Category: Book Reviews

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At the Point of Suffering

What is the point of suffering? The article is followed by a book review of a novel telling a story of people around a traumatised individual, which also uses the example of Julian of Norwich. This is followed by material to help prayer and the announcement of an on line meeting.

We probably all wish that we could ask God some questions and get the immediate clarity of response that Julian records during her Revelations of Divine Love. Many of us want to know the point of suffering. Why does it have to be this way? 

When she had her chance to ask him, it was one of the things uppermost in Julian’s mind. Why sin? Why suffering? Why pain? What’s it for? To paraphrase, she thinks, if I can’t ask this now, when can I? She does it for us as much as herself. 

God tells her that sin and pain are necessary, and that, as we have all read, “all shall be well.” He doesn’t explain explicitly why suffering is necessary, and maybe that is because it is beyond our comprehension. The sense I get is that he is asking Julian (and us) to trust, to wait, then see. But he does give her much reassurance.

All the terrible things in life seem to exist so that God can one day set them right. He won’t expand on some of his ‘privities’ or secrets, even though he seems to be bursting to tell his beloved daughter about them. Some things are being kept for us in heaven, like a wonderful surprise.

Julian speaks of God’s joy at picking us up after we fall, and of Christ’s affirmation to her that he would gladly have suffered more for our sakes if he could have. 

In Chapter 29 she asks, how can it all be made well, and God answers that if he, through Christ, can remedy the Fall of Adam, then he can certainly take care of all the lesser evils. 

Today I was praying for some people on the internet who had said they were broken. A single mother whose job had fallen through; a woman who’d lost hope and someone else who had just had two bereavements in the space of a fortnight. I was also praying for myself and my husband, who are in bits after the worst six months of our lives (and they have some competition).

“Lord,” I said, “we give all our broken pieces to you as prayer. The mess we have made of things, the mess others have made of us. Please mend us. Bless these shards of pottery and make us and our lives into new vessels. Please take these pigs’ ears and turn them into silk purses, in Jesus’ name, Amen.”

As I prayed, it struck me that that is the point of suffering, or one of them. That we fail or are failed (usually both) and we turn over all the pieces to God. This so that he can make or remake us, make our lives here and in eternity even better, according to His plans (remembering that better doesn’t always look the way we think it should), and build a loving, trusting relationship with us at the same time. 

I thought of Julian, her question and answer sessions with God. He takes our sinful, broken pieces; a fall, a broken beloved Son; those who hurt him; the worst that we can do; our violence, grief, sin, pain, innocent suffering; everything awful, and turns it into the most beautiful, loving reconciliation with him. 

It becomes a new life, a reforging, a rebirthing, the commencement of Heaven on Earth. All this done with and through his love. Surely this is the pattern of all pain? Given up to God, endured with faith, it can become, it will become, it shall become “well”. 

Text ©Keren Dibbens-Wyatt; a writer and artist with a passion for prayer, poetry, story, and colour. She is a Christian contemplative who writes to encourage and entertain readers of all ages. Keren is the author of All That Is Made (Herald Press, 2025) and Recital of Love (Paraclete Press, 2020). Her work also features regularly in literary journals and anthologies. She lives in southeast England with her husband and is housebound due to chronic illness.

BOOK REVIEW. A QUESTION OF PERSPECTIVE.

Gillian Poucher sent an advance reader copy of this deeply absorbing novel. It draws a parallel between the medieval mystic Julian of Norwich and a contemporary counsellor. Their stories are told in parallel. Poucher creates a credible, historically researched, living back story for Julian, related by those around her at that time. It starts with the loss of her husband and children during the Plague. Interspersed with this, today’s characters reflect on her writings. They key character is a counsellor, called Julia, who lives next door to the remaining arch of Walsingham Abbey. Recently arrived, she is developping new friendships by joining a book club. Together, the club discover for themselves an intuitive, even spiritual perspective on life as they read Julian of Norwich ‘Revelations of Divine Love’.

“She admitted she had skipped through some of the graphic portrayals of Christ’s suffering on the cross, but had appreciated some of what she described as the homely images, in particular the idea that the whole of creation was enclosed in a hazelnut, made, loved, and kept by God. Marie bent across the table eagerly, a carrot speared on her fork. ‘It’s amazing that we’re all enfolded in divine love like that, isn’t it? I think it means that whether we’re alive or dead, we’re all safe in God’s embrace. ”

They find love and acceptance. They support each other following a suicide. They help a traumatized person recover from an event that had increasingly damaged her life. They discover that the death and resurrection of Jesus is reflected in personal suffering and recovery. We are rapidly drawn into the story, carried along through painful swerves and finally relieved by the resolution. I expect to revisit this book periodically. It refreshes my awaress of the historical Julian, and of the interconnections between our past and our present. We are held by God and can accept those around. Fiction escorts information past the sceptical modern mindset, and a spring of water heals our heart. It is a thoroughly worthwhile exploration of Julian of Norwich and how her writings can affect us. I have not read the previous books in the trilogy. This one is an accessible introduction to Julian and to her relevance for us today. 

All thoughts and opinions expressed in this review are my own. The book is due to be published on 4th. September and can be ordered on Amazon. 

Text ©Blog Editor. Picture © Heald Poucher Publications

MATERIAL TO HELP US PRAY:

QUOTATION FROM ST CLARE OF ASSISI: 

Place your mind before the mirror of eternity 
Place your soul in the brilliance of glory
And transform your entire being  
into the image of the Godhead Itself through contemplation. 
He, Christ, is the splendor of eternal glory,  
the brightness of eternal light,  
and the mirror without cloud. 
Gaze upon Him, consider Him, contemplate Him,  
as you desire to imitate Him. 

(‘Franciscan Spirit’)

PUTTING THINGS IN PERSPECTIVE IN PRAYER

To demonstrate our position before God, I could open my arms as wide as possible to illustrate God, then narrow them a little to portray the Kingdom of God. A little narrower: the universe. Much narrower: the world. A 10 cm gap: the Church, or the Country. 1 cm.: us. Our worries are small by comparison with the whole. But that gap is about the size of Julian of Norwich’s hazel nut. To her, this represented everything that exists. It is simultaneously fragile and precious to God, who sustains it, holds it in existence, and cherishes it. If he does that with everything, so too does he hold us and our interests, be they personal, ecclesial, or national. 

Psalm 66: 12: “You tested us, we went through fire and water; but you brought us out into a place of liberty.”   
Overall, Psalm 66 praises God for saving people. In this context, testing is part of saving! God does a thorough job in our lives. There are no half measures for God.  

In our silence we patiently allow God to work. All things are in God’s hands. God knows our needs before we ask (Matt 6:8) and we participate as he heals/saves us and the world. We allow the Spirit to pray ‘in groans too deep for words’ Romans 8:26. 

Text © Blog Editor    

ONLINE MEETING – SAVE THE DATE – 10 OCTOBER

At present, there are about 120 active Julian Meetings across the country. The National Council are offering an opportunity for members of the groups to encourage one another. We propose to set up an open online meeting on Sat 10 Oct from 2-4pm.
How is your group running?
What encourages you?
We look forward to your replies, by responding to this email, and attending the on-line meeting – Zoom details will be given nearer the time.

The Julian Meetings support in-person and online groups around the country. We make teaching on Contemplative Prayer and Meditation as easily and widely accessible as we can. Articles and reviews express the views only of their respective authors.  https://thejulianmeetings.net/contact-for-blog/  

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Growing in Prayer: a Book review 

 This book review gives a handy list of inspirations for expanding our prayer lives. After the review there are a series of other items to assist our prayer, 3 book notifications and an invitation to our general meeting on 10 October.

Significantly starting with “Listening to God in silence and stillness”, Growing in Prayer presents 15 short chapters, each exploring different ways of praying – of growing in prayer. This is a very practical and accessible book. Each short chapter includes a Bible quotation and a two- or three-page introduction to the way of praying with simple steps to follow and closing with a few recommended books and websites. Each chapter ends with blank pages for the reader to make notes of their experience for further reflection. The clear print and layout make it easy to use as course material.  

This book is based on a a prayer course originally developed in the Diocese of Rochester and could easily be used as a course either individually or in a group. If we are in a time of change, this could be a valuable part of that journey.   

Chapters included are:  

Listening to God in silence and stillness   

Lectio Divina  

Praying with your imagination  

Intercessory prayer  

Centering prayer  

Praying in nature  

Praying with images and symbols.  

Praying with your creativity   

Praying with poetry  

Praying with the five senses  

Praying with icons  

Praying with a labyrinth  

Praying with music  

Journaling  

The Examen  

Your notes  

© Gail Ballinger 

Growing in Prayer: exploring 15 different ways to pray for individuals and groups ; edited by Susanne Carlsson  

BRF 2026 £9.99 e-book only, ISBN 978 80039 506 0 

SUCH MATERIAL IN THE CONTEXT OF A JULIAN MEETING.

“Group meetings are willing to experiment with form, while keeping the meeting simple and single pointed.”

The first group I attended, for example, had an introduction including a scripture reading. After a quarter of an hour, the scripture was repeated, and again at the end.

In 1989 Robert Llwewlyn wrote The Fountain Within: Praying St John’s Gospel. Each chapter contained passages to be used in meditation. Short sections were to be read with a set response, then a few minutes of silence before reading the next. This would imply that a meeting would be broken into many sections.

My present group has an introduction followed by half an hour of silence. Then the leader for that session closes appropriately.

I am looking forward to hearing how your different groups are run, both normally and for a periodic different input. Could a group, for example, decide to experiment with a series of sessions using each of the chapters of this book, or would that be done seperately, before or after the regular meditation?

Our magazines contain many articles on prayer – see the LIbrary section of our website, particularly the Various Ways of Praying selection.

©Blog Editor, JM

Sister Wendy Becket: ‘I hope that once people read my book (on prayer) they will think, “ What a fool I’ve been. I didnt realise that I didn’t need a book on prayer.” You just need to have the courage and the faith to sit quietly and let God love you. Even if it is only for ten minutes a day.’ Peter Stanford: What we talk about when we talk about faith. Hodder, 2019. 

Welcome to The Julian Meetings Open Council Meeting, October 2026.
At present, there are about 120 active Julian Meetings across the country. The National Council are offering an opportunity for members of the groups to encourage one another. We propose to set up an open online meeting on Sat 10 Oct from 2-4pm.
How is your group running?
What encourages you?
We look forward to your replies, by responding to this email, and attending the on-line meeting – Zoom details will be given nearer the time.

IMAGINING THE WORLD– BOOK NOTIFICATION
John Mann presents a short passage of biblical scripture alongside a contemplative reflection for each of the 34 days from 1 September to 4 October. These are inspired by the unique landscapes of the British and Irish countrysides. They also draw on the mystical and philosophical writings of Teilhard de Chardin, Simone Weil and Søren Kierkegaard. Each day’s reflection ends with a suggested prayer. John Mann writes: ‘The threats that exist of climate change, pollution, and environmental degradation through human activity, the uncontrolled greed for the Earth’s finite resources, the extraction and burning of fossil fuels, are well known…. While wars rage and humans continue to inflict horrendous suffering on other humans … the long term concern of the effects of human activity is laid bare”. He continues through the Island Spirituality Network to lead quiet days and retreats. Imagining the World – Daily Reflections for the Creation Season. Darton, Longman and Todd / Herne Books Paperback (178x110mm), 144pp, 9781917362221, £9.99, July 2026  Compiled using material provided by DLT. ©Blog Editor, JM 

LIVING FOR JESUS AND JUSTICE BY SIMON JONES – BOOK NOTIFICATION.
This comprises of
1. a new presentation of the Beatitudes in today’s language;
2. a Daily Liturgy (with prayers for morning, midday and evening on a seven-day cycle);
3. Waymakers and Waymarkers, a 366-day calendar of people and events that bent the arc of British history towards justice; and
4. bespoke Occasional Prayers for justice-related events.
‘It’s so easy for the passion for justice to be channeled into activism whilst neglecting to nurture an inner life that fuels it. Mission spirituality is surely the rhythm of both. This new articulation of longings for a better world in prayers and liturgies along with the offering of memories of those who have gone before to light the road is a wonderful gift in that regard. It’s a great resource for individuals and communities seeking to join in God’s healing of all things, to breathe in before acting out.’ Jonny Baker, CMS
Living for Jesus and Justice; Daily Prayers for Radical Christians; Simon Jones and Red Letter Christians UK 978 1 917362 13 9 Compiled using material provided by DLT. ©Blog Editor, JM 

Treasures in Straw: The griefs and gifts of the Christmas story– BOOK NOTIFICATION
Christmas can be a magical time, but also a uniquely painful one. Inspired by
the difference she sees between Christmas as we mark it today and the original
story of the nativity, Tanya Marlow writes for everyone who struggles with
Christmas. ‘Nowadays Christmas feels like either grief or gift,’ she says, ‘but the nativity is both grief
and gift together… My invitation to you this season is to look afresh at the original Christmas story,
with the freedom to be honest in lament, exuberant in praise, or both together. Whether you love
Christmas or dread it, this is a chance to treasure those forgotten spiritual blessings that do not perish
or fade, and rediscover genuine delight in Jesus, our greatest gift.’

The Julian Meetings support in-person and online groups around the country. We make teaching on Contemplative Prayer and Meditation as easily and widely accessible as we can. Articles and reviews express the views only of their respective authors.  

Please send your comments or contributions for publication on the blog to  https://thejulianmeetings.net/contact-for-blog/   

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The Missing Peace: Book Review

Meditation as a spiritual path to peace, community and oneness.

Chris Whittington, the author of this book asserted  “To all intents and purposes, the teaching and practice of meditation, of silent prayer, has all but disappeared from institutional churches”(p.1). 

‘I was encountering (material) which was at the same time both utterly irresistible and profoundly disorientating… Alongside texts from the Christian contemplative tradition, I’d been studying texts from other traditions, particularly those of Zen and Tibetan Buddhism, Advaita Vedanta and Sufi Islam. I told the Abbot it seemed as if a single voice was shining through everything I was reading… he just smiled and quietly said, ‘Yes’. (p.2). 

The lack of tuition in silent prayer had concerned Hilary Wakeman when she initiated the Julian Meetings in 1973. She sought advice from church leaders, then from representatives of several contemplative prayer groups who had been running for 50 years or more. Chris had Prinknash Abbey on hand, and at the age of 18, spoke to the Abbot. 

Through his title, Chris is asserting that he has found the piece that will complete the jigsaw of our lives, and help us to discover the Peace that comes from God.

This book assembles the talks Chris has given to teach ‘meditation from the Christian wisdom tradition as a spiritual path to peace, community and oneness – as a way of clearing space to encounter the divine nature of life’. (p.128). 

Each chapter lasts between one and three pages. They are practical, showing how contemplative prayer heals our daily living. Each quotation is identified at the foot of the page. A quick flick through reveals the breadth of resources, ancient and contemporary, that he has used including Rowan Williams, Martin Laird OSA, the Cloud of Unknowing, Julian of Norwich, the Desert Fathers, and Wendy Beckett. The book is prefaced by commendations from a reliable range of writers. 

To Chris, everything follows from the simple practice taught to him by Fr. Alphege, OSB: ‘Let the prayer word and your breath flow together gently and rest there’ (p. 22). His book shows how this can benefit every aspect of our lives.  

I recommend this book as an accessible resource about the living Christian tradition of contemplative prayer and meditation.  

© Philip Tyers 

Member of The Julian Meetings 

The Missing Peace: Chris Whittington: Norwich, Canterbury Press, 2025. ISBN 978-1-78622-679-2, paperback, e-book and audiobook.  £12.99/£19.99 

We invite readers to suggest further books for review, and are looking for further member reviewers. For this or to offer a contribution for the blog, visit https://thejulianmeetings.net/contact-for-blog/  

The Julian Meetings support in-person and online groups around the country. We make teaching on Contemplative Prayer and Meditation as easily and widely accessible as we can. Articles and reviews express the views only of their respective authors. 

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The Paradox of Poverty : a Book Review

The Paradox of Poverty: Why are the poor in spirit “Blessed”:  

Quote from the publisher: ““Blessed are the poor in spirit,” Jesus said, “for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.” And we smile, nod, and think: “Lovely thought.” But if we’re paying attention, it’s a shocking, almost offensive thought. The grieving, the broken hearted, the marginalized, the stigmatized―all blessed, all happy? In The Paradox of Poverty, Susan Pitchford examines the ways in which followers of Christ have understood “poverty of spirit,” and the traditions that have formed around their attempts to follow Jesus on this radical path. 

  Over the centuries, those who have heard Jesus have learned the truth of his promise that we will find the greatest happiness, our deepest fulfilment―the kingdom of heaven, in fact, our blessedness and our belovedness―in the things that seem to impoverish our souls. The Paradox of Poverty looks at some of the wisdom traditions that have formed this understanding: the Scriptures, the desert mothers and fathers, the Franciscans, liberation theologians, prosperity gospel preachers, the 12-Step movement, and more. At both individual and collective levels, these traditions help us understand that varied kinds of poverty can become a “blessing” by bringing us to know our belovedness in God.” 

My interest mounted as I discovered the breadth and depth to which the writer had researched the “Paradox of Poverty of Spirit”. Susan Pritchard has produced a wealth of information and thought-provoking pages. This is a book which I would want to read again and keep for future reference. The writer shows how we become distracted from the meaning Christ set out for us in the Beatitudes. I commend this book for its insight and richness. 

Text © Michael Butler.  A Julian Meetings member. 

Image © Liturgical Press.

THE PARADOX OF POVERTY

Susan Pritchard

Published by Liturgical Press, 2025, paperback/e-book/ Kindle. 

ISBN  9798400802102 

Also available from Amazon

We invite readers to suggest further books for review, and are looking for further member reviewers. Contact us on https://thejulianmeetings.net/contact-for-book-reviews/

We invite readers to contribute to the Blog. Contact us on https://thejulianmeetings.net/contact-for-blog/

The Julian Meetings support in-person and online groups around the country. We make teaching on Contemplative Prayer and Meditation as easily and widely accessible as we can. Articles and reviews express the views only of their respective authors. 

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Job – the Problem of Suffering and the Problem of God.

tree segments showing damage in the rings Copyright p tyers

Janet has written about how reflecting on the book of Job helped her come to terms with grief. We invite our readers to write reflections on topics that join prayer and life. We would also like to hear about your groups. We hope to publish the next blog at Easter. Philip Tyers, Editor

The photo shows suffering endured by a tree over many years,  invisible to outsiders.  

Janet writes:

Many years ago, as a family, we suffered a grievous loss. It was a body blow of the most radical kind, a happening which severely questions belief. I do not think that I asked, “Why did this happen to me?” Suffering happens to most if not all people at some time in their lives. It caused me to ask questions about the roots of suffering.  

Fortunately, I came across a book, which provided some answers. Harold Kushner was a rabbi. He had suffered the death of a son. His son was born with an incurable and rare disease. The son died when he was fourteen. Kushner, inevitably, had mused upon this death, had asked questions of God. It was his chapter on the book of Job that helped me most. Kushner made three statements: 

  1. God is all- powerful and causes everything that happens in this world. Nothing happens without him willing it. 
  1. God is just and fair, and stands for people getting what they deserve, so that the good prosper and the wicked perish. 
  1. Job is a good person. 

He postulated that we cannot make sense of all these statements. We must sacrifice one in order to believe in the other two. His answer, which has become mine, is that God is not all-powerful. There are things which God cannot control. When disasters of any kind occur, we should not regard them as “acts of God” but turn to God to help us to live through them. God does this in many profound ways. That is a simplistic and inadequate comment on this wise book, but it helped me, as it has helped others for many years.  

This returned me to the Book of Job itself. It has been called the “most wonderful poem of any age and language; our first, oldest statement of the never ending problem – man’s destiny and God’s way with him in this world” (Thomas Carlyle). The saga of Job’s suffering, the arguments of his friends and the magisterial arguments of God need to be read repeatedly.  

Recently, I came across Andy Roland’s ‘The Book of Job.’ The author has abbreviated the text and arranged it for private reading, for group study and for public performance. The concluding chapter discusses the meaning of Job as the author finds it. He suggests, as does Kushner, that it not only discusses the problem of suffering but also the problem of God.  

A reading of all three books requires deep and searching thought and helps us to  

  • “Forgive the world for not being perfect,  
  • Forgive God for not making a perfect world,  
  • Reach out to the people around us  
  • Go on living despite it all” (Kushner). 

REFERENCES: 

Harold Kushner: When Bad Things Happen to Good People. Pan Books; 1st published 1981, and again with new introduction 2002. ISBN 9780330490559 Also available on Kindle.

Author unknown: The Book of Job – The Bible. 

Andy Roland: The Book of Job. Filament publishing. 2019 ISBN 9781913192501  Also available on Kindle.

Photo © Philip Tyers 2026

 Text ©Janet Robinson 2026. 

Editor: Philip Tyers

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Review of A Pilgrimage of the heart: Walter Hilton and the English Mystical Tradition

Book cover.

Kevin Goodrich: A Pilgrimage of the heart: Walter Hilton and the English Mystical Tradition.

Darton, Longman an Todd. ISBN978-1-915412-13-3 published 2024 Available in Kindle and Hardcover

Review by Janet Robinson

This is an engaging and attractively produced book. It tells of the life and story of Walter Hilton of Thurgarton entwined with other mystics of the fourteenth century: Richard Rolle, the author of the Cloud of Unknowing, Julian of Norwich and Margery Kempe. The author has provided a useful background of the turbulent history of the times. He suggests that the book can be used as a virtual pilgrimage, making one’s way towards a deeper understanding of the spiritual road. Besides the narrative the author includes kindly but searching, practical questions and exercises for the reader. He laces the text with interesting narrative of his visits to the places where the mystics lived and adds helpful illustrations.

This makes altogether a very useful adjunct to one’s time of stillness. I have read the book through in order to review it but I believe that when I read it again, trying to answer some of the questions and exercises, it will deepen my contemplative prayer and expand my knowledge of the men and women whose stories he tells. I found it helpful where there is a discussion of the contemplative, the active and the “mixed” life of the spirit – something that Walter Hilton clarifies. Indeed I have just been to our local secondhand bookshop and found a copy of The Ladder of Perfection by Hilton!

Two small quibbles: I cannot feel entirely sure that Margery Kempe was a true contemplative. Certainly a pilgrim, a character larger than life, extremely active and noisy. The author himself calls her the “weeping mystic.” However, the story of her life and spiritual endeavour is appealing. My other quibble is a slight lack of proof reading. For example: St Catherine’s monastery, where John Climacus may have written The Ladder of Divine Ascent is in Sinai not Greece. But I digress. Do consider A Pilgrimage of the Heart as a valuable aide for your contemplative life.

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Healed by Love Daniel Chowning OCD. Review

Daniel Chowning: Healed by Love: Contemplation as a path of healing according to St John of the Cross

Liturgical press 2025

Blackwells £18.99. Amazon Kindle £16                                   ISBN: 9798400800122, 0012244
            eISBN: 9798400800139, E00139

The title of this book engaged my interest since, while a beginner in accessing the work of St John of the Cross, I have found the foothills of his work inspiring.

Written by a fellow Carmelite who has immersed himself in St John’s life and writings it offers a deep reflection on the healing power of contemplation to be found in his work. My review only touches the surface of the work as I will need so much more time and prayer to absorb and benefit from its teaching.

Initially I was attracted by the account of the saint’s life. Born into a very poor family and as a teenager employed as a nurse’s aide and alms seeker for the sick poor of a charitable hospital, he learned compassion and tenderness at first hand. He cared for the physically and the spiritually ill to the end of his life. Encouraged to study he was drawn to the Carmelite order and made his profession in 1564. His religious life and thought was much bound with the thinking and inspiration of Teresa of Avila and though of very different personalities they supported each other through difficult times. There being much opposition within the Church to the reforms which Teresa instigated, John was “kidnapped” and imprisoned for nine months in extreme deprivation. He escaped and lived for ten years in Andalusia where he was confessor and spiritual director to both religious and laity and there wrote all his major works. Later he became prior of a monastery in Segovia.

To the end of his life he was hounded by traditionalists who tried to destroy his reputation. He died in 1591 at the age of 49. As the author says: “He responded in love to every circumstance in life, good or bad, joyful or painful” His abiding words were

“Where there is no love, put love, and you will draw out love.”

So far, I have described only the first chapter of this remarkable book. The remaining ten chapters are a serious investigation of John’s understanding of the spiritual and psychological ills of we humans and how, despite the fact that he lived more than 400 years ago, he can still offer guidance and help for healing and forgiveness. As Sr.Elizabeth Obbard writes in her review (and I cannot do better):

“In this beautiful and very readable book, Fr. Daniel Chowning has distilled the teaching of St. John of the Cross for a new generation, linking it with his own personal, pastoral, and psychological insights. Under St. John’s guidance all are encouraged to surrender to the process of healing and transformation in Christ. It is a contemplative journey that leads to freedom and the integration of the whole person. Chowning’s writing is the fruit of many years of studying and teaching the Carmelite saints, and I was hooked from page one. Be enthused, inspired, and challenged to make the journey of contemplative love a way of life ‘costing not less than everything.’ It’s never too late to set out.”

(© 2025 by Daniel Chowning, OCD. Published by Liturgical Press, Collegeville, Minnesota. Used with permission.)

Janet Robinson

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Book Review The Art of Spiritual Writing

Authors Eirene Palmer and Richard Palmer. Published by DLT (Darton, Longman, Todd)

Reviewed by Angela May

This book is the work of a couple who are both authors and retreat leaders, experienced in helping others to write, specifically including writing about things that I’m interested in:  life’s journey, one’s spiritual life, and journalling in general.  I’ve always found it difficult to find the time to keep a diary, but in recent years I’ve wanted to write my autobiography, however briefly, and to take up the practice of spiritual journalling.  But somehow life always gets in the way. 

So it seemed a good idea to read this ‘transformative book (which) offers a treasure trove of ideas to help you write about your spiritual life …. maybe recording your story for others …. (providing) invaluable advice, good journalling practices, and tips for encouraging readers to get into the habit of daily writing and reflection’.  This book is all about finding yourself and finding your voice, writing from ‘that deep reflective place inside each of us’.

The authors make it clear that we don’t need to worry about perfect grammar or punctuation:  we just need to write and get things down.  Also that all writing can be considered spiritual.  
The authors encourage us to begin with the use of story-telling as a means of getting into writing, delving into our own lives, and writing things down for the interest of other people.  They recommend starting a story with a small detail.  This immediately grabbed my attention, because I’d thought to begin my biography in exactly that way, with a tiny flower.  So I was only a few pages into reading this book when I managed to write down the title of my autobiography for the first time, having carried it in my head for at least a decade.  I had taken the first step!

The book is full of prompts and tips, including the basic advice to have a notebook with you always, including at your bedside, to capture stray thoughts and ideas, interesting dialogue, dreams, etc, which you think you’ll remember but don’t.  These are good resources for writing about.  

Another prompt:  undertake a simple Examen, a technique used in Ignatian spirituality, and write about it.  Also suggested:  a SWOT exercise, writing some paragraphs on one’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats.  Undertaking this, the Opportunities section reminded me of all the exciting potential for developments in my area..  The advice to write about anything you are passionate about got me writing about my favourite colour, how it all began, and its long-term impact on my happiness.  The book is full of interesting thoughts and ideas.  

Eirene’s apparent preference for referring to God as ‘She’ made me begin to consider the feminine side of God, who is after all El Shaddai, the All Sufficient, encompassing everything, and I wondered whether I might relate better to God as Her rather than Him.  I began a prayer to El Shaddai, using the free-writing technique, just relaxing, open to God, and letting thoughts and images emerge into my mind and putting them down on paper, to be honed later into a completed prayer.  There are sections on free-writing, which gives you access to your subconscious, and on writing prayers, and also encouragement to try writing psalms relating to your own life.

Keeping a journal is a long-established way of getting to understand more about ourselves, and keeping track of how far we have come, and what God has been doing in our lives.  It was encouraging to be told that one doesn’t have to write a spiritual journal every day, and I’ve managed to complete a few entries in my new journal since starting to read this book, inspired by events.  Success with this will come down to prioritizing, and it is important. 

This easy-to-read book has been interesting and encouraging, and has helped me to get going in several areas of writing.  Hopefully, it will also be helpful for others who are having trouble pinning themselves down or who could do with some encouragement and nudges.

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“Lectio Divina – The Sacred Art” Book Review

Paintner, Christine Valters, Lectio Divina – the Sacred Art: Transforming Words & Images Into Heart-Centered Prayer, SPCK,  2012

Publisher’s Information:

Lectio divina, which means sacred reading, is an ancient contemplative practice of listening deeply to the voice of God in sacred texts. In recent years there has been a reclaiming of the riches of contemplative prayer forms of Western traditions. Through the practice of lectio divina you become present to each moment in a heart-centred way. Gradually, the practice of lectio expands your capacity to sense God’s presence until all of life becomes a cascade of prayer. Drawing on her own experience as a monk in the world, Christine Valters Paintner breaks open the movements of this spiritual practice. She makes them accessible to the contemporary reader who longs for a more pervasive experience of the holy in the everyday but lives far away from the sanctuary of a monastery.

Sample review from Amazon.co.uk

“I found this book to be a very helpful refresher on the practice of Lectio Divina. I have followed this practice on and off for several years, but this book applied the ideas and practice to a wide range of texts and also introduced ways of applying it to visual arts, music, nature, and our own life stories. The afterword says: ‘The whole world is, in fact, a text of sacred revelation. All experience has the potential to be revelatory, and God is singing one unending song seducing each of our hearts. So the call is to listen, to attune to the words God utters in the world.’
Every chapter has a suggested way of practising the ideas that have been discussed. If you are looking for a book that will give you practical help in refreshing your prayer life, or a book to take away on retreat, this would be a good start.”

Photo-Monique, CC BY-SA 3.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0&gt;, via Wikimedia Commons

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Silent Compassion: finding God in contemplation by Richard Rohr

Richard Rohr OFM (b. 1943) hardly needs any introduction. He is an American Franciscan priest and communicator. Based in Albuquerque, New Mexico, he was the founding director and academic dean of the Living School for Action and Contemplation, founded in 2013. In 2023 he retired and is now Faculty Emeritus. Having published over 30 books (17 in print at the time of writing through SPCK) – most notably, perhaps, The Universal Christ and Falling Upward – he is undoubtedly one of the most popular authors and speakers on spirituality in the world.

Silent Compassion was published first by Franciscan Media in the USA back in 2014. It came on the heels of the City of Louisville’s occasional Festival of Faiths, attended by Buddhists, Christians, Hindus, Jews, and Muslims, including Richard Rohr and the Dalai Lama. Nearby, in Kentucky, is the Roman Catholic monastery of Gethsemani whence Thomas Merton travelled across the world to South-East Asia for another interfaith event some fifty years previously, where he met the younger Dalai Lama. Again, not far away, is the corner of Fourth and Muhammad Ali Boulevard where Merton had a mystical experience concerning the oneness of humanity.

The book has a Preface by John Feister, Editor in Chief of St Anthony Messenger magazine, an Introduction focusing on the Perennial tradition (‘affirm[ing] that there are some constant themes, truths, and recurrences in all the world religions’ (xi)), five short chapters, a really helpful Appendix listing an interfaith timeline of mystics, Notes, and Sources for the chapters. The chapters are headed (1) Finding God in the Depths of Silence, (2) Sacred Silence, Pathway to Compassion, (3) The True Self is Compassion, Love Itself, (4) Looking Out in Prayer with Contemplative Eyes, and (5) The Path to Non-Dual Thinking. Each is sourced either from the talks given by Richard Rohr, together with their Q and A sessions, at the conference, or from interviews given by Fr Richard published in the St Anthony Messenger magazine. Chapters that assuredly feed our minds – and our hearts.

SPCK, 2022. Paperback ISBN 978 0 281 08660 3. Price £8.99.
Luke Penkett