Rowman & Littlefield Publishers
•
Trim: 6 x 9
978-0-7425-4384-3 • Paperback /Audio disc • January 2005 • $39.00 • (£30.00)
Subjects: Religion / Inspirational,
Religion / General,
Religion / Biblical Meditations / General,
Religion / Biblical Studies / General,
Religion / Christian Living / General,
Religion / Christian Rituals & Practice / General,
Religion / Devotional,
Religion / Holidays / General,
Religion / Holidays / Easter & Lent,
Religion / Meditations,
Religion / Prayer,
Religion / Prayerbooks / Christian,
Religion / Spirituality
Richard Young is the violist of the Vermeer Quartet. As producer of the Vermeer Quartet's CD of The Seven Last Words of Christ, he has organized all their public performances of this work.
Chapter 2 A Musical and Spiritual Odyssey
Chapter 3 The Introduction
Chapter 4 "Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do."
Chapter 5 "Surely, I say to you, today you will be with me in paradise."
Chapter 6 "Woman, behold your son!" "Behold your mother!"
Chapter 7 "My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?"
Chapter 8 "I thirst."
Chapter 9 "It is finished!"
Chapter 10 "Father, into your hands I commend my spirit."
Chapter 11 The Earthquake
Part 12 Postludes
Chapter 13 The Words and the Music
Chapter 14 The History of Meditation on Jesus' Seven Last Words
Chapter 15 Christ's Final Utterances in Today's World
Chapter 16 Looking Back, Summing Up
Chapter 17 Postlude
Offers a musical and spiritual odyssey into the words of Christ on the cross.
— Phil Anderson; Topeka Capital-Journal, (Ks)
Almost every page offers some fresh insight.
— Peter Steinfels; The New York Times
Every day we must yield our spirit to grace. We can do so stubbornly, reluctantly, with protests and complaints. We can curse the dimming of the light. Or we can go gracefully into the night as Jesus did, firm in the knowledge that is safe to say, 'It is finished.'
— Andrew M. Greeley
And so, I'm going away this morning—I don't know about you—but I'm going away determined that wherever he leads me, I will follow. I will follow him to the Garden. I will follow him to the Cross if he wants me to go there...Not my will, but thy will be done! And when you can cry that, you can stand up amid life with an exuberant joy. You know that God walks with you.
— Martin Luther King Jr.
'I thirst'—words from the Cross; words heard in the midst of drought stricken lands, in the poverty of inner cities, in the midst of wars. I thirst—words of spiritual emptiness heard in urban centers, in green groves and on barren plains. Perhaps our greatest challenge is to find the deep wells of physical and spiritual nourishment that will slake the thirst of a wounded and weary world.
— Grover A. Zinn
Young men should not die. Parents should not experience the death of their children…. And so a small, poignant, tragic and personal moment happens in the midst of events that will loom large in human history—the crucifixion of God's son, the death, for the salvation of humankind, of Jesus the Christ. And in the midst of its terrible beauty a touchingly personal event: a son watching his mother watch him die.
— John M. Buchanan
... we hear Haydn with new ears, and he helps us to hear Jesus with new ears... This book is an excellent aid to structuring intention and a richly rewarding way to spend slow time.
— Christianity Today
Young, the violinist for the world-famous Vermeer quartet at Northern Illinois Univerisity, brings together some outstanding reflection and commentary on the seven words, from luminaries such as Martin Marty, Jean Bethke Elshtain, Peter Gomes, Martin Luther King, Jr., and Andrew Greeley...This marvelous pairing of music and great preaching will inspire Christians of many different traditions.
— Publishers Weekly
This splendid offering is a labor of love from many hands... highly recommended...
— Graham Christian; Library Journal
...a perfect combination of words and music designed for Lent...For those who've loved Haydn's work over the years, this will bring a deeper level of appreciation. For those who are not as familiar with this work, the book and CDs are a wonderful introduction to what is sure to become a much-loved Lent tradition.
— Nancy Jeffery; Arkansas Democrat-Gazette
Richard Young's spiritual journey is very well done and interesting, as a kind of personal statement that has worthwhile reflection . . . This is a respectful book, as one might expect and I think it is full of hope. These are meditations of the heart for Good Friday and Holy Week. Through the music and the text of the meditations, one follows the Christ and knows something of his spirit.
— The Examiner, November 19, 2009