The Homiletical Plot: The Sermon as Narrative Art Form

click here for more details, find new or used items	Eugene L. Lowry Our price £13.99 New from £8.06 Used from £6.20 Pages: 138 (Paperback) ISBN: 0664222641 Pub: Westminster/John Knox Press,U.S. Pub date: 2001-04-20 Amazon.co.uk Sales Rank: 174539

Reader Reviews:

A Prescription for Narrative Preaching (2/2 people found this helpful)

Eugene Lowry is Professor of Homiletics at He is also a preacher and a jazz pianist - the latter two being not unconnected. He has written a number of books on narrative preaching, of which this is the best known.

The Homiletical Plot suggests that preachers should structure their sermons according to the basic structure which underpins many stories. After all, Jesus told stories far more often than he gave three-point sermons!

According to Lowry's scheme the basic narrative plot has five parts:

1) Oops!--upsetting the equilibrium;
2) Ugh!--analysing the discrepancy;
3) Aha!--disclosing the clue to resolution;
4) Whee!--experiencing the gospel;
5) Yeah!--anticipating the consequences.

Lowry explains these in the chapters which form the heart of the book. It's good but I only gave four stars because it's a bit too theoretical for my taste. I would have liked some examples of sermons which used the format; these would have helped bring the ideas to life.

I have never constructed a sermon in the way that Lowry outlines; nevertheless, I do sometimes use his schema to check the structure of my own sermons and I find that they often follow his structure. In such cases the book can be useful for refining what I've already done.

Overall a good book; any preacher will benefit from reading it.

Add some storytelling to your sermon (5/5 people found this helpful)

This is an excellent book for those involved in preaching and teaching the word of God. After reading this book, one important fact stayed with me. That is "pay attention to detail." When relating a story or parable, Lowry emphazises that every detail must be included. Like a movie director, those of us involved in preaching are encouraged not to give away the"plot" but to keep the congregation in "suspense."

I recommend this book.

Preachers are meant to be story-tellers (6/6 people found this helpful)

Lowry challenges the usual preaching style (tell them what you're going to say, say it, then tell them what you've said). He says no good storyteller gives away the climax of a story like that. Rather, sermons should be stories with: plot, tension, climax, etc. The book was easy to read, and his advice for sermon preparation has been very instructive. Experientially, the times I have used this approach, I have gotten many favorable comments on the sermons.

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