false http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1255844369m/5662443.jpg 5662443 2 <p> In her critically acclaimed <i>Leaving Church</i> ("a beautiful, absorbing memoir."—<i>Dallas Morning News</i>), 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, <i>An Altar in the World</i>, she shares how she learned to encounter God beyond the walls of any church. </p> <p> From simple practices such as walking, working, and getting lost to deep meditations on topics like prayer and pronouncing blessings, Taylor reveals concrete 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 devotion if we pay attention to what we are doing and take time to attend to the sights, smells, and sounds around us. Making eye contact with the cashier at the grocery store becomes a moment of true human connection. Allowing yourself to get lost leads to new discoveries. Under Taylor's expert guidance, we come to question conventional distinctions between the sacred and the secular, learning that no physical act is too earthbound or too humble to become a path to the divine. As we incorporate these practices into our daily lives, we begin to discover altars everywhere we go, in nearly everything we do. </p> 5833971 1 2 2009 Altar in the World, An: A Geography of Faith total:101|5:43|4:39|3:17|2:2|1:0| 101 426 237 33 5 0 false false Tue Nov 03 00:00:00 -0800 2009 Wed Oct 14 17:20:12 -0700 2009 Wed Nov 04 05:11:19 -0800 2009 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...more...]]> 2 0 false false Mon Aug 17 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Tue Apr 14 13:41:14 -0700 2009 Sat Aug 22 00:10:43 -0700 2009 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 i...more...]]> 5 1 false false Sun Sep 27 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Sun Sep 13 15:49:26 -0700 2009 Sun Sep 27 21:46:04 -0700 2009 more...]]> 4 1 false false Thu May 21 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Fri May 22 19:16:10 -0700 2009 Fri May 22 19:21:47 -0700 2009 more...]]> 4 2 false false Thu Jul 02 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Mon Mar 30 19:47:12 -0700 2009 Mon Jul 13 08:04:43 -0700 2009 more...]]> 5 0 false false Sun Mar 22 15:14:01 -0700 2009 Sun Mar 22 15:15:25 -0700 2009 5 0 false false Thu Jan 01 00:00:00 -0800 2009 Sun Aug 30 07:02:50 -0700 2009 Sun Aug 30 07:04:47 -0700 2009 4 0 false false Sun Mar 01 00:00:00 -0800 2009 Wed Mar 18 04:05:10 -0700 2009 Wed Mar 18 04:07:57 -0700 2009
My favorite quote:
"Work connects us to other people....Every human interaction offers you the chance to make things better or to make things worse." (p. 114).]]> 5 0 false false Mon Sep 28 10:57:33 -0700 2009 Mon Sep 28 07:34:51 -0700 2009 Mon Sep 28 10:57:33 -0700 2009 5 0 false false Wed Oct 14 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Thu Oct 08 04:16:31 -0700 2009 Wed Oct 14 14:44:22 -0700 2009 The Way of Repentance. This is what women's spirituality looks like. This is about the Really Real, not made up Should Be's.]]> 4 0 false false Sun May 03 16:11:47 -0700 2009 Sun May 03 16:13:09 -0700 2009 3 0 false false Fri Aug 21 04:28:03 -0700 2009 Fri Aug 21 04:29:24 -0700 2009 5 0 false false Mon Feb 23 00:00:00 -0800 2009 Thu Feb 19 03:27:57 -0800 2009 Mon Feb 23 20:12:57 -0800 2009 4 0 false false Sat Aug 29 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Sun Aug 16 05:54:33 -0700 2009 Sat Aug 29 08:28:08 -0700 2009 4 0 false false Sun Mar 01 00:00:00 -0800 2009 Sun Mar 22 11:56:00 -0700 2009 Wed Mar 25 09:05:26 -0700 2009 4 0 false false Wed Jul 01 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Sun May 10 11:19:42 -0700 2009 Wed Aug 26 17:18:13 -0700 2009 more...]]> 5 0 false false Sat May 09 18:42:34 -0700 2009 Wed May 27 05:35:03 -0700 2009 5 0 false false Tue Sep 08 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Sat Sep 12 17:28:51 -0700 2009 Sat Sep 12 17:30:14 -0700 2009 5 0 false false Mon Mar 23 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Wed Mar 18 18:23:03 -0700 2009 Mon Mar 23 15:20:00 -0700 2009 0 0 false false Wed Mar 18 09:02:48 -0700 2009 Wed Mar 18 09:04:32 -0700 2009 http://www.goodreads.com/book_link/follow/8?book_id=5662443