Lenten Book Study:

Practical Christianity: Meditations for the Season of Lent
By the Rev. Jane Shaw,
Former dean of Grace Cathedral in San Francisco
And professor, the University of Oxford
 
How might it be if we thought of Christianity as something we do, rather than something based on mere faith or belief? All the things we do require practice to excel at them. Yet sometimes we get too tangled up in doctrines, and forget about Christianity as a way of life. The Rev. Jane Shaw, teacher, priest, and practical theologian, combines art, poetry, music, and even fiction to invite all of us on a Lenten pilgrimage of transformation. Each of the five chapters is relatable, and yet also surprising, inviting you to deeper reflection. Join us!

The Lenten Book Study will be held in person and on ZOOM, Tuesdays in Lent beginning March 8 at 6:30 pm. It will be led by Mother Leslie. Books are available for pick up on the credenza in the Narthex beginning today! If you would like an e-book, please click here.

A Practical Christianity: Meditations for the Season of Lent is a devotional book that challenges readers to take up "practical Christianity"--proposing Christian faith as something we do, not something we merely believe in. The starting point for Christianity lies within its practice, says the author, and not in the blind acceptance of a chunk of undigested doctrine.

The book samples fiction, poetry, art and music, combined with the wisdom of scripture and theology, to help pilgrims make sense of faith in the context of everyday life.

Shaw reconsiders the central doctrines of Christian faith through the lens of how we practice them. She explores five themes: dust, forgiveness, time, doubt and love--devoting a chapter to each. This thematic approach is a way of presenting (covertly, since it's not revealed until the end of the book) the doctrines of Creation and Sin, Forgiveness, the Trinity, Salvation, and finally Love.