Prayers for Healing: 365 Blessings, Poems, and Meditations From Around the World. edited by Maggie Oman. c1999.
The goal of this collection is to foster healing by gathering together inspirational writings from a wide variety of different traditions and historical periods. The collection is organized according to seasons in "the hope that being mindful of nature's cycles will foster healing." Some of the selections are anonymous while others have a religious identification which ranges from Christian Psalms to Zen chants to The Upanishads. In addition, there are a large number of selections by religious and literary authors, such as St. Bernadette, Ralph Waldo Emerson, Lao-Tsu and Rabbi Harold Kushner. Plus, there are many beautiful and inspirational pieces by little known authors. The editor hopes that every reader will find at least one prayer that "will resonate deeply within them".
Angels. Jane Williams. c2006
This is a beautifully illustrated engaging book. It discusses the appearance, purpose and relevance of angels as they appear in Jewish and Christian scripture. It also touches on literature (for ex. Milton, John Henry Newman and C.S. Lewis) and art and how these traditions or depictions of angels do or do not relate back to scripture. The tone of the book is relaxed and conversational. In one place, it is almost humorous, in the author's description of a biblical story about a donkey seeing an angel when its master could not. Topics range from "What do angels look like?" to "Angels and Jesus" and "Angels and God". Although written by a theologian, and including a few passages of scripture, this is not an academic book. Rather, it is a refreshing tour through angels in scripture and their possible relevance to our everyday world.
