An Altar in the World: A Geography of Faith

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An Altar in the World: A Geography of Faith

4.29 of 5 stars 4.29 · rating details · 1,716 ratings · 235 reviews

In her critically acclaimed Leaving Church ("a beautiful, absorbing memoir."—Dallas Morning News), Barbara Brown Taylor wrote about leaving full-time ministry to become a professor, a decision that stretched the boundaries of her faith. Now, in her stunning follow-up, An Altar in the World, she shares how she learned to encounter God beyond the walls of any church.

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Hardcover, 216 pages

Published February 10th 2009 by HarperOne

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Apr 26, 2011 Kate rated it 2 of 5 stars

Shelves: nonfiction, religion-myth

I read this for a church book club, and while the book had some solid, even excellent, chapters, in other ways I found it flawed. An Altar in the World is best suited for people who identify as "spiritual, but not religious," and for those who are looking to expand their spirituality outside of their standard worship experience. Taylor tends to dismiss out of hand what religion has to offer outside of a standard (often boring) weekly worship experience, so I would urge those who are working with...more

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Apr 23, 2012 Elizabeth Jarrett Andrew rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: spirituality

Barbara Brown Taylor is our twenty-first century Henri Nouwen. I'm immensely grateful for AN ALTAR IN THE WORLD, for its elegant, lively prose, yes, but mostly for its practical application of a big-hearted faith. In the prologue, Taylor writes, "What is saving my life now is the conviction that there is no spiritual treasure to be found apart from the bodily experiences of human life on earth. My life depends on engaging the most ordinary physical activities with the most exquisite attention I...more

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Nov 20, 2011 Angela Kantola rated it 4 of 5 stars

This is a beautiful book -- another one borrowed from the library, but which I want to purchase. Brown discusses twelve spiritual practices, but as she says, each practice is "an exercise in being human that requires a body as well as a soul." From the introduction: "What is saving in my life now is the conviction that there is no spiritual treasure to be found apart from the bodily experiences of human life on earth. My life depends on engaging the most ordinary physical activities with the mos...more

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Apr 05, 2011 Denise rated it 3 of 5 stars

When I read in my church newsletter that this book was chosen by one of the church's study groups, I thought it sounded interesting and decided to read it on my own as a Lenten activity. The author describes ways that we can experience God in everyday activities. From the book jacket: "Taylor reveals meaningful ways to discover the sacred in the small things we do and see...something as ordinary as hanging clothes on a clothesline becomes an act of meditation if we pay attention to what we're do...more

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Mar 16, 2011 Allison Severson rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: nonfiction, favorites-and-recommendations

I put this book on my "read" shelf, though it could also be on my "currently-reading" list, as I have read most of the chapters, albeit not in order.

I loved the chapter on pain and suffering (which sounds strange), but I read it when I had been mildly-ill for a few weeks. Certainly put my illness in perspective, and she really articulated how we are awakened and called to when we're sick (at least that's how I interpreted it having read it months ago now).

The book was a gift from a mentor and...more

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Sep 09, 2010 Susan Ideus rated it 5 of 5 stars

I wondered how I had forgotten that the whole world is the House of God. Who had persuaded me that God preferred four walls and a roof to wide-open spaces? When had I made the subtle switch myself, becoming convinced that church bodies and buildings were the safest and most reliable places to encounter the living God? (p. 4, An Altar in the World)

Thus it is that Barbara Brown Taylor begins finding altars in the world as places where even the most reverent or the most jaded among us can encount...more I wondered how I had forgotten that the whole world is the House of God. Who had persuaded me that God preferred four walls and a roof to wide-open spaces? When had I made the subtle switch myself, becoming convinced that church bodies and buildings were the safest and most reliable places to encounter the living God? (p. 4, An Altar in the World)

Thus it is that Barbara Brown Taylor begins finding altars in the world as places where even the most reverent or the most jaded among us can encounter a living God, or creation, or whatever it is that we define as this planet we inhabit.

For over twenty years, Taylor had worked within the structure of organized religion as an ordained Episcopal priest. She loved her churches and her congregants but came away feeling that something was missing, something not quite right. Were Sunday and weekday religious services enough? What about the world outside of the church buildings? That was a lot of world, and wasn't it all God's? Brown eventually left the active ministry, and began teaching religion. Her favorite of her courses was Religions of the World, a course which fascinated her, but made some of her first-year Christian seminary students a bit nervous. As they visited and participated in the services at mosques and synagogues and Masjids, they were forced to look at the world and religion through new eyes, and came away wondering if perhaps there was more than one way to God.

For Taylor, it followed that not only was the God of the World worshipped in buildings other than churches, He could also be found in the world He created long before buildings came to be. God, she reasoned, did not intend to live in a box.

Taylor's "altars" are not places but rather practices that make one aware of the Earth and all that inhabits it. One of her favorites is simply Walking on the Earth. Walking with no agenda, no destination, but rather with eyes and mind and heart wide open to receive the beauty and sacredness of Creation. She suggests doing it barefoot at least part of the time! The desired outcome of this spiritual practice, and others, is "to teach those who engage in them what those practitioners need to know—about being human, about being human with other people, about being human in creation, about being human before God."

In other words, an altar is about being in relationship. Her other altars reflect this theme: The Practice of Waking Up to God (vision), The Practice of Paying Attention (Reverence), The Practice of Wearing Skin (Incarnation), The Practice of Getting Lost (Wilderness), The Practice of Encountering Others (Community), The Practice of Living with Purpose (Vocation), The Practice of Saying No (Sabbath), The Practice of Carrying Water (Physical Labor), The Practice of Feeling Pain (Breakthrough), The Practice of Being Present to God (Prayer), and The Practice of Pronouncing Blessings (Benediction).

Taylor is a Christian, but her focus here is catholic, in the true original sense of the word—universal in scope. She draws on wisdom from not only Christianity, but also Islam, Hinduism, Buddhism, and Judaism; she cites the Bible, the Koran, and the Torah. She finds wisdom in the words of the Desert Fathers, Brother Lawrence, Wendell Berry, Rumi and various rabbis. Everyone we meet, she says, we must assume to be a face of God. What we have most in common is not religion, but our humanity.

Whether being practical (cleaning toilets) or mystical (walking a labyrinth at Chartres), Taylor wants us to know, to really feel, that the world, this Creation, and all of its people are to be treated with respect and honor and humility and awe. The issue is never a ritual, but the relationship. It is living outside of oneself. It is being intentional about all that we do—to walk through our day days causally, not casually. In Taylor's words, it is "to get over yourself." "It is living so that 'I'm only human' does not become an excuse for anything." It is knowing that whatever we do, menial or grandiose, becomes a sacred act if we treat it as such, and to realize that our true shared vocation is to love God and neighbor. Any place we might be is holy ground, hallowed ground, if we but acknowledge the Creator of that place.

This is a small book that carries a big impact. It is not preachy but it informs and teaches. It does not proselytize but rather encourages relation with Creator and created World. In this time, when Earth is reeling from natural disaster, war, and man-made catastrophes, Taylor encourages us to slow down, to really look and see and listen—to be in relationship with everything and everyone around us. Each of us is this Earth's best hope. She fittingly closes with the words of Rumi:

"Let the beauty we love be what we do.
There are hundreds of ways to kneel and kiss the ground." (less)

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Feb 27, 2010 Kit rated it 4 of 5 stars

This is the first book by Barbara Brown Taylor that I've read, so I can't compare it to Leaving Church. Instead, I found myself comparing it to Kathleen Norris' Cloister Walk. While Norris writes more personal memoir and reflections, the preacher in Barbara Brown Taylor comes out in this book and I end up hearing these chapters more as sermons. I think I was hoping for something denser-for-reading - the chapters sometimes felt to me like they were repeating the same idea more than necessary, but...more

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Apr 03, 2012 Fiona rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: non-fiction

This is a book about some of the different practices of worshiping and recognizing God in our lives. The practices are;
1. practice of waking up to God
2. practice of paying attention
3. practice of wearing skin
4. practice of walking on the earth
5. practice of encountering others
6. practice of living with purpose
7. practice of saying no
8. practice of feeling pain
9. practice of being present to God (prayer and prayers which I read while taking shelter during the tornado warning)
10. practice of prono...more

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Nov 24, 2011 M Christopher rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: devotional

Barbara Brown Taylor writes so well. I always enjoy reading her periodic articles in "Christian Century," or her sermons that have been incorporated into the lectionary resource, textweek.com. This book came to my attention when one of our sister churches used it for a reading group. When I saw it on a remainder shelf at Half-Price Books, I picked it up.

I'm glad I did. I won't say that the book changed my life. Rev. Taylor, though, has a firm grasp on the idea of finding God in everyday details....more

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Jun 23, 2012 Judith rated it 5 of 5 stars

Barbara Brown Taylor, an Episcopalian Priest, who is a professor of religion at a small college, does it again! She makes the simple tasks and life experiences seem as important for our spiritual growth as Paul's "Damascus Road" experience which is recounted in Acts 9. Taylor's writing, like her sermons, is both insightful and witty. In An Altar in the World, she sees spirituality in cleaning toilets in a homeless shelter or looking up at the marvel of stars on a summer's night. Your Altar is wh...more

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Dec 05, 2011 Craig Werner rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: religion-spirituality

The main point of Barbara Brown Taylor's excellent small book is that, whatever one's religious faith or belief, it's lived in the concrete acts of the body rather than the abstract meanderings of the mind. In a sense, there's nothing new in the book, especially for those who are familiar with the writings of Thomas Merton and/or the desert mothers and fathers who Taylor acknowledges as influences. Like them, she writes with exceptional clarity about the place of prayer, pain, work, rest and a h...more

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Sep 16, 2012 Michael Cremin rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: religion

Marvelous book about the spirituality inherent in the everyday things of our lives. The author writes with both beauty and insight about the holiness of things like paying attention, taking a walk, community, physical work, and practicing a personal Sabbath. I was especially struck by her thoughts on sacraments. She wrote, "Regarded properly, anything can become a sacrament, by which I mean an outward and visible sign of an inward and spiritual connection." In the Catholic Church, a sacrament is...more

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Oct 17, 2012 David rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: christian-life-and-spirituality

There are a few authors who, when I read them, I feel invigorated about life. Such authors make me want to be a Christian on days I am feeling cynical. They are good for my soul. I am thinking of people like Frederick Buechner, Henri Nouwen, Eugene Peterson and N.T. Wright. Now I can add another to that list, probably someone who I should have read long ago: Barbara Brown Taylor.

I bought her book, An Altar in the World, months ago when it was discounted on Amazon. There it sat in my Kindle. I wo...more There are a few authors who, when I read them, I feel invigorated about life. Such authors make me want to be a Christian on days I am feeling cynical. They are good for my soul. I am thinking of people like Frederick Buechner, Henri Nouwen, Eugene Peterson and N.T. Wright. Now I can add another to that list, probably someone who I should have read long ago: Barbara Brown Taylor.

I bought her book, An Altar in the World, months ago when it was discounted on Amazon. There it sat in my Kindle. I would often notice it in there as I opened other books. Now, I wonder why I did not get to it sooner.

The book is about meeting God in bodily practices in the real world. So often spirituality is seen as something otherworldly and thus for people with their heads in the clouds. By talking about things as physical as walking around, getting lost and going to work, Taylor locates spirituality on a level all people can attain.

Taylor writes for those who consider themselves “spiritual but not religious.” She writes from a specific place: a former pastor, current religion professor and disciple of Jesus. But this is no systematic theology, nor is it a simple five step program to a more spiritual life. It is a book that is good for your soul. It is a book that will cause you to pause throughout your day and notice the goodness and beauty, the spiritual, right in the midst of the world. In doing so, perhaps you will notice God too.

This book is written in such a way that each chapter stands alone. Thus, for people who do not read much, or do not read books like this much, it could be encountered a chapter here and a chapter there. For those who read many books, often quickly and straight through before moving on to the next one, I’d encourage this book be read slowly. Even if you want read more, just read one chapter a day and let it stew in your mind. All in all, I’d say this could be a beneficial and enjoyable read for anyone interested in the things of God and the supernatural.(less)

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Jan 10, 2012 Jennifer rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: favorites

I am always needing to believe that God is bigger and wider and deeper and more gracious and closer to me than I think that he is. This book was the kind of book that helped me believe that. It is also the kind of book that I wanted to be much longer than it was, and the kind that I want to buy for every person I know. These are my favorite kind of books. Taylor is able to begin with the everyday sometimes painful, sometimes mundane, usually busy tangible life and clearly articulate what she see...more

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Nov 04, 2009 Nikki rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: faith-and-spirituality-resources, non-fiction, revgalblogpals

Although I didn't get hold of the book in time to join the online discussion, An Altar in the World was recommended to me by the http://RevGalBlogPals.blogspot.com group. I wasn't completely sure about reading it, as I had very mixed feelings about Barbara Brown Taylor's previous book, Leaving Church. But in this newer book, Taylor seems to have become much more grounded than she seemed in Leaving Church, so I guess her decision to leave parish ministry was the right one for her and for us, her...more

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Dec 01, 2009 Jonelle rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: spiritual

Taylor, an Episcopal priest who now teaches at Piedmont College and Columbia Theological Seminary, has written an excellent, highly readable book on spirituality and pracitcal spiritual disciplines.

Some of the practices that she describes, such as walking meditation, pilgrimages, fasting, prayer, have long histories. But, most of what she advocates are things that we do in everyday life.

Taylor says that "All of life is holy, and that every activity harbors and opportunity to meet God." In short...more

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Feb 03, 2011 Daughters Of Abraham added it

Shelves: wellesley, cambridge-2, merrimack-valley

Our group really enjoyed the beautiful writing, and all could relate to it. We had a good discussion. Did not raise any difficult issues among us. (Wellesley)

Rich book about how to notice ways to bring G-d into daily life. Made for a good discussion about what we do, and aspire to do. No offensive content. (Review by Cambridge2)

Taylor's 12 chapters mine the potentially sacred meaning of simple daily activities and conditions, like walking, paying attention, saying no to work one Sabbath day each...more

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Apr 12, 2013 Katherine rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: non-fiction, christian, spirituality

Barbara Brown Taylor's book An Altar in the World brings spiritual practice into everyday living and everyday living into the realm of the spiritual. It's impossible to know how much a book like this will affect your life until you've sat with it inside you for a bit, seeing how it will work itself out. For myself, this read through I was most captivated by the ideas of Sabbath and saying no, but of course the beauty of spiritual writings is that they will affect you differently as you encounter...more

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Jul 10, 2012 Corey rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Taylor puts forth her case that our ideas of spirituality and how we connect with God are way too disembodied and abstract. She covers 12 different practices that, as she emphasizes, require no special equipment, knowledge, etc. and that look for the presence of the divine right under our noses. “The last place most people look is right under their feet, in the everyday activities, and encounters of their lives,” she writes. She has what was for me a refreshing perspective on the pervasive prese...more

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Sep 07, 2011 Andi rated it 5 of 5 stars

A pleasure to read this wonderfully written book on living an embodied, earthy, attentive faith. "In a world of too much information about almost everything, bodily practices can provide great relief. To make bread or love, to dig in the earth, to feed an animal or cook for a stranger...Most of these tasks are so full of pleasure that there is no need to complicate thing by calling them holy. And yet these are the same activities that change lives, sometimes all at once and sometimes more slowly...more

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Apr 29, 2012 Anna Kendig rated it 3 of 5 stars

Barbara Brown Taylor is an excellent writer and a great teller of the story of Christian faith for lay people. Her insights on everyday conduits for spiritual life, "altars in the world," are refreshing for those seeking to get more connected to the Bible and Christian history's rich tradition of acknowledging the earthy dailiness of our faith and lives. With themes like The Practice of Walking the Earth, The Practice of Getting Lost, and The Practice of Feeling Pain, her suggestions and insight...more

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Feb 03, 2010 R. Z. rated it 2 of 5 stars

This is a thoughtful book and nicely written. I can understand why many readers like it. For me it didn't resonate as it seemed to be all about herself and her interpretation of experiences that she had once had. I suspect that she might have been trying to keep from sounding preachy, and in this she succeeded. To me, it seemed more like a rambling diary with only loose organization under the chapter titles. After a couple of chapters, I became impatient and skimmed the rest of the book, even ye...more

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May 18, 2011 Suzanne rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Recommended to Suzanne by: Linda Thomson

Shelves: non-fiction, spirituality

I've been reading this a chapter at a time with my Benedictine spirituality group. BBT is so down-to-earth and eloquent at the same time. Each chapter contained so many nuggets of wisdom that i'm glad I took a while to read this book. I plan to keep it and re-visit chapters on occasion as I'm sure I'll continue to 'discover' new truths among the pages. I saw that another reviewer said her favorite chapter was the chapter on pain and suffering, and I'd have to say I agree; that chapter really res...more

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Oct 10, 2012 Rachel rated it 5 of 5 stars

This is a great book for anyone who finds spiritual renewal in places outside of the church walls... or even if you find them inside the church walls to be honest. I really enjoyed the way that the book outlines different spiritual practices or exercises by chapters and includes things like... getting lost, saying no, feeling pain... With each chapter I wanted to pause and put into play the practice of which I had just read, but the book is so well written as to compel you to want to read on. I...more

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Apr 23, 2012 Julie Lenoch rated it 5 of 5 stars

This is a go back to reference book, full of knowledge, guidance and understanding to how unique we all are in our faith, and just how unique what each of us needs. This will stay on my shelf, to read over the much highlighted lines and poems. This book is a blessing, and I will be gifting it to many I love.

I think spirituality and religion parallel, as I thrive off the comparisons to other religions, and religion does not have to always be so complex, I believe it needs to be understood and abl...more

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Nov 24, 2011 Tom rated it 4 of 5 stars

This book contains 12 chapters on different types of spirituality written by Barbara Brown Taylor, a former female Episcopalian priest. I could identify with most of the ideas presented in the various chapters. I was particulary inspired by Chapter 6. She writes of inclusivity vs. exclusivity as it exists in all or most aspects of our personal or collective value systems. As a Roman Catholic Christian I feel I have grown to appreciate Christ's concept of inclusiveness. As the author points out,...more

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Feb 24, 2012 Laura marked it as to-read · review of another edition

I got a free hardback copy of this book a little over two years ago, shortly before I moved out of a longtime home into an apartment. One day when I was in my empty apartment-to-be to do some measuring, I left the book there intentionally, in the cabinet under the bathroom sink, thinking it would be safe there. Between then and when I moved in, they had the apartment cleaned, and the book was there no more.

I'm hoping whoever cleaned the place didn't throw the book away. I'm hoping she (most lik...more

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Jan 06, 2012 Jen rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

There are some books that you love, and some books that you hate, and some books that have a strange sort of hold on your soul that oscillates between the two for the sheer power of it--this is one of the third kind.
Taylor's prose is incredibly accessible and easy-going, and the most remarkable thing about this book is that she wasn't saying a whole lot that I didn't already know. Most of the observations she makes are things I've been aware of for a while--but it's the power of seeing them in p...more

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Aug 22, 2009 Olga rated it 2 of 5 stars

Shelves: spirituality, 2009, nonfiction

So far, I am slightly disappointed. I guess, I expected something as thoughtful and inspired as was Leaving Church. This is not quite on the same level.

One note: in the introduction B.B. Taylor suggests that you can read the chapters in any order. I did, starting with chapters I was interested in most. I wish I went straight through, I think I would have enjoyed the book more that way. If you're like me, you'd like to read the whole thing in order.

When she writes about her own experiences, the...more So far, I am slightly disappointed. I guess, I expected something as thoughtful and inspired as was Leaving Church. This is not quite on the same level.

One note: in the introduction B.B. Taylor suggests that you can read the chapters in any order. I did, starting with chapters I was interested in most. I wish I went straight through, I think I would have enjoyed the book more that way. If you're like me, you'd like to read the whole thing in order.

When she writes about her own experiences, the writing leaves nothing to be desired: it's beautiful, it's thoughtful, I thoroughly enjoy it. But then when she makes a transition to "we" as a society, it all falls apart for me. The focus seems to be on how the current development of the post-industrial society is in the way of practicing embodied spirituality. Come on. We know that the past times seem so much easier to live in, but this is not necessarily the case. I believe that the nostalgia has no place in a book on spirituality -- the point of it is to live a meaningful life today, with the blackberry phones for adults and electronic gameboys for kids. The beauty and life of the spirit is that it is not affected by those things negatively, unless, of course, we're plugged in to them 24/7. But just as well we could be plugged in 24/7 to a good book (no way! not folks from this site!) or to our own sweet feelings of hurt, rejection, self-content, self-contempt, whatnot. No matter how high tech it is or how much it costs, here's always something that would tempt us to draw into a shell and not notice the beautiful world around us. And, I believe, it is equally hard in any historical time to make a point of noticing it and living within its rhythms. If you're forced to work on the land or if you're forced to work on the computer, the difference is to notice what you do, to pay attention, to love what you can love and work to change what you cannot love.

I've read so far
Chapter 1 -- Vision -- practice of waking up to God left me with a lot of questions and only some starting points for answers (which is not bad).

Chapter 2 -- Reverence -- practice of paying attention is my favorite chapter so far. I like the ideas of how to pay attention. For these practical ideas -- not what to do but where to start -- I wanted to read this book, and this chapter didn't disappoint.

Chapter 3 -- Incarnation -- practice of wearing skin is written with passion and also has some good ideas as to where to start. Good and a little bit scary which will be good for the purpose. This chapter has both a beautiful and striking personal stories and the start of the "in our times" whining.

Chapter 4 -- Grounding -- practice of walking on earth. I found this chapter a little more shallow and preachy then the other ones. It describes a practice of walking a labyrinth (which I am familiar with) and discusses walking barefoot as a spiritual practice.

Chapter 7 -- Vocation -- practice of living with purpose. I was impressed by her story of praying to have an answer of what is her called vocation. The answer and the rest of the chapter are rather predictable, yet have some good points to them.

Chapter 8 -- Sabbath -- practice of saying no. This chapter was the main reason I wanted to read this book. I read it first and I was disappointed because I needed more ideas of what counts as work and what doesn't. I think I have better ideas about it now, after I read the other chapters. She cannot give the universal recipes because what's work for you might not be work for me, and what's a luxury for you I can be involved in perhaps too much. The watered down sociology of how the places started to be open 7 days a week (precluding Christian population from having a Sunday off) I could live without.

Chapter 9 -- Physical Labor -- practice of carrying water. The personal story of losing power in an ice storm was nice. Some of the storytelling there was eerily beautiful [quote:], but this chapter was not free from what I call whining about contemporary times.

I have finished the book, but I am not inspired enough to write on every chapter.(less)

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Jul 17, 2012 Steven rated it 4 of 5 stars

I liked this book of hers, but did not find it to be one of her best! I did like the way that she devised chapters that were highly pragmatic with regards to the way we live out our faith. However, it seemed to be more of an autobiography than enlightening for me. I still found it to be affirming and one of the hopes I have when I read a book, that I encountered God in the midst of reading this book along with focus on Scripture. That certainly occurred and I would still highly recommend this to...more

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About Barbara Brown Taylor

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Barbara Brown Taylor’s first trade book was met with widespread critical acclaim, including the New York Times, USA Today, Publishers Weekly and NPR’s Fresh Air. Taylor served All Saints’ Church in downtown Atlanta for nine years as an associate priest before moving to rural north Georgia in 1992 to become rector of Grace-Calvary Episcopal Church in Clarkesville, Georgia. A frequent gue...more

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“Wisdom is not gained by knowing what is right. Wisdom is gained by practicing what is right, and noticing what happens when that practice succeeds and when it fails.” — 21 people liked it

“To make bread or love, to dig in the earth, to feed an animal or cook for a stranger—these activities require no extensive commentary, no lucid theology. All they require is someone willing to bend, reach, chop, stir. Most of these tasks are so full of pleasure that there is no need to complicate things by calling them holy. And yet these are the same activities that change lives, sometimes all at once and sometimes more slowly, the way dripping water changes stone. In a world where faith is often construed as a way of thinking, bodily practices remind the willing that faith is a way of life.” — 17 people liked it

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