Prayers Before a River

“Do you like to walk and talk with a friend by a river? John invites us to talk with God naturally, in ordinary daily life, as with a friend. Drawing on Celtic roots and inspired by the Psalms, John’s passions become his prayers, and ours too. Inching forward in life’s progress, or retreating slowly in pilgrim’s regress, we discover prayer as rapport with God. Try it!”


—Bruce Gillingham, Chaplain, Wycliffe Hall, University of Oxford





“George Herbert called prayer ‘heaven in ordinarie.’ In this multifaceted little book John Maher helps us appreciate how that connection between God and daily life can be seen and experienced here and now. He shows prayer to be a dynamic, moving thing, with its own contours of assumption, questioning, and correction. With freshness and authenticity, Maher writes about prayer not just as a topic or subject, but as a landscape he travels and knows well.”


—Michael Piret, Emeritus Fellow, Magdalen College, University of Oxford