The Ordinary Practice
Daily Habits of the Christian Life
- 8 chapters
- 56m
- Christian Living
- Free · no sign-up
The book examines how Christians can live missionally in their everyday contexts, drawing on traditions like Tenebrae services and intercessory prayer. It includes practical advice for those seeking to follow Christ more deeply through daily practices. The final chapters explore the example of A. W. Tozer and how his teachings apply to modern Christian living.
Whether you're new to Christian practice or seeking to deepen your existing routine, this book offers straightforward guidance for cultivating spiritual habits that last.
Listen
-
Read this chapter
Overview
A religious habit is distinctive clothing worn by members of religious orders, remaining a visible sign of commitment despite evolution over time. In monastic traditions, habits include tunics, scapulars, and cowls, with additional elements like hoods or veils depending on role—monks wear hoods, nuns veils. Some orders require only clothing be identifiable enough to witness evangelical counsels according to Catholic Canon Law. The transition from postulancy to novitiate is marked by ceremony where novice is clothed in community's habit, sometimes wearing variants like white veil for novices instead of black, or grey if usual color is white. Certain Franciscan communities have novices wear overshirt over tunic, and Carthusian novices wear black cloak over white habit.
Buddhism
Buddhist monks and nuns wear robes called kāṣāya, a term that comes from Sanskrit and Pali, also known as cīvara when referring to the garments without specifying their color. These robes are often brown or saffron in hue, named after the dye used to create them. The word kāṣāya appears in several languages: Sanskrit, Pali, Chinese, Japanese, Korean, and Vietnamese, each with its own transliteration. In Tibetan, the robes are referred to as "chougu." This is not just a matter of clothing but a symbol tied to the tradition and practice of Buddhism, worn by those who follow its path.
Origin and construction
Buddhist kāṣāya originated in India as robes worn by followers of Gautama Buddha. A well-known version features a pattern similar to an Asian rice field. These early robes were made from old fabric, stitched together into three rectangular pieces. The antarvāsa, uttarāsaṅga, and saṃghāti came together to form what's called the "triple robe", or tricīvara. This specific style is described in the Theravāda Vinaya, at page 94, line 289.
Saṃghāti
The saṃghāti is an outer robe worn in Buddhist tradition, used for various occasions and worn over the upper robe called the uttarāsaṅga and the undergarment known as the antarvāsa. In artistic depictions of the Buddha, this garment is often the most visible part of his attire, while the undergarment or uttarāsaṅga appears at the bottom. The shape of the saṃghāti resembles that of the Greek himation, and in Greco-Buddhist art from Gandhāra, its folds and form were rendered in a style similar to Greek artistic conventions.
Kāṣāya in Indian Buddhism
In Indian Buddhism, the color of a monk’s robe indicated which school they followed, with robes ranging from red and ochre to blue and black. Around 148 to 170 CE, the Parthian monk An Shigao introduced a Chinese text titled Dà Bǐqiū Sānqiān Wēiyí that described the clothing of five major sects. A later translation, the Śariputraparipṛcchā, confirms this information but switches the colors for two of the groups. In Tibetan Buddhism, which adheres to the Mūlasarvāstivāda Vinaya, red is considered the traditional hue of the Mūlasarvāstivādins. According to Dudjom Rinpoche, fully ordained Mahāsāṃghika monks wore robes constructed from more than seven and no more than twenty-three pieces, adorned with the endless knot and conch shell—two of the Eight Auspicious Signs.
Jiāshā in Chinese Buddhism
In Chinese Buddhism, the robe known as the kāṣāya is called gāsā. In early times, most monks wore red robes. As Buddhism developed, robe colors came to show differences between monastics, like they did in India. But in China, the colors often matched where a monk lived rather than their specific school. By later periods, only one ordination line remained in use, the Dharmaguptaka lineage, so robe colors no longer helped identify different sects the way they had in India.
Catholicism
In his 1996 apostolic exhortation Vita consecrata, Pope John Paul II emphasized that the religious habit is a visible sign of consecration, poverty, and belonging to a specific religious family. He recommended that men and women religious wear their proper habit, adapted to local conditions, while also noting that in some cases, simple and modest dress with an appropriate symbol may be suitable. Institutes without a traditional habit should ensure their members’ clothing reflects the dignity and simplicity of their vocation.
Sisters
The religious habit worn by Catholic sisters has long served as a visible sign of a woman's dedication to God. Over time, these garments have evolved, with some orders choosing to simplify or even abandon their traditional dress. For instance, the Daughters of Charity of Saint Vincent de Paul once wore a cornette instead of a veil. The document Perfectae caritatis prompted many congregations to adapt their habits to better fit the culture they served, or to do away with them entirely. Still, for those who continue wearing the traditional habit, three items remain consistent: a tunic, a belt or cincture, and a veil. Some Dominican Sisters add a scapular, rosary, and cappa for formal events. Even among sisters who no longer wear a full habit, there is often a shared look—calf-length skirt, blouse or sweater, and a visible cross necklace.
-
Read this chapter
Overview
Christian prayer is a vital part of faith, practiced both spontaneously and through written texts like the breviary, which includes the canonical hours prayed at set times. Common gestures include folding hands, bowing, kneeling, and prostration. The Lord's Prayer, taught by Jesus, was meant to be said three times daily, following Jewish tradition mentioned in Psalm 55:17 and Daniel 6:10, and recorded in the Didache 8, 2 f. Early Christians prayed this at 9 am, noon, and 3 pm, replacing the Jewish Amidah, which is why many Lutheran and Anglican churches still ring their bells three times a day to call believers to prayer. The practice of seven daily prayers also developed in the Early Church, as described in the Apostolic Tradition, with specific hours tied to Christ's Passion, and is still observed by Oriental Orthodox Christians using breviaries like the Agpeya and Shehimo, praying eastward toward the Second Coming, following Psalm 119:164. Prayer can be corporate, in worship or public settings, or private, often done at home with devotional books or prayer rugs, and may include spontaneous prayers following the basic form of adoration, contrition, thanksgiving, and supplication.
New Testament
Prayer is not optional in the New Testament—it’s a command. Colossians 4:2 and 1 Thessalonians 5:17 call believers to make prayer a regular part of life, even during the challenges of marriage, as seen in 1 Corinthians 7:5. Jesus taught that God wants to give good gifts, and prayer is how we receive them, according to Matthew 7:7–11. The early church began with prayer, as shown in Acts 3:1. The apostles prayed often, as recorded in Acts 6:4 and Romans 1:9. They also quoted Psalms, like when Romans 3:10–18 draws from Psalm 14:1–3. Specific prayers appear throughout the New Testament—like the Lord’s Prayer, Jesus’ prayer in John 17, Stephen's prayer in Acts 7:59–60, and Paul’s prayer in Ephesians 1:3–14. Even short exclamations, such as “Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ,” are part of this pattern.
Early Christianity
In Early Christianity, prayer and Scripture reading were central, with worship and belief deeply connected, as the saying went: lex orandi, lex credendi. The Lord’s Prayer was a key part of early Christian gatherings and traveled with the faith as it spread. By the 2nd century, Christians marked their eastward prayers by placing crosses on eastern walls and praying at set times. In the 3rd century, Origen taught that Scripture functioned like a sacrament, and his methods were passed on to Ambrose of Milan, who then influenced Augustine of Hippo, bringing these practices into Western monasticism. In the 4th century, communities of Desert Fathers began seeking God in the wilderness, leading to a tradition of constant prayer and later meditative practices in the Eastern Church.
Meditation in the Middle Ages
In the Middle Ages, Christian prayer evolved through monastic traditions into deeper forms of meditation. In the West, by the 6th century, Benedict of Nursia and Pope Gregory I formalized Lectio Divina, a method of prayerful Bible reading that became central to Benedictine life, alongside liturgical prayer and manual labor. This practice was later emphasized by Bernard of Clairvaux in the 12th century, who linked contemplative prayer to the Holy Spirit. Guigo II, a Carthusian monk, described the stages from reading to meditation to union with God in his book The Ladder of Monks. In Eastern Christianity, the tradition of constant prayer influenced hesychasm, promoted by figures like John Climacus and supported by Gregory Palamas in the 14th century. Hesychasm involved repetition of the Jesus Prayer, unlike the varied passages of Lectio Divina.
Contemplative prayer
In the 15th-century Western Church, Venetians Lorenzo Giustiniani and Louis Barbo led clergy and monastic reforms. Barbo, who died in 1443, wrote "Forma orationis et meditionis" (Modus meditandi), describing three prayer types: vocal prayer for beginners, meditation for advanced practitioners, and contemplation as the highest form. Based on Pope Eugene IV's request, Barbo's methods reached Valladolid, Spain, and by end of the 15th century were used at Montserrat Abbey. These methods later influenced Garcias de Cisneros and Ignatius of Loyola. The Eastern Orthodox Church also recognizes this three-level hierarchy, with vocal prayer as first level, meditation called "inward prayer" or "discursive prayer," and contemplative prayer as third level, cultivating closer relationship with God.
Language in prayer
In Christian prayer, many conservative believers choose to use the older forms “thee, thou, thy and thine” when speaking to God, a practice rooted in tradition and reverence. According to the Plymouth Brethren catechism Gathering Unto His Name, Norman Crawford explains that the English language includes these respectful pronouns to help show honor in our communication with the divine. He notes this has been a long-standing custom, especially in contrast to modern irreverence. When referring to God, “thou” is often capitalized, as in Psalm 56:12–13: “For Thou hast delivered my soul from death.”
Types of prayer
Christian prayer falls into various categories, and the ways people practice it can differ depending on their denomination or tradition. Over time, theologians have explored these different forms. One such scholar, Gilbert W. Stafford, identified eight types of prayer by looking at New Testament scripture. Still, interpretations of prayer in the New Testament and within Christian faith as a whole continue to vary. That variation leads to the existence of different types of prayer in practice.
Canonical hours
In Apostolic Tradition, Hippolytus taught that Christians should pray seven times a day—on rising, at evening light, at bedtime, at midnight, and at the third, sixth, and ninth hours linked to Christ's Passion. Eastern Christians following Alexandrian or Syriac rites use breviaries like the Agpeya and Shehimo to pray these canonical hours while facing east, anticipating Jesus's return. This practice stems from Psalm 118:164, where David is said to have prayed seven times a day. These believers include prostrations during prayer, such as three times in the name of the Trinity, and multiple times during Kyrie eleisons and other liturgical moments. Before praying, they wash their hands, face, and feet, remove shoes, and some women wear head coverings. In Lutheran churches, canonical hours appear in books like The Brotherhood Prayer Book, while Catholics know them as the Liturgy of the Hours. The Methodist tradition also values these prayers as essential for discipleship.
-
Read this chapter
Overview
Christian head covering, or veiling, exists across various traditions, with some women wearing coverings during worship and prayer while others, like Conservative Anabaptists, believe it should be worn constantly. The early Church, guided by writings such as the Didascalia Apostolorum and Pædagogus, taught that women must cover their heads when praying or outside the home. In the Apostolic Era, this was countercultural, as pagan Greek women did not typically veil. Paul's instruction in 1 Corinthians 11:2–16 forms a key basis for the practice, with some interpreting verse 15 as referring to a woman's natural hair. The early Church Fathers upheld this tradition, and it continued among Christians in places like Romania, Russia, Egypt, India, and Pakistan. Among Conservative Mennonite churches and the Dunkard Brethren Church, headcovering is considered an ordinance. In contrast, much of the Western world saw its decline during the 20th century, with many viewing the practice as culturally bound to the time it was written.
Scriptural and Second Temple background
In the time of Moses, it was normal for women to wear head coverings, as recorded in Numbers 5:18, where the ritual for a woman accused of adultery involves uncovering her head. The Talmud teaches that the Torah requires women to appear in public with their heads covered, and this covering was typically a veil or headscarf. In Daniel’s story, Susanna wore such a veil, and the men who lusted after her demanded it be removed. Genesis describes Rebecca covering her head when meeting Isaac, showing modesty. The book of Isaiah links removing a woman's veil with shame and nakedness, while the Song of Songs praises a woman’s beauty, including her hair. In Jewish law around Jesus’ time, a married woman who uncovered her hair in public was seen as unfaithful.
Apostolic period (1st century)
Paul established the church in Corinth around 51–52 AD after arriving from Athens, and during his time in Ephesus, ca. 53–55 AD, he received reports of disorder in the community. He wrote 1 Corinthians, likely in the spring of 56 AD from Ephesus, sending it by trusted messengers. In chapter 11, verses 2–16, Paul praises the Corinthians for holding fast to traditions he handed down and then addresses head coverings, saying men should pray with uncovered heads while women should be veiled. He outlines a hierarchy: Christ is head of every man, the man is head of the woman, and God is head of Christ. Paul appeals to creation order and angelic authority to support this practice, noting that the custom was universal among the churches of God.
Patristic period (2nd–5th centuries)
In the early centuries of Christianity, writers known as the Church Fathers widely discussed the practice of women covering their heads, interpreting Paul's words in 1 Corinthians 11:2–16 as applying not just to worship but to everyday dress too. These texts show a shared belief among early Christian leaders that modest women should wear head coverings at all times, not only during prayer or services. Some reasons given included viewing a woman's hair as sexually attractive, suggesting veils were worn from puberty, seeing head coverings as part of proper female attire, and appealing to what they understood as natural law. Art from the second and third centuries, like images found in catacombs, shows women praying with cloths on their heads, supporting this tradition. By the fourth century, as Christianity grew in influence, these religious ideals began shaping broader social customs.
2nd century
In the second century, Irenaeus, writing around 125 to 202, treated 1 Corinthians 11:10 as genuine apostolic teaching connected to women's prophetic roles in the church. In Against Heresies, he supported Paul’s reference to both men and women having prophetic gifts, suggesting that the practice of head coverings for women was part of that instruction. Around the same time, Clement of Alexandria, who taught in Egypt around 190, wrote in his Paedagogus that women should be fully veiled in public and only uncover at home. He described this as modest dress meant to protect women from public attention, prevent personal temptation, and align with the will of the Word.
3rd century
In the third century, Tertullian wrote De virginibus velandis to address a dispute in Carthage about unmarried women appearing in church without veils. Some argued that 1 Corinthians’ rule applied only to wives, not virgins. Tertullian responded by pointing to custom, saying major churches practiced veiling, and going unveiled was immodest and divided the church. He defined “woman” as a category that included virgins, widows, and wives, citing Eve and Mary as examples. He also argued that long hair, cosmetics, and veils were signs of shared female nature, tied to Eve’s transgression and the story of the "daughters of men." Hippolytus of Rome instructed that women should wear opaque cloth, not thin linen veils, for proper covering. The apocryphal Acts of Thomas describes shameless women who go bareheaded as being punished in hell.
4th and 5th century
In the fourth and fifth centuries, theologians like Diodorus of Tarsus taught that men, created in God’s image and given dominion, prayed with uncovered heads, while women, made for man's glory, wore veils. John Chrysostom warned that disobeying this natural order was a serious sin, calling it a harmful overturning of divine boundaries. Jerome observed that Christian women in Egypt and Syria followed the apostle’s command, wearing hair caps and veils rather than going uncovered. Augustine echoed this, saying even married women should keep their hair covered, as the apostle had instructed.
Medieval period (5th–15th centuries)
In the medieval period, which spanned from the 5th to the 15th centuries, women who went uncovered in southern Italy were seen as morally suspect—associated with adultery or prostitution. Across Byzantium and much of Europe, long hair was considered seductive and immodest, so women were expected to cover it with veils, hoods, or caps. Only virgins were permitted to appear in public with their hair uncovered. This standard was reflected in both art and law: medieval paintings showed women wearing veils during worship, while sumptuary laws controlled the cost and quality of veils to maintain social order and modesty. Theologian Thomas Aquinas, writing between 1225 and 1274, noted that women who attended sacred rituals with uncovered heads had erred in their choice of clothing, stating: “they erred in clothing, namely, because the women gathered for the sacred mysteries with heads uncovered; (§586).”
-
Read this chapter
Overview
In certain Christian traditions—Roman Catholic, Orthodox, Lutheran, Anglican, and Methodist—an oblate is someone who, while living in the world, dedicates their life to God and service through a bond with a Benedictine monastery or convent. These individuals, who can be laypeople or clergy, commit themselves to following the Rule of Saint Benedict in their daily lives. They pray the Divine Office seven times a day, either alone or with others, including monks and nuns, sometimes through live streams. Oblates also practice Lectio Divina, reading Scripture in a meditative way. Some may eventually enter monastic life, as was the case with Br. Sixtus Roslevich O.S.B. The postnominals Obl. O.S.B. or Obl. SB. are used after their names, mainly in private letters. Oblates are similar to tertiaries of mendicant orders, though the term "oblate" also appears in the official titles of some religious groups, not necessarily indicating Benedictine affiliation.
Origins and history
The word oblate comes from Latin oblatus, meaning someone who has been offered, and changed meaning through Christian history. In early monastic times, children given by parents to monasteries under St. Benedict's Rule were called oblates, lasting until the Tenth Council of Toledo in 656, which set minimum age of ten and allowed exit at puberty. Those under ten were known as puer oblatus. Later, in the 11th century, Abbot William of Hirsau introduced fratres barbati or conversi who took vows but weren't enclosed, and oblati who served monasteries while submitting to religious obedience. By later Middle Ages, terms like oblatus, confrater, and donatus were used interchangeably for anyone who contributed generously to a monastery and shared in its prayers. Canonically, only two distinctions mattered: whether someone entered through formal profession or simple conversion, with latter being called oblate; and whether they gave everything to monastery or kept some control over possessions—the full oblate was recognized as a persona ecclesiastica. In 1898, Pope Leo XIII officially organized the modern Catholic Benedictine Oblates Secular, which still exists today.
Secular oblates
Many Benedictine communities still include secular oblates—clergy or laypeople who pray with a chosen monastery and commit annually or for life to living by the Rule of St. Benedict in their daily lives, adjusting as their situations allow. These oblates can come from any Christian background, though some monasteries are more inclusive than others. For example, Saint Augustine's House in Oxford, Michigan, accepts non-Lutherans as oblates, and Methodist monasteries welcome non-Methodist Christians. Anglican communities often accept oblates from other denominations too. In Catholic Benedictine monasteries like Saint Benedict's in St. Joseph, Minnesota, Christians from various traditions are admitted, but places like Ampleforth Abbey only admit Catholics, though others may join as associates. Both men and women, including couples, can become oblates, encouraged to participate together when possible.
Conventual oblates
There are conventual oblates who live within a monastic community. After a year of probation, if they have not done so already, they make a simple commitment of their lives to the monastery, which is received by the superior in the presence of the whole community. At the end of the canonical novitiate year, they make their oblation and promise obedience to the abbot. They commit themselves to sharing in monastic life, placing their own strengths at the disposal of the monastery and its mission. While the monks or nuns take solemn vows that include renouncing all their possessions, conventual oblates enter into a contract that outlines their mutual obligations. This agreement also specifies whether the oblation is for a set period or for life. The promise of an oblate can be dissolved by the oblate themselves or by the abbot for a just reason.
Process to investiture as an oblate
To become an oblate, a Christian begins as an Inquirer, attending Mass and community meetings, praying with monks and other members, and participating in activities; this stage may continue indefinitely unless the abbey sets a time limit. When ready, the Inquirer applies in writing to become a Postulant, starting at least a three-month probation period. After three months or more, the Postulant is enrolled as a Novice during an investiture ceremony where they receive a scapular, to be worn under ordinary garments, or optionally a medal of St. Benedict. A certificate of enrollment is given, noting the date for the final obligation one year and a day later, and in case of death, that date should also be recorded and sent to the monastery. The officiant ensures each novice receives an approved Manual for Oblates containing the Rule and Statute. The Novice is only at the monastery where enrolled but may transfer with written permission. If the time limit is not met, they can reapply as an Inquirer. A Novice may end their novitiate at any time in writing. After a year and a day, the Oblate Novice makes their Final Oblation before the Abbott or Prior in a commitment ceremony.
Activities of an oblate
Oblates are Christians who live in the world but strive to embrace a monastic way of life, seeking God in their daily routines, family, and work. They pray the canonical hours at seven set times each day, as outlined in Psalm 119:164, either alone, with their families, or alongside monks and nuns in Benedictine communities. Following the Rule of Saint Benedict, they are committed to living according to two mottos: “UT IN OMNIBUS GLORIFICETUR DEUS,” meaning that in all things God may be glorified, and “Pax,” which means Peace. A key part of their practice is Lectio Divina, the daily reading of Scripture, and they seek to live lives marked by prayer, regular sacramental life—especially the Eucharist and Confession—and a deep desire for holiness.
-
Read this chapter
Background
Traditionally, Christians have thought of mission either as a temporary event, like a one-week conference, or as a full-time job for a select few, such as sending someone overseas to convert others. But missional living is different—it's a way of life for all believers at all times. This idea gained traction in the late 20th century through the work of Darrell Guder’s book Missional Church, published in 1998, and was promoted by advocates like Tim Keller. They contrast this with the idea of "professional" missionaries, insisting that every Christian should be part of Jesus’s Great Commission.
Terminology
The idea of missional living comes from the Latin phrase *Missio dei*, meaning "the sending of God." In 1934, German missiologist Karl Hartenstein introduced this concept as a response to Karl Barth's focus on *actio Dei*, or "the action of God," which emphasized God as the main actor in the world and church. During the 1950s and 1960s, Mission Theology developed further, gaining public attention in 1962 with Johannes Blauw's book *The Missionary Nature of the Church*. In 1983, Anglican Bishop Lesslie Newbigin, who had served as a missionary in India, published *The Other Side of 1984*, examining how Western Christianity became tied to Western society and lost its influence. He wrote that according to Jesus's words in John's Gospel, every Christian has been sent by Jesus into the world to live among people for the sake of God's kingdom: "The Church is sent into the world to continue that which he came to do, in the power of the same Spirit, reconciling people to God." Jesus said, "As the Father has sent Me, I am sending you" (John 20:21). No one can say they don't have to share their faith because they're not a missionary — there's no spiritual difference between witnessing in your own neighborhood or in Katmandu, Nepal. We are all called to go — even if it's only to the next room or block.
Theory
Missional living is about truly living out the gospel in visible ways, embodying Jesus’s mission in the world. There isn’t one fixed definition, and Christians understand it differently. Guder describes it as experiencing Christ’s transforming truth and bringing it into all of life. The Reformed Theological Seminary in the U.S. sees it as living and thinking like those sent by God—aimed at His glory, the church’s growth, and the lost’s salvation, both near and far. The Missional Challenge workshop defines it as becoming like Jesus in how we live and interact with others. It also means taking personal ownership of Christ’s mission, committing to share the gospel in a specific area, influencing non-believers, and encouraging other Christians.
Distinctive Reasons for Missional Living
Christians are called to live like Jesus, freely engaging culture while remaining faithful to the gospel, a way of living known as contextualization or inculturation. This isn’t just translating messages, but embedding the living Word into human societies without losing its divine power. The church is sent by Jesus, as recorded in John 17:18 and Acts 1:8, with the mission of the cross, as described in 1 Corinthians 1:18 and Colossians 2:14. The church is sent in community, as seen in Acts 2:42–47 and John 13:34–35. It is sent to every culture, as in John 1:14 and Acts 17:22–34. And it is sent for the King and His kingdom, according to Matthew 10:7 and Revelation 11:15–17. Jesus was the first apostle, sent by the Father, and He sent the Twelve, who then sent others, making the church inherently apostolic in its nature.
Gospel
Jesus said he came to seek and save the lost, and according to Scripture, there is no salvation apart from his death and resurrection. Because of the cross, there is hope and eternal life. The apostle Paul, while under house arrest in Rome, continued to proclaim the kingdom of God with boldness. Christians are sent to share this message so others may enter the kingdom. The Church points toward the kingdom, not because it is the kingdom itself, but because God’s mission extends beyond it. The kingdom and the Church must not be separated, yet they must never be the same. The reign always belongs to the One who reigns, and the kingdom is always at the heart of the King.
Community
George Peters notes that reaching people requires engaging them within their own culture. This truth is shown in how God became human through Jesus, entering the world to live out the gospel. Following Jesus’ example, Christians are called to understand the culture around them—its language, values, and ideas. By doing so, they can share the message of the gospel in a way that connects with people where they are. In this process, believers also form their own Christian community, bringing the good news into the culture itself.
Missional Church Movement
The Missional Church Movement emerged toward the end of the 20th century and into the early 21st century, challenging the traditional model of the church as an attractional institution. Instead of drawing people in through programs, this movement calls churches to be missional by taking the gospel out into the world. Leaders argue that mission defines the church itself—not just a program—and that the church must organize its life around its true purpose: being God's sent people. In this view, the church isn't just a product of mission but is obligated and destined to extend it. The missional church takes Christ to "the lost," engaging communities directly with the message of Jesus, not relying solely on pastors or staff to reach outsiders. As one leader put it: "Mission is not just a program of the church. It defines the church as God's sent people."
-
Read this chapter
Overview
Tenebrae is a Christian service held during the final three days before Easter, marking Holy Wednesday, Maundy Thursday, and Good Friday. Originally celebrated in the evening before these days, it included special ceremonies with candles displayed on a triangular candelabrum, gradually extinguished until only darkness remained. The service ends with a loud noise called strepitus, symbolizing the silence of Christ’s death. Today, Tenebrae may be held on just one day, often Spy Wednesday, and can take place in daylight with varying numbers of candles. Some versions focus on the Seven Last Words or readings from the Passion of Jesus. This practice is found across several Christian traditions including Catholicism, Lutheranism, Anglicanism, Methodism, Reformed churches, and Western Rite Orthodoxy.
Original form
In the Catholic Church, Tenebrae refers to the special celebration of matins and lauds on the last three days of Holy Week, held in the evening or afternoon rather than at their traditional times. Until 1955, these services were widely observed in churches with enough clergy, with ceremonies like extinguishing candles marking the end of each service as darkness fell. Pope Pius XII’s reforms moved the Easter Vigil to the night before Easter and shifted Holy Thursday, Good Friday, and Holy Saturday liturgies to the afternoon or evening, ending the practice of anticipating matins and lauds on the previous evenings. The 1960 Code of Rubrics further limited any anticipation, and after the Second Vatican Council, the structure of matins and lauds changed completely, removing the distinctive elements that once defined Tenebrae.
Structure of the original Tenebrae
The Tenebrae service follows the same pattern across its three days. Matins begins in the pre-1970 style, structured into three nocturns, each with three psalms, a versicle, a silent Pater noster, and three readings followed by responsories. This is followed by lauds, which includes five psalms, a brief versicle and response, and the Benedictus Gospel canticle. Then comes Christus factus est, another silent Pater noster, and the appointed collect. The Gloria Patri does not follow each psalm. Central to the ceremony is the gradual dimming of fifteen candles on a hearse in the sanctuary. One candle is extinguished after every psalm of matins and lauds—nine from matins and five from lauds. During the chanting of the Benedictus, the six altar candles are also put out, reducing the light in the church. When all remaining lights are gone, the final candle on the hearse is either hidden behind the altar or placed inside a lantern if the altar does not cover it, ending the service in darkness. A loud noise—called the strepitus—is made by slamming a book or stomping, symbolizing the earthquake after Christ's death. After showing the last candle to the congregation, it is extinguished and either placed on the credence table or taken to the sacristy. All rise and leave in silence.
Table illustrating the contents of the service
The Roman Breviary was reformed in 1911 by Pope Pius X, who radically changed how the Psalter was recited each week. Before that, in the version established by Pope Pius V in 1568, certain psalms were repeated daily at lauds—specifically, Psalms 62/63 and 66/67, treated as one unit, and Psalms 148–150, also treated as one. Pius X eliminated those repetitions and chose a different set of psalms for lauds. Examples of the old structure can be found in 19th-century books like Prosper Guéranger’s Passiontide and Holy Week (Dublin 1870) and The Complete Office of Holy Week According to the Roman Missal and Breviary, published in Latin and English by Benziger in 1875. The reformed Tenebrae services from 1911 appear in the 1924 Liber Usualis, while a 1961 edition with English rubrics is available online.
Music
The Tenebrae service begins with the first nocturn, set to the Book of Lamentations and sung to a Gregorian tone called "the saddest melody within the whole range of music." Composers like Palestrina, Tallis, and Lassus created polyphonic settings, with Lassus's version from 1584 standing out. The French Baroque tradition includes Leçons de ténèbres by Charpentier, Lambert, and Couperin. In the twentieth century, Krenek composed Lamentatio Jeremiae prophetae and Stravinsky wrote Threni. The second nocturn uses lessons from St. Augustine, while the third draws from New Testament epistles, both set to the ordinary lesson tone and rarely set to music, though Manuel Cardoso and Manoel Dias de Oliveira provided a few settings. Tenebrae responsories were composed by Lassus, Gesualdo, Victoria, Charpentier, Vallotti, Zelenka, and Xavier. Gregorio Allegri's Miserere and Gesualdo's setting of the same psalm are among the most well-known pieces for the service.
Roman Rite since 1970
Following the 1970 Roman Breviary change known as the Liturgy of the Hours, the Office of Readings and Morning Prayer came to be celebrated publicly on Good Friday and Holy Saturday, replacing the older Tenebrae services. The General Instruction recommends public participation, and bishops are advised to join when possible. The newer format includes six psalms instead of 14, with candles extinguished after each one, plus two longer readings rather than three divided into nine sections. At the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem, the Tenebrae tradition ended only in 1977 due to arrangements with other churches. In 2007, Summorum Pontificum permitted use of the 1961 Roman Breviary, which several religious groups have adopted. Modern versions still exist, like those offered by the Jesuit Institute or the Canons Regular of Saint John Cantius, though they vary from original forms and have drawn little interest from composers.
Other Western Christian Churches
In some Protestant churches, the tradition of Tenebrae lives on, keeping elements of the Roman liturgy or adding their own touches. Lutheran and Anglican services, as well as Methodist and Reformed churches—like those in the Continental Reformed, Presbyterian, and Congregationalist traditions—often follow the pattern of slowly extinguishing candles and overhead lights, then bringing back the Christ candle, along with what's called the strepitus. Some liturgical Baptist groups also observe these services. And in less formal or non-denominational settings, variations of Tenebrae may still be held.
Lutheran practice
In Lutheran churches observing Tenebrae service, it's typically held on Holy Wednesday, also known as Spy Wednesday, because subsequent days—what's called the Paschal Triduum—have their own liturgies. For those holding it on Good Friday, the service usually takes place in the evening, since the main Good Friday liturgy, called Långfredagens gudstjänst in Swedish, is scheduled for 3 pm. During the service, lights are gradually dimmed and candles extinguished as it progresses. Toward the end, if present, the Christ candle is removed from the sanctuary. A final Strepitus, a loud noise made by slamming shut the Bible, represents the earthquake and the agony of creation at Christ's death. Some Tenebrae settings have become part of Lutheran tradition, including Jacob Handl's Ecce quomodo moritur justus and the Tristis est anima mea setting attributed to Johann Kuhnau.
-
Read this chapter
Overview
The practice of asking saints to pray for us, known as the invocation of the saints, is a belief held by several Christian traditions including the Catholic Church, the Eastern Orthodox Church, the Assyrian Church of the East, and some Lutheran and Anglican groups—particularly those with Evangelical Catholic or Anglo-Catholic perspectives. The idea is that saints in heaven can intercede on our behalf, which means they plead before God for us. This concept is tied to the 4th-century Apostles' Creed, which mentions the communion of saints. While the practice has roots as early as the 3rd century, it's not accepted by all Christian denominations, and some reject invoking saints while still supporting the idea that saints pray for the church. To intercede means to go between parties, and in Christian usage, this role is primarily seen as Christ's, followed by Mary, angels, and other saints.
Intercession of the living for the living
Paul writes in Romans that the living can pray for one another, asking God to hear their requests. At a wedding in Cana, Mary told Jesus there was no more wine, and he performed his first miracle at her request. In Job, when God was angry with the counselors who had spoken foolishly, he said that Job would pray for them and that he would accept that prayer. Moses asked God to forgive the people after they had sinned, and God forgave them as Moses had asked. The elders of the church are told to pray for the sick and anoint them with oil in the name of the Lord, for the sick person will be healed if they have sinned, they will be forgiven.
Intercession of the living for the dead
The apostle Paul’s letter to Timothy includes a prayer for Onesiphorus, a man who had supported Paul during his imprisonment, asking that the Lord give him mercy on the day of judgment. In the deuterocanonical book of 2 Maccabees, written around 100 BCE, there is a story of Judas Maccabeus sending money to Jerusalem for offerings on behalf of fallen soldiers, believing in the resurrection and thinking it was holy and wholesome to pray for the dead. He reasoned that if the dead did not rise again, praying for them would be useless, but because they had died godly men, he believed their souls were stored up in God’s presence, and that prayer could help them.
Intercession of the dead for the living
Early Christians adopted Jewish beliefs that heaven-bound figures like Onias, Jeremiah, and angels prayed for earthly people. Jesus said in Luke 15:7 that heavenly joy fills when sinners repent, and Hebrews 12:1 calls them a "cloud of witnesses." Fr. Lawrence noted this was part of first-century Church faith. Thomas Aquinas quoted Revelation 8:4, where incense—prayers of saints—rises before God. In 2 Maccabees 15:14–17, dead Onias III and Jeremiah prayed for Israel, with Onias saying Jeremiah "loves the brethren and prays much for the people and the holy city." The question from Job 5:1—"Call if you will, but who will answer you?"—is often raised by opponents of this belief.
Catholic
Catholic teaching holds that saints—both living and in heaven—pray for the church through the Communion of Saints mentioned in the Apostle's Creed. The Church teaches believers can ask saints for help in prayer, a practice called comprecation, and invoke them directly as intercessors. Early on, this was based on the idea that martyrs went straight to God and could offer blessings, leading to their direct invocation, with the cult of angels also influencing this. Gregory of Nazianzus said his father's prayers were more effective now that he was in heaven, and Jerome noted how much more powerful the intercession of the Apostles and Martyrs must be after their victories. The Council of Trent affirmed that saints reign with Christ and pray for us, and it is good to ask them for help. The Catechism of the Catholic Church explains that saints continue to intercede for us through Christ, offering up the prayers they earned on earth. Some scholars see this devotion as a response to how saints model Christ-likeness rather than as favor-seeking, and ecumenical discussions agree that asking saints to pray for us reflects the church's mutual support in Christ across time and life's various forms.
Lutheran
Evangelical Lutheranism believes in the communion of saints, as stated in the Apostle's Creed. The Lutheran confessions allow honoring saints by giving thanks for their examples of God’s mercy, using them to strengthen faith, and imitating their virtues. While most Lutheran churches accept that saints intercede for the Church, they reject invoking saints for help. The Augsburg Confession says saints do pray for the Church in general, but affirms Christ is the only Mediator between God and people. Some Lutheran groups, like the Evangelical Community Church-Lutheran, do affirm invoking saints. The Apology of the Augsburg Confession mentions that blessed Mary prays for the Church. Martin Luther supported using the older version of the Hail Mary, and the 1522 Betbüchlein kept this prayer.
Reformed
In Reformed churches following Calvinist theology, the communion of saints includes all believers—living and dead—but praying to departed saints violates the First Commandment. John Calvin, in his Institutes of the Christian Religion, taught that Scripture shows worship must center on direct prayer to God alone, citing Psalm 44: "If we have forgotten the name of our God, or stretched out our hands to a strange god, shall not God search this out?" He said all prayer should be made through Christ's intercession, pointing to Hebrews 13:15 that "without the intervention of his priesthood our lips are not pure enough to celebrate the name of God." Because of Christ's role, Calvin believed Christians can pray continually, as Paul taught in 1 Thessalonians 5:17. Calvin viewed prayers to saints as distrust—either not being satisfied with Christ as intercessor or robbing Him of that honor.
Anglican
The Thirty-nine Articles of 1563, shaped by Thomas Cranmer’s Reformed theology, reject what they call "invocation of saints," calling it "a fond thing, vainly invented, and grounded upon no warranty of Scripture." Anglicans distinguish this from a "Patristic" doctrine of intercession, permitting the latter while forbidding the former. They affirm the practice of "comprecation of the saints," which Bishop William Forbes described as "advocation of the saints." This means asking God to bless us through the prayers of the departed, not asking the saints directly. As Anglican theologian James Clark explains, in comprecation we acknowledge that the saints pray for us while maintaining that we pray only to God, avoiding idolatry. This practice is seen as both ancient and universally accepted within Christian tradition.
-
Read this chapter
Overview
Aiden Wilson Tozer was an American pastor, preacher, editor, and devotional writer who played a major role in 20th-century evangelicalism. Born on April 21, 1897, and passing away May 12, 1963, he was deeply rooted in evangelical theology and the Holiness movement, yet drew richly from premodern Catholic spiritual writers like Augustine of Hippo, Bernard of Clairvaux, Julian of Norwich, and John of the Cross. His influential books, including The Pursuit of God and The Knowledge of the Holy, highlight themes such as holiness, contemplative prayer, reverence, self-denial, and a deep awareness of God’s presence. Scholars have noted his connection to Protestant mysticism and the broader tradition of contemplative spirituality within evangelical Christianity.
Early life
A. W. Tozer came into the world on April 21, 1897, near La Jose, Pennsylvania, in a farming household. His family later relocated to Akron, Ohio, where his father secured employment in the area’s expanding rubber industry. In 1915, while listening to a street preacher urging people to call upon God for mercy, Tozer underwent a religious conversion. He initially connected with Methodism before joining the Christian and Missionary Alliance, where he began preaching despite having no formal theological education. He was largely self-taught, immersing himself in libraries and second-hand bookshops, reading widely in theology, church history, devotional works, philosophy, poetry, and Christian mysticism, drawing from traditions spanning Protestant, Catholic, medieval, Pietist, Quaker, and contemplative sources.
Ministry
A.W. Tozer began his pastoral work in 1919 with the Christian and Missionary Alliance, serving churches in West Virginia and Indiana before pastoring Southside Alliance Church in Chicago from 1928 to 1959. There, he drew students from Moody Bible Institute, Wheaton College, and others, drawn by his vivid language and emphasis on spiritual experience over formal speech. He became a leading voice in the denomination, serving on its board and rising to vice president twice. From 1950 onward, he edited The Alliance Weekly, later known as The Alliance Witness, reaching a wide audience through editorials, sermons, radio broadcasts, and books. In Toronto, he pastored Avenue Road Church, continuing his writing and preaching until his death.
Authorship
A. W. Tozer's writing career flourished in the 1930s with the Christian and Missionary Alliance press, where he first published biographies of A. B. Simpson and Robert A. Jaffray. His devotional works brought him wide recognition among evangelicals. Much of his influence came through frequent contributions to The Alliance Weekly, which mentioned or featured him more than 110 times between 1930 and 1941, including articles and sermons. He later became editor, using it as a major platform for his spiritual writing. Tozer published only nine books in his lifetime, including The Pursuit of God and The Knowledge of the Holy, the latter issued by Harper & Row and often seen as his greatest literary work. He did not permit his recorded sermons to be published during his life, believing spoken and written words were different forms. Many titles attributed to him later were compiled from unpublished editorials or recordings made by members of his Chicago and Toronto congregations.
Interior religion and the presence of God
True religion, according to A. W. Tozer, must be inward and experiential, not just external or institutional. In The Pursuit of God, he teaches that people have spiritual faculties through which they can directly know and commune with God. He describes genuine faith as conscious fellowship, a continuous exchange of love and thought between God and the soul. In the introduction to The Christian Book of Mystical Verse (1963), Tozer speaks of the evangelical mystic who lives in intimate fellowship with the Godhead, experiencing faith deeply within his being, unlike ordinary Christians who do not. This kind of spirituality is rooted in biblical truth and part of a broader Christian contemplative tradition.
Doctrine of God and worship
In The Knowledge of the Holy (1961), A. W. Tozer argues that how we think about God is the most important thing about us, calling inadequate thoughts a form of inward idolatry. He connects the spiritual weakness of modern Christianity to a diminished sense of divine majesty, saying a low view of God leads to “a hundred lesser evils.” The book presents theology not as an abstract system but as a call to worship, opening each chapter with prayer. Tozer insists that while God can be known through revelation, He remains beyond full human comprehension. He defines divine attributes as responses to God’s self-revelation and shows how these shape human life and destiny. For Tozer, true Christian living depends on a rightly ordered vision of God’s character.
Relation to Christian mysticism
A. W. Tozer drew from a wide range of Christian mystical and devotional writers, including Augustine of Hippo, Bernard of Clairvaux, John of the Cross, Julian of Norwich, and Brother Lawrence, among many others. His recommended reading list, preserved in a posthumous biography, shows his engagement with medieval, Catholic, Pietist, Quaker, and Quietist sources. Writers like François Fénelon, Jeanne Guyon, and Miguel de Molinos influenced him, as did works such as The Imitation of Christ and The Practice of the Presence of God. Tozer’s spirituality aligns with a broader tradition of contemplative life within Holiness, Keswick, and Quaker circles, placing him closer to the Keswick tradition than strict Wesleyan holiness. His mysticism retains evangelical characteristics such as biblical authority, Christocentrism, and a focus on conscious communion with God, distinguishing it from absorption or fusion mysticism.
Prayer and contemplation
A. W. Tozer promoted prayer valuing quiet, inward focus and simplicity over complex methods or rituals. He emphasized waiting on God, letting go of worldly desires, and staying aware of His presence. His approach was about attitude rather than technique, and those who knew him say he didn't use chanting, breathing exercises, or mantras. In A Guide to True Peace, he describes inward prayer as a silent, receptive way of listening to the Holy Spirit, which teaches virtues like humility and patience. This kind of prayer, he believed, was for all Christians, not just monks or clergy. Some have drawn connections between his teachings and Quietist spirituality, especially its focus on self-emptying and God's direct work in the soul. Yet Tozer's view still held firm to evangelical values like Scripture, obedience, and witness.
Read
Free to download, keep and share. For general information only — not professional medical, legal or financial advice. Please consult a qualified professional.