Gary Neal Hansen used to think he had a peculiar prayer life, because his prayers were unlike those of people around him. In studying the prayer habits of great figures from church history, he soon realized he was not so unusual.
In Kneeling with Giants: Learning to Pray with History's Best Teachers (InterVarsity Press), Hansen, professor of church history at the University of Dubuque Theological Seminary, introduces readers to an amazing variety of long-neglected prayers and practices. He resurrects the prayer methods of spiritual heroes like St. Benedict, Martin Luther, John Calvin, Ignatius of Loyola, Teresa of Avila, and Andrew Murray, and commends specific utterances like the Jesus Prayer and the Divine Office. Elesha Coffman, former managing editor of Christian History, spoke with Hansen about the value of ecumenical openness to different varieties of prayer.
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