Before nature: a Christian spirituality PDF
Preview Before nature: a Christian spirituality
Toward a Trinitarian spirituality of nature— S A Before Nature caps a set of themes first brought to the fore in Santmire’s previous work, most N BEFORE NATURE notably the classic The Travail of Nature. Here Santmire continues the pursuit of a theology T bound up with nature and its condition, especially the fragility and fervent expectation of nature’s M redemption. Santmire invites readers on a theological and spiritual journey to a prayerful and contemplative knowledge of the Triune God, in which practitioners are inducted into a bountiful I R relationship with the cosmic and universal ministry of Christ and the Spirit uniting all of nature in E A CHRISTIAN SPIRITUALITY a single vision of hope and anticipation. Praise for Before Nature “With grace and wisdom, Paul Santmire draws the reader into intimate, intriguing conversation culminating in an earthy spirituality of nature grounded in historic Christian traditions and in his lifelong journey of encountering God in Earth’s creatures and elements. Santmire is an artist of words. His accessible lucid prose and delightful imagery guide the reader on a critical and deeply appreciative walk through Christian understandings of God both beyond and within the created world. All is couched in courageous unflinching accounts of his spiritual journey in its fragile beauty and brokenness. His final gift to the reader is an invitation to encounter God in creation by singing the ancient Trinity Prayer as a life-giving spiritual practice. Against the lure of cosmic B despair prevalent in the church and broader society, Santmire weaves a vision of cosmic hope; all E of creation is destined toward ultimate fulfillment. This will become a classic of earth-honoring spirituality.” F Cynthia Moe-Lobeda, Seattle University O “With a pastoral heart and prophetic passion, H. Paul Santmire continues his lifelong conversation about creation centered spirituality. Unapologetically Christian, Santmire weaves a Trinitarian R vision into a universal fabric—calling the reader toward an inner/outer journey that integrates prayer and action. With his most personal testimony to date, the author has created a theological E legacy rooted in a lifetime of faithful ministry.” Susan R. Andrews, Presbytery of Hudson River N “For thirty years now, H. Paul Santmire has provided us with graceful retrievals of nearly lost A Christian traditions of creation theology. In the process, he has reconfigured contemplative and spiritual ecology. Now, in Before Nature, Santmire continues and extends his lifelong work by T illuminating nature as a relationship whose center is the Trinity and whose circumference is prayer.” U Steven Chase, Author of Nature as Spiritual Practice R H. PAUL SANTMIRE has been a leader in the field of eco- logical theology for more than forty years. Ordained in the E Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA), he is the author of Ritualizing Nature: Renewing Christian Liturgy in a Time of Crisis (2008), Nature Reborn: The Ecological and Cosmic Promise of Christian Theology (2000), and The Travail of Nature: The Ambiguous Ecological Promise of Christian Theology (1985), all from Fortress Press. His study Brother Earth: Nature, God, and Ecology in a Time of Crisis is widely regarded as a pioneering classic. Religion / Constructive Theology H . PA U L S A N T M I R E Additional Praise for BBeeffoorree NNaattuurree “In the face of the extinctions of our time—indeed, the threat to any human future at all—how are Christians still to pray? Here in our ‘twilight,’ Santmire invites readers into a practice of contemplative prayer capacious of both personal depth andclear-eyed vision. His Trinity Prayer makes possible afully ecological immersion in reality, mystery, and hope: a Christian spirituality for life on Earth.” Lisa E. Dahill Trinity Lutheran Seminary “For several decades, Paul Santmire has produced a series of groundbreaking books on the theology of nature and the environment. They are rich and indispensable reading for anyone working in this area. Now he has added to his corpus this wonderful volume, Before Nature: A Christian Spirituality. In this work, Santmire brings together Christian spirituality, his personalnarrative,theologyofnature,andmission,intheverybestsenseofthat word.Theresultisafeast,withalltherightingredients.Wewillneverrecover atheologyofnatureandplacewithoutrecoveringtheaccompanyingpractices, andinthisworkwegetawonderfulinsightintoSantmire’sownpracticesand how to develop a spirituality for and of such practices. It is hard to stress too strongly how important is such a discussion. Even more important is that we learnfromSantmireandincarnatesuchpracticesintoourdailylives.Theresults would be truly revolutionary.” Craig Bartholomew Redeemer University College “InBeforeNature,PaulSantmireweavestogethertheologiesofnature,both ancientandnew,whichhepersuasivelyemploystore-frameourunderstanding of humanity’s vital—and humble—role as co-creator and servant.Engaging scientific criticism and illumined by ‘fragile faith,’ Dr. Santmire journeys into theoriginofallthingsinGodasTrinity:Giver,Gift,andGiving.Inanarrative combiningelementsoftheologicalreflection,pastoralexperience,andmemoir, Santmirecallsreaderstoowntheirroleoftheologian/creation-partnerthrough prayer and action.An invitation to vulnerability, wonder, and hope, Before Nature is an inspiring and moving challenge to living in God’s present—in an ‘era of twilight.’” Br Jonathan Maury Society of Saint John the Evangelist BEFORE NATURE BEFORE NATURE A CHRISTIAN SPIRITUALITY H. PAUL SANTMIRE Fortress Press Minneapolis BEFORE NATURE A Christian Spirituality Copyright © 2014 Fortress Press. All rights reserved. Except for brief quotations in critical articles or reviews, no part of this book may be reproduced in any manner without prior written permission from the publisher. Visit http://www.augsburgfortress.org/copyrights/ or write to Permissions, Augsburg Fortress, Box 1209, Minneapolis, MN 55440. Cover image:Wikimedia,Henry Clay Frick, Givoanni BelliniSaint Francis in the Desert Cover design: Laurie Ingram Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Print ISBN: 978-1-4514-7300-1 eBook ISBN: 978-1-4514-8431-1 The paper used in this publication meets the minimum requirements of American NationalStandardforInformationSciences—PermanenceofPaperforPrintedLibrary Materials, ANSI Z329.48-1984. Manufactured in the U.S.A. This book was produced using PressBooks.com, and PDF rendering was done by PrinceXML. To my children, Heather and Matthew, and to my grandchildren, Kaitlyn, Maya, Althea, Maxwell, and Marlow The Trinity Prayer Lord Jesus Christ, have mercy on me. Praise Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Come Holy Spirit, Come and Reign.
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