3 comments about Entering the Silence: Becoming a Monk and a Writer (The Journals of Thomas Merton, V. 2).

1. Thomas Merton's journals take up here in the momonastery in Gethsemani abbey in Kentucky in the 1940"s. An expurgated version of these entries has previously been published as THE SIGN OF JONAS,my personal favorite before the publication in the late 1990's of these unexpurgated diaries.Here we see the dutiful young monk, full of the zeal of the newly converted, seeing all of his brothers as "signs of God's wonder and Mercy." Needless to say, the tomne shifts slightly as the aura of conversion wears a bit, and Merton is given time to write. One of his most famous pieces done while he was on watch in the abbeys fire tower is included here, without the editing. Firewatch in and of itself is worth the price of the book. We begin to see here Mertons wish for a life of more seclusion, and here he mentions the Carthusians and the camaldolese as possible places he could find that solitude.{a wish that he held,apparantly until the end of his life]Merton's insaitable curiousity,his honesty in dealing with himself and his foibles, and his crystaline perceptions on the life of the spirit are being formed here in this volume. Indispensible for Merton fans, and welcomed to any who seek the path trod by a spiritual giant, and a very honest man.



2. When Thomas Merton retreated from the civilized mainstream to enter the Trappist Monastery at Gethsemani, an unknowing observer might view his spiritual struggle as ending, becoming completely lost in the routine of monastic life, its repetition and overt acceptance of spiritual discipline. The battle against personal desire versus group obedience to higher powers beyond flesh and blood one would assume to have been a forgone conclusion. Merton brilliantly shows us, however, that within the souls of men the battle still rages. And it is how he dealt with that struggle that makes this book so marvelous. His caring and loving approach to life and others is tempered with griping about the choir's proficiency, the demands of writing within the monastic framework, the lack of understanding by superiors and comrades in spiritual arms concerning his shifting spiritual needs, for solitude, quiet and letting God sort things out for him, vice pushing his own, highly tempered will into the whirling mixture that made up this complex, brilliant man. The writing is first rate, his descriptions of the surrounding countryside are marvelously genuine as is his analyis of himself and his motives. (like to move onto a more strict, Carthusian order to reach the apotheosis of perfect contemplation). This book is a good building block for future reading of this author and I would recommend reading the entire biography/journals before even wandering into the not so clearly written efforts of Merton's theological books. Many thanks to the publisher for finally making such great writing available!!



3. The second of Merton's private journals in a series of seven, editor John Montaldo brings out the struggle that Thomas Merton, already a noted writer and critic, endured during his earliest monastic days (1940-early 1950s). Merton tackles a sort-of internal battle between the man who writes in the wee hours, and communicates with his New York society friends (among them was poet Mark van Doren!), and the monk who seeks to live out the Rule of St. Benedict to its fullest extent. First time Merton readers might be lost, but Montaldo skillfully fills in the details so that all readers will be able to focus on the struggle between man and Creator. Seasoned Merton fans will be given a deeper appreciation for the writer and devout monastic that emerged as a result of that internal confrontation. Not something to pass over!

2 comments about Tormented: 8 Years and Back.

1. I truly enjoyed reading this book.It pointed out spiritual pitfalls that A spiritually naive person may get into without knowing where to go for help. The story came from the author's personal life experiences.Excellent.



2. Peggy shares her story of becoming entangled in mental illness as a result of demonic oppression and the long journey she went through to find the answer to her problem. She does not glorify the devil or sensationalize her story; it is very practical and she gives excellent instruction on how to renew your mind and stay free. This book is helpful for those who need more freedom in their lives and for people who work in the area of deliverance. I found myself glued to her story and couldn't put the book down! This is one of the best books I've read on the areas of deliverance and renewing the mind. Peggy glorifies Jesus and the Word of God.

1 comments about Robert B. Thieme, Jr. - His Ancestry, His Life.

1. A very interesting book that was quite an eye opener. It is filled with all sorts of information that kind of explodes some things that Thieme asserted about himself and his studies/credentials. This book sheds a lot of light on a lot of Things regarding R. B. Thieme and his ministry. I would recommend this book; it is a short, interesting read.

5 comments about Saint Therese of Lisieux (Penguin Lives).

1. I read Saint Therese of Lisieux (A Penguin Lives book) this week. The style and subject are appropriate for the series, and I appreciate the author's presenting a story to a public that may not generally be interested in haggiography and knows little about St. Therese. However, the saint's brief life troubles me, as it calls into question the process of cannonization itself. Ms Harrison repeatedly turns to Therese's abandonment by mother figures as an explanation of decisions that readers of Penguin LIVES books may not understand. In the saint's illness, though, it becomes increasingly evident that the church and religious community fed the young woman's mortifications to the point of cruelty -- from which they soon profited both financially and by reputation as the convent of a saint.
   
   Therese's younger sister Celine's role especially interests me. Her photos documented not only a life, but also a way of living that was of interest, but largely unknown, to those outside. In the nineteenth century, particularly, storytelling through photos must have been a radical form of art. In truth, the photo of St. Therese on the cover of the book is what caught my attention when I was browsing the general section in a bookstore. As I understand it from Harrison's account, Celine's calling to the religious life was not a clear one from God. To be charitable, Therese "mediated" the message; "coercion" is another word that might be used.
   
   Towards the end of the book, Harrison describes the historical context of Therese's writing .. the vocation of "invalid" against a backdrop of changing roles for women. I find this "vocation" sad, today, in light of what I have seen and read. I'd either like to see additional annecdotal and statistical evidence, or I'd like to see a comparison between the process of canonization for St Therese vs. the same process in a Post-Vatican II age.
   
   It surprises me that there was such a huge showing of the faithful during the 1999 showings of St Therese's reliquary. (1.1 million people saw it in 106 cities.) I can understand a contemporary interest in the photographs, but a new justification of the process of canonization is called for, not adoration of the victim. I pity her and have sympathy for her blood sisters and the nuns of her convent who were trapped in the process.
   
   Her life is a sobering lesson.
   
   Shirley McKee +



2. "Saint Therese of Lisieux" is a short story of a short life. Drawn largely from Therese's own writings and the recollections and testimony of acquaintances, it provides an up close view of a holy life.
   
   Therese is a saint who pursued sanctity by seeking "nothingness" within the Carmel of Lisieux and yet became the patroness of missionaries and one of the most popular saints of the past century.
   
   This book provides an introduction to the spiritual life of late 19th Century France, in which religious life was at its greatest popularity, and the particular environment of her convent. It also gives an insight into the attraction of Therese to the world since her death. I find the popularity of Therese and St. Francis of Assisi to be puzzling. Our world generally esteems those who give their lives in service to others, not in those who seek self mortification as their road to salvation, but in their cases, this is the model which the world embraces. The book alludes to Therese's writings, but really does not, in my estimation, make the case for her immense popularity. This book is a good introduction to her life, but I am left searching for her charism.



3. Harrison shows us a Therese who often wept but who also had a gift for restraining her emotions; who's self-understanding was influenced by her dreams, even while she discounted the value of dreams; who had an unusual preadolescent disorder involving involuntary muscular movements which sometimes even threw her out of her bed; and who longed for purgation by spiritual fire. And Harrison did it with literary flair. I loved it. Now I'm reading The Kiss.



4. Kathryn Harrison writes triumphantly about Therese Martin the Saint of Lisieux. Her biography captures the historical character from childhood to her death at age 24 years. Harrison portrays the life of Therese amidst the context of the late 19th Century. The focus of the book is on the family life and the convent life of Therese and her seemingly constant struggle to rest in perfect devotion to God to whom she had sacrificed her life.
   
   Harrison writes exquisitely of Therese, but she writes at times from a freudian, humanistic point of view, somehow missing or misunderstanding the mysticism of Therese's life that is the one characteristic that makes her life remarkable. I think this comes from the writer discounting the reality of Therese's constant communion with God.
   
   I recommend this book because it illustrates the power of a quiet life lived in the love and service of God. Harrison successfully shows the effect of one life lived fully for God unselfishly and sacrificially. The final pages offer a brief glimpse of the enormous impact Therese has had on people since the time immediately following her death.
   
   Craig Stephans, author of Shakespeare On Spirituality: Life-Changing Wisdom from Shakespeare's Plays



5. Unfortunately this was the only biography of Therese in my local public library. All biographies are to some extent seeing the subject thru a lens, but this lens filters out much of what is of the most value in Therese's writings in my opinion. This biographer seems unable to dive into or convey much of Therese's spirituality, due to a lack of understanding or excessive skepticism of spiritual experience. Biographer doesn't seem to be convinced that spiritual experiences are real. She continuously suggests that Therese's spirituality may be just neuroses and offers up superficial pop-psychological comments for every spiritual experience. Its like a biography of a mountaineer but the biographer is not at all sure that mountains really even exist at all, and they may be a figment of the fevered imagination. Biographer thinks this point of view is attuned to what "contemporary readers" expect but it just ends up missing most of whats there spiritually.

3 comments about Take the Dimness of My Soul Away: Healing After a Loved One's Suicide.

1. We lost our son to suicide and I found this a very comforting book. You can read it in one night but the message is great. All I can say it can happen to any family.



2. This book has been very helpful to my family since my brother's suicide, in fact so helpful my mother and stepfather ordered multiple copies for the extended family and I have ordered copies for church and friends. Having lived through the suicide death of his son, the author is able to put into words the horrible grief such a loss generates.This is a spiritual, not a clinical, perspective on suicide. Rev. Ritter is very open and honest in sharing his feelings and thoughts. I found comfort and hope for healing in this book.Between us we have read several books and the consensus is this is the best.



3. Although Reverend Ritter bases his book on sermons given after his son committed suicide, his words are relevant for anyone who is experiencing the agony of loss and at any stage of the journey. This small book is honest, powerful, comforting, and hopeful.

1 comments about The Complete Idiot's Guide to Jesus.

1. i've read over a thousand christian commentaries. this is one of the better. a few parts are dry but mostly an overall pretty good read.

No comments about The She-Apostle: The Extraordinary Life and Death of Luisa de Carvajal.

3 comments about St. Andrews Seven.

1. I just received this book a month ago for my birthday and have already read it twice! It has easily shot to number two behind Hudson Taylor's Spiritual Secret on my list of Ridiculously Awesome Books on the Missionary Task.
   
   "Seven" is the story of six young students and their professor who were at the forefront of a season of missionary zeal in Scotland in the early 1800's. The book tells their story compellingly and succinctly, letting the profound testimony of these students lives leave you speechless. To give you a hint at the caliber of these students, one of them dies at the young age of 18... and the biography his friends write of him takes two volumes. How many of us at 18 had accomplished enough for a chapter in a biography, let alone a volume, let alone two volumes???
   
   Here's some quotes that hit me in the gut... maybe they'll whet your appetite and you'll go buy this book, read it, get convicted, and become a missionary:
   
   "They are a rebuke to those who never get past dabbling with the world-wide mission of the Church."
   
   "They also saw that faith must be personal, but its practice should not be private."
   
   "Our response to Christ's commands should be determined by what we can do in His strength, not by what we might fail to do in ours."
   
   "It is by dint of steady labour - it is by giving enough of application to the work, and having enough of time for the doing of it - it is by regular painstaking and the constant assiduities - it is by these, and not by any process of legerdemain, that we secure the strength and the staple of real execellence."
   
   "From seven to nine in the evening I am engaged with J. Urquhart in collecting, under specific heads, all possible information on the subject of missions, both from Scriptures, under the titles of precepts - prophecies - promises and examples, and from all other books whatever we can lay our hands on; the object of this is, with our united prayers, to seek a sober determination of the enquiry, whether or not we ought to embark on this enterprise." (From the journal of one of the students, John Adam)
   
   "Only one thing seemed to matter: to discover God's will and do it."



2. A pastor friend gave me this book a year ago. I started reading it on a recent trip and couldn't put it down. God used this book to challenge me to excellence in my study of the Bible, communicating God's Word to people around me, and the power of prayer. Don't miss another key point in this book: these believers studied, prayed, discussed and served together. Not only will St. Andrews Seven give you a snapshot of early Scottish Missions, it will also challenge you to live all out for Christ in fulfilling His Great Commission at the start of the new millennium. I highly recommend it and other biographies published by Banner of Truth (look it up on the web)and sold by Amazon!



3. The St. Andrews Seven chronicles the rise of an emphasis on overseas missions among several students at St. Andrews and their Professor. Then, as now, there were those who felt that the Christian faith was not academically respectable, yet these students were both accomplished scholars and men of faith. Their effects on the establishment of overseas missions and colleges, especially in India, and the rigors of student life, faith and politics at St. Andrews in the 18th century are an inspiration for students even today.

5 comments about My Beautiful Idol.

1. spiritual memoirs are a tricky genre -- they can be fantastic or horrible. i suppose this is true for all genres; maybe it's just that writing a spiritual memoir takes a combination of messiness and will that is hard to find. but some of my favorite books fit this description:
   dangerous wonder and messy spirituality, by mike yaconelli
   take this bread, by sara miles
   traveling mercies and grace (eventually), by anne lamott
   blue like jazz, by donald miller
   
   yaconelli talked about certain books being his friends. in that vein, these books are my friends.
   
   that's what pete gall has accomplished with my beautiful idol: he's crafted a wonderfully written, messy, hopeful, humble, self-effacing, and funny reflection on his own bumpy journey. it's ghastly at times, and gorgeous at times -- just like my life.
   
   gall's story starts in young adulthood, as a rising advertising star in chicago, livin' la vida loca. he experiences some great discomfort in the direction of his life, and senses he was made for something more, something deeper. and -- at this point -- something more grand.
   
   what follows, in the next few years (the book really only covers a few years of his life), gall's pursuit of jesus, and the calling he senses in his gut, slowly smashes down his grandiose notions about what this more/deeper life will look like. gall painfully acknowledges the idols he worships, deconstructs them, and discards them. of course, that's never an easy or simple process, and it's full of set-backs, confusion and waiting.
   
   it's this waiting that is particularly fantastic in gall's story. he doesn't figure anything out quickly, and has a string of jobs and ministry setttings, girlfriends, living situations, and belief sets -- with a few a-has along the way.
   
   great stuff. my story is very different than pete gall's. but, as with all good spiritual memoirs, this book held up a mirror to my own journey.



2. Author Pete Gall has crafted a tell-all memoir of sorts (even when his secrets aren't exactly palatable by the average evangelical perspective), in which he details his life so far in remarkably transparent and unabashedly honest fashion.
   
   Gall --- who is originally from Zionsville, IN, son to an executive and a housewife, and one of three brothers --- opens his text by describing himself as the "fat blonde guy on the corner in the African print shirt squeezing himself into the yellow taxi." It's 7:15pm, August 1994, and Gall is trying to convince himself and the cabbie that he has revolutionized the hair care industry with one word: "Repeat." When the cabbie begs to disagree with his inflated profit ratio, Gall does what he does best: speaks around the facts with clever words and a lot of false bravado. Seeing through Gall's manipulation attempt, the cabbie clarifies Gall's job description as an advertising copywriter with this simple assessment, "This is what you do, write tricky words?" Gall counters with, "We call it 'creating a need.'"
   
   With this energetic verbal exchange quickly growing to a close, Gall tries to reassure the cabbie that creating a need is a valuable and worthy trade, because in Gall's words, "We're all after something to tell us about ourselves." The author then tries to convince himself of this final statement by describing a program he just watched on the collector crab and how it attaches bits of whatever he finds on the sea floor to his shell to camouflage itself from its enemies. Similarly, he notes, humans do it all the time with products, services, impressions, approaches, tones and movements, to cover or hide what they don't want the world to see and measure them by.
   
   With this weighty introduction laid out, Gall then introduces the reader to his life in Chicago, living in a city he's not too crazy about, involved with a woman who has been seeing another man, and detesting his high-powered position and the projects he is paid to sell. In fast-paced motion, he quits his job and moves west, not knowing where he'll end up. All he knows is that he wants to place God at the center of his life and realizes that trying to sell "needs" to people is soul-sickening at best. Idols, as Gall refers to them, are only good for two things: "Making us feel important and making us feel loved." Enough said.
   
   Gall quits his job and heads toward Denver where his best friend David lives. En route, he stops to see his family, who don't understand his decision to leave a great job without another one in line. Gall quickly finds himself broke, then lands various low-paying service-type jobs where he learns a lot about loving what society generally terms "the unlovable folk," who teach Gall more about Christ and genuine faith than any traditional church could ever do. He discusses his heartaches and failed romantic relationships, trying to understand how much pain can co-exist with a joyful heart, the disjunct between believing and struggling to make it through the day, and not understanding why God isn't talking back.
   
   Readers will value Gall's approachability to sensitive topics often sidestepped by the church. His text is real, raw and so refreshing. And perhaps most important is that, through all his forays, Gall's faith emerges stronger and more solid than ever.
   
   --- Reviewed by Michele Howe



3. Pete Gall is very similar to Donald Miller in many ways. Very funny with a very interesting story. I started this book with the expectations that this would be a good book and I walked away with my new favorite book. I have already got a copy for multiple people. Pete has helped me become aware of some of the false idols in my life. The last 4 or 5 chapters have changed the way I will approach ministry when I graduate. Thanks Pete



4. Pete Gall is a guy who can hang out at our home anytime...Standing, open invitation. Buy this book!!!!
   
   His statement, "The smallest prison in the world is a faith that doesn't let Jesus grow."(p.156) is just one of a myriad of truths spoken throughout this book.
   
   Refreshing, real, poignant --- an incredibly skilled story teller. The down-to-earth practical considerations that Pete shares are invaluable.
   
   This is a textbook for a new paradigm of what it might mean to "become a new kind of Christian. As Pete says, " Mot many of us live in ways that leave us open to interruption. We want the protection of organizations. We want to have "people for that." Specialists in following Christ so we won't have to do it ourselves." (p.282). This quote succinctly captures the essence of the virus that currently infects Christianity in the 21st century....specialists, professionals --- somebody else other than me because I can't find the time to do that or deem myself unqualified. What a hock of hooey. Pete Gall pulls the mask off this sort of clowning around.
   
   Pete leads us to some terribly important vantage points...precipices where he encourages us to look out at the possibilities --- possibilities that require embracing new forms of humility, wonder, unlearning and developing the capacity and hunger to learn what we don't know. Things like this, " Success in life is not measured by what we achieve, but by what we come to admit. It is not measured by how far we journey, how many zombies, goblins or droids we slay, or by our return as champions. It is not measured by how much good I do for the people I get paid to care about. Success in life is measured by what we come to admit." (p.267).
   
   A blueprint for the strategic reconstruction of Christian ministry as we presently know it. An incredibly well written story. I have high expectations for Pete's next book.
   
   Bill Dahl



5. This is an autobiographical journey through five years of transition in the life of the author. Gall originally self-published this work and it is his first published book.
   
   My Beautiful Idol is a story of seeking, recognizing and following God. Gall records his journey of faith and life chasing God's will from a highly paid career in Chicago to Denver and through a series of jobs, ministry settings and relationships. Scattered throughout the narrative are lessons about the reality of poverty, the desire to be loved and God's dream for individual lives. Gall is open with his thoughts, emotions and struggles in his life during the five years that are recorded in the book.
   
   I found the narrative to be moderately compelling, but at times tedious and repetitive. There was insightful wisdom about life and relationships sprinkled throughout the book that I found to be fairly interesting. I recommend this book to those looking for open honesty in the life of another.

1 comments about Billy: The Untold Story of a Young Billy Graham and the Test of Faith that Almost Changed Everything.

1. I recently was sent a manuscript for the book Billy: The Untold Story of a Young Billy Graham and the Test of Faith that Almost Changed Everything by Bill McKay and Ken Abraham. I've read and reviewed other books about Billy Graham, but not any that restricted itself to the beginning stages of his ministry told in narrative form. This book is meant to coincide with a soon-to-be-released movie titled "Billy: The Early Years." In the book, the authors tell the story of Billy Graham's ministry through the eyes of his one-time partner, Charles Templeton. The scene is a hospital, where Templeton is living out his last days with Alzheimer's. An aging reporter, eager to revive her flagging career, has been told to interview Templeton in order to get some dirt on Graham... be it scandals, hypocrisy, or whatever. She sets up in the hospital room with a camera crew and starts the interview, trying to get Templeton to turn on his former colleague. But much to her dismay and amazement, Templeton's cynicism over what Graham believes and preaches is not enough to overcome the fact that he can find no fault in Graham. He knows that however much he belittles the beliefs he used to share, he can't deny that Graham has accomplished far more that should have been humanly possible given his background and skills.
   
   The flow of the story starts back in Graham's teen years, before he became a Christian. After going forward at a tent-style revival, he decides that he wants to attend a bible college and move into some sort of ministry work. Much to his shock and surprise, he's asked to speak in front of a church. Terrified, he covers the breath of his Bible knowledge in rapid-fire fashion... taking an entire seven minutes. But there's something there, and he's asked to speak in more locations, eventually leading to a full-time pastor position. Along the way, he meets and marries his wife Ruth, who gives up her dream of becoming a missionary to Tibet to support Graham in his ministry. As his preaching and evangelism starts to pick up speed, he's eventually teamed with Charles Templeton, an extremely popular and well-known evangelist at the time. They seem to make a good team, but Templeton's life is getting much darker...
   
   Templeton is starting to question his faith, and it comes to a head at the end of World War II. He sees a newsreel showing Holocaust survivors, and decides he can't believe in a loving God any more. Graham is crushed by his decision to leave the ministry and study at Princeton. This turning away by Templeton starts Graham down the path of questioning his own commitment. The story moves to a moment in time where Graham struggles with his fears and doubts by himself out in the woods at a conference. The ultimate outcome of that war would end up changing the face of world evangelism as we know it.
   
   Unlike some of the other books on Graham that attempts to analyze all his works and actions, this is a more story-driven treatment of his early life. I'm sure that once the movie is released, I'll find that this book follows very closely to the timing and direction of the film. Still, it's an inspirational look at someone who has committed everything to what he believes. It also shows that particular moments in time can have ramifications *far* beyond what one might expect at the moment.