Description:
Illuminating Advent Through Diverse Voices from Early Christianity
In Candles in the Darkness, historian Lynneth Miller Renberg and theologian Adam R. Renberg invite us to travel back in time and encounter faithful voices from many walks of life, including bishops and mothers, monks and nuns, priests, pastors, and noblewomen.
For each day of Advent and the Christmastide, this thoughtful devotional will connect you to the global and historical body of Christ, offering a new, deeper experience of the season through rediscovering treasures from Christians of long ago.
The writers featured in Candles in the Darkness lived throughout the early Christian world, from Scandinavia and the British Isles to Ethiopia and China. They include well-known leaders such as Augustine of Hippo and Francis of Assisi, as well as many largely forgotten figures. With a variety of sermons, poems, theological meditations, and more, these selections draw you into the wonders of Christ's first and second comings. Through biographical sketches at the end of the book, you'll learn more about each historical believer.
Each daily reading for Advent and the twelve days of Christmas includes
- a Scripture text,
- an excerpt from an author from the second through thirteenth centuries,
- a devotional reflection, and
- a prayer.
By reflecting on the perspectives of women and men from different chronological, geographic, and theological traditions in the ancient and medieval church, your readings of familiar Scripture passages will be enriched with new perspectives and insights from past brothers and sisters in Christ. As you worship and learn together with them, you'll be reoriented toward Christ, our light in the darkness.
When your spiritual life feels stagnant, the world feels too noisy, or Advent feels like just another repetitive season, Candles in the Darkness can help you know God more fully by seeing him through the eyes of past believers.
Brief description:
Lynneth Miller Renberg (PhD, Baylor University) is associate professor of history and associate director of the Honors College at Anderson University. She is the author of a number of publications, including Women, Dance, and Parish Religion in England, 1300-1600 and The Cursed Carolers in Context.
Review Quotes:
"It's always heartening when serious academics use their deep and wide learning to resource Christian lives. Advent and Christmastide are times of looking for light in darkness and for orientation. The testimonies and wisdom gathered here outdate and outlive the vicissitudes and crises of our generation and should help to anchor the soul at this special time of year."
--Mark W. Elliott, professorial fellow at Wycliffe College and author of Psalms 42-72 (International Theological Commentary)