complete poem
george herbert
Herbert is not my favorite poet. (My son was named after his WH his Auden.) But when it comes to pious poetry, he couldn’t be better. Herbert was an up-and-coming priest and scholar in his early 1600s, destined for ecclesiastical or political fame. But his choice to remain anonymous in a rural church is due to his slow attention to both specific people and poems that continue to strengthen and challenge my faith through their beauty. It was to dedicate my life to.
gilead
marilyn robinson
gilead The story is told from the perspective of John Ames, a dying Presbyterian minister who is writing a letter to his young son. Although he deals with issues of race, past, and loss, his main theme is learning to love and celebrate his godson Jack. In a world full of brokenness and ordinariness, Robinson shows me that the ordinary can “glow like transformation.” She helps me pay attention. To put it another way, Love.
Lamb Supper: Culinary Considerations
robert farrar capon
lamb supper A cookbook written by an Anglican priest. In a sense. It’s also a meditation on food, cooking, art, and beauty. Capon reimagines every meal as a sacrament. I love his explanation of his qualifications. “He is an amateur. This comes from the Latin ‘amateur’. mistress. As amateurs, he writes, we “see the world backwards from grace.” Spiritual formation is not a mountaintop experience, but everyday events like preparing and sharing a meal.
Domestic monasteries: building spiritual life at home
Ronald Rolheiser
The premise of this book is that raising children is like running a monastery. That sounds like a bold claim. As a parent of three young children, I often feel far from the peace and quiet of a monastery. But Rolheiser suggests that raising young children with love and care can mold them like a monastery. Instead of a bell ringing, a child’s “disturbance” can invite you to prayer. Parenting is also a place where we learn helplessness, just as monasteries teach us.
Letter to a Church in Decline: A Passionate Argument for the Relevance of Christian Doctrine
Dorothy L. Sayers
In this collection of essays, Sayers helps connect doctrine (what we believe) to our story (how we live). In her well-known expression, doctrine is drama. She covers a wide range of topics, including theology, women, work, and art, and this book is about life as a whole: formation. Sayers brings together the connections between everything, including theology, and helps us understand how everything in life is shaped.
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