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11th out of 68 books
—
61 voters
Amazing Grace: A Vocabulary of Faith
Struggling with her return to the Christian church after many years away, Kathleen Norris found it was the language of Christianity that most distanced her from faith. Words like "judgment," "faith," "dogma," "salvation," "sinner"—even "Christ"—formed what she called her "scary vocabulary," words that had become so codified or abstract that their meanings were all but impe...more
Paperback, 384 pages
Published
April 1st 1999
by Riverhead Trade
(first published March 23rd 1998)
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I first heard of this book over a decade ago when I was in a much different place in my spiritual journey. An acquaintance (who was a member of a church that I judged as too liberal in their interpretation of scripture and therefore, I'm ashamed to say, I believed meant they didn't have true faith) was reading this book and it caught my eye. I dismissed it at the time because if that person was reading it then it probably was not the best choice for me. Sheesh!!! Could I have been more judgmenta...more
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As I have said earlier, I am on a kind of Kathleen Norris roll here...... Reading her books is kind of like peeling an onion. She is telling much the same story in every book, but from a different perspective. "Dakota" had to do with understanding her geographical roots. "The Cloister Walk" had to do with her discovery of the Liturgy of the Hours as practiced by the Benedictines. This book has to do with the underlying "language" that she had to examine upon her return to the Christian church an...more
As with so many profound human concepts, our language around the topic of spirituality and devotion is limited, divisive and often fails us. This is a wonderful book for someone who both loves words, their intricacies & evolution, and is reconstructing a personal spiritual ground.
This is a collection of autobiographical vignettes by Kathleen Norris. It is set as a Protestant who had left faith behind, then returned to it in the context of a Catholic monastic community where she is a lay associate. And as an outsider, she is looking at the wonder and the ordinariness of what it means to be christian.
Christianity, like many other social settings, has a set of vocabulary that is used. And often, the words are used in ways that effectively strips them of their meaning. So wo...more
Christianity, like many other social settings, has a set of vocabulary that is used. And often, the words are used in ways that effectively strips them of their meaning. So wo...more
I first stumbled across this book in a pew at the Benedictine monastery in Atchison, KS. It was sitting in the rack with the hymnals, and after skimming a handful of pages I put it back, knowing I would find it again later and spend much more time with it. Norris sums up her purpose in the preface: "When I began attending church again after twenty years away, I felt bombarded by the vocabulary of the Christian church. Words such as 'Christ,' 'heresy,' 'repentance,' and 'salvation' seemed dauntin...more
I wish I could exhibit even a fraction of the wisdom that poet Kathleen Norris displays in this beautiful book. Each chapter at most a few pages long, she addresses with masterful economy and native intelligence the words in what I'll call the Christian canon that scare her the most - salvation, heresy, Christian, medieval, faith, blood, etc. - and that were obstacles to her Christian conversion.
In these short essays, she relates her return to her tiny hometown in the Upper Midwest, her initiall...more
In these short essays, she relates her return to her tiny hometown in the Upper Midwest, her initiall...more
May 19, 2012
Richard Simpson
rated it
4 of 5 stars
Recommends it for:
Anyone
Recommended to Richard by:
Discovered it myself.
The author does a very good job in describing the various terms common to those who are Christian which she found to be "scary" as she returned to faith in Christ in her mid-30s. Each term, such as "Salvation, Blood, Commandments", is given a short two-three page essay in which she describes that which she considered to be off-putting when she first became reacquainted with them after almost 20 years away from the Church and how she came to reconcile herself to them, and how God touched her thro...more
I would love to meet Kathleen Norris after reading this book. I would love to walk in her shoes, or maybe just know more about her.
Favorite quotes:
" 'Each one of us acts as an Antichrist," he said, "whenever we hear the gospel and do not do it.' "
"But in order to have an adult faith, most of us have to outgrow and unlearn much of what we were taught about religion."
"..it is only as one is at home in oneself that one may be truly hospitable to others --welcoming, but not overbearing, affably plia...more
Favorite quotes:
" 'Each one of us acts as an Antichrist," he said, "whenever we hear the gospel and do not do it.' "
"But in order to have an adult faith, most of us have to outgrow and unlearn much of what we were taught about religion."
"..it is only as one is at home in oneself that one may be truly hospitable to others --welcoming, but not overbearing, affably plia...more
I really wanted to love this book. I loved the idea of re-defining terms in our faith that have transformed into representing something we don't understand. The beginning of the book was amazing, it's clear that Kathleen Norris has a way with words and experiences that I do not, but as the book continued her chapters became less about the terminology and more of a repetitive account of her experiences in Benedictine spirituality. Her writings became less of using her life and the readers lives t...more
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From your humble book reviewer!
I loved this book! Written in essay format on various topics of theology and religion, there is something for everyone. This is not an instructional book in the sense of workbook learning. It is an open-minded inquiry for all denominations.
I grew up in a multi-faith home and neighborhood, so there were many points that I remembered. At the time, I thought of differences but with aging, experience and what I hope is received as wisdom, I see similarities.
What impres...more
I loved this book! Written in essay format on various topics of theology and religion, there is something for everyone. This is not an instructional book in the sense of workbook learning. It is an open-minded inquiry for all denominations.
I grew up in a multi-faith home and neighborhood, so there were many points that I remembered. At the time, I thought of differences but with aging, experience and what I hope is received as wisdom, I see similarities.
What impres...more
This is a wonderful book for anyone who has done the hard work of unlearning and relearning ideas about God and faith. Norris is a poet and oblate, or lay nun, in the order of St. Benedict. Benediction theology is known for it's teaching on hospitality, and Norris' writing is hospitable and generous as faith writing can be. She writes with the cadence and tone of a poet and brings faith into the soft light of poetry rather than the glaring light of doctrine and dogma. As Ursula Le Guinn said, "I...more
A couple of years ago I read Norris's Dakota: A Spirital Geography, and I loved the lyrical way it linked the landscape of the midwest to spirituality. I was intrigued by her description of her intimate interactions with monks, so I read The Cloister Walk, and was heavily disappointed. Where did the gorgeous writing go? It had become defensive and proselytizing writing. I decided to give Norris another go, and so read this book. I liked the organization. She listed words from the religious vocab...more
It is Ms. Norris’s recounting of her struggles with going back to the Christianity. What seemed to have kept her away from it for many years was the language that is used in connection with this religion and the misunderstandings stemming from it. Amazing Grace is a memoir of sorts with many personal and very endearing stories in which Kathleen rediscovers the meanings of words such as ‘dogma’, ‘antichrist’ or ‘annunciation’. There is also a lot of theology and etymology woven through this memoi...more
currently reading update: ( i forgot to post when i started this book a while back) the intro is compelling, but the format beyond that doesn't beg me to read it through in the same way i'd take on a novel.
after the intro, her contemplations on the language of faith are presented as a series of brief vignettes: one word at a time - defined by a relatively brief story or train of thought.
possibly it's just ME... but i'm not great at absorbing deep thought material in one giant, saturated dose. it...more
after the intro, her contemplations on the language of faith are presented as a series of brief vignettes: one word at a time - defined by a relatively brief story or train of thought.
possibly it's just ME... but i'm not great at absorbing deep thought material in one giant, saturated dose. it...more
This is a collection of autobiographical vignettes by Kathleen Norris. It is set as a Protestant who had left faith behind, then returned to it in the context of a Catholic monastic community where she is a lay associate. And as an outsider, she is looking at the wonder and the ordinariness of what it means to be christian.
Christianity, like many other social settings, has a set of vocabulary that is used. And often, the words are used in ways that effectively strips them of their meaning. So wo...more
Christianity, like many other social settings, has a set of vocabulary that is used. And often, the words are used in ways that effectively strips them of their meaning. So wo...more
This is probably the 4th time I have read this book...so: just call me a slow learner, 'cause there must be something that continues to draw me back to Kathleen Norris's wisdom. Though I LOVED her "Cloister Walk" and would probably give it a "5" where I gave Amazing Grace a 4, this book has something I needed right now. I would like to say that I "got it" this time...but I question whether we ever really "get" God's love and grace as we should. I love Norris's down-to-earth sharing!
This book frustrated me. I think "Acedia and Me" does a more precise job of exploring religious vocabulary and delineating the dogma that has done a disservice to the original notions of sin, annunciation, grace. Not for unwashed heathens, because one needs to be familiar with many biblical concepts of Christian vocabulary prior to appreciating Norris's take on how definitions have evolved or have been altered to benefit the evil takeover by the extreme religious right.
After giving a very biased five-star review of Lionheart, I was wary about giving another five star review so soon, but this book is an exemplary text in its field. While Kathleen Norris and I share much more in common spiritually than we do professionally, her writing is so well-researched and engaging, it is easy to overlook the more "poetic places." This is a compilation of the "scary" words of the faith, which Norris does not answer with trite Christian responses. This is a thoughtful explan...more
Jul 11, 2008
Keith
rated it
4 of 5 stars
Recommends it for:
no one
Recommended to Keith by:
Kathleen
After I hammered Kathleen for her previous book, "The Cloister Walk", she sent me one of the chapters of her new book for my comment. The chapter was so much superior to Cloister Walk, I was drawn into this new book. This book has had a wide readership. It is an attempt to define "scary" religious words in the language of everyday life. A very successful attempt.
And remembering my uneasiness with Cloister Walk, she pulls back at one point in the book, saying that "one of her editors" told her s...more
And remembering my uneasiness with Cloister Walk, she pulls back at one point in the book, saying that "one of her editors" told her s...more
Amazing book. A collection of essays on topics such as prayer, silence, antichrist, seeking, ecstasy (about 60 in all) connected by Ms. Norris's personal (and touching)return to her roots of Presbyterian worship. Such examination and honesty blew me away because I have a superficially similar religious journey story to tell. Ms. Norris drew in an inspirational amount of detail and connection to lend a perspective of which I had no previous idea. Thank you.
a book of essays, all meditations on various words that tend to come up in discussions of christianity. nice to pick up and read one or two at a time, rather than plowing thru. sorta had the same feel as a lot of the velveteen rabbi's posts -- sort of a gentle sharing of "this is my experience" as opposed to "this is the absolute truth you must now agree with". I rather liked it a lot.
Part of my permanent library--this one. Norris brings new meaning to many things that we only think we understand about religion and our relationship with God. Sometimes, that new meaning comes from her exploration into the original meaning that has been lost over centuries. Mostly, she turns religion into a spiritual awakening.
This was a re-read for me, because this book offers so much to contemplate in terms of true spirituality. In this book Norris, who was raised Congregationalist, then became atheist (or perhaps agnostic or even simply indifferent) and is now a regularly praticing and occasionaly preaching Presbyterian, as well as a Benedictine oblate, examines the language of religion, focusing on that terminology which often pushes us away rather than drawing us in. Rich with references to classical theologians,...more
The subtitle of this book is A Vocabulary of Faith. Norris selects from what she calls the "scary" words of the faith vocabulary. To her some of these are "AntiChrist," "blood," "dogma," and "revelation." This books reads well in small doses, reading the discussion/meditation on each word separately.
This book felt to me like it was rushed to press after the success of The Cloister Walk. Norris is one of my favorite writers, but this book didn't seem up to her usual standard.
As usual, Kathleen writes outside of traditional religious thinking, which is refreshing to me. I find her voice serving as an invitation to trust what God's Spirit is speaking to me and to know His voice is validating enough. The chapters are just pages long.
Apr 26, 2008
Leslie
rated it
4 of 5 stars
Recommends it for:
Stan, Bri, and John
Shelves:
faith,
essays-nonfiction
This is a collection of two to six page vignettes that touched me in a major way. If interested, you can either read them kinda quickly (like I did) or consider them slowly (as it'd definitely work to set the book aside for a while and then come back; you don't necessarily have to recall previous chapters in order to understand later ones). Norris did things like discuss the positive connotation of the word 'detachment' in her text, and you've GOTTA love that. Other "scary" words she tackles fro...more
Word by word Kathleen talks about how faith grows and you will find your memories or story told in many words she describes. Her journey through churches takes her from small town Pryesbyterian, filled with words she did not understand to Benidictine Monk silence.
Norris' is a word artist, sculpting beautiful imagery from the medium of language. Unfortunately, her sarcastic and cynical political opinions kept awkwardly creeping into a book professing to be about faith. I had to stop reading mid-way.
This is probably my favorite Kathleen Norris book as I love the way that each chapter stands alone. She links memories and writes about different "churchie" words in a way that helps them to be more real and not so scary.
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Kathleen Norris was born on July 27, 1947 in Washington, D.C. She grew up in Honolulu, Hawaii, as well as on her maternal grandparents’ farm in Lemmon, South Dakota.
Her sheltered upbringing left her unprepared for the world she encountered when she began attending Bennington College in Vermont. At first shocked by the unconventionality surrounding her, Norris took refuge in poetry.
After she grad...more
More about Kathleen Norris...
Her sheltered upbringing left her unprepared for the world she encountered when she began attending Bennington College in Vermont. At first shocked by the unconventionality surrounding her, Norris took refuge in poetry.
After she grad...more
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“This is a God who is not identified with the help of a dictionary but through a relationship.”
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11 people liked it
“When I see teenagers out in public with their families, holding back, refusing to walk with mom and dad, ashamed to be seen as part of a family, I have to admit that I have acted that way myself, at times, with regard to my Christian inheritance. A hapless and mortally embarrassed adolescent lurked behind the sophisticated mask I wrote in my twenties: faith was something for little kids and grandmas, not me.”
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3 people liked it
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