You may be interested in…
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Soulfriendship
Core Teaching, The Inner JourneyThis subject has emerged as key subject demanding the attention of the Northumbria Community. This booklet provides historical background to soulfriendship, sets out some basic principles and shows how they can be applied today.£4.00 -
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Learning to Walk in the Dark
Influences & Suggested Reading, The Inner JourneyNew from best-selling author Barbara Brown Taylor, perhaps best known for An Altar in the World, comes Learning to Walk in the Dark. In this hardback book she writes with wisdom, grace and beauty as she seeks to rehabilitate what we have learned to fear - the dark. Here she reflects on how our lives do not only work when everything is brightly lit; twilight and deep darkness have treasures of their own waiting to be discovered. Babara Brown Taylor writes: 'Darkness is shorthand for anything that scares me - either because I am sure that I do not have the resources to survive ti or because I do not want to have to find out. If I had my way, I would eliminate everything from chronic back pain ti the fear of the devil from my life ad the lives of those I love. At least I think I would. The problem is this: when, despite all my best efforts, the lights have gone off in my life, plunging me into the kind of darkness that turns my knees to water, I have not died. The monsters have not dragged me out of bed and taken me back to their lair. Instead, I have learned things in the dark that I could never have learned in the light, things that have saved my life over and over again, so that there is really only one logical conclusion. I need darkness as much as I need light. Learning to Walk in the Dark is a wise spiritual companion and guide for those times in life when we don't have all the answers. Recognising our tendency to associate all that is good with light, and all that is evil and dangerous with darkness, Barbara Brown Taylor asks whether God doesn't work at night too? With her characteristic grace and generosity, she invites us to put aside our fears and anxieties and to discover all that the darkness has to teach us. She takes us to underground caverns, subterranean chapels, basement night clubs and unlit cabins in the woods on moonless nights. Through darkness, we begin to see the world and sense God's presence around us in new ways, guiding us through things seen an unseen, and teaching us to find out footing in times of uncertainty. Like seeds buried in the ground, we will find how darkness is essential for our own growth and flourishing.£12.99 -
Celtic Christian Spirituality
Celtic Prayer, Celtic Sites & Saints, Celtic Studies, Celtic Studies & SpiritualityThe Celtic Christians beheld the world around them and perceived the divine life of God upholding every aspect of the material universe. Their prayers and poems, their liturgies and their theological texts give Christians a sense of faith that is confident in a merciful and infinitely creative, healing God. In this introduction to Celtic Christian spirituality, Mary C. Earle presents the primary texts from the Celtic Christian tradition - selections from the writings of Pelagius, Eriugena and St Patrick, as well as prayers and poems from Wales, the Outer Hebrides and Ireland. These essential texts direct humanity to read the 'book of creation' as well as the book of scripture, and call us to remember that 'matter matters'. The author's engaging facing-page commentary explores how faithful Christians and spiritual seekers use the writings of this lively tradition as ways of embodying and living the gospel.£10.99 -
Home Tonight: Further Reflections on the Parable of the Prodigal Son
Influences & Suggested Reading, The Inner JourneyPrior to writing his great classic, The Return of the Prodigal Son, Henri Nouwen suffered an enormous personal loss and breakdown that took him away from his home in the L'Arche Daybreak community for a period of seven months. His thoughts were intense, raw and deeply private, and ultimately revealed to him the passionate drama of parenthood, filial duty, rivalry, anger and unconditional live on display in Rembrandt's painting. On his return from solitude, Henri held small private workshops on his revelations that were recorded in audio. The material of those extremely personal talks has now been formed into a unique work. Home Tonight brings to light Nouwen's lectures on the Prodigal Son in a powerful guide for spiritual reflection. Providing exercises, suggestions for times of solitude, questions for pondering, simple prayers, and aids for personal journalling, Home Tonight leads readers to commune with God through spiritual listening. A practical guide for the inner journey home, this important book will give those who adore Nouwen's works the chance to hear his voice anew on his most popular topic.£9.99 -
Seize the Day
Daily Readings, Monasticism & New Monasticism, New Monasticism, Spiritual Growth, The Inner JourneyDietrich Bonhoeffer's faith-driven resistance to the Nazis during World War II resulted in his execution. Multitudes have been inspired by the hauntingly powrful words of this man who was willing to die for his convictions. In this collection of 365 meditations Dr Charles Ringma allows us to experience the power of Bonhoeffer's words in a way that challenges us to live out our discipleship daily - combining personal spirituality with an active concern for those around us. These daily meditations on Bonhoeffer's writings may make you uncomfortable. But if you are willing to wrestle - as Bonhoeffer did - with what it means to be a follower of Christ, you'll be empowered to seize each day.£20.99 -
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Building Utopia: seeking the authentic church for new communities
Culture & Mission, Re-imagining ChurchThe new urban areas are reshaping much of Britain. Those who live, work or minister within them are not only at the cutting edge of new forms of built environment, they must also discover new ways of being community and contemplate new expressions of Church. All this demands careful and bold analysis and creative theological reflection. While powerful global economic forces are changing our landscapes, human beings have to wrestle with themes of belonging and identity. The gospel engages with these human narratives, driving and shaping a Christian search for alternative perspectives and practices. What are the appropriate building projects, mission programmes and lifestyles that will be effective in meeting the challenges of the urban settlements? How should other areas respond? The writers of this book have worked together as a group, mapping the new situation, analysing their findings and drawing out those themes which demand attention – making it possible to reflect theologically about the challenges of our newly built urban developments.Original price was: £14.99.£7.99Current price is: £7.99. -
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The Wisdom of the Desert
Desert Monasticism, Influences & Suggested ReadingThe Wisdom of the Desert was one of Thomas Merton's favourites among his own books - surely because he had hoped to spend his last years as a hermit. The personal tone of the translations, the blend of reverence and humour so characteristic of him, show how deeply Merton identified with the legendary authors of these sayings and parables, the fourth century Christian Fathers who sought solitude and contempation in the deserts of the Near East. The hermits of Scete who turned their backs on a corrupt society remarkably like our own had much in common with the Zen Masters of China and Japan, and Father Merton made his selection from them with an eye to the kind of impact produced by the Zen mondo.£13.00 -
Show me: A6 greetings card
Creativity, Spiritual GrowthWords: Lord Jesus show me Your way Background: This piece was inspired by the lighthouse beam I see each night. It cuts through the darkness like a sword, like the word of God. It is a guide, a warning, a comfort and a reassurance. Printing and Sizing: This item is 105mmX148mm and is printed on 300gsm gloss card stock. Each card is blank inside, has its title and copyright details on the back and is individually wrapped in cellophane with an envelope.£2.25 -
Caim: A6 greetings card
Creativity, Spiritual GrowthWords: None Background: Mary tells us that...‘Caim’ was originally designed as a CD cover for an album of prayers set to music by the same name, therefore the imagery reflects themes of the music included, however as is often the case the illustration evolved into something which speaks beyond the obvious inspiration. The hand seems to reach out in a loving, gentle gesture to caress the face of the Creator, symbolised by the star (Revelation 22:16 ‘I, Jesus, have sent my angel to give you this testimony for the churches. I am the Root and the Offspring of David, and the bright Morning Star.’). The complex knotwork intersperses three overlapping circles which represent the Trinity and the patterns and colours are life patterns, weaving and merging, coloured by experiences, actions and reactions. Printing and Sizing: This item is 105mm x 148mm and is printed on 300gsm gloss card stock. Each card is blank inside, has its title and copyright details on the back and is individually wrapped in cellophane with an envelope.£2.25 -
An Introduction to the Wisdom of the Celtic Saints
Celtic Sites & Saints, Celtic Studies, Celtic Studies & Spirituality, Core Teaching, Influences & Suggested Reading, Northumbria Community Resources & TeachingEdward C Sellner has recently published a revised and expanded edition of his important work Wisdom of the Celtic Saints, which presents the stories of 27 of the most important of the Celtic saints from Ireland, Scotland, northern England, Wales, Cornwall and Brittany. However, this is currently only available in hardback form and the author has permitted the Northumbria Community to publish his excellent introduction to his book in this booklet form, making it more widely accessible.£4.00 -
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Life Together
Influences & Suggested Reading, New Monasticism, Re-imagining ChurchDietrich Bonhoeffer, the now famous theologian who was martyred by the Nazis in 1945, wrote this book on the eve of World War II. It resulted from his experience as head of a semiary of the German 'Confessing Church' at Finkenwalde near Stettin. Here many of the pastors who witnessed against Hitler received their inspiration. It was, as Professor John D. Godsey points out in his study of The Theology of Deitrich Bonhoeffer, 'a kind of theological education that was startlingly new in Germany: a communal life in which Jesus Christ's call to discipleship was taken seriously.' Professor Godsey calls Life Together 'simply written, powerfully convincing and unusually quotable...It is an attempt to give practical guidance to those who want to take their lives as Christians seriously.'£14.99 -
The Artist’s Rule: nurturing your creative soul with monastic wisdom
Creativity, Monasticism & New Monasticism, Spiritual Exercises, Spiritual Growth, The Inner Journey, Traditional Monasticism, nature, solitude, artists, creativity The Artist's Rule: Nurturing Your Creative Soul with Monastic Wisdom by Christine Valters Paintner, author of Water, Wind, Earth, and Fire, invites readers to discover and develop their creative gifts in a spirit of prayer and reflection. This twelve-week course draws on the insights and practices of Benedictine spirituality to explore the interplay between contemplation and creativity. Sumarised in the phrase 'pray and work,' The Rule of St. Benedict provides the inspiration for Christine Valters Paintner's newest exploration of the mutually nourishing relationship between contemplative practices and creative expression. Artists of all stripes and stations in life - poets or painters, potters or photographers - will discover how traditions of Benedictine, Celtic, and desert spirituality can offer new sources of inspiration for their work. Themes like 'Sacred Tools and Sacred Space', 'Creative Solitude and Community,' and 'Nature as a Source of Revelation and Inspiration' are enriched by Paintner's perceptive discussion and enhanced by insightful quotations from well-known artists and writers. Ideally formatted for faith sharing groups and parish retreats, this guide offers suggestions for grounding both the creative and the spiritual life through three basic practices: walking, lectio divina, and journaling. The Artist's Rule is supplemented with online resources, including guided meditation podcasts, video lessons, and discussions.£14.99 -
Praise to You: A6 greetings card
Creativity, Spiritual GrowthWords: Praise to You Lord Jesus Christ King of endless Glory. Background: Artist Mary Fleeson comments...'I have always loved this refrain as it so joyous and bold! In the artwork I have shown aspects of the life of Christ, His baptism, teaching, sacrifice and upbringing (according the Jewish laws). There is also symbolism representing Gods' promises and attributes of Jesus.' Printing and Sizing: This item is 105mmX148mm and is printed on 300gsm gloss card stock. Each card is blank inside, has its title and copyright details on the back and is individually wrapped in cellophane with an envelope.£2.25 -
Sing For Joy: A6 greetings card
Creativity, Spiritual Growth£2.50Let the heavens be glad, Let the earth rejoice Let the land exult - and all that is in it. Then all the trees of the forest will sing for joy.
Bible Passages:
Psalm 96: 11-12 Let the heavens rejoice, let the earth be glad; let the sea resound, and all that is in it. Let the fields be jubilant, and everything in them; let all the trees of the forest sing for joy. Luke 19:37-40 When he came near the place where the road goes down the Mount of Olives, the whole crowd of disciples began joyfully to praise God in loud voices for all the miracles they had seen: ‘Blessed is the king who comes in the name of the Lord!’, ‘Peace in heaven and glory in the highest!’ Some of the Pharisees in the crowd said to Jesus, ‘Teacher, rebuke your disciples!’ ‘I tell you,’ he replied, ‘if they keep quiet, the stones will cry out.’
Background:
We are completely dependent on our environment, created, like us, from dust. Saying that the trees will sing or the stones cry out is not to give them some fantastical sentience but to remind us that the miracle of their existence reflects God’s glory, power and creativity, and we do the same.
Printing and Sizing:
This item is 105mm x 148mm and is printed on 300gsm gloss card stock. Each card is blank inside, has its title and copyright details on the back and is individually wrapped in cellophane with an envelope.
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Church After Christendom
Culture & MissionChristianity must be understood not as a religion of private salvation, but as a gospel movement of universal compassion, which transforms the world in the power of God's truth. Amid several major global crises, including the rise of terrorism and religious fundamentalism and a sudden resurgence of political extremism, Christians must now face up fearlessly to the challenges of living in a "post-truth" age in which deceitful politicians present their media-spun fabrications as "alternative facts." This book is an attempt to enact a transformative theology for these changing times that will equip the global Christian community to take a stand for the gospel in an age of cultural despair and moral fragmentation. The emerging post-Christendom era calls for a new vision of Christianity that has come of age and connects with the spiritual crisis of our times. In helping to make this vision a reality, Searle insists that theology is not merely an academic discipline, but a transformative enterprise that changes the world. Theology is to be experienced not just behind a desk, in an armchair, or in a church, but also in hospitals, in foodbanks, in workplaces, and on the streets. Theology is to be lived as well as readOriginal price was: £9.99.£7.99Current price is: £7.99. -
Contemplation in a World of Action
The Inner JourneyThe spiritual and psychological insights of these essays were nurtured in a monastic milieu, but their issues are universally human. Thomas Merton lays a foundation for personal growth and transformation through fidelity to "our own truth and inner being". Our desire and need to attain "a fully human and personal identity" is the focus of Merton's concern.£24.99 -
Prayer: Finding the Heart’s True Home
Influences & Suggested Reading, Scripture & PrayerNo-one who reads Prayer will remain Unmoved. Even in the most difficult times, when we feel the 'agony of prayerlessness', this book will provide encouragement and the possibility of a profound experience of prayer will come within our reach. Richard Foster explores many facets of prayer, from the ordinary to the extraordinary, describing it an an inward journey of change and an upward journey of intimacy with God.He draws on the riches of the great classics of prayer throughout history as well as his own personal experience, and roots his teaching in Scripture.£9.99 -
Help me to journey beyond the familiar 210mm square print
Celtic Sites & Saints, Celtic Studies & Spirituality, Creativity, Spiritual GrowthLynda Owen-Hussey, a companion with the Northumbria Community, is a mixed media artist living on the shores of the West Coast of Ireland in County Kerry, close to the birthplace of St Brendan. These days, her work is inspired by the many gifts of the sea she encounters on walks along the shore, often pondering the life of St Brendan and the many monks of old who inhabited this land. In describing this original artwork Lynda says:£12.00Painted whilst on retreat at Nether Springs, the Mother House of the Northumbria Community, this artwork is inspired by a verse in the Northumbria Community’s Brendan Liturgy:
Lord, I will trust You, help me to journey beyond the familiar and into the unknown.
Brendan’s journey begins as his heart is stirred by a vision that takes him beyond his present circumstances and surroundings. In Genesis 12 we find Abram, who like Brendan, followed the call of God to leave the familiar comforts of home and venture towards the land of promise. Sometimes we hear that call ourselves, but oftentimes it is discomfort or the unexpected which proves to be the catalyst that opens us afresh to seeking out new ways as we journey in trust.
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The Art of Advent: A painting a day from Advent to Epiphany
Advent & Christmas, Resources for the Christian YearJoin Jane Williams on a journey from Advent to Epiphany, and discover the timeless wisdom to be found in some of the world's greatest paintings. Illustrated in full colour with nearly forty famous and lesser-known masterpieces of Western art, this beautiful book will lead you into a deeply prayerful response to all that these paintings convey to the discerning eye.£9.99'A brilliant foundation for parish and small-group discussions, both during Advent and through out the year'
The Most Revd and Rt Hon, Dr John Sentamu, Archbishop of York
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Availability and Vulnerability: A way for living
Core Teaching, Northumbria Community Resources & TeachingThe Rule of the Northumbria Community with an introduction by Trevor Miller, one of the leaders of the Community. A new Way for Living that offers hope in the changed and changing culture of today's world.£4.00 -
Seasoned By Seasons: flourishing in life’s experiences
Seasons of Life, Spiritual GrowthLike the seasons themselves, our lives are variable and can change in a moment. In Seasoned by Seasons, Michael Mitton acknowledges this and offers Bible reflections for the variety of life's seasons: spring, the season of emerging new life; summer, the season of fruitfulness; autumn, the season of letting go; winter, the season of discovering light in the dark. What can we learn, and how can we be encouraged in each season of our lives? This book will empower you to discover for yourself the truths and messages of scripture, and might well change the way you view life's changes.£7.99 -
Work of our Hands: A6 greetings card
Creativity, Spiritual Growth£2.25Let the favour of the Lord our God rest upon us.
Establish the work of our hands. (Psalm 90:17)
Background:
We have sung and said a version of this passage for many years since its inclusion in the Northumbria Community’s Celtic Daily Prayer book ‘Midday Prayer.’ We see the work of our hands through Lindisfarne Scriptorium as a ministry of providing resources to help people spread the Christian message and to support each other. We hope that through their artwork and writings, people are blessed and encounter a deeper relationship with God, the Father, Son and Holy Spirit.
Printing and Sizing:
This item is 105mm x 148mm and is printed on 300gsm gloss card stock. Each card is blank inside, has its title and copyright details on the back and is individually wrapped in cellophane with an envelope.
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Streams of Living Water
Influences & Suggested Reading, The Inner JourneyIsn't it a shame that the rich tapestry of Christian belief and practice has so often been rigidly carved up, crammed into denominational boxes and padlocked shut? Richard Foster addresses this by identifying six major strands of Christian spirituality within the worldwide church that have contributed at various times and places across the centuries. They are: The Contemplative tradition - or the Prayer-filled life, The Holiness tradition - or the Virtuous life, The Charismatic tradition - or the Spirit-empowered life, The Social Justice tradition - or the Compassionate life, The Evangelical tradition - or the Word-centred life, The Incarnational tradition - or the Sacramental life, Foster's celebration of spiritual life incorporates history's most significant Christian figures and movements. It serves as a refreshing example of how real peopl have evaded preconceived ideas and lived wonderful Christ-centred lives in spite of constricting labels.£10.99 -
A Blessing and Comfort Prayer Book
Creativity, Scripture & PrayerA collection of original prayers and complementary Bible passages. Use the prayers in this book to bless people at significant moments in their lives, the words of comfort in the second part of the book may be used at any time. The booklet comprises of prayers, Bible passages and pictures which can be coloured in.£3.99 -
The Heretical Imperative
Core TeachingTrevor Miller, one of the leaders of the Northumbria Community, expounds on this vital (but difficult and challenging) part of the Community's Rule which exhorts us to 'take the heretical imperative'. He discusses the 'Inductive' method of approaching our faith (comparing it to the 'Deductive' and 'Reductive' approaches) and outlines five practical ways we can live this out in our daily lives.£4.00 -
The Love Is Activity Book
CreativityThis little book contains meditations, prayers and activities about Love, inspired by the verses in the book of Corinthians. In Paul's first letter to the Christians of Corinth in Greece, he spends a long time instructing, advising, challenging and encouraging the young church there. He hasn't visited for a few years and he knows of the immorality in the wealthy pagan city and the divisions that have emerged within the church. Although he aims not to diminish the message of the cross with 'wisdom and eloquence', he gave us, in chapter thirteen, some of the most powerful and well-known verses of the New Testament.£3.99 -
The Cost of Discipleship
Influences & Suggested ReadingWhat can the call to discipleship, the adherence to the word of Jesus, mean today to the businessman, the soldier, the labourer, or the aristocrat? What did Jesus mean to say to us? What is His will for us today? Drawing on the Sermon on the Mount, Dietrich Bonhoeffer answers these timeless questions by providing a seminal reading of the dichotomy between 'cheap grace' and 'costly grace'. 'Cheap grace', Bonhoeffer wrote, 'is the grace we bestow on ourselves...grace without discipleship...Costly grace is the Gospel which must be sought again and again, the gift which must be asked for, the door at which a man must know...It is costly because it costs a man his life, and it is grace because it give the man the only true life.' The Cost of Discipleshipis a compelling statement of the demands of sacrifice and ethical consistency from a man whose life and thought were exemplary articulations of a new type of leadership inspired by the Gospel, and imbued with the spirit of Christian humanism and a creative sense of civic duty.£21.99 -
Walking in Valleys of Darkness : A Benedictine Journey through Troubled Times
Leadership, Scripture & Prayer, Spiritual Growth, The Inner Journey, Traditional MonasticismTrusting in the Lord and his benevolence is easy when life is going well - not so easy when life seems difficult. Yet, walking through what the author calls 'valleys of darkness' can bring us opportunities for insight and grace we might not experience when we are walking through good times. Benedictine monk Fr. Albert Holtz invites the reader to walk with him through five periods of pain and difficulty in his own life, including being diagnosed with cancer and dealing with the death of his brother. In a series of twenty-four meditations, the author shows how insights behind such New Testament words such as courage, compassion, and trust, became a source of practical help and spiritual strength for him during those difficult times. His down-to-earth reflections can do the same for anyone trying to understand how the mystery of Christ's passion, death and resurrection can help us cope with, and even profit from, life's inevitable struggles and sufferings.£9.00 -
Anxious For Nothing: finding calm in a chaotic world
Everyday Life, Scripture & Prayer, Seasons of Life, The Inner JourneyWhen it comes to anxiety, depression, and stress-related illnesses, America is the frontrunner. Thankfully, there's a practical prescription for dealing with them. Anxious for Nothing, the most recent book from New York Times bestselling author, Max Lucado, provides a roadmap for battling with and healing from anxiety. Does the uncertainty and chaos of life keep you up at night?Is irrational worry your constant companion?Could you use some calm?If the answer is yes, you are not alone. According to one research program, anxiety-related issues are the number one mental health problem among women and are second only to alcohol and drug abuse among men. Stress-related ailments cost the nation $300 billion every year in medical bills and lost productivity. And use of sedative drugs like Xanax and Valium have skyrocketed in the last 15 years. Even students are feeling it. One psychologist reports that the average high school kid today has the same level of anxiety as the average psychiatric patient in the early 1950s. Chances are, you or someone you know seriously struggles with anxiety. Max writes, "The news about our anxiety is enough to make us anxious." He knows what it feels like to be overcome by the worries and fear of life, which is why he is dedicated to helping millions of readers take back control of their minds and, as a result, their lives. Anxious for Nothing invites readers to delve into Philippians 4:6-7. After all, it is the most highlighted passage of any book on the planet, according to Amazon: Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. In the characteristic tone of his previous books like You'll Get Through This and Fearless, Max guides readers through this Scripture passage and explains the key concepts of celebration, asking for help, leaving our concerns, and meditating. Stop letting anxiety rule the day. Join Max on the journey to true freedom and experience more joy, clarity, physical renewal, and contentment by the power of the Holy Spirit. Anxiety comes with life. But it doesn't have to dominate your life.£14.99 -
Sacred Strangers: what the Bible’s outsiders can teach Christians
Culture & Mission, Everyday Life, Scripture & PrayerThe Bible is laced with stories in which strangers behave better than believers. What do these encounters with "others"--people from different cultures, religions, genders, economic and social classes--teach us about our own spiritual values, about the faith and God behind them? In Sacred Strangers, Nancy Haught leads readers through these stories, line by line, offering insight to open hearts to sacred strangers at a time when personal encounters can make us or break us--as people and citizens of the world.£10.99 -
God Doesn’t Do Waste: Redeeming the Whole of Life
Everyday Life, The Inner JourneyMeet 'the Bookless Bunch', a very ordinary family who went green. When God challenged him over his attitude to the environment, Dave Bookless did a total rethink. This led to major changes, not only in his family's lifestyle but also eventually in his career: full time involvement in the global A Rocha movement that aims to care for God's fragile world. But in one sense this book isn't about going green at all. It's a personal account of a life lived in relationship. It's about roots and belonging, suffering and healing, identity and meaning, faith and doubt. It's about how in God's economy nothing need be wasted. It's about the messiness that each human being wades through in every area of life, and about a God who can take all that seems most wasteful and useless, and recycle it into something of infinite worth.£8.99 -
Healing the Purpose of Your Life
Everyday Life, Spiritual Growth, The Inner Journey£12.99The Linns have a knack for choosing topics that are very timely and communicating them in a way that speaks to our everyday experience. In this book they explore how we discover our unique calling and develop it as a gift – for ourselves, others and the earth. For those caught up in our hectic culture, this little book is a rich source for reflection and prayer that can be used either individually or with groups.
Robert T Sears, SJ Professor of Pastoral Theology, Loyola University
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Putting Joy Into Practice : Seven Ways to Lift Your Spirit from the Early Church
Spiritual Exercises, The Inner JourneyPutting Joy into Practice: Seven Ways to Lift Your Spirit from the Early Church is an invitation to a life of joy. Phoebe Farag Mikhail explains what joy is and how to experience it through seven spiritual practices that cultivate our inner lives and connect us to our communities. These seven practices, which include giving thanks, hospitality, praise, and more, take us on a journey that leads to joy through the giving and receiving of sacrificial love. She describes her own experiences and struggles with joy and offers practical ways to implement these practices to increase joy in our own lives and in the lives of all those around us.£13.00 -
The Circle of Peace: an antidote to distress
Everyday Life, Spiritual Growth, The Inner JourneyA much-needed book which gives people - Christians in particular - permission to love themselves as they should. Written by a chartered psychologist and a priest with a distinguished teaching and pastoral ministry, this book offers an encouraging hand to those who want to experiment with making beneficial changes in their life, especially those bothered by anxiety, depression, low self-esteem or feelings of helplessness. Full of reassuring and engaging stories. Includes practical exercises throughout to enable people to understand where discomfort originates and to discover ways forward. The Church is very good at inviting or challenging people to love their neighbours - it is not so strong on encouraging us to love ourselves. This book illuminates the healing truth that encountering the love of God sets us free to live as we were intended to live - loving ourselves and those around us. Through Bible passages, stories and exercises, the authors encourage us to throw off the sense of apprehension that bothers so many, and to enjoy living to the full in God's exhilarating company.£10.99 -
From Darkness to Light
Lent & Easter, Scripture & PrayerFrom Darkness to Light is a masterpiece of contemplative exegesis of the Bible. Daniel Bourguet takes the reader on a challenging, three-chapter pilgrimage exploring the mystery of three conversions: in the darkness at Jesus's death, in the cries of descent into the grave, and in the light at his garden resurrection. Bourguet interprets with precision and passion the story of the one thief's conversion on the cross as he witnesses Jesus's suffering love. His treatment of Heman's cry from the depths in Psalm 88 plumbs the depths of a biblical theology of the cross. His final chapter on Mary Magdalene's transformative encounter with Jesus in the garden is brilliant, inspiring more careful study, contemplative prayer, and adoration.£17.00 -
Eyes of the Heart; photography as Christian contemplative practice
Creativity, Spiritual ExercisesEyes of the Heart by Christine Valters Paintner explores photography as a spiritual practice from a Christian perspective. Christine builds on the process of contemplative creativity in her book The Artist’s Rule (also available from the community bookshop) by adapting the monastic practice of lectio divina (sacred reading) into a form of visio divina (sacred seeing). A spiritual director and Benedictine oblate, she guides readers through a new way of spiritual observation – through the lens of a camera – and in receiving images, not simply taking them. She writes that, ‘My hope is that, in exploring the language of photography, you [develop] new portals into the your own experience and awareness of God. Shadow and light, framing, colour, reflections, and mirrors all offer us metaphors for ways of understanding how we might move towards seeing ourselves and God with the eyes of the heart.’ She invites us to use our cameras to help us to release our expectations of what we think we ought to see and learn to discover what is actually there. And then helps us to bring this kind of interaction into our everyday lives.£12.99 -
From Wild Man to Wise Man: Reflections on male spirituality
Influences & Suggested Reading, Seasons of Life, The Inner JourneyFrom Wild Man to Wise Man: Reflections on Male Spirituality is a revised and updated edition of Richard Rohr's earlier best-seller, The Wild Man's Journey: Reflections on Male Spirituality. For this new work, Rohr added three chapters that discuss John the Baptist, Saint Paul and grief. An appendix provides a structure for a men's group, based on Rohr's work with M.A.L.E.S (Men as Learners and Elders), a program of the Center for Action and Contemplation, which Richard founded and now directs in Albuquerque, New Mexico.£14.50 -
Alone Together
Core Teaching, Northumbria Community Resources & Teaching, The Inner JourneyThis booklet, written by Trevor Miller, explores what it means for us to say that we journey 'Alone Together'. As one of the founders of Northumbria Community, Trevor shares his understanding of this central concept as he has lived, studied and prayed it over the past 30 or more years. Chapters include:£4.00- A Community understanding of the spiritual journey
- How Alone Together helps us understand the nature of God
- What Alone Together means for us as a Community and our way of being
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Hidden Wings: Emerging from troubled times with new hope and deeper wisdom
Everyday Life, Spiritual Growth, The Inner JourneyYou must become the change you long for. Fine words, a great vision, but where to begin? We caterpillars know. From the moment we are conceived in our parents' mating dance, we already contain the cells that hold our future butterfly. Let us tell you our story... Tumultuous changes are occurring in the world around us, and the structures and values by which we have charted our lives seem to be collapsing. Many of us are struggling to plot a spiritual path through this unfamiliar landscape, and to believe in a positive future. Hidden Wings is a book offering hope and understanding. Using the example of a caterpillar entering the devastating, world-altering stage of the chrysalis, before emerging – transformed – as a butterfly, Margaret Silf helps us to see that these times of chaos could in fact be an opportunity for profound spiritual transformation.£12.99 -
The Making Of Us: who we can become when life doesn’t go as planned
Everyday Life, Seasons of Life, Spiritual Growth, The Inner JourneyBeautiful Things Can Emerge from Life Not Going as Planned. When life takes one too many unexpected turns, do you find yourself saying, "I don't know who I am anymore"? In the wake of shattered dreams, do you wonder how you will keep going-and if you'll ever find purpose or joy again? After infertility, an international move, and a professional change shook Sheridan Voysey's world, he realized that he couldn't reconcile his expectations with the life he was living. Feeling lost, he decided to pair his spiritual journey with a literal one: a hundred-mile pilgrimage along the northeast coast of England. Inspired by the life and influence of the seventh-century monk Cuthbert, Sheridan travelled on foot from the Holy Island of Lindisfarne to Durham. Taking his friend DJ along for the journey, and keeping a journal by his side, Sheridan discovered not resolution but peace. Not ambition but purpose. Not shouts of convictions but whispers of the presence of God. In The Making of Us, Sheridan invites us to join him as he walks along England's shores and we trace the borders of our own hearts. Part pilgrim's journal, part call to reflection, The Making of Us eloquently reminds us of the beauty of journeying into uncertainty, the freedom of letting go, and the wonder of losing our identity only to discover who we really are.£12.99 -
Tending to my Thoughts
The Inner JourneyTending to My Thoughts continues the story of Sharon Hastings, a medical doctor and Christian living with severe mental illness. Her personal experience of recovery offers a starting point to help readers think through what recovery could look like for them or their loved ones. Peppered with personal anecdotes, shot through with medical knowledge and chock-full of helpful explanation, this book inspires hope and provides evidence that life with mental illness can improve. Sharon Hastings writes to encourage those who walk alongside people who are suffering, as well as to equip individual Christians and churches to effectively support those in recovery, particularly from severe mental illness. 'Wise and real.' Emma Scrivener'A book that needs to be read by every pastor.' Rachael Newham'I recommend it unreservedly.' Revd Will van der Hart'Threaded with realism, practicality and hope.' Mark Meynell£11.99 -
A Silent Action: engagements with Thomas Merton
Spiritual GrowthThomas Merton's life, especially once he had become a writer, was to a great extent one of dialogue with people who were distant, both geographically and historically. In these probing and perceptive studies, Rowan Williams looks closely at the key intellectual and spiritual relationships that emerge in Merton's writings, exploring the impact on him of thinkers as diverse as Hannah Arendt, Karl Barth, William Blake, Dietrich Bonhoeffer, Olivier Clement, Fyodor Dostoevsky, Paul Evdokimov, Gerard Manley Hopkins, Vladimir Lossky, John Henry Newman, Boris Pasternak and St John of the Cross.£11.99 -
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Following The Celtic Way : A New Assessment of Celtic Christianity
Celtic Studies, Celtic Studies & SpiritualityA quarter-century after writing the acclaimed The Celtic Way, Ian Bradley, one of the foremost experts on the spiritual beliefs and practices of the indigenous Christian communities in the British Isles in the early Middle Ages, revisits the original sources and makes a substantial reappraisal of Celtic spirituality. Following the Celtic Way challenges many of the myths and romanticised portrayals of Celtic Christianity and shows evidence of the harder edge and demanding austerity of the lives and spirituality of believers from this time. This book sits among the most insightful and up-to-date introductions to this distinctive and evocative expression of faith, and draws out its themes that are most relevant to us today. It also offers practical spiritual guidance on how to follow the Celtic Way in the contemporary world.£12.99 -
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Lost in Wonder: Rediscovering the Spiritual Art of Attentiveness
Everyday Life, The Inner Journey'To take time to be apart ... is not a luxury, it is essential. The gift of space for myself seems so simple, and in a way it is; but it is also surprisingly difficult to do without some form of external encouragement. And that is the very simple purpose of this book.' With these words, Ester de Waal begins to show us ways into a fuller and deeper sense of attentiveness to the world around us and to the presence of God in that world. As she observes, 'if we fail to find the time to stand back, to give ourselves a break, a breathing space we are in danger of failing to be fully alive, or to enjoy that fullness of life for which we were created.' Many aspects of modern life can distract us: busyness, boredom, stress, lethargy, lack of direction. Yet Christ's invitation to each of us is, 'Come and see'. Responding to this call, Lost in Wonder clears and refreshes our inner vision, teaching us again how to use those gifts we may have come to take for granted or forgotten we had: sight, sound, silence, awareness, mystery, wonder.£9.99