Sacramental Life: Spiritual Formation Through the Book of Common Prayer
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Sacramental Life: Spiritual Formation Through the Book of Common Prayer  -     By: David A. deSilva

Sacramental Life: Spiritual Formation Through the Book of Common Prayer

InterVarsity Press / 2008 / Paperback

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Stock No: WW835188

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Product Description

Discover a brand-new way to use The Book of Common Prayer. You'll experience renewed growth and intimacy with God as you journey through the sacramental rites of baptism, Eucharist, marriage, and burial. Features deSilva's perspective on ancient wisdom; unique insights; and devotional exercises that will elicit a transforming understanding of God's grace. 260 pages, softcover from InterVarsity.

Product Information

Title: Sacramental Life: Spiritual Formation Through the Book of Common Prayer
By: David A. deSilva
Format: Paperback
Number of Pages: 260
Vendor: InterVarsity Press
Publication Date: 2008
Dimensions: 8.25 X 5.50 (inches)
Weight: 13 ounces
ISBN: 0830835180
ISBN-13: 9780830835188
Stock No: WW835188

Publisher's Description

What happens when old meets new? As David deSilva has experienced the ancient wisdom of the Book of Common Prayer, he's been formed spiritually in deep and lasting ways. In these pages, he offers you a brand new way to use the Book of Common Prayer, that you too might experience new growth, new intimacy with God and a new lens through which to view the world. Focusing on the four sacramental rites of baptism, Eucharist, marriage and burial, deSilva explores each one in depth through the prayers, liturgies and Scripture readings of the Book of Common Prayer, and then adds his own devotional exercises that help you immediately apply what you've reflected on. As you read and contemplate the material, you may notice old habits, wrong beliefs and negative patterns being replaced with new desires and perspectives that help you draw ever closer to God. In this innovative and engaging resource David deSilva invites you in to a new way of being spiritually formed through an old book that has shaped thousands of disciples through the years. "I hope that, as you read and pray through this guide," he writes, "you will discover afresh the ways in which the rites contained in the Book of Common Prayer facilitate a genuine encounter with God, and a transforming experience of grace."

Author Bio

David A. deSilva (PhD, Emory University) is Trustees' Distinguished Professor of New Testament and Greek at Ashland Theological Seminary in Ashland, Ohio. He is the author of over twenty-five books including Day of Atonement: A Novel of the Maccabean RevoltUnholy Allegiances: Heeding Revelation's WarningThe Jewish Teachers of Jesus, James, and JudeIntroducing the Apocrypha: Context, Message and Significance; and Perseverance in Gratitude: A Socio-Rhetorical Commentary on the Epistle "to the Hebrews." He is also an ordained elder in the Florida Conference of the United Methodist Church.

Publisher's Weekly

In an age when Protestants are recovering such disciplines as fixed-hour prayer and the liturgical calendar, it's refreshing to have a book that invites readers to rediscover relatively ordinary rituals like baptism, the Eucharist, marriage, confession and last rites. Although some of these are no longer official sacraments for Protestants, they are a crucial part of the Book of Common Prayer that is the foundation for this text. While DeSilva is no longer Episcopalian himself, he has been spiritually formed by the BCP and wants readers to join in its richly textured “sacramental life.” He makes valuable contributions throughout, but some chapters are less original than others, with the section on how the BCP handles death and grief the best of all. These would be an amazing resource for high church support groups on dying and bereavement. There are a few small errors (e.g., it was Mary I, not Mary Queen of Scots, who restored Catholicism to England in the 16th century), but these minor mishaps are offset by the book's strengths, especially the practical exercises that close each chapter. (Sept.) Copyright 2008 Reed Business Information.

Editorial Reviews

"As a book of mediations this is a superb introduction to the BCP as a coherent spiritual approach to Christian spiritual life in all its breadth and depth, and will be of immense benefit to both those who are familiar with the BCP and those who know little or nothing of it."
"As a book of mediations this is a superb introduction to the BCP as a coherent spiritual approach to Christian spiritual life in all its breadth and depth, and will be of immense benefit to both those who are familiar with the BCP and those who know little or nothing of it." -- Robert D. Hughes, Journal of Spiritual Formation Soul Care

"In this innovative and engaging resource David deSilva invites you in to a new way of being spiritually formed through an old book that has shaped thousands of disciples through the years."
"In this innovative and engaging resource David deSilva invites you in to a new way of being spiritually formed through an old book that has shaped thousands of disciples through the years." -- www.wfn.org, June 2009

"In an age when Protestants are recovering . . . disciplines [like] fixed-hour prayer . . . it's refreshing to have a book that invites readers to discover relatively ordinary rituals." -- Publishers Weekly, July 14, 2008

"[Sacramental Life is] written with pastoral sensitivity, and with the aim to enrich our prayer and devotional life. I heartily commend this book. It will bless your soul and energize your spiritual practices through the aid of one of the richest of all sources--the Book of Common Prayer." -- Dr. Ben Witherington III, professor of New Testament, Asbury Theological Seminary

"David deSilva's Sacramental Life takes readers on a spiritual journey through the sacraments of life and new life in Christ. Grounded in careful theology and Scripture, the book is richly devotional and full of wise spiritual counsel and direction. In addition to being of great benefit to more mature Christians (especially Episcopalians and Anglicans), the book could be well used with new or inquiring church members who wish to understand and grow in their faith and devotion." -- The Rt. Rev. Dr. Frederick Borsch, retired bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of Los Angeles

"David deSilva has given us a wonderful guide to spiritual development and sustenance in this book. I love the way he ties in our individual spiritual reflection with the cadences of the Book of Common Prayer and the church's liturgical life. Here is a book that moves from the gathered congregation to the individual believer and back again in a way that is not only helpful, engaging, but also faithful." -- William H. Willimon, coauthor of Resident Aliens and Bishop of The United Methodist Church

"Sacramental Life takes the Anglican Book of Common Prayer as its focal point. From this vantage point it invites us on a journey into the various and varied aspects of human experience, giving guidance and counsel for our formation into Christlikeness along the way. For all, and especially those with a liturgical interest, it offers expert guidance and wise counsel." -- Richard J. Foster, founder of Renovaré and author of Celebration of Discipline and Streams of Living Water

"Sacramental Life is a fine exposition of the central sacramental experiences as found in the Book of Common Prayer, 1979 edition." -- Harry S., Book Bargains and Previews (bookbargainsandpreviews.com), June 2009

" Sacramental Life is a fine exposition of the central sacramental experiences as found in the Book of Common Prayer, 1979 edition."
"First, deSilva does an unusually good job of communicating well and concisely. This, couple with the equally unusual feat of suggesting helpful practices at the end of each chapter makes this volume a great book to use in a small group or individual setting. The chapters are short, which make it a great daily read, and with 45 chapters, it is a great discipline for about a month and a half. If you know people who are curious about the Book of Common Prayer but altogether unfamiliar with it, this would be a decent place for them to start." -- Kyle Strobel, Theology Forum (theologyforum.wordpress.com), March 24, 2009

"First, deSilva does an unusually good job of communicating well and concisely. This, couple with the equally unusual feat of suggesting helpful practices at the end of each chapter makes this volume a great book to use in a small group or individual setting. The chapters are short, which make it a great daily read, and with 45 chapters, it is a great discipline for about a month and a half. If you know people who are curious about the Book of Common Prayer but altogether unfamiliar with it, this would be a decent place for them to start."
" Sacramental Life bridges the gap between the Book of Common Prayer and daily life, making a helpful and substantial contribution to the ever-increasing number of pilgrims who desire a meaningful life with the prayer book."
"Sacramental Life bridges the gap between the Book of Common Prayer and daily life, making a helpful and substantial contribution to the ever-increasing number of pilgrims who desire a meaningful life with the prayer book." -- Julie Lane-Gay, Christian Century, March 24, 2009

"The chapters in this book are short, and each has a section at the end titled "putting it into practice" giving an invitation to meditate on the material just read and to act on it."
"The chapters in this book are short, and each has a section at the end titled "putting it into practice" giving an invitation to meditate on the material just read and to act on it." -- Rachel Wheeler, The Lamplighter, February 2009

"A must-read for anyone who worships in a liturgical church, but will be edifying for Christians from any background. It is well suited for either individual or group study." -- James R. Hamrick, Bible Study Magazine, January/February 2009

"A must-read for anyone who worships in a liturgical church, but will be edifying for Christians from any background. It is well suited for either individual or group study."
"There is much to glean from deSilva's book. The practical applications are especially helpful. Some of them are tangible expressions that could serve as powerful object lessons in a pastoral setting." -- Trevin Wax, Discerning Reader (www.discerningreader.com), December 16, 2008

"There is much to glean from deSilva's book. The practical applications are especially helpful. Some of them are tangible expressions that could serve as powerful object lessons in a pastoral setting."
"Here liturgy is directly connected to our spiritual vitality, individually and communally. I can imagine this book not only being profitiable for individual spiritual growth, but any one of its four parts would form a useful resource for a study and reflection group."
"Here liturgy is directly connected to our spiritual vitality, individually and communally. I can imagine this book not only being profitiable for individual spiritual growth, but any one of its four parts would form a useful resource for a study and reflection group." -- Liturgy (www.liturgy.co.nz), November 7, 2008

"Finally, there is a book that allows a breath of fresh air into the past and present. Trustworthy in intellect and inventive in practice."
"Finally, there is a book that allows a breath of fresh air into the past and present. Trustworthy in intellect and inventive in practice." -- Worship Leader, October 2008

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