"In short, the Psalms provide the language, the aspirations, the energy for the community as it comes together in prayer, & they then call into being & are formative for the activities of the prophets, wise men, & historians. The Psalms initiate; the prophets follow. The inner action of prayer takes precedence over the outer action of proclamation."
"The implication of this for pastoral work is plain: it begins in prayer. Anything creative, anything powerful, anything Biblical, insofar as we are participants in it, originates in prayer. Pastors who imitate the preaching & moral action of the prophets without also imitating the prophets' deep praying & worship so evident in the Psalms are an embarrassment to the faith & an encumbrance to the church."
Working the Angles
Eugene Peterson
1 comment:
Sean,
Working the Angles is a great book - especially for pastors. I read it years ago and found it profoundly effecting the way I do ministry and church. His analogy ofpastoral ministry as a equal-sided triangle, with equal angles is genius!
Holding together the ministry triangle by doing the work of PROCLAMATION of truth (prophet), ministering to the needs of PEOPLE(priest) and being a wise PROGRAMMER of church life (king) - require "working the angles" that hold them together: deep, worshipful PRAYER, receiving vulnerable, honest SPIRITUAL DIRECTION and enagging in the hard work of BIBLICAL STUDY.
Good stuff, indeed!
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