BOOKSHELF
A great book should leave you with many experiences, and slightly exhausted at the end. You live several lives while reading.
- William Styron
To gain a broader understanding of our hopes and to explore ideas we find compelling, here is a reading list of works that have challenged us, shaped us or are are encouraging us to think deeply. Of course, good books are conversation starters, not intended to pigeon-hole or act as perfect reflections of our thinking.
Pastoral Philosophy
In the Name of Jesus: Reflections on Christian Leadership, Henri Nouwen
Working the Angles, Eugene Peterson
Pastor, Will Willimon
Secrets in the Dark: A Life in Sermons, Frederich Buechner
Five Smooth Stones for Pastoral Work, Eugene Peterson
Christian Theology
Knowledge of the Holy, A.W. TOZER
Life in the Trinity: An Introduction to Theology with the Help
of the Church Fathers
Amazing Grace: A Vocabulary of Faith, Kathleen Norris
Orthodoxy, G.K. Chesterton
The Creed: What Christians Believe and Why It Matters, Luke Timothy Johnson
Christian Theology: An Introduction, Alister McGrath
Christian Foundations (7 Volumes), Donald Bloesch
Art, Beauty & Culture
Art and Faith: A Theology of Making, Makoto Fujimura
Walking on Water: Reflections on Faith and Art, Madeleine L’Engle
Culture Making, Andy Crouch
The Resurrection and the Icon, Michael Quenot
The Writing Life, Annie Dillard
Sacrament & Liturgy
Living the Christian Year, Bobby Gross
For the Life of the World, Alexander Schmemann
Beyond Smells and Bells, Mark Galli
Christ, Baptism and the Lord’s Supper, Leonard Vander Zee
Children’s Spiritual Formation
Books for Children:
Images of God for Young Children, Delval, Marie-Hélène.
All Will Be Well: Learning to Trust God's Love, Lacy Finn Borgo
Books about Children’s Spiritual Formation
Spiritual Conversations with Children: Listening to God Together
Fiction
All Creatures Great and Small, James Herriot
The River Why, James Duncan
Gilead, Marilynne Robinson
Jayber Crow, Wendell Berry
Peace Like a River, Leif Enger
Silence, Shesaku Endo
Perelandra, C.S. Lewis
The Man Who Was Thursday, G.K. Chesterton
East of Eden, John Steinbeck
The Chosen, Chaim Potok
To Kill a Mockingbird, Harper Lee
Hospitality & Friendship
The Rise of Christianity, Rodney Stark
Reaching Out: The Three Movements of the Spiritual Life, Henri Nouwen
A Good Life: Benedict’s Guide to Everyday Joy, Robert Benson
Jesus, Gospel & Faith
God in the Flesh, Don Everts
Everything Belongs: The Gift of Contemplative Prayer, Richard Rohr
The Resurrection of the Son of God, N.T. Wright
The Gospel in a Pluralist Society, Lesslie Newbigen
Tokens of Trust: An Introduction to Christian Belief, Rowan Williams
The Divine Conspiracy, Dallas Willard
Scripture
The Bible Jesus Read, Philip Yancey
Sanctified Interpretation, Bishop Chris W. Green
Eat This Book, Eugene Peterson
Shalom, Justice and Ecology
Terrify No More, Gary Haugen
To Live in Peace, Mark Gornik
The Beloved Community, Charles Marsh
Night, Elie Wiesel
Redeeming Creation, Van Dyke, Sheldon, Mahan and Brand
Wendell Berry and the Cultivation of Life, Bonzo and Stevens
The Church
Surprised by Hope, N.T. Wright
Resident Aliens, Stanley Hauerwas and Will Willimon
Practice Resurrection, Eugene Peterson
Spiritual Direction & Formation
Sacred Rhythms, Ruth Haley Barton
An Altar in the World, Barbara Brown Taylor
The Divine Conspiracy, Dallas Willard
Spiritual Direction and Meditation, Thomas Merton
A Long Obedience in the Same Direction, Eugene Peterson
Spiritual Practices & Disciplines
Celebration of Discipline: The Path to Spiritual Growth, Richard J. Foster
Letters by a Modern Mystic, Laubach, Frank C.
Hearing God: Developing a Conversational Relationship with God, Dallas Willard
Renovation of the Heart: Putting on the Character of Christ, Dallas Willard
The Spirit of the Disciplines: Understanding How God Changes Lives, Dallas Willard
Prayer
Praying the Psalms, Walter Brueggemann
The Divine Hours (3 volumes), Phyllis Tickle
The Paraclete Psalter, Paraclete Press
The Practice of Prayer, Guenther, Margaret.
Experiencing the Depths of Jesus Christ, Jeanne Guyon