Walter Brueggemann is Professor of Old Testament in the William Marcellus McPheeters Chair at Columbia Theological Seminary, Decatur, Georgia. His classic text Theology of the Old Testament is widely seen as a foundational work in the field. This volume contains 24 sermons and prayers.

This collection has been gathered and edited by one of Brueggemann's colleagues, Anna Carter Florence, who is Assistant Professor of Preaching and Worship at Columbia Theological Seminary. She is quite taken by a sermon adapted from a lecture at the Festival of Preaching in 2002 where he compares the art of homiletics to the diligent and creative work of scribes. The one that most impressed us is "On Signal: Breaking the Vicious Cycles" where he explains the celebration of Jubilee as an act of justice that breaks the spiral of accumulation, acquisition, greed, and monopoly. It is an inspiring sermon for anyone looking for a vision of the peaceable kingdom of God.

Brueggeman is especially good in his sermons on Old Testament texts which are in abudance here. Other topics covered include mercy, abundance, Pentecost, and bragging about the right stuff. The prayers here, like the ones in Awed to Heaven, Rooted in Earth, are stirring and creative.