The Practice of the Presence of God: Theology as a Way of Life

This looks like an interesting collection of essays; essays focused on an interface that has long fascinated me.

The Practice of the Presence of God: Theology as a Way of Life, edited by Martin Laird, Sheelah Treflé Hidden (Pub. 29 Nov. 2016)

“…Offering glimpses of the prayer-life and witness that undergirds theological endeavour, some authors approach the topic in a deeply personal way while others express the unity of prayer and the theologian in a traditionally scholarly manner…[The] authors demonstrate that the discipline of theology cannot properly be practiced apart from the prayer life of the theologian. The prayer of the theologian shapes her or his approach to theology. Whether it be preaching, teaching, writing or research, the deep soundings of prayer inform and embrace all.”

Review:

‘Practice, as Michel de Certeau has reminded us, can become a tactic for reclaiming what has been lost or forgotten or taken from us, can help restore to us a more vital and whole-hearted vision and experience of reality. Such is the gift of this honest, courageous and imaginative collection of essays: it performs or practices what it seeks to illumine. And in so doing, it reopens a conversation that has long haunted the Christian tradition concerning the profoundly immersive, communal and transformative character of theological reflection. A way thinking, a way of being, and yes, a way of life.’ ~ Douglas E. Christie, Professor of Theological Studies, Loyola Marymount University, USA

Table of Contents

Introduction: Oracles, Prophets, and Dwellers in Silence (PDF) James Alison

Part 1. Foundational Soundings

1 Theology as a Way of Life Rowan Williams

2 Undergoing Something from Nothing Brian D. Robinette

3 The Trinity as our Ascetic Programme Nicholaï Sakharov

Part 2. Personal Accounts of a Theological Life

4 Ecumenical Confessions of an Unconventional Protestant Frances Young

5 Augustine on Practicing the Presence of God Margaret R. Miles

Part 3. Theological and Liturgical Retrievals

6 The Liturgy, Icons and the Prayer of the Heart Andrew Louth

7 To Feel so as to Understand: Hadewijch of Brabant and the Legacy of St. Anselm Rachel Smith

8 Etching the Ineffable in Words: The Return of Contemplation to Theology Martin Laird

9 The Guidance of St. Ephrem: a Vision to Live by Sebastian Brock

10 The Threat of Death as a Test for Theological Authenticity Luigi Gioia.