In this concise yet comprehensive guide to using and praying the psalms in worship services, John Witvliet first offers summary of key biblical-theological themes related to the practice of worship, and he continues with reflections on every step in the process of preparing to use the psalms in worship, drawing on insights from writings in the history, theology, and pastoral practice of worship, liturgy, and preaching. Including patristic testimonies as "prelude" and both Reformation-era and modern testimonies as two "interludes," the volume also offers a comprehensive list of currently available liturgical and musical resources. Witvliet offers a first -- a book designed to speak at once to both "traditional " and "contemporary " worship practices. The Biblical Psalms in Christian Worship will appeal to a wide range of readers, including college and seminary students, scholars and teachers, church educators, worship leaders, musicians, and librarians.

The familiar biblical psalms are a basic and irreplaceable part of Christian worship but they come from an age so distant from ours that a few are no longer usable and none reflect the experience of Christians over the centuries. Christians have, of course, written hymns, but most of the ones we use come from the last two hundred years and few have the meditative quality of the biblical psalms. In Christian Psalms, Christopher L. Webber has constructed psalms from the writings of the greatest teachers and witnesses in Christian history: Saint Augustine, Julian of Norwich, Dorothy Day, Oscar Romero, and many more. Recommended for private prayer and meditation as well as congregational use in worship.

Learn to speak the language of God’s own heart. Have you ever tried to pour out your deepest feelings to God, only to discover that you can’t find the words? We want to feel connected to God, but sometimes it seems like we’re not speaking the same language. There is no better place in all of Scripture than Psalms to learn to be with God. Praying the Psalms includes 50 selections from this book—songs of praise, cries for help, glad rejoicings, and humble offerings—accompanied by inspirational devotions that will open a divine window in your prayer life. Adapted from God’s Prayer Book; now in a deluxe LeatherLike binding.

A handbook on the psalms that brings together biblical research and a variety of prayer exercises tailored to different kinds of psalms. Readily adapts for personal and group prayer, study and retreat. +

The familiar biblical psalms are a basic and irreplaceable part of Christian worship but they come from an age so distant from ours that a few are no longer usable and none reflect the experience of Christians over the centuries. Christians have, of course, written hymns, but most of the ones we use come from the last two hundred years and few have the meditative quality of the biblical psalms. In Christian Psalms, Christopher L. Webber has constructed psalms from the writings of the greatest teachers and witnesses in Christian history: Saint Augustine, Julian of Norwich, Dorothy Day, Oscar Romero, and many more. Recommended for private prayer and meditation as well as congregational use in worship.

Cantors throughout the United States and elsewhere have long known Kathleen Harmon, SNDdeN, as a reliable teacher and mentor in how they understand and practice their important ministry. In Becoming the Psalms, she explores the spirituality of the psalms, a spirituality that shaped God's people in the past, forms the church today, and leads us into the future. Each chapter offers cantors who pray and sing the psalms a better understanding of the role of the psalms in shaping faith. Kathleen Harmon is known as the author of Music Notes, a popular column in the journal Liturgical Ministry. Becoming the Psalms showcases some of her finest entries as well as new material exploring the relationship between praying the psalms privately and praying them liturgically, as well as the function of the responsorial psalm as proclamation.

The Psalms have long been recognized as a rich resource for individual spiritual enrichment and for magnificent corporate liturgical expression in the life of the church. The Psalms Were Made For Lent provides a collection of six sermons that translate some of the deep themes inherent in the Psalms into meaningful language for the average person sitting in the congregation. The book includes: - Six sermons based on the Psalms - Liturgical responses with each sermon (Call to Worship, Call to Confession, Prayer of Confession, Declaration of Pardon) - Three hymns based on the Psalms, which can be sung to well-known hymn tunes Altogether this resource invites the congregation to experience the Psalms in a new and meaningful way. From the busy and demanding life of the parish minister, Bob McCreight has brought forth a valuable contribution for use in the church year, to lift the spirits of those at worship and, not so incidentally, to lighten the ever-present demand on local clergy for useful ways in which to celebrate the faith. I commend to all clergy his work on this part of our faith's teaching, learning, and celebrating ministry. John D. Burton, Interim Minister The First Presbyterian Church, Red Bank, New Jersey Robert C. McCreight has been active as a parish pastor for over two decades in a small, a middle-sized and a large congregation. Academic preparation at Muskingum College, Princeton Theological Seminary, and the University of Detroit with a second master's degree in marriage and family counseling has cultivated a curiosity and a capability of engaging with the Christian gospel and helping to bring it into the daily lives of the people he serves. In addition Rev. McCreight completed a year of hospital chaplaincy in a large hospital in Denver and for the past thirteen years has been active in hospital chaplaincy. From 1982 until 1995 he was the pastor of Covenant Presbyterian Church in Toledo, Ohio. He and his wife Marianne have two daughters.

The psalms challenge and sustain us in a number of ways, and in times of new challenges to the very fabric of the church, to its faith, and its values, we need to re-examine these ancient prayers and songs. This book explores the place and function of the psalms in Christian prayer, preaching, and worship. Examining the dual nature of the psalms as both words to God and word from God, the author brings together the historical experience of the church, biblical studies and theological reflection to focus on the application of the psalms in contemporary Christian life. A number of individual psalms are explored in terms of what they have to say about prayer or what theological issues they raise for contemporary life. This book encourages a reclamation of the psalms in the private and public prayers of the church and in the preaching of the word.