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book Reviews
Three very different books of prayer
Title: Abide with Me: Prayers for Life’s Eventide
Author: Carlee Hallman
Publisher: Abingdon Press
Price: £6.99
ISBN: 0687492203
An American from Maryland, Hallman has drawn on her experiences of
ministry among older people to compile this book of prayers. Each is
written in the first person, in large print, and with a brief Bible
quotation. Hallman has taken up a real challenge – putting into prayer
the thoughts, feelings and sometimes trivial concerns of older people
and others. The results are uneven, especially for English readers, but
there is joy there too, and a great openness to putting feelings into
words as we draw close to God. The book is of wider appeal than its
title suggests. Some of the prayers would be very suitable to end an
informal meeting and would be thought-provoking for those giving
spiritual ministry to the very elderly
Title: The Language of Love: Exploring Prayer
Author: John Moses
Publisher: Canterbury Press
Price: £9.99
ISBN: 9781853117831
John Moses sees the “language of love” as the unifying aspect of prayer,
of which God’s activity in us, and discipleship, are part. His anthology
is, he says, one for prayer and not an anthology of prayer. Some of the
quotations have a sense of entirety and directness, which evoke a
response; those by Julian of Norwich, George Herbert and Michel Quoist
will be familiar to a number of people. Other passages I found often too
short, too abstract or too lacking in context for me to fully engage
with. Individual one-liners from Dietrich Bonhoeffer and Basil Hume do
give food for contemplation. The notes could have been more clearly set
out under the main themed headings to make referencing easier.
Title: Praying With the Bible
Author: Philip Law
Publisher: SPCK
Price £6.59
ISBN: 9780281059171
Praying With the Bible is a handbook in which various facets of prayer
are illustrated through the rich diversity of experience and emotion
found in passages of scripture. More than one translation is used in the
book and the author has chosen accessible language for our modern age.
Some passages are asterisked where they have been adapted or expanded,
sometimes with responses incorporated in the passage. The indexing of
Bible references and themes is helpful. This would be a useful resource
book and guide to individuals and groups, often sending one back to the
Bible to explore further.
Margaret Derbyshire is a member at Billericay United Reformed Church,
Essex
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