Rowan Williams served as the 104th Archbishop of Canterbury from 2002 to 2012 and is now Master of Magdalene College, University of Cambridge. A Fellow of the British Academy and an internationally recognized theologian, he was previously Lady Margaret Professor of Divinity at the University of Oxford, Bishop of Monmouth, and Archbishop of Wales.
Publishers Weekly
"Accessible and thought-provoking. . . . An excellent spiritual
guide for individual or small group use." P. D. James
"Elegant and lucid." Walter Brueggemann
-- author of Reality, Grief, Hope: Three Urgent Prophetic Tasks
"Who better than Rowan Williams to be our teacher about the
essentials of Christianity! In this clear, accessible exposition,
we get Williams at his best - worldly-wise, pastorally gentle,
grounded deeply in tradition, acutely alert to the real world of
violence where God indwells. Williams ushers us more deeply into
our best discernment of the Christian life." Anthony C.
Thiselton
-- author of Life after Death: A New Approach to the Last
Things
"A treasure. . . . Enticingly easy to read - simple yet profound,
moving yet thoughtful, reassuring yet challenging. This book
explains essential elements of the Christian life brilliantly but
briefly, expounding themes and answering difficulties in everyday
commonsense language. It lifts the heart and enriches the mind."
Lillian Daniel
-- author of When "Spiritual but Not Religious" Is Not Enough
"This volume will become a classic for individual seekers and book
groups. Speaking to those inside and outside the church - and the
growing number of people who don't know where to locate themselves
anymore - Williams entices us all to go deeper by reviewing the
basics. It takes a theologian of depth to write a simple book about
complex concerns." Michael Jinkins
-- President of Louisville Prebyterian Theological Seminary
"With clarity and with startling eloquence, one of the greatest
theologians and most respected church leaders of our time here
guides readers into a deeper understanding of the essential
elements of the Christian life. Rowan Williams has written that
rarest of books, a work of profound theological insight that is
also lively, beautiful, and relevant." M. Craig Barnes
-- President of Princeton Theological Seminary
"The genius of this little book is that it gets right to the heart
of the essential Christian experience. . . . We are simply invited
to enter the new life discovered through the core practices of the
church." Sister Wendy Beckett
-- Carmelite Monastery, Quidenham
"Christianity is both simple and profound. Rowan Williams
understands these two levels, and how we come to the depth of what
Jesus is by the simplicities of informed Christian practice. This
is a handbook for Christian living." Cistercian Studies
Quarterly
"This is just the kind of eminently readable, provocative book that
would do well for a study group or a retreat and of course for
personal spiritual reading. . . . Rowan Williams is above all a
pastor, and he knows well what needs to be said and heard of the
Christian message these days." Presbyterian Outlook
"Rowan Williams speaks with a passion for the church, her people
and her practices. So pastors, seminarians, lay leaders, people who
love the church: read this book, keep it on your shelf and read it
again." First Things
"A frustrating blessing of the mysteries of faith is that we can
never wrap our minds around them completely. As familiar as they
may seem, there are always new angles from which to see them. In
this book based on a series of lectures delivered in Canterbury
Cathedral, Rowan Williams takes the four identity markers of the
Christian community and helps us do just that."
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