Journey into the Heart of God is a captivating exploration of the history and evolution of the Church Year: the cycle of seasons in the Christian tradition that begins with Advent and culminates with Easter and is marked by the celebrations of saints, feast days, and the reading of Scripture as appointed by the Church.Primarily through deft examination of the Western Church, Philip H. Pfatteicher reveals how the liturgical calendar has been transformed over thousands of years. It is a work of art--the collaborative achievement of generations of hands and minds. He shows how the church year dramatizes and grounds the strange complexity of the human experience and how it encourages honesty, humility, growth, and maturity in those who live by it.Pfatteicher also offers insight into the liturgical texts of the Eucharist, the less familiar Daily Office, and the people's theology voiced in hymns from a broad spectrum of ancient and modern traditions. It will be an indispensable resource for both clergy and laity in the liturgical denominations, including Catholicism, Lutheranism, and Anglicanism.

ContentsPrefaceIntroductionChapter 1. Anno Domini: Time and HistoryChapter 2. AdventChapter 3. ChristmasChapter 4. EpiphanyChapter 5. Quadragesima. LentChapter 6. The Great and Holy WeekChapter 7. Pascha: The PentecostChapter 8. Ordinary [ordered] TimeChapter 9. The Sanctoral CalendarChapter 10. Into the Heart of GodBibliographyA Short GlossaryNotesIndex