Preaching in the Light of the Word: Enlivening the Scriptural Imagination
by Michael E. Connors, CSC
Why should you read this? This collection of papers amplifies the good work of the University of Notre Dame’s Marten Program Preaching conference accomplished at their June 2022 conference, titled ““Living in the Light of the Word: Enlivening the Scriptural Imagination.” In this collection of papers, experienced preacher and homiletics teacher, Rev. Michael Connors, CSC, assembles a diverse group of preachers, practitioners, and theologians to explore the ministry of preaching. Methods in preaching which engage the imagination (Thomas Long), approaching preaching as a relational ministry of preacher to hearers (Benjamin Roberts), and defining the role of lay preaching in the modern church (Layla A. Karst, Sara Fairbanks, OP, and Oscar Castellanos) all present the reader with key contours necessary in the renewal of the ministry of the word in the modern Church.
What’s the main point? The Second Vatican Council called for the renewal of biblical preaching, a call resounding in The Interpretation of the Bible in the Church, Verbum Domini, Evangelii Gaudium, and other documents. Yet, the realization of this hope, moving from the study of scripture to homily construction “confounds many of us in a singularly paralyzing way” (Connors, vii). The papers collected invite preachers to practice opening Biblical texts for preaching to the faithful. They key thematic focus is the use of the imagination, not only considering the world “behind the text,” understanding the social and historical period which shaped the text itself, but encouraging the preacher to hone the ability to connect with hearers by drawing daily life and the Gospel together. As Connors describes, biblical preaching should not only be imaginative, but encourage the imagination, one which looks to the eschaton, encouraging the hope that another world is “thinkable, imaginable, possible” (Connors, x).
Why is this book useful / practical? Those engaged in the ministry of preaching might find some of the more methodological essays particularly constructive: such as Robert A. Krieg and Brandon R. Peterson’s “The Cross: Five Homiletic-Pastoral Approaches,” or Gary Anderson’s very helpful “Preaching from the Whole Bible,” reminding us of the crucial context of the Old Testament for interpreting the New. Others engaged in pastoral ministry more widely may appreciate some of the essays which remind us of the Conciliar vision which sought to fill the faithful with the food from the table of the word, along with the bread of life, as Rita Ferrone explores in her essay, “Receiving the Sunday of the Word of God.”
What intrigued me the most? As a church musician, I particularly enjoyed J. Michael Joncas’ piece on “Music and Preaching.” Aside from helpfully reminding us of locations in Roman Ritual books which discuss the significance of musical texts, Joncas invites Roman Catholics to consider a tradition more commonly employed by Reformed Congregations: the “Hymn of the Day”—a wonderful opportunity to “engage imaginatively the Scriptures appointed for the day” (Joncas, 80).
Quibble. A collection of conference papers has great advantages in capturing the dynamism and diversity of topics and persons. One challenge for readers expecting a more consistently paced volume might be found in a bit of unevenness across some of the papers which, while constructive and informative, retain the flavor and style of an oral presentation more so than a written document.
Kudos. I was enriched by reading this book, finding it a valuable series of snapshots of significant pastoral issues attending the practice and ministry of preaching in the contemporary Church. I am grateful for the good work presented here!
Michael E. Connors, Ed., Preaching in the Light of the Word: Enlivening the Scriptural Imagination, Liturgy Training Publications, 2024, 209 + xi. ISBN 978-1-61671-779-7
REVIEWER: Katharine E. Harmon
Katharine E. Harmon, Ph.D., is Project Director for the Obsculta Preaching Initiative at Saint John’s School of Theology and Seminary in Collegeville, Minnesota. A Roman Catholic pastoral liturgist and American Catholic historian, Harmon is a graduate of the University of Notre Dame’s liturgical studies program. She has contributed over a dozen articles and chapters to the fields of both liturgical studies and American Catholicism. She is the author of There Were Also Many Women There: Lay Women in the Liturgical Movement in the United States, 1926-1959 (Collegeville: Liturgical Press, 2013) and Mary and the Liturgical Year: A Pastoral Resource (Chicago: Liturgy Training Publications, 2023). She co-edits the blog, Pray Tell: Worship, Wit & Wisdom.