My Facebook conversations with Jim (and his appeal to keep the blog updated) have convinced me to move from Facebook to Blogger for a few minutes to write about my current read.
Orange is my least favourite colour, so on that very superficial observation I almost didn’t pick up the best book I’ve read so far this year! I’m now more than halfway through Fr. James Martin’s excellent new book, The Jesuit Guide to (Almost) Everything, and I should have known it would be hard to put down after gobbling up his last book, My Life With the Saints! It is SO readable; you could compare it to an easy going conversation with a good friend. Considering the topics covered, that’s saying a lot! (Lectio Divina, the Spiritual Exercises, the Vows, discernment, how to find God, how to pray, where to start etc.) I took it to chapel for spiritual reading, and almost (but not enough to stop) felt guilty for enjoying it so much.The Ignatian goal is to “find God in all things”. If you want practical and realistic ways to apply this to your own life, please get a copy of the book. I loved the stories, the examples, the humour, and the wisdom that can be applied right now where you are. Fr. Martin is able to take the gems of Jesuit Spirituality and translate them for absolutely anyone.
If you want to know how you can find God – and how God can find you– in your messy, busy, difficult, complicated life, this book would be a good place to start. Books like these are worth their weight in gold, even if they’re orange.
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2 comments:
I had seen this book many times, and like you, just did not like the cover, which made me think it was frivilous or just some lame comedy deal.
Thou changest my mind!
This is also the best book I have read all year. However, the brilliant cover is what first attracted me to it! Father Martin's writing is highly accessible, so no matter what degree of religious education you have, you can take it in. And still, if you want to entertain profound ideas and explore how the Jesuit order has historically grappled with life's spiritual questions, you will be satisfied as well. Be sure to take a look at it.
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