The St. Teresa of Avila Prayer Book by Virginia Hampton Wright

St Teresa of Avila is a doctor of the Catholic church now but I learned she was controversial in her day. Her contemplative connection with God was looked on with skepticism in her day. The author seems to know St Teresa like a family member. You can tell she did her research. The first part of the book is biographical but fun, not dry. St Teresa's prayers in her own words are beautiful. The most distinguishing feature of this book is the alignment of St  Teresa's prayers with a liturgy of the hours type format with morning and evening prayers.
St. Teresa had a hard time with formatted prayer and sought a more personal relationship with God. She felt herself drawn to God's presence without even trying. She naturally tended to contemplative prayer but she also studied about it in the book by Francisco of Osuna called the Third Spiritual Alphabet. Her marked up and worn copy is still available to view today. One of her students became known as St. John of the Cross.
I love the description of prayer straight from St. Teresa, "She described prayer as different ways of watering a garden. Sometimes we must draw water up from the well, which requires much effort on our part, and other times we simply direct the water to where it needs to go; and then sometimes the water arrives as rainfall and we don’t have to do anything but enjoy it."
Virginia Wright helps us to see and pray with St. Teresa stating, "Ultimately, what St. Teresa of Avila brings to us is confidence in God’s great mercy toward us and God’s willingness to meet us in our flawed humanity and dwell with us right here and now."
I would recommend this book to you to understand St. Teresa of Avila better and deepen your prayer life. The author makes St. Teresa approachable, understandable and a prayer partner which is definitely a plus. I like that there are themes and structure provided for prayer and inspiration from St. Teresa of Avila.

Pray Like a Gourmet: Creative Ways to Feed Your Soul by David Brazzeal

Prayer is relationship. It is important to spend time enhancing our relationship with God. We can get in a rut in any relationship and can need a refresh. Pray like a Gourmet is definitely refreshing. I was initially concerned about the association with food. If you think about it though, food is one of our basic needs like love and relationship, so we can all relate easily to this analogy. I like the mix of traditional and creative prayers with a simple or complex mode according to your wants and needs in your prayer life. You can literally use your whole self; mind, body and spirit and all your gifts and talents as a gift to God in prayer.
One of my favorite parts of the book is the analogy in the introduction about a meal in France versus American fast food and our prayer life. Mr. Brazzeal teaches how to savor our time with God and give him the best of ourselves and also that we can be real with God. The format of the book is interesting, such as part two which describes types of prayers, with biblical references and lots of examples. Types of prayers discussed are: Adoration, Confession, Thanksgiving, Petition, Observation, Intercession, Meditation, Contemplation, Blessing, Lamenting, and Joining.  There are Catholic undertones and sometimes it is even more explicit with confession and saints, etc. One thing I did not like is that the words of importance that are supposed to summarize and stick out to you are in light yellow print. I think a bold darker color would have been more effective but it did cause me to have to look closely.
The author makes his home in France, has lived in Brazil, and has worked in Guadalupe and Quebec. The description in his biography includes "all his work is inspired by the organic fusion that exists between the spiritual and the creative". In chapter two, Brazzeal tells us "Several religions practice specific food restrictions and fasting as spiritual reminders.." Also that, "Abstaining from physical food can play a powerful role in creating a hunger and receptivity for spiritual food.." There is a lot of food analogies in organized religions and specifically Catholicism in the Eucharist.
I would recommend this book to you to enhance your prayer life. The book is very visually appealing with tons of prayer ideas. You can take your time reading the book as you try all the great suggestions. Let yourself be challenged as you grow spiritually and closer to God.

The Passion and the Cross by Ronald Rolheiser

The crucifixion is the other side of the coin of the nativity. As we approach Christmas through the doors of advent we see the love of God through the incarnation. Both the incarnation and the crucifixion show not just how much God loves us but they also show us how to love each other. The first chapter explains about the passivity of Jesus and how all during the crucifixion Jesus was not only passive about resisting but showed great love to his tormentors. Jesus demonstrated how to turn anger, hate and hurt into peace, love and health. Subsequent chapters unpack the mystery of the cross and Jesus as redeemer not rescuer. God did not promise we would not suffer but showed us how to turn bad into good. Christ redeems our suffering and gives it meaning. Rolheiser states, "the love that Christ reveals in the cross is so strong that it can descend into any hell we can create, thaw out our frozen souls, and lead us into the light and peace of paradise, despite our fears and weaknesses."
True love is sacrificial. In The Passion and the Cross, "This is what constitutes the sacrificial part of his love; namely, the excruciatingly pain (ex cruce, from “the cross”) that he had to undergo in order to take in hatred and give back love. But that is the only way that sin can ever leave a community; someone has to take it in, hold it, carry it, and, through a certain excruciating sacrifice of self, transform it into something else." Love is relational and transformative. We see this in the baby Jesus, stated by Rolheiser as "But God’s power is the power of exousia— a baby that lays helpless, muted, patient, beckoning for someone to take care of it. It’s this power that lies at the deepest base of things and will, in the end, gently, have the final say. It’s also the only power upon which love and community can be created because it, and it alone, ultimately softens rather than breaks the heart.
It is important while standing at the manger at Christmas we remember the standing at the cross that will be forthcoming at Easter. This completes the love story of Incarnation, Crucifixion and Resurrection. I would recommend this book to you to bring forth ideas I had not otherwise been exposed to in theology and exposition of the love of God. Why did Jesus have to be crucified? How are we redeemed? The Passion and the Cross brings the answers into focus.

Strange Glory: A Life of Dietrich Bonhoeffer by Charles Marsh

One of the greatest theologians of our time, Dietrich Bonhoeffer was a complex man of contradictions. The author, Mr. Marsh peels back every layer so we can see the whole picture of a man obviously enamored of Catholicism but who never converted. He remained a protestant preacher although highly intellectual and he spent a life time finding the truth to some of our biggest questions of "Who is God? and "Where is God during tragedy?".
Bonhoeffer was born in 1906 in Breslau, Germany in a wealthy upper class family. He had a life of privilege, with all the books, music and education he wanted. He earned two doctorates in theology. He loved travel, music and putting on skits and plays to entertain his family and friends. He had a twin sister, Sabine, whom he was very close until she got married. He was well traveled, traveling throughout Spain, England, India and the United States. He believed in ecumenism and reaching out to other religious leaders to combat evil.
Bonhoeffer's story is told not just against the backdrop of World War II but in the thick of it. He was originally arrested for avoiding joining the Nazi army to fight in a time when the idea of being a  conscientious objector did not exist. But during his incarceration it was revealed he had been involved in plotting to kill Hitler. He was killed in a concentration camp.  His famous last words were "This is not the end for me; it is the beginning of life"
Bonhoeffer found Lutheranism lacking with sola fide or faith alone. He recognized true faith and the common man especially when faced with the racism of the American South. His world view changed to include the understanding that faith is wrapped up in how we treat each other. He originally found being a parish preacher to be mundane and trifling but learned the richness to be found in each parishioner's life. He loved the beauty of the Catholic mass especially during Christmas and Easter. He recognized the inequality against Jews that began in Germany in 1933 and reached the level of evil slaughter and the height of the Holocaust in 1942. This was the year that most people died at the hands of the Nazis. He knew he could not stay silent and spoke out and wrote in opposition to the Aryan paragraph of Jewish exclusion and white supremacy. A quote from Bonhoeffer includes "This denotes a moment in which the church, in order to be true to itself and its message, must distinguish as clearly as possible between truth and error".
Bonhoeffer fought the evil of the Nazis first through the intelligence bureau and finally advocating murder of the fuhrer even though he was a pacifist. A protestant preacher and theologian that believed it mattered what we did in our works. As I said previously, definitely a man of contradictions.
I would recommend this book to you. It is a beautiful biography written by Charles March, the foremost expert on Dietrich Bonhoeffer. He served as the Dietrich Bonhoeffer Visiting Professor at Humboldt University in Berlin. There was great detail and I loved the black and white photos. I was fascinated by what I learned about history and theology. Within Glory Days there was the intrigue of spy stories, love stories and news stories. This is a scholarly work that could be difficult to read at times but definitely worth the effort.

God With Us: Rediscovering the Meaning of Christmas edited by Greg Pennoyer and Gregory Wolfe

Emmanuel is the meaning of Christmas. Emmanuel means God With Us, the title that says it all. This is a beautiful Advent devotional book in its 4th printing. This quote is from the preface by the author "Christmas is the feast of the Incarnation, which is the mystery of God with us in the flesh. When we cut through the sentiment and marketing to the spiritual riches of Christmas , we recover not only a sense of who God is, but also who we are as human beings." I like the format of the book with the unpacking of the scriptures for the four weeks of Advent  followed by Christmas to Epiphany. The history of the feast days by Beth Davis was very informational and I learned a lot about each of the 12 days of Christmas has history and has a specific meaning and purpose. I like the variety of authors from Richard Neuhaus to Kathleen Norris. I did not like that the scripture readings were cited at the beginning of each chapter and not included for convenient reading. I guess I'm just showing laziness, maybe this is made to make the average reader seek out their bible for the readings. Advent is a special time for the church and for me personally. We are an incarnational people where the gift of ourselves is important for the season because of God's gift of himself not just on the cross but by the stable manger. This quote from God with Us "Christmas is about incarnation, and incarnation is God’s becoming what he is not, in order that we might become what he is. Thus does God reveal himself" is a powerful affirmation of our humanity. I would recommend this book to deepen your experience of this spiritual season. From the book is the best recommendation  "As this season of preparation continues, Holy God who is with us, may we lean into every moment of our days to redeem the time, to make the most of our every moment."

Time to Get Ready: An Advent, Christmas Reader to Wake Your Soul by Mark Villano

Advent is almost here so it is definitely Time to Get Ready for Advent and ultimately Christmas. There are many Advent devotionals available but I think this one stands out among them. It is steeped in scripture and include many quotes and stories to help the reader get more out of their spiritual life during this time of year. I liked that the readings are included at the beginning of each chapter. There is a description that unpacks the biblical message then a scriptural response. At the end of each chapter there is a summary statement that packs a punch.
We are introduced the idea of chronos and kairos to measure time. Chronos is linear time and Kairos is God's time. But we are not just passively waiting but we are called to action. We are called to bring ourself as gift to others during this season of preparation. When the author speaks "God does not want to fit comfortably into our schedule. God wants to be a living presence in our lives, fire in our hearts." This is evidence of God's call  in our lives to minister to others. First we have to find our true selves "Come to know yourself better and you will be able to know others better as well. Be happy with who you are and who you aren’t. You will see more clearly the One who gave you your true self."
From the beginning of advent to the epiphany, Time to Get ready will keep you engaged. For instance with quotes like this "An epiphany is defined as a manifestation of Christ. Franciscan author Richard Rohr, in Everything Belongs, gives his own twist to that definition: an epiphany is a place where God is both hidden and revealed. Perfectly hidden and perfectly revealed — like the manger or the cross. Not everyone is looking for those epiphanies, not everyone sees. But those who do will “ gather together.” Their journeys converge in Bethlehem. Their hearts “thrill and rejoice.”
I would recommend this book to you for inspiration during your Advent and Christmas season. The format is easy to follow. The author's voice is conversational and punctuated with scripture throughout the book. Time to Get Ready will help you make the most of your waiting for the Incarnation when God is with us in history, mystery and majesty.

The Ragamuffin Gospel by Brennan Manning

This is the 25th anniversary of The Ragamuffin Gospel written by a former Franciscan priest. It is a beautiful exposition on God's grace. It is to the point and in your face in a good way. It wakes you up to the reality of God's love for you. Definitely a "come as you are" love freely given and not earned or deserved is at the core of the book's message. The Ragamuffin Gospel was very controversial when it was originally written in 1990 because it was not about a restrictive love based on sin and judgement. The author left the priesthood to get married and he is not shy in laying out his own faults of alcoholism for instance. The back cover says it nicely that we don't need spiritual cosmetics to make ourselves presentable to God. Ultimately that God IS Love is spelled out chapter after chapter in addition to the whimsical titles of each chapter.
One of my favorite quotes from The Ragamuffin Gospel is "Counterfeit Grace is as commonplace as fake furs, phony antiques, paste jewelry and sawdust hot dogs. The temptation of the age is to look good without being good.....The dichotomy between what we say and what we do is so pervasive in the church and in society that we actually come to believe our illusions and rationalizations and clutch them to our hearts like favorite teddy bears." I think this book is about "keeping it real" and being genuine even as we evangelize in sincerity to others. "To evangelize a person is to say to him or her , 'You are loved by God in the Lord Jesus'. And not only to say it but to really think it and relate it to the man or woman so they can sense it."
The author, Mr Manning, has written more that 20 books, and was a gifted speaker. He was a Korean war veteran and as I mentioned before a Franciscan priest. His final book was his memoir titled All is Grace. He died in 2013. There is a preface and afterward in this book written by people who knew that author personally that is specific to this 25th anniversary special edition. This helps the readers get to know the man and the author better.
I would definitely recommend this book to you. You will not be disappointed. There are multiple examples and quotes in each chapter. The voice of the author is highly relatable. The reader will discover that we are all Ragamuffins and that we are all loveable. What better message could there be and what more could you want from a book. Love and spirituality are central to the book as perhaps they should be in our own lives.