Living Faithfully as a Prayer Book People

by John H. Westerhoff III

Episcopalians consider themselves to be people whose individual and corporate lives are shaped by the Book of Common Prayer, but aside from worship on Sunday morning, few know what fills its nearly 1,000 pages. John Westerhoff, Episcopal priest and Christian educator, walks readers through the ways in which the contents of the Prayer Book can (and should) shape the life of those who call themselves Episcopalians. An excellent resource for parish study or reading in advance of seminary training, Westerhoff explores a brief history of the Prayer Book, and the ways in which it shapes us as pilgrim and prayerful people. How Episcopalians live into their baptism, live a Eucharistic and reconciling life, as well as a life of wholeness and health are explored in detail. All of this, as Westerhoff writes, helps us lead a holy life, and one day, to a holy death. John H. Westerhoff is an Episcopal priest, the former professor of theology and Christian nurture at Duke University, the author of many books about Christian education and life. For the last decade he has been theologian-in-residence at St. Luke's Episcopal Church in Atlanta, Georgia.

Genres: Religion

131 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 1, 2005

Reviews

[Gibs · Rating 3 out of 5]

Having read, and found extremely useful, three of Fr. Westerhoff's smaller books ("A People Called Episcopalians", "Holy Baptism" and "To Love and Cherish"), I was excited to finally read this full-length work. Overall, however, I came away largely disappointed. Ultimately, it seems that the author could not decide what type of work "Living Faithfully" was supposed to be. Was it an introduction to the Book of Common Prayer and its various sections? Was it a discourse on its use? Was it a collection of personal reflections on the author's own "prayer book piety"? The work had all of these perspectives, and then some, but often assembled, it seems, in a haphazard fashion.

At the same, Westerhoff often made conclusive claims that could have used a citation or other support. For instance, pg. 35: "It is not appropriate to celebrate the Way of Stations of the Cross on Good Friday, the typical Protestant Good Friday liturgy." Really? Why is this not appropriate? He gives no support for this, but simply goes on to talk about the BCP liturgy. Here's another example, from pg. 25: "Stories are the bottom line of human communal life: Ultimately, nothing else is needed." Certainly, this fits with the author's overall (and questionable) assumptions in that section, but that sort of claim appears to me to need more than just his opinion.

But that's part of the problem: If I knew what kind of book to expect, I would know how to read and filter the text. But because the work switches between exposition, speculation and outright opinion, the reader must constantly shift their reading lens.

All that said, this book has some good qualities. The author does have great experience, and certainly some valuable insight at times. But I would not recommend it to a new Episcopalian as a way of explaining the BCP unless they had previous experience in ritual studies. For a seasoned reader of such material, however, it's OK. Read it to help supplement your knowledge of the BCP, and keep it on the shelf for reference.

[R.D. Brown · Rating 1 out of 5]

This was a very disappointing book. It reminded me of why I could not be an Episcopalian. I really was hoping for something that would be a good introduction to the Prayer Book. This was not quite it. I will keep looking. The best thing I can say about this book is that the title sounds good.

[Fran · Rating 3 out of 5]

There was much about this book that I appreciated: A good introduction to parts of the prayer book and some reflections on being an Episcopalian in the 21st century are two items. However, more than once Westerhoff declared something to be true when it was, in fact, his opinion or his practice, rather than rule or canon law. Still, with that caveat, I would recommend this book.