Praying with the Church: A Brief Review

I want to interrupt today's blogging plans to put up a brief review of Praying with the Church by Scot McKnight. I had expected to put up a more extensive review next month, and I may still do so. But I became aware of a "blogger's promotional" for this book, and wanted to pass on this opportunity to my readers. (Note: I do not accept paid advertising of any kind. I did receive a complementary review copy of this book. I receive many of these, but tend to review only those I like.)

Who is Scot McKnight?

First, a bit about the author. I don't know Scot McKnight personally, though I've held him in high esteem for years. I first got to know Scot in the late 1980s through his writings. Introducing New Testament Interpretation, in particular, impressed me as an outstanding primer, and I used it as a required book in my seminary exegesis courses. Then, in the early 1990s, Scot was a co-editor of the Dictionary of Jesus and the Gospels, which was (and still is) one of the finest pieces of evangelical biblical scholarship I know.

But Scot is not merely a top-notch academic with strong Christian convictions. He's also able to communicate with non-specialists, something many academics simply cannot do. In 2004 Scot published The Jesus Creed: Loving God, Loving Others. This fine book, intended for lay Christian audiences, won the 2005 Christianity Today Book Award in the Christian Living Category. Then, in 2005, Scot began his blog, www.jesuscreed.org, which I consider to be one of the most informative (and sometimes entertaining) blogs in existence. One of the things I appreciate about Scot McKnight is his commitment to engaging contemporary cultural and church issues (like the emerging movement, for example) from a solidly biblical perspective.

As I said before, I don't know Scot personally. But it's obvious from his writings that he is a deeply committed Christian who seeks to use his many gifts for the sake of God's kingdom. He is also eager to grow in his relationship with the Lord. Praying with the Church is a result of Scot's effort in this regard.

A Brief Review of Praying with the Church

I own a couple dozen books on prayer. Praying with the Church is unlike any other. Most books on prayer cover more or less the same ground in more or less the same ways. Praying with the Church focuses on topics that are almost completely ignored in most evangelical books on prayer. I read books on prayer largely for inspiration, rarely with the expectation of learning new things. Praying with the Church taught me lots that I didn't know before.

Here's how the book begins:

Most Christians are not happy with their prayer life – they either don't pray often enough or well enough. This book is written to help such Christians – and for those who do pray often, this book might also bring a welcoming word. (p. 1)

Okay, so far so good, but nothing especially new here. In fact, this sounds a whole lot like things I said in the introduction to my own book on prayer, No Holds Barred.

So what makes Praying with the Church unusual? It seeks to help evangelical Christians (and others, but especially evangelicals) discover the benefits of praying with the church through using "liturgical prayer, fixed-hour prayers, the Divine Office, the divine hours, the hours of prayer, or the Opus Dei ('the work of God')." No, this is not a book about the Catholic order Opus Dei, made famous (or infamous) by The Da Vinci Code.

My guess is that this last paragraph didn't make you want to buy Praying with the Church. Why should you care about liturgical prayer, fixed-hour prayers, the Divine Office, and the like? Isn't this just high-church stuff, the tired traditions of days gone by? Well, in a word, no. These expressions of prayer have given life to millions of Christians for centuries, and they still do. They are, as Scot McKnight shows, rooted in Scripture and in the prayer life of Jesus Himself. They are a potential source of living water for those of us who are very unfamiliar with or uninterested in what we would consider "churchy" prayer.

Let me quote another bit from Praying with the Church:

Praying with the Church involves allowing our own prayer lives to be adjusted to the sacred rhythms of the Church's prayer tradition and invites us to use the words of the Bible and the Church. This book will focus on learning to pray with the Church, and it is an invitation for all Christians to learn to pray not just alone in the church but also together with the Church. (p. 10)

Praying with the Church does not get lost in lofty theologizing. It's very down to earth. Though exploring serious issues, it does so in a very available and, dare I say, "user-friendly" way. It explains things I have often wondered about, and does so with brevity and clarity.

I recommend this book to anyone who wishes to grow in his or her relationship with God. Praying with the Church would make a wonderful curriculum for adult study groups. I plan to use it in my church in contexts where people can discuss and put into practice the wisdom of the ages concerning prayer.

The Blogger's Special

This is the special deal I mentioned earlier. From now until June 30th, that's only five days, you can buy a copy of Praying with the Church from the publisher (Paraclete Press), and they'll give you a free copy of Scot McKnight's award winning The Jesus Creed. This is a great deal!

Here's what you must to do get the special:

1. Visit the Paraclete Press website. Order a copy of Praying with the Church and a copy of The Jesus Creed. Then, in the coupon blank, enter the coupon code: PRBLOG. Then update your order. It should show that you're getting a free book. (Note: I did this twice before it worked. So you may want to use option #2.)

2. Call Paraclete Press at 1-800-451-5006 and order both books with the PRBLOG special code.