"Technicians of the Sacred presents 'primitive' and ancient poetries as the incantations they are, loaded with power and very full of the magic that invests all good poetry. The treatment is fascinating...the commentaries are a gold mine of responses to the material by a strong poet (the editor), and his selection of analogous writings from a broad range of contemporary poets."—David P. McAllester

A collection of essays concerning religion and art, including contributions by Barbara Novak, Leo Steinberg, Paul Tillich, Wassily Kandinsky, John Dixon Jr., David Tracy, Joshua Taylor, and Langdon B. Gilkey.

For a contemporary world in which religious belief exercises a more potent - some might say more dangerous - influence on global events than many would have thought possible a generation ago, the nature and interpretation of the core tenets of religious faith has become a matter of compelling and widespread interest, both within and outside practising religious communities.Each of the 14 chapters of Sacred Texts is devoted to one of the principal religious and other belief systems of humanity, both defunct and extant. The chapters follow a consistent pattern: a short and accessible introduction to the faith in question, followed by extracts that clearly illustrate its mythic narratives, its spiritual and theological doctrines, its central moral teachings, its rituals and modes of worship, and its mystical traditions. Accompanying notes make clear the meanings of all the quoted passages. Taken together, the extracts provide a rounded and coherent picture of each religious tradition.Sacred Texts covers not only Judaism, Christianity, Islam, Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism, Taoism, Confucianism, Shintoism and Sikhism, but also small-scale traditional religions, new religions, and secular worldviews such as humanism. It is an essential reference for those who wish to understand the nature - and continuing appeal - of religious belief in a globalised, multi-faith world.

Reprint of the original, first published in 1876.

(Vocal Collection). This indispensable volume is a great resource full of vast variety, useful for any singer trying to please any bride or groom. The selections are in five musical styles: classical/traditional, Broadway, standards in custom arrangements, pop/rock classics in custom arrangements, and contemporary Christian. CLASSICAL TRADITIONAL: Alleluja (Mozart) (high voice only) * Ave Maria (Bach/Gounod) * Ave Maria (Schubert) * Bist du bei mir (Stozel) * Dank sei Dir, Herr (Ochs) * Entreat Me Not to Leave Thee (Gounod) * Jesu, Joy of Man's Desiring (Bach) * Let the bright Seraphim (Handel, with trumpet part) (high voice only) * The Lord's Prayer (Malotte) * Mein glaubiges Herz (My Heart Ever Faithful) (Bach) * Now Thank We All Our God (arr. Walters) * Panis Angelicus (Franck) * Pur ti miro, pur ti godo (Monteverdi, duet from L'incoronazione di Poppea). BROADWAY: All Good Gifts (Godspell) * All I Ask of You (duet, The Phantom of the Opera) * And This Is My Beloved (Kismet) * The Greatest of These (Philemon) * More I Cannot Wish You (Guys and Dolls) * Some Enchanted Evening (South Pacific) * Someone like You (Jekyll & Hyde) * Sunrise, Sunset (Fiddler on the Roof) * Till There Was You (The Music Man) * Unexpected Song (Song & Dance). STANDARDS: All the Way * Fly Me to the Moon (In Other Words) * I Could Write a Book * Let It Be Me (Je T'appartiens) * The Promise (I'll Never Say Goodbye) * Starting Here, Starting Now * Time After Time * Walk Hand in Hand * The Way You Look Tonight * With a Song in My Heart. POP/ROCK CLASSICS: Annie's Song * Endless Love * Grow Old with Me * Here, There and Everywhere * I Will * In My Life * We've Only Just Begun * You Are So Beautiful * You Raise Me Up. CONTEMPORARY CHRISTIAN: How Beautiful * I Will Be Here * If You Could See What I See * Love of My Life * My Place Is with You * Parent's Prayer (Let Go of Two) * This Day * This Is the Day (A Wedding Song).

One hundred sermons that display the victorious, although sometimes painful, historical and spiritual pilgrimage of black people in America. A groundbreaking anthology, Preaching with Sacred Fire is a unique and powerful work. It captures the stunning diversity of the cultural and historical legacy of African American preaching more than three hundred years in the making. Each sermon, as editors Martha Simmons and Frank A. Thomas reveal, is a work of art and a lesson in unmatched rhetoric. The journey through this anthology—which includes selections from Jarena Lee, Frederick Douglass, Malcolm X, Martin Luther King Jr., Gardner C. Taylor, Vashti McKenzie, and many others—offers a rare view of the unheralded role of the African American preacher in American history. The collection provides new insights into the underpinnings of the black fight for emancipation and the rise and growth of the Civil Rights and Black Power movements. Sermons from the first decade of the twenty-first century point toward the future of African American preaching. Biographies of the preachers put their work in the cultural and homiletic context of their periods. The preachers of these sermons are men and women from a range of faiths, ancestries, and educational backgrounds. They draw on a vast and luminous landscape of poetic language, using metaphor, rhythm, and imagery to communicate with their congregations. What they all have in common is hope, resilience, and sacred fire. “Even during the most difficult and oppressive times,” Simmons and Thomas write in the preface, “the delivery, creativity, charisma, expressivity, fervor, forcefulness, passion, persuasiveness, poise, power, rhetoric, spirit, style, and vision of black preaching gave and gives hope to a community under siege.” This magnificent work beautifully renders the complexity, spiritual richness, and strength of African American life.