We ourselves are God’s art, and we might view the place where Christians gather as God’s studio, in which he seeks to shape us into the likeness of his Son, Jesus Christ. The question of who we are is therefore related to the question ‘to whom do we belong?’, and this question can be answered in terms of our being formed and refashioned by the Spirit to be Christ’s body in the world today.

The Art of God is a work of liturgical theology - showing the meaning of worship as the making of Christians. It explores the theological resources for this understanding, and mirrors the structure of the liturgy. The first part of the book explores the theological sources and resources from which we draw this understanding of Christian liturgy. The second part of the book looks at the formative effect of worship on its participants, particularly in sacramental celebration, specifically baptism and the Eucharist.

Christopher Irvine has been a university chaplain in Sheffield and Oxford, a parish priest in Oxford (Cowley St John) and is now the Principal of the College of the Resurrection, Mirfield. He teaches Art and Theology in the Department of Theology and Religious Studies at the University of Leeds, and courses in Anglicanism, Liturgy and Spirituality at Mirfield. He is also editorial secretary of the Alcuin Club, and his other books include Art and Worship, co-authored with Anne Dawtry, and They Shaped Our Worship.