the set, Prayers for Autumn and Wintertime, provides prayers, psalms, and readings for these two festive seasons. Compact, with deluxe endpapers, it is perfect for those seeking greater spiritual depth. As a contemporary The Divine Hours: Prayers for Autumn and Wintertime heralds a renewal of the tradition of disciplined daily prayer, and gives those already using the first volume the continuity they are seeking. The series will culminate in a third volume for springtime, completing the liturgical and calendar year with the offices for every day.
The Divine Hours: Prayers for Springtime By Phyllis Tickle (Doubleday) The third and final volume in a trilogy of prayer manuals compiled by Publishers Weekly religion editor Phyllis Tickle as a contemporary Book of Hours to guide Christians gently yet authoritatively through the daily offices.

The Divine Hours is the first major literary and liturgical reworking of the sixth-century Benedictine Rule of fixed-hour prayer. This beautifully conceived and thoroughly modern three-volume guide will appeal to the theological novice as well as to the ecclesiastical sophisticate. Making primary use of the Book of Common Prayer and the writings of the Church Fathers, The Divine Hours is also a companion to the New Jerusalem Bible, from which it draws its Scripture readings. The trilogy blends prayer and praise in a way that, while extraordinarily fresh, respects and builds upon the ancient wisdom of Christianity.

The third and final book in the set, The Divine Hours: Prayers for Springtime, provides prayers, psalms, and readings for this season associated with rebirth. Compact, with deluxe endpapers, it is perfect for those seeking greater spiritual depth. As a contemporary Book of Hours, The Divine Hours: Prayers for Springtime heralds a renewal of the tradition of disciplined daily prayer, and gives those already using the first two volumes the completion they are seeking. With this volume, the series culminates with three prayer manuals encompassing the liturgical and calendar year with the offices for every day.

Praying with the Celts
Poems Selected by G.R.D. McLean
G.R.D. McLean, editor
Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co., 255 Jefferson, Grand Rapids, Michigan 49503 $10.00, paper; 124 pages
ISBN 0-8028-4264-X
Praying with St. Francis
Regis J. Armstrong and Ignatius C. Brady
Introduction by David Ford
Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co., 255 Jefferson, Grand Rapids, Michigan 49503
$8.00, paper; 70 pages
ISBN 0-8028-4271-2
In this lovely collection of Gaelic prayers, praises, and blessings that capture the deeply devotional spirit of Celtic Christianity, was first published by SPCK Publishers in London in 1961, under the title, Poems of the Western Highlanders. McLean's translations are based on selections from the first four volumes of Carmina Gadelica, compiled and translated by Alexander Carmichael and his grandson James Carmichael Watson.
Praying with the Celts consists of approximately one hundred prayers, praises, and blessings. Many of these are known to date back several centuries and reflect the particular spirit of Celtic Christianity. Yet they can—often with little or no adaptation—be used perfectly well by Christians today. Though they arise out of a social structure now largely vanished, they deal with the unchanging basics of human life—with bodily needs, the daily round, family love, our fears and temptations, and the need for security. No attempt has been made to keep McLean's original order and arrangement, but the prayers have been newly grouped into categories convenient for practical use.

The writings of St. Francis of Assisi are slight but shot through with powerful prayers and praises, frequently based on the words of Scripture. Francis is always poignantly aware of the sacredness of life rightly directed toward God. From the time of his conversion, he was consumed by devotion to God and a desire to serve in humble obedience.
These inspirational prayers, praises, and meditations still offer profound guidance for Christians and people of devoted hearts. While much of what is known of St. Francis's life remains colored by myth and legend, his own words reveal a profound spirituality that has brought-and still brings-millions of men and women face to face with the love of God. The volume includes an introduction by the Rev. Canon David Ford with a short biography of St. Francis's life. Both volumes provide fine devotional reading.