Preaching Better

Description Reviews

Most homilists can do better, and this book gives them the hands-on help they need to make that happen. Preaching Better is a compendium of practical advice by a bishop who preaches and who teaches the art of preaching. Here one can find wise, helpful and down-to-earth suggestions on the “how” of homiletics.

The book is experience driven, based on the insight of people who preach well and those who know a good sermon when they hear it. Both novices and long-time preachers can learn:

What a homily is and isn’t

How to begin and end homilies

Preparing homilies: writing, editing and staying in control

How to use stories and connect with real life

The problems of sidebars, jargon and props

Keeping the homily personal but not self-cantered

Interaction with the assembly

“In years gone by,” writes the author, “I pictured the homilist as a cook who looks to see what's in the pantry and the refrigerator (the readings), come up with a menu (the ‘main thought’) puts the meal together... and then serves it. What I've become more conscious of is that the homilist comes into a kitchen that is filled with the smell of something already cooking, and it is the Lord who is doing it. The liturgy is the Lord’s meal all the way around: the menu, the cooking, the serving. We are helpers.”