(New York, NY) – Many of us have difficulty hearing the Bible as it is read to us in church Sunday after Sunday through the year. Even with the best intentions we come to the Word of God “cold” because we have not been given the skills and the preparation to hear and understand the content of Scripture.

For more than a generation, worship leaders, educators, and church members have come to rely on Introducing the Lessons of the Church Year, by Frederick Borsch, first published in 1978. The Right Reverend Dr. Borsch returns with the Rev. George Woodward to present this thoroughly revised new edition, updated to the Revised Common Lectionary, and available now from Morehouse Publishing:

This new one-volume resource is an ideal tool for Christian formation as well as homiletical preparation. The style is clear, straightforward, well grounded in biblical scholarship, and Anglican in its theological approach. Brief and insightful introductions to all the readings of the church’s three-year lectionary cycle are designed to sharpen our listening and increase comprehension of Scripture by summarizing each passage, setting it in a liturgical and historical context, connecting it to the season, and drawing out its relevance to our lives and faith, week by week. Extra features include an essay on the Bible and Christian formation, five brief use guides, an index to the biblical readings, and a summary of the seven most common Bible translations used in church services.

FREDERICK BORSCH, retired Episcopal Bishop of Los Angeles, is Chair of Anglican Studies at the Lutheran Theological Seminary at Philadelphia and author of numerous books, most recently Day by Day, meditations on the famous prayer of Richard of Chichester. GEORGE WOODWARD is Rector of Episcopal Church, San Marino, California where he has served since 1995. He is chair of the Program Group on World Mission for the Diocese of Los Angeles and is especially involved in human rights and development work with the Anglican Church of El Salvador.