A new york times notable book of the year from the new york times bestselling author of the cloister walk, a book about christianity, spirituality, and rediscovered faith. A new york times notable book of the year from the new york timesbestselling author of the cloister walk, a book about christianity, spirituality, and rediscovered faith. Kathleen norris has given us all the benefit of her spiritual journey, and i have now given this book to several friends. Reviewed by richard hunt university of nevada, reno kathleen norriss new book, amazing grace. When poet norris the cloister walk found her way back into church in the early 1980s, she was unsettled by what she calls the vaguely threatening and dauntingly abstract vocabulary of the church. Taking as her starting point the scary words that can intimidate and distance us from our religious heritagewords like judgment, faith, dogma, salvation, and sinner norris blends history, theology, storytelling, etymology, and memoir to. Readers of norris s previous books will recognize her trademark mingling of autobiography and theology in that passage. Amazing grace by kathleen norris abebooks passion for books. A new york times notable book of the yearfrom the new york timesbestselling author of the cloister walk, a book about christianity, spirituality, and rediscovered faith. Kathleen norris is the author of two books of poetry, falling off 1971 and the middle of the. A vocabulary of faith by kathleen norris goodreads. A vocabulary of faith my book might be seen as a search for lower consciousness, an attempt to remove the patina of abstraction or glassyeyed piety from religious words, by telling stories about them, by grounding them in the world we live in as mortal and often comically fallible human beings.
A vocabulary of faith by kathleen norris paperback softback title. In this poetic new book, bestselling author kathleen norris takes a look at words which have baffled christians throughout time. Norris defines words that are commonly used in faith, words such as salvation, grace, and church. Blending history, theology, story, etymology, and memoir, this is a poets journey through the vocabulary of faith. A vocabulary of faith first printing by norris, kathleen isbn. Blending history, theology, story, etymology, and memoir, amazing grace. Kathleen norris is the awardwinning, bestselling author of amazing grace. Kathleen norris is a gifted writer who conveys through lyrical prose a sense of deep spirituality without being preachy. Struggling with her return to the christian church after many years. Readers of norriss previous books will recognize her trademark. A vocabulary of faith is a poets journey through language to faith, with each word serving as the occasion for an examination of a particular aspect of the christian lexicon. Words like judgment, faith, dogma, salvation, sinnereven christformed what she called her scary vocabulary, words that had become so codified or abstract that their.
Amazing grace will grant an illuminating perspective on how we can embrace ancient traditions and find faith in the contemporary, everyday world. Readers of norriss previous books will recognize her trademark mingling of autobiography and theology in that passage. She divides her time between south dakota and hawaii. Kathleen norris books list of books by author kathleen norris. A vocabulary of faith new edition by kathleen norris isbn. A vocabulary of faith book online at best prices in india on. Amazing grace the beloved author of the cloister walk takes readers on a moving journey in this thoroughly original investigation of faith.
A vocabulary of faith norris, kathleen riverhead, 1999. Inspires me to pursue that deeper faith that can only lead to peace and harmony. Perhaps this is why kathleen norris amazing grace, the follow up to the cloister walk is so helpful. Go search best sellers gift ideas new releases deals store coupons. A vocabulary of faith by kathleen norris 1999, paperback, reprint 2 trending price.
I have read other books by kathleen norris, and am working. A vocabulary of faith is the first book i have read by kathleen norris. It contains short essays, meditations, anecdotes, and historical commentary about the sometimes forbidding vocabulary used in. Kathleen norris uses her poets intuition to explore, as the title indicates, a vocabulary of faith. A vocabulary of faith characterises this transformation of the original words as wretched english making the line that replaces the original laughably bland. A vocabulary of faith 9781573227216 by norris, kathleen and a great selection of similar new, used and collectible books available now at great prices. Everyday low prices and free delivery on eligible orders.
Beginning with scary religious words, norris explores the baggage such words carry with them, and, in her search, uncovers a realm of grace packed into the language of christianity. A vocabulary of faith by kathleen norris and a great selection of related books, art and collectibles available now at. Jan 01, 1998 kathleen norris uses her poets intuition to explore, as the title indicates, a vocabulary of faith. Amazing grace by kathleen norris 9781573227216 dymocks. Kathleen norris is the awardwinning, bestselling author of the cloister walk and dakota. Not all of us have been born with childlike faith, and this book is profound reading for folks who have struggled along the way. Kathleen norris writes with wisdom, humor and faith. As an adult, norris set out to reclaim her religion, redefining these words using her own experience. Librarything is a cataloging and social networking site for booklovers all about amazing grace. A vocabulary of faith has 7 available editions to buy at half price books marketplace. Kathleen norris is the awardwinning, bestselling author of the cloister walk and. When poet kathleen norris was a child, the words judgment, prayer, salvation, sinner, and even christ all formed what she calls religions scary vocabulary words that intimidate and alienate people from their faith. Were all unique, created a little lower than angels, and our relationships with god are unique. A vocabulary of faith by kathleen norris online at alibris.
Our ridiculously fallible language becomes a lesson in how gods grace works despite and even through our human frailty. Kathleen norris, preface to amazing grace in her other books, kathleen norris has written about the life journey that took her away from home, to bennington college in vermont and then to new york city, as she became a poet and lived in the eminently secular literary world. A new york times notable book of the year from the new york timesbestselling author of the cloister. Struggling with her return to the christian church after many years away, kathleen norris found it was the language of christianity that most distanced her from faith. Reviewed by richard hunt university of nevada, reno kathleen norris s new book, amazing grace.
Readings for advent and christmas, and touchstone anthology of contemporary creative nonfiction. Discussion of themes and motifs in kathleen norris amazing grace. In over eighty short chapters, norris discusses the frequently troublesome vocabulary of the crucial but often unexplored notion of faith. Id heard a good deal about her prior to reading it. A vocabulary of faith, an oldfashioned miscellany with dozens of entries, offers honest, personal reflections on matters that are not exactly carpool conversation god, the bible, idolatry, and eschatology to name but a few. A vocabulary of faith, is exactly what its subtitle implies. The book is about how she learned to use religious words, such as incarnation, idolatry, and evangelism. A spiritual geography and the cloister walk, youll love this one. One of the more fascinating emanations on the social landscape of millennial america is the emerging. See all books authored by kathleen norris, including watch for the light.
But in order to inhabit it, to claim it as mine, i had to rebuild my religious vocabulary. Librarything is a cataloging and social networking site for booklovers. Words like judgment, faith, dogma, salvation, sinnereven christforme. For people outside of the faith, the use of such words can make a person feel confused or excluded. A vocabulary of faith by kathleen norris 1998, paperback at the best online prices at ebay. But in order to have an adult faith, most of us have to outgrow and unlearn much of what we were taught about religion. In her other books, kathleen norris has written about the life journey that took her away from home, to bennington college in vermont and then to new york city, as she became a poet and lived in the eminently secular literary world. She writes deeply personal and deeply spiritual books.
Free curbside pickup or online orders where available. With observations like this one, kathleen norris, author of dakota and the cloister walk, has again provided a salutary corrective for contemporary christians in amazing grace. For grace to be grace, it must give us things we didnt know we needed and take us places where we didnt know we didnt want to go. The words had to become real to me, in an existential sense.
Her poems have appeared in the new yorker, in various anthologies, and in her own three volumes of poetry. Oct 31, 2015 in my search for more words worth defending, ive gone back to one of my sustaining books, amazing grace. A vocabulary of faith by norris, kathleen and a great selection of related books, art and collectibles available now at. If you liked kathleen norris s previous books, dakota. Kathleen norris on the vocabulary of faith margaret serious. Norriss lyrical prose rings with clarity and grace as she brings life to her experience of the. Although her take on many of the words is anything but common, which is what makes her book so much fun to read. From the new york timesbestselling author of the cloister walk, a book about christianity, spirituality, and rediscovered faith. Kathleen norriss meditation on religious words cites emily dickinson and. Amazing grace by kathleen norris, first edition abebooks. A vocabulary of faith by kathleen norris 1999, paperback, reprint at the best online prices at ebay. A vocabulary of faith audio cassette published september 25th 1998 by books on tape, inc. For those of us who have found the language of religion confusing, amazing grace will help. As the title of the book suggests, norris has written a very enjoyable series of essays on the vocabulary that christians commonly use.
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