Can God Come Out to Play?: Liturgy Ceremony Ritual

Liturgy is not a religious frill or Sunday morning ceremonial exercise. It is a communal response to the sacred. The liturgies, ceremonies, and rituals in our lives are the stuff of reality and have the power to heal and inspire us. From archaic times they have had this capacity, as they have always been our interaction with God and the gods. This book is filled with essays and stories, ancient and modern. Some of its liturgies are tried and proven, creative, ecumenical services of worship and others are nonreligious, spirit-filled events. Can God Come Out To Play? is aimed at those who are looking for a spiritual approach to today's challenges and are interested in imaginative forms and methods to guide them. Educators, clergy, divinity students, event facilitators, care workers, and environmentalists will appreciate this book as a valuable resource. And all its readers will have one thing in common--a willingness to recognize God as their mysterious, playful companion. ""In this delightful gem, Sally reminds us that 'to recover a sensual spirituality is to recover a biblical one.' From 'The Feast of Fools' to 'Liturgies of Naming, ' she stresses the importance of ritual being meaningful. Convinced that artists and linguists are among the prophets of our time, she encourages us to call on their imagination. On pilgrimage or on the labyrinth, she is continually asking 'What time is it now?' Time, it seems, to be playmates with God. Have fun!"" --Fred J. Hiltz, Archbishop, Primate, Anglican Church of Canada Sally Armour Wotton, originally an actor in New York City, is now a professor of storytelling and of sacred writing at Trinity College School of Divinity, University of Toronto. She, with Kelly Walker and Alexandra Caverly-Lowery, founded Sacred Acts: a consortium of artists who have facilitated liturgies for education, worship, and the workplace across Canada. Sally is the author of We The Storytellers: Blending Our Stories with God's Story, 2013.Read less