A Lector's Guide and Commentary to the Revised Common Lectionary (Year A) - Softcover

J. Ted Blakley

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0961811293 ISBN 13: 9780961811297

Publisher: St. Mark's Press, 2010

Synopsis

A LECTOR'S GUIDE AND COMMENTARY assists those whose calling, responsibility, and privilege it is to proclaim the Word of God through the public reading of Holy Scripture. The Guide provides a brief, reliable commentary for each lectionary reading, and then offers suggestions for how the text can be delivered so that the biblical Story might have its full impact on the Christian community gathered for worship. Pronunciations for biblical words and names are also included for each reading.

The Guide is for use by any Christian tradition or congregation that follows the Revised Common Lectionary; it even includes the adaptations authorized for use in The Episcopal Church.

Although designed first and foremost for lectors and lay readers, the Guide has also been developed with other groups and uses in mind. It can be used to trigger discussions in Sunday School or a small group Bible study. It can serve as a resource for personal study, reflection, and devotion. It also functions as a first stop for preachers and teachers.

In short, A Lector's Guide and Commentary is for anyone who wants to read the Bible with understanding.

About this title

About the Author

J. Ted Blakley (M.Div., Ph.D.) received his M.Div. from Fuller Theological Seminary (Pasadena, CA) and his Ph.D. in Biblical Studies from the University of St. Andrews (St. Andrews, Scotland). He serves as the Scholar in Residence for St. Mark's Press in Wichita, Kansas, where he and his wife reside with their three children.

Review

Why is it that when we proclaim The Word of the Lord following a scripture reading in worship, it sounds so implausible? It is because the church--across denominations--has slipped into such bad habits for reading and presenting the scriptural text aloud, that it scarcely sounds like anything God would say. How could the Word of God be as boring as we make it out to be? What is needed are guides for reading that will help our lectors restore the life and meaning to the texts we read each Sunday.

J. Ted Blakley has given us another of his helpful lector guides. Readers will find material to understand each text in the commentary section and performance suggestions for reading the texts with understanding. This is an indispensable resource for congregations who follow the lectionary and desire to let people hear and understand The Word of the Lord.
The Rev. Dr. Clayton J. Schmit
Professor of Preaching, Fuller Theological Seminary; Pasadena, California
Author of Public Reading of Scripture: A Handbook and Too Deep for Words: A Theology of Liturgical Expression

--Book Jacket

The Lector's Guide and Commentary is an amazing gift to those of us who preach, teach and read the Scriptures in worship. The most difficult task of the scholar is to be succinct yet thorough, and Dr. Blakley has done this. In the Introduction, he says his aim is 'to make the Bible accessible so that people might more easily enter into the biblical narrative and be encountered by the God of the Bible.' An ambitious goal, but one that the book accomplishes. In addition, the pronunciation guide is a great help to those of us who, even after years of study, struggle to say strange names and places correctly. This book is a blessing in so many ways.
The Rev. Dr. James Bryan Smith
Assistant Professor of Theology, Friends University; Wichita, Kansas
Author of several books in Christian spirituality, including The Apprentice Series

--Book Jacket

It is a wonderful privilege to belong to a church that uses a lectionary rather than relying on a narrow range of scriptures chosen by the pastor, but the other side of the privilege is that we read all sorts of passages without being sure what they are about. It is a huge privilege to read scripture in church, and these introductions will help readers do so in a way that brings the passage home to the people. They will help preachers too.
The Rev. Dr. John Goldingay
Professor of Old Testament, Fuller Theological Seminary; Pasadena, California
Author of Old Testament Theology: Israel s Gospel

Dr. Blakley provides an invaluable resource for the Church. With masterful brevity and just the right amount of scholarship, he locates the assigned text within its literary context, the biblical narrative, and the liturgical theme of the day. After identifying the salient thoughts, he prudently suggests where and how to bring the text alive for the Church. Finally the scholar, the liturgist, the rhetorician, the lector, and the pew sitter are united! All of our lectors will have a copy.
The Rev. Jim Clark
Rector, Saint Barnabas on the Desert Episcopal Parish; Scottsdale, Arizona
Author of The ART of Engaging Holy Scripture Study Series

--Inside Book Cover

Edition details

• Publisher: St. Mark's Press
• Publication date: 2010
• ISBN 10: 0961811293
• ISBN 13: 9780961811297
• Binding: Perfect Paperback
• Language: English
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 450