Wednesday, 10 June 2026

Stephen R. Holmes on Prayer


Stephen R. Holmes, Prayer: Answered in the End, Elements in Christian Doctrine (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2026).


The above short (70-page) book is available as a free pdf download until 23 June 2026.


Here is the summary:


‘Western academic analyses of the notion of answered prayer fail repeatedly to be attentive to claims that, within a specifically Christian theology, should be normative. The author proposes a theological construction, centred on the thesis that human beings are created to pray. Given this, the prayers of Jesus are paradigmatic for understanding human prayer. The author examines the ministry of Jesus under the rubric of the munus triplex, the threefold office, and on this basis, an exegetical account of the relationship of prayer and sacrifice is proposed, in which the transforming redemptive power of the sacrifice of Jesus makes possible the answering of prayer, even misdirected prayer. On this basis, a new account of how we should understand prayer being answered is offered, and this is developed into some modest reflections on the proper practice of prayer within Christian communities, paying specific attention to early English Baptist debates.’


The book can be downloaded as a pdf from here.

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