Lent is upon us this week. I invite you to join me in an ancient practice as part of our preparation for Holy Week and Easter: devotional reading. Out of the abundance of materials, I recommend two prayer books that have been helpful to me.
Lent and Easter Wisdom from Henri J. M. Nouwen, edited by Judy Bauer.
A national survey of clergy recognized Nouwen as the spiritual theologian who had most influenced them.
Nouwen took seriously the compassionate presence of God in the joys and sorrows of life. His own years held plenty of each, and he experienced the same kind of faith crises that many of us do. He had a nearly fatal accident on an icy roadway while he was helping a handicapped boy. A car mirror struck Nouwen a heavy blow. In his book, Beyond the Mirror: Reflections on Life and Death, Nouwen admitted that it was not love that kept him clinging to life, but "unresolved anger."
Dozens of such honest explorations are found in Lent and Easter Wisdom. Each daily reflection includes a brief insight by Nouwen, supported by Scripture, prayer, and a suggested activity for spiritual growth.
The Glenstal Abbey Book of Prayer
Glenstal Abbey is a Benedictine monastery located in County Limerick. It houses a secondary school, home to over two hundred students. The grounds include Glenstal Castle (Normanesque), lakes, forests, and an old terraced walled garden featuring a 'bible garden.'
The Benedictine spirituality at Glenstal is influenced by the earthiness of Celtic spirituality, reflected in The Book of Prayer. A companion Book of Icons reveals an Orthodox influence.
The prayer book is not restricted in use to the season of Lent. There are prayers for Sunday through Monday, a section for the great festivals of the Christian year, prayers and blessings for the variety of needs and occasions that arise in life, and a selection of psalms for centering and meditating.
For information about the monastery and the way of life of its monks, click here.
The church's additions
to the blessings of spring -
prayer, almsgiving, fasting
Lent and Easter Wisdom from Henri J. M. Nouwen, edited by Judy Bauer.
A national survey of clergy recognized Nouwen as the spiritual theologian who had most influenced them.
Nouwen took seriously the compassionate presence of God in the joys and sorrows of life. His own years held plenty of each, and he experienced the same kind of faith crises that many of us do. He had a nearly fatal accident on an icy roadway while he was helping a handicapped boy. A car mirror struck Nouwen a heavy blow. In his book, Beyond the Mirror: Reflections on Life and Death, Nouwen admitted that it was not love that kept him clinging to life, but "unresolved anger."
Dozens of such honest explorations are found in Lent and Easter Wisdom. Each daily reflection includes a brief insight by Nouwen, supported by Scripture, prayer, and a suggested activity for spiritual growth.
The Glenstal Abbey Book of Prayer
Glenstal Abbey is a Benedictine monastery located in County Limerick. It houses a secondary school, home to over two hundred students. The grounds include Glenstal Castle (Normanesque), lakes, forests, and an old terraced walled garden featuring a 'bible garden.'
The Benedictine spirituality at Glenstal is influenced by the earthiness of Celtic spirituality, reflected in The Book of Prayer. A companion Book of Icons reveals an Orthodox influence.
The prayer book is not restricted in use to the season of Lent. There are prayers for Sunday through Monday, a section for the great festivals of the Christian year, prayers and blessings for the variety of needs and occasions that arise in life, and a selection of psalms for centering and meditating.
For information about the monastery and the way of life of its monks, click here.
The church's additions
to the blessings of spring -
prayer, almsgiving, fasting
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