A Handful of Prayers
Poems and Sonnets for the End of Modernity
by Peter Lilly
Imprint: Resource Publications
A Handful of Prayers is a collection of politically engaged and theologically searching poems that bring together provocations and reflections from a broad set of important and revolutionary thinkers, often overlooked within the Christian subcultures. These are poems of change, challenge, and unity that seek to explore and imagine hope, life, and honest community in a world of isolation.
Peter Lilly is a British poet who grew up in Gloucestershire. After studying theology and working with the homeless in London, he moved to the South of France in 2014. He lives in a rural village with his wife, Silje, and son Gabriel, where he concentrates on writing, community development, and English teaching. His is the author of the poetry collection An Array of Vapour (2023).
"Peter Lilly’s poetry offers us something all too rare—humble wisdom. Dialoguing with scripture and great writers, his voice is at turns sure and unsettled, knowing and curious. These are poems that speak to the hard truths of a fallen world while embracing poetry’s chief virtues—wonder, hope, and love."
— Whitney Rio-Ross, author of Birthmarks
"In these pages is a remarkable care of language and a rich generosity of spirit. Anyone who reads them will, I am sure, be wonderfully refreshed."
—Paul J. Pastor, author of Bower Lodge: Poems, and The Locust Years: Poems
“Perhaps poetry is itself a form of prayer and these well-crafted poems by Peter Lilly will give both literary pleasure and spiritual insight. If, as Lilly asserts in his fine sonnet on CS Lewis, ‘We are remade in every moment.’, then these poems offer a sequence of beautiful momentary remakings. This is a collection that will reward many re-readings.”
—Malcolm Guite, poet, priest, and life fellow, Girton College, Cambridge
“The art of being a theologian or pastor is demonstrated in the ability to inhabit a moment and to give it expression which, in turn, points us to the Lover of our souls. It is to take time with, and care over, words. This artistry privileges us to become poet to the soul, songwriter to the heart, shepherd to the mind. Peter's collection of poems and sonnets beautifully demonstrate his craftsmanship, and how well he has mastered the task. Time taken pondering this carefully crafted compilation can only aid the reader towards better achieving a similar goal in creating wordscapes that give expression to our shared humanity.”
—Graham McFarlane, director of research and senior lecturer in systematic theology, London School of Theology
“This is a fine collection of poems. Lilly weaves together the fine filaments of ordinary experience into a seamless tapestry. His sonnets on the Inklings are particularly good. It is a rare poet who can write well about ideas without becoming overly abstract and didactic, but Lilly achieves this admirably.”
—Landon Loftin, faculty, Gravitas: A Global Extension of The Stony Brook School