Spiritual Practices from IVP Formatio

Spiritual Practices from IVP Formatio View this email in your browser Contact IVP Watching Movies as a Spiritual Practice Dear Webmaster 220 Bible Study Blog (Rick),     One of the things I love about my husband is that he unabashedly cries during movies. It could be the music, the acting, the videography, the storyline, or a memory that the movie stirred in him that moved him to tears. While literature often moves me to tears, movies seem to be a pathway to his heart. So through him, I've witnessed the deep, enduring power of film. This has led to insightful and enjoyable conversations about culture, faith, relationships, and so much more. In this email newsletter, we're looking at the spiritual practice of watching movies. I'm looking forward to going through Abby Olcese's marvelous book, Films for All Seasons, this year. She creatively and insightfully connects the art form of film to the church calendar. She chooses some expected (The Mission) and unexpected movies (Barbie) that I believe will help many readers see the liturgical seasons in fresh ways. It could be an interesting practice to engage with your favorite movie as a prayer experience. Where do you see examples of God's character? Pay attention to moments of desolation and consolation within yourself and the characters. Are there any invitations from God that you're noticing? Abby includes in her book some very helpful questions for watching movies reflectively, too. One of our favorite movies is "What About Bob?" I can see how these prompts will be helpful in fully enjoying the film and engaging with it on a deeper level as we watch it for the fifth time this year! So, what's your favorite movie? Can you imagine watching it as a spiritual practice? Lori Neff Associate Director of Marketing Experiencing the Church Year at the Movies By Abby Olcese When I first started working as a film critic, I quickly found that the way I critically engaged with my faith and the way I looked at film used a similar process. As a critic, I ask myself many questions when I'm reviewing a movie, drawing on everything from writing to acting to artistic choices to technical aspects, to understand what the film I'm watching is trying to say, how it's trying to communicate those points, and whether I think it does so effectively. We also use a similar process to study the Bible. In a small group study, we might make initial observations on parts of a passage that stand out to us or pose a question a biblical commentary along with further discussion can help us answer. On our own, devotional guides can help us understand what we read in specific contexts or guide us on a biblical journey. When it comes to applying our critical understanding of a film to engaging spiritually with mainstream movies that might not have obvious spiritual content, combining elements of biblical devotional practice and art criticism can lead to rewarding results. Consider, for example, the devotional practice of lectio divina, which involves reading a scriptural passage three times, considering the same passage through a different lens each time. Keep Reading The life of the church is defined by stories, which we revisit through the pattern of the Christian year. In Films for All Seasons, Olcese invites us to reflect on the great themes of the church calendar through the lens of film. From superhero movies and Star Wars to classics and arthouse films, she chooses movies for each liturgical season and leads us through them with skill and infectious enthusiasm, exploring how each one can inform and deepen our appreciation of its corresponding season. Order Now Going Deeper Consider engaging in this breath prayer for the next 30 days. Begin each day by praying Psalm 51:15: "Open my lips, Lord, and my mouth will declare your praise." The breath prayer would look like this: Breathe in: Open my lips, Lord Breathe out: and my mouth will declare your praise. Notice any invitations from God or feelings that come up as you pray. Prayers for the Pilgrimage By W. David O. Taylor During the pandemic, priest and theologian David Taylor began writing collects (an ancient form of short prayer) as a daily spiritual exercise. It was a way for him to offer back to God his own fears and anxieties. As time went on, he began to receive requests for written prayers from friends and even strangers for a wide variety of circumstances and needs. His collection of prayers grew until it numbered in the hundreds, including many topics and seasons. Here, David offers a morning and evening prayer. Morning Prayer: O Lord, you who make new again and again, enliven the thoughts of my mind, revitalize the cells of my body, and cause a fresh outburst of praise to surge in my heart, I pray, so that I may taste the Life that is truly life this day. I pray this in the name of Jesus, the One whose Face is like the shining sun. Amen. Evening Prayer: O Lord, you who promise rest to the weary and heavy-laden, I offer to you my weary body, heavy-laden with the cares of this world, and I ask that you would speak your word of peace to it so that my body might be repaired through the watches of the night and arise in your grace. I pray this in the name of the One who gives strength to the weary. Amen. Keep Reading Prayers for the Pilgrimage is a compilation of Taylor's prayers, arranged by topic and accompanied by a series of paintings by his wife, Phaedra. Here are prayers for morning and evening, work and play, public life and private life, doubt and faith—from Advent to Lent, from birth to death. The Christian faith invites us to pray all of our lives back to God, lest we begin to believe that there is any part of our lives that God doesn't see or isn't interested in seeing. Prayers for the Pilgrimage gives us not only specific prayers but also a model for understanding our whole lives as prayer. Order Now You Might Also Enjoy Sacred Attachment (Coming January 2025) By Michael John Cusick Michael John Cusick voices the questions and contradictions that are inherently part of living an authentic spiritual faith. With raw honesty and vulnerability, he shares his own zigzagging path to God and reveals how brokenness and pain can become the gateway to experiencing joyful divine attachment. Because God's love has you, you can put aside fear and loneliness—and you can rest seen, soothed, safe, and secure in God's presence. Cusick's gentle, trauma-informed guidance lets you reimagine life with God in a way that repairs wounds and deeply satisfies your soul. The Riches of Your Grace By Julie Lane-Gay As we race to work in the morning, have coffee with a friend, or fall into bed exhausted, we want to feel God's presence, to sink into his grace. Yet too often he feels aloof, absent. Our prayers feel trivial. But as Julie Lane-Gay discovered, the Book of Common Prayer is designed for just this purpose: to root Christians in the riches of God's grace. Contemplative Vision By Juliet Benner While working as a docent in an art gallery, Juliet Benner began showing people how to meditate on Christian art treasures that are rooted in a passage of Scripture. She taught a way of encountering the Word behind both the words of Scripture and the artist's meditation on Scripture. This became a way of seeing art as an aid to contemplative prayer. "You'll have bad times, but it'll always wake you up to the good stuff you weren't paying attention to."   – Sean Maguire in Good Will Hunting Happenings IVP has started a new Book Club and all you have to do is show up for it! Learn more about the free IVP Just Show Up Book Club here: https://justshowup.ivpress.com In partnership with Richmont University - Christ-centered graduate program, specializing in counseling, spiritual formation, and ministry.  Visit the Conversations Journal store to purchase back issues you may have missed. Copyright © 2024 InterVarsity Press, All rights reserved.  You're receiving this email because you signed up at ivpress.com, at an event, or through a promotion. With every purchase from IVP, you are supporting the mission of InterVarsity to establish and advance witnessing communities on campuses around the globe. 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