THE LATEST NEWS
Rev. Sean Daenzer, Director of LCMS Worship, endorses Hamer’s new book
“Rev. Hamer is an unpretentious guide to open our ears to Bach’s music, our minds to John’s Gospel and the Passion’s libretto, and our hearts to the evangelical faith. Thoughtfully divided among the days of Lent, these devotions will help anyone turn a recording of the St. John Passion into a 40-day meditation on Christ’s glorious sacrifice. The musician will benefit from these theological insights into Bach’s famous work, as will the modern Lutheran preacher.”
Rev. Sean Daenzer, Director of LCMS Worship
and Chaplain at the LCMS International Center
O Perfect Life of Love is suitable not only for individual devotions but also for the entire family. Find for more details, purchasing information, and an excerpt here.
NEW BOOK: O Perfect Life of Love by Brian J. Hamer
We are pleased to release our newest title: O Perfect Life of Love: Daily Lenten Meditations on J.S. Bach’s St. John Passion. Author Brian J. Hamer is a pastor of the Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod and an active-duty Navy Chaplain. In addition to his experience in conducting and singing in choirs on both coasts, he writes and edits for a wide variety of publishers on theology, culture, and the arts.
As Hamer states in the Introduction, “It is probably just a coincidence that the New Bach Edition of the St. John
Passion by J. S. Bach (1685–1750) divides Bach’s masterwork into the same number of movements as there are days in Lent. This book of meditations places those forty movements of the St. John Passion as a literary and musical stencil over the forty weekdays of Lent—Ash Wednesday through Holy Saturday, excluding Sundays in Lent—to create a daily listening lectionary. I pray that this careful and deliberate approach to Bach’s masterwork—forty movements in forty days—will assist you, the reader/listener, in your Lenten piety as you behold the life-giving cross, on which was hung the salvation of the world.”
Both the German and English texts are provided to aid in listening, followed by a devotional meditation in which Hamer offers historical, musical, and theological commentary. Enrich your Lenten days by becoming acquainted with or ever more familiar with the St. John Passion through the lens of a Lutheran pastor and musician. Visit the book’s page to find more details, purchasing information, and an excerpt.
O Perfect Life of Love is suitable not only for individual devotions but also for the entire family. Find for more details, purchasing information, and an excerpt here.
Save up to 30% on Scratch & Dent books
Doing year-end inventory has the added benefit of setting aside titles for our Scratch & Dent sale. The content isn’t affected, yet you can save up to 30% on books with minor cosmetic flaws. Flaws include a fold or scratch on the cover, dented spine or corner, or a cover discoloration. (A Scratch & Dent sticker is placed on the inside cover.) A limited number of the following books are offered at reduced prices:
- Liber Hymnorum – now $26.25
- What an Altar Guild Should Know – now $9.00
- He Restores My Soul – now $13.50 (there are enough copies available for a small book group)
- He Remembers the Barren – now $11.25
- Apostolic Agenda – now $18.00
- God With Us – now $11.20
- Thy Kingdom Come – now $12.80
- Liturgical Forms – now $28.00
- Ceremony and Celebration – now $20.00
These prices will not be reflected each book’s page. Instead, you will need to contact us with your mailing address and order details to purchase any of these books. You are welcome to add any full-price items to your order. Standard shipping rates apply. After we receive your email, we’ll send you customized Paypal invoice with payment required within 24 hours.
Regarding Christmas cards: Does beauty matter?
Why send Christmas cards when an email will do?
Why send beautiful Christmas cards when any will do?
Our customers tell us that they intentionally seek out beauty in conjunction with a clear confession of Jesus. They want Scripture and hymn stanzas, not made-up greetings, that point to the birth of our Savior, who is Christ the Lord.
Every year, thousands of Emmanuel Press Christmas cards circulate throughout the world. We appreciate your support of our small business. A blessed Advent to you!
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God can use beauty to “arrest His people by their senses to awaken us from the slumbering economy of pragmatism” (Ramsey, Rembrandt Is in the Wind).
The Advent Wreath: An Excerpt
“The lighting of an Advent wreath during the Advent season is a Christian ceremony which has come down to us from about the time of Martin Luther. As before the birth of Christ the light of prophecy concerning His advent and His redemptive work became brighter and brighter, so the nearer we come in the church year to the feast of His nativity, the greater the amount of light from the Advent wreath. This ceremony is helpful for recalling, discussing, and teaching the significance of Advent.”
-An excerpt from Ceremony and Celebration, in which Rev. Paul H.D. Lang describes the theological significance and historic, confessional Lutheran position on liturgy, ritual, and ceremony.
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