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Contemplative Church: How Meditative Prayer and Monastic Practices Help Congregations Flourish
Finally a book that brings together the practice of meditative prayer and the wisdom of spiritual practices for a local church or spiritual community. This is a book for church leaders, pastors, students and all seekers on the journey deeper into God's love. If you wish to know how meditative prayer and monastic practices can help congregations flourish, this is a book for you and for your community.
302 pages, Paperback
Published September 14, 2018
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November 15, 2019
Currently I'm participating in a wonderful conversation about how to integrate contemplative practice into every dimension of one Congregational church's life. So I was thrilled to find Peter Traben Haas' book. Haas pastored the Church of Conscious Harmony in Austin, TX, which is a leader in reimagining contemplative Christian lay communities. Unfortunately, CONTEMPLATIVE CHURCH attempts to start from square one, making a case for contemplative practices, outlining the church's mystical lineage, and generally covering a lot of ground better covered elsewhere. The two worthwhile contributions Haas brings to this conversation are his Protestant background--I really appreciated how he spells out how much of our mystical heritage we lost at the Reformation and the snippets we retained--and his practical reframing of what churches need to focus on today to reclaim that heritage. His short chapter, "Getting Practical," is worth the price of the book. Here's hoping he begins his next book with that seed and gives us more examples and guidance.
I can't review this book without complaining about its poor organization and editing. This work would have benefited from a developmental editor (who might have refocused Haas on his unique contributions) and copy editor (who would have saved him a lot of embarrassment). Its lack of professionality does a terrible disservice to its message.
I can't review this book without complaining about its poor organization and editing. This work would have benefited from a developmental editor (who might have refocused Haas on his unique contributions) and copy editor (who would have saved him a lot of embarrassment). Its lack of professionality does a terrible disservice to its message.
Displaying 1 of 1 review