Poet of the World, Re-reading Scripture with Ephraem the Syrian – Early Christians read the Bible somewhat differently from their modern counterparts. For example, St Ephraem’s layered approach to interpreting Sacred Scripture, especially the Old Testament, led him to delve below the literal words of the texts to uncover the rich vein of symbolic allusions that lay within them. Woven together, they formed a tapestry of spiritual wisdom. Ephraem transformed this tapestry into vibrant poetry in hymns, homilies and biblical commentaries that gesture towards the unfathomable mystery of God revealed in Christ. This brief essay examines the principles that guided Ephraem’s manner of biblical interpretation (his hermeneutics) and reveals why he is a Poet of the Word. Fairacres Publication 187 (2020) – ISBN 978 0 7283 0303 4

Br Ælred Partridge OC read Theology and Humanities at Bristol Baptist College and London University, before training for the priesthood at Cuddesdon College, Oxford. He has served in parishes and as Chaplain at Great Ormond Street Children’s Hospital. He also holds a postgraduate degree in psychoanalytic counselling. He was a volunteer therapist with the branch of the Family Welfare Association in Clapham Junction and facilitated therapy groups for medical staff at Great Ormond Street Hospital.

 

Crowning the Year, Liturgy, Theology and Ecclesiology for the Rural Church offers a practical guide to celebrating the key moments of the liturgical year in rural multi-church contexts. It considers the nature and distinctiveness of the rural church, the patterns of its worship and its ministry, reflecting on the importance of place, local community, the church building and the occasions which rural communities celebrate. In doing so, it offers an attractive and welcome ecclesiology and theology of the rural church. Crowning the Year will equip all who lead or assist with worship in rural contexts, lay and ordained. It offers essential groundwork on liturgical theology, and a theology of ministry in rural, multi-parochial contexts. It then provides practical ideas and direction on how to prepare for and conduct worship for the principal feasts and seasons of the Christian year, with a special emphasis on Christmas, Holy Week and Easter and the occasions such as Harvest, Plough Sunday and Rogation that are especially significant in rural communities. Canterbury Press (2021) – ISBN 178 622 3392

Dr Tom Clammer (Br Tom OC) is a theologian, educator and spiritual director. Until 2019 he was Precentor at Salisbury Cathedral and is presently a Visiting Scholar at Sarum College. He is the author of Fight Valiantly: Evil in the Liturgy (SCM Press) and a frequent contributor to theological journals.