Sunday, October 14, 2007

Easy listening

This morning I checked a CD out of the church library called, "Listening to Luther," published by Concordia Publishing House, $14.99. It is delightful. I recommend it for your public library, church library, or your personal library. I wasn't confirmed in the Lutheran Church, so I didn't have the privilege of using Luther's Small Catechism, until a few years ago when it was used in one of our adult classes. We joined our congregation (formerly ALC, now ELCA) in 1976 and the catechism book we used was a mish-mash, rewrite with trendy 70s illustrations and photos. What a waste when we could have used the real thing!
    Product Description
    A wonderful devotional or personal study aid, this recording includes the Six Chief Parts from Luther's Small Catechism, Daily Prayers, Table of Duties, and the Christian Questions with Their Answers and the six catechetical hymns by Martin Luther. Also included is Luther's hymn, "Lord, Keep Us Steadfast in Your Word."

    A 12-page booklet explains the history of the Small Catechism and Luther's hymns, and lists complete text for all hymns.

    Written by Martin Luther in 1529 in question and answer format, the Small Catechism explores Six Chief Parts of Christian Doctrine: The Ten Commandments, the Apostles’ Creed, the Lord’s Prayer, the Sacrament of Holy Baptism, Confession, and the Sacrament of the Altar. Also included are daily prayers, a table of duties for Christians in their various callings in life, and a guide for Christians to use as they prepare to receive Holy Communion. Luther intended the catechism to be a prayer book for individuals and families and a powerful tool for the Christian life because it provides a brief, clear summary of God’s Word on the essentials of the Christian faith.

1 comment:

Rev. Paul T. McCain said...

Greetings in Christ,

Thanks for your post about our recording of the Small Catechism, and I'm glad you like it.

You might also be interested in a special edition of the Lutheran Confessions prepared for lay readers, that offers a lot of useful background information, context, explanation and so forth, for the documents that are core to our Lutheran identity.

The book is title:

Concordia: The Lutheran Confessions.

http://www.cph.org/concordia

Blessings in Christ,
Rev. Paul T. McCain
Publisher
Concordia Publishing House