Recovering the Riches of Anointing: A Study of the Sacrament of the Sick is a collection of the papers presented at the international symposium sponsored by the National Association of Catholic Chaplains in May, 2001, as part of a long-term exploration of topics of theological and pastoral concern in the pastoral care of the sick. Book jacket.

Would many believers consider a wake or funeral an act of worship? What does it mean to say that in anointing the sick or administering Viaticum to the dying humans are healed? Such questions plumb the biblical and traditional depths of the paschal mystery. Just as Jesus' ministry at the social-religious margins revealed the center of his faith in God'??s reign, so also the church's ministry to sickness and death reveals much about the baptismal and Eucharistic worship so central to its entire life. In Divine Worship and Human Healing Bruce Morrill turns to the rites serving the sick, dying, deceased, and grieving to show why sacramental liturgy is so fundamental to the life of faith. Readers will appreciate both his compelling narratives from actual pastoral experience and his engagement with biblical, theological, historical, and social-scientific resources. Morrill invites readers to discover how the liturgical ministry of healing discloses God's merciful love amid communities of faith. Jesuit Father Bruce Morrill discusses new book on Liturgical Theology from Jesuit Conference USA on Vimeo.

The Bible presents a landscape rich with characters whose stories and prophecies, wisdom and woes, parables and prayers describe our very human struggle to know and respond to the love of God. Repeated reading and retelling make these texts familiar, and yet we encounter them anew in these fresh, intimate, and sometimes startling reflections by master storyteller Genevieve Glen, OSB. Sr. Genevieve writes with a vivid and poetic imagination. Drawing on her life of monastic prayer and the practice of Lectio Divina—a life saturated in Scripture—she pulls us deeply into these stories. Sauntering through this holy ground with her we enter small villages and busy towns, sheepfolds and gardens, a nomad’s tent and a rich man’s house, a stable in Bethlehem and the great temple in Jerusalem. Most of all we encounter the transforming message and mercy of God in Jesus Christ.

"Is sacramental anointing the same as last rites?" "Don't you have to have some kind of special gift to be part of the Church's healing ministry?" "Why am I sick? Is it God's punishment?" "Ever since I became sick, I don't feel like myself anymore." If life is a journey, what happens when our way is obstructed by sickness or failing health? In Healing Touch and Saving Word, Linda Malia draws upon the rich theology of the Anglican tradition personified in the Episcopal Church's sacramental liturgies of healing. In easy-to-understand language, Healing Touch examines the theological foundations of the Episcopal Church's healing liturgies, from the first Book of Common Prayer to the most recent sacramental rites. Probing the dynamics of symbol and ritual, the complex relationship of sin and sickness, and the spiritual and psychological impact of every serious illness, the book explores the power of these graced encounters in enabling the faithful to draw new hope and renewed purpose out of the chaos and turmoil of illness and debility. Individuals struggling with life-changing illness and those who care for them--clergy and laity alike--are sure to find Healing Touch a helpful and thought-provoking resource.

It is surely true that 'reclaimed' spiritual wisdom from the pre-Vatican II era can enrich the faith lives of Catholics today. The American Catholic community prior to the Second Vatican Council can be numbered among the most vital expressions of Catholicism in the history of the church. The contributors are a who's-who of the top theologians and spiritual writers today. other essays cover devotional practices, such as prayer to the saints, devotion to Mary, the Rosary, the Eucharistic Fast, and the Angelus, as well as profiles of figures such as Thomas Merton, Theodore Hesburth, Teilhard de Chardin, and Dorothy Day.

The familiar images of Word and Light break open with fresh insight in the imaginative and wise ruminations of Sister Genevieve Glen, OSB. From Nazareth to Emmaus, psalms to beatitudes, Advent to Pentecost, through characters, stories, and prayers, this nimble poet and lifelong student of Scripture takes us to new places in texts we thought we knew. At turns probing, humorous, and inspiring, these reflections ultimately help us to know more deeply the Word made Flesh, Jesus of Nazareth — crucified and risen, the Light of the World.

As a multi-faceted introduction to sacramental theology, the purposes of this Handbook are threefold: historical, ecumenical, and missional. The forty-four chapters are organized into the following parts five parts: Sacramental Roots in Scripture, Patristic Sacramental Theology, Medieval Sacramental Theology, From the Reformation through Today, and Philosophical and Theological Issues in Sacramental Doctrine. Contributors to this Handbook explain the diverse ways that believers have construed the sacraments, both in inspired Scripture and in the history of the Church's practice. In Scripture and the early Church, Orthodox, Protestants, and Catholics all find evidence that the first Christian communities celebrated and taught about the sacraments in a manner that Orthodox, Protestants, and Catholics today affirm as the foundation of their own faith and practice. Thus, for those who want to understand what has been taught about the sacraments in Scripture and across the generations by the major thinkers of the various Christian traditions, this Handbook provides an introduction. As the divisions in Christian sacramental understanding and practice are certainly evident in this Handbook, it is not thereby without ecumenical and missional value. This book evidences that the story of the Christian sacraments is, despite divisions in interpretation and practice, one of tremendous hope.