Spirit

A listing of books—with annotations—to strengthen and deepen the spirit.

Alexander, Marilyn Bennett, and James Preston. We Were Baptized Too: Claiming God's Grace for Lesbians and Gays. Louisville: Westminster John Knox Press, 1996.

This book by United Methodist writers helps us understand baptism and communion as means for God's grace, justice and liberation. [Suggested by Matt Smucker]

Bass, Dorothy C., ed. Practicing Our Faith. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass, 1997.

This text looks at ways to deepen our faith and our relationship with God in our everyday life. [Suggested by Matt Smucker]

Bergan, Jacqueline Syrup, and S. Marie Schwan. Love: A Guide for Prayer. Winona, Minnesota: Saint Mary's Press, 1985.

The first in a five-book series entitled "Take and Receive," Love: a Guide for Prayer provides a series of meditations that encourage persons to embrace personally the incredible love of God. The daily meditations for a six-week period are appropriate for personal use, or for use in small groups. Additional books in the series focus on forgiveness, birth, surrender, and freedom. [Suggested by Joel Kline]

Brother Lawrence. The Practice of the Presence of God. Trans. by John J. Delaney, with a Foreword by Henri J. M. Nouwen. New York: Image Books, Doubleday, 1977.

A spiritual classic. The conversations and letters of a seventeenth-century French Carmelite lay brother, a simple kitchen worker, who devoted himself to living every moment in the presence of God. [Suggested by Jim Lehman]

Chambers, Oswald. My Utmost for His Highest. New York: Dodd, Mead & Company, 1935. (There is an "updated edition in today's language" which I have not read, but I am suspicious of attempts to update language. I recommend you find it in its original form.)

365 devotional readings with scripture readings. Somewhat stark and astringent, but rigorously honest, with an emphasis on the daily effort to live one's faith. This edition is out of print. [Suggested by Jim Lehman]

Day, Dorothy. The Long Loneliness. San Francisco: HarperSanFrancisco, 1997. (reissue)

Moving and scrupulously honest autobiography of the 1920s radical who had a profound conversion experience and became a Roman Catholic, then went on to bring these two deep commitments together to found the Catholic Worker Movement, and who was called by the New York Times at her death in 1980 "a nonviolent social radical of luminous personality." [Suggested by Jim Lehman]

de la Huerta, Christian. Coming Out Spiritually: The Next Step. New York: Jeremy P. Tarcher/Putman, 1999.

This book offers a fresh outlook on gay spirituality and how to assert it, and thereby gives gay readers a foundation from which to begin building a spiritual life. [Suggested by Matt Smucker]

Doherty, Catherine de Hueck. Poustinia: Christian Spirituality of the East for Western Man. Notre Dame, Indiana: Ave Maria Press, 1983. (originally published in 1974)

A guide for the inner journey of prayer that takes one into the depths of God, written by a Russian immigrant and aristocrat who sold her possessions in 1930 and went to live with the poor in Toronto, founding the first Friendship House there and later founding the Madonna Apostolate in rural Ontario. [Suggested by Jim Lehman]

Dyckmann, Katherine Marie and L. Patrick Carroll. Inviting the Mystic, Supporting the Prophet: An Introduction to Spiritual Direction. New York: Paulist Press, 1981.

An excellent introduction to the art of spiritual direction, based upon the conviction that faith is a process rather than a static, once-and-done event. The authors suggest that we are called to rejoice in the mystical presence of God in human life and in creation, while at the same time speaking a prophetic word to a world that is not yet fully redeemed. [Suggested by Joel Kline]

Edwards, Tilden. Spiritual Friend: Reclaiming the Gift of Spiritual Direction. New York: Paulist Press, 1980.

Director of the Shalem Institute for Spiritual Formation, Edwards offers a powerful description of the art of spiritual friendship/direction/guidance, and ways in which those experiencing a "crisis of the soul" and those yearning for a deeper walk with God can find their journey enriched as they spend time with a trusted guide or friend. [Suggested by Joel Kline]

Feldman, Christina, and Jack Kornfield. Stories of the Spirit, Stories of the Heart: Parables of the Spiritual Path from Around the World. San Fransicso: HarperSanFrancisco, 1991.

Excellent collection of stories, accurately described in the book's title and subtitle. [Suggested by Jim Lehman]

Fenhagen, James C. Ministry and Solitude: The Ministry of Laity and Clergy is Society. New York: Seabury Press, 1981.

The church, both lay and clergy, is eager to perform genuine ministry in Christ's name, and the key, according to Fenhagen, is finding the quiet, the solitude of spirit in which we discern and identify our calling. [Suggested by Joel Kline]

Fenhagen, James C. More than Wanderers: Spiritual Disciplines for Ministry. New York: Seabury Press, 1978.

"It is of critical importance," writes Fenhagen, "that we learn what it means to drink from the inner spring, not as an escape from the hard realities of life, but rather as they way which, in Christ, we seek to engage these hard realities." From that perspective Fenhagen writes of ministry that flows from genuine encounter with the living Christ, and further writes of meditative prayer, jounaling, and openness to a spiritual guide. [Suggested by Joel Kline]

Foster, Richard. Celebration of Discipline. San Francisco: Harper and Row, 1978.

In many ways Foster's book has become the standard text for those seeking a deeper journey of the spirit, affirming the classic disciplines of faith. Foster lists inner disciplines: meditation, prayer, fasting, and study; outward disciplines: simplicity, solitude, submission, and service; and corporate disciplines: confession, worship, guidance, and celebration. [Suggested by Joel Kline]

Foster, Richard. Streams of Living Water. San Francisco: HarperSanFrancisco, 1998.

Foster explores six spiritual traditions within the Christian faith, asserting that persons of faith have much to learn from each tradition: contemplative/prayer-filled, holiness/virtuous life; charismatic/Spirit-empowered; social justice/compassionate life, evangelical/Word-centered life and incarnational/sacramental life. [Suggested by Joel Kline]

Glaser, Chris. Come Home! Reclaiming Spirituality and Community as Gay Men and Lesbians. Gaithersburg, Maryland: Chi Rho Press, 1998, 2nd printing).

This book is a vision of faith, hope and affirmation inviting gay men and lesbians to come home to their spirituality through Christian faith and community. [Suggested by Matt Smucker]

Glaser, Chris. Coming Out as Sacrament. Louisville: John Knox Press, 1998.

This gay Christian author and activist describes the act of coming out and compares it to the rites and rituals of our faith. [Suggested by Matt Smucker]

Job, Rueben. A Guide to Spiritual Discernment. Nashville: Upper Room Books, 1996.

This devotional text provides a path for prayer, scriptural exploration, journaling and discernment of God's leading in your life. [Suggested by Matt Smucker]

Jones, Rufus M. The Luminous Trail. New York: The Macmillan Company, 1947. (This may no longer be in print.)

Great Quaker scholar and mystic writes about the "luminous trail of saints" through history, some widely known, many overlooked-sort of a peacemaker's minority report on Christian faith and thought. [Suggested by Jim Lehman]

Kelly, Thomas, R. A Testament of Devotion. San Francisco: HarperSanFrancisco, 1996 reprint. (first published in 1941)

Thoughtful and deeply felt essays on centering one's life on God's presence to find quiet and stillness in modern life and to discover the satisfactions of the inner spiritual journey. [Suggested by Jim Lehman]

Kelsey, Morton. The Other Side of Silence: A Guide to Christian Meditation. New York: Paulist Press, 1976.

An excellent resource that affirms that, while we can learn from Eastern methods of meditation, the art of meditation exists on it own right within the Christian tradition. Kelsey writes out of his own searching for deeper connectedness with God, the Divine Lover, and then offers resources for others to explore the life of the spirit. [Suggested by Joel Kline]

Kerr, Hugh T., and John M. Mulder. Conversions. Grand Rapids: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 1983.

Excerpts from first person accounts of conversion experiences from St. Augustine to C. S. Lewis to Dorothy Day. [Suggested by Jim Lehman]

Killinger, John. Bread for the Wilderness, Wine for the Journey: The Miracle of Prayer and Meditation. Waco, Texas: Word Books, 1976.

Writing from his own experience of seeking to be open to God's Spirit, Killinger asserts that it is in learning to pray again that the meaning of faith comes alive, and the presence of God in Christ becomes real. Chapters include "prayer and the wilderness," "prayer and the kingdom," "prayer and the individual," "prayer and the community," and "prayer and the world." [Suggested by Joel Kline]

Killinger, John. The Cup and the Waterfall: The Adventure of Living in the Present Moment. New York: Paulist Press, 1983.

Drawing upon Annie Dillard's expression, "You catch grace as a [person] fills his cup under a waterfall," Killinger encourages us to be available to God. Prayer, says Killinger, is like turning a valve in the largest dam in the world, releasing power, energy, and life. [Suggested by Joel Kline]

Killinger, John. Letting God Bless You: The Beatitudes for Today. Nashville: Abingdon Press, 1992.

At the heart of the life and ministry of Jesus stands the promise of the coming of the reign of God. The Beatitudes of Jesus, says Killinger, are not a set of rules, but much more, a description of life in the realm of God, a picture of what life looks like when we "let God bless us." [Suggested by Joel Kline]

Kurtz, Ernest, and Katherine Ketchum. The Spirituality of Imperfection: Storytelling and the Journey to Wholeness. New York: Bantam Books, 1992.

Collection of stories from many spiritual and philosophical paths woven together with reflections on the meaning of suffering and on ways of living with true humanity. [Suggested by Jim Lehman]

Kushner, Harold S. When Bad Things Happen to Good People. New York: Avon Books, 1981.

This text gives an affirming take on the tragedies of life and how to reconcile them with our faith. [Suggested by Matt Smucker]

Lamott, Anne. Traveling Mercies: Some Thoughts on Faith. New York: Random House, 1999.

Lamott writes with honesty, humor, and a certain earthiness of her journey in faith, which "did not start with a leap but rather a series of staggers from what seemed like one safe place to another." The two best prayers she knows, suggests Lamott, are "Help me, help me, help me" and "Thank you, thank you, thank you." [Suggested by Joel Kline]

Laubach, Frank C. Letters by a Modern Mystic. New York: 1937 (booklet that has gone through many printings)

Honest description of the ups and downs of the author's effort to live each moment in deepest openness to God. This short, self-published work can be found in a new edition grouped with Brother Lawrence's The Practice of the Presence of God. [Suggested by Jim Lehman]

Lewis, C. S. The Great Divorce. San Francisco: HarperSanFrancisco, 2001. (first published in 1945)

An attempt, at once entertaining and serious, to capture in highly imaginative scenes the nature of heaven and hell and the choice each person has. [Suggested by Jim Lehman]

Lewis, C. S. The Screwtape Letters. San Francisco: HarperSanFrancisco, 2001. (first published in 1942)

These letters from a senior devil to a junior devil are one of the wittiest meditations ever written on the prevarications and false pieties that plague and bedevil the human spirit. [Suggested by Jim Lehman]

Lewis, C. S. Surprised by Joy: The Shape of My Early Life. New York: Harcourt Brace & Company, A Harvest Book, 1975. (first published in 1955)

The frank and engaging account of Lewis's movement from atheism to Christianity, especially valuable for those who believe that finding answers for the intellect is as important as finding rest for the heart. [Suggested by Jim Lehman]

Manning, Brennan. Ruthless Trust: The Ragamuffin's Path to God. San Francisco: HarperSanFrancisco, 2000.

The primary struggle to our living fully in the gift of God's love, writes Manning, is our lack of trust. Manning encourages us to take the risk of living in "ruthless trust, shedding the limitations of fear, shame and doubt as we place our trust in God. [Suggested by Joel Kline]

May, Gerald G. The Awakened Heart: Opening Yourself to the Love You Need. San Francisco: HarperSanFrancisco, 1991.

This book is a guide to empty oneself and opening up to a deeper relationship with God. It is a good book for the seasons of Advent or Lent. [Suggested by Matt Smucker]

Merton, Thomas. The Intimate Merton: His Life from His Journals. Ed. By Partick Hart and Jonathan Montaldo. San Francisco: HarperSanFrancisco, 1999.

Exceprts from the journals of this Trappist monk who has been deeply appreciated for his many books, both for their literary excellence and their spiritual depth. These journal entries show a man with a life-long desire to draw nearer to Christ and to give voice to God's profound mysteries. [Suggested by Jim Lehman]

Merton, Thomas. The Seven Storey Mountain. New York, New York: Harcourt Brace & Company, A Harvest Book, 1999.

The spiritual autobiography of a young man who withdrew from the world after immersing himself in it, entering a Trappist monastery, which he called "the four walls of my new freedom." From this unique vantage point he became one of the twentieth century's great spiritual writers. This account shows how he began this rich spiritual journey. [Suggested by Jim Lehman]

Morrison, Melanie. The Grace of Coming Home: Spirituality, Sexuality, and the Struggle of Justice. Cleveland: Pilgrim Press, 1995.

This book is the story of a lesbian's journey to know herself and reclaim her spirituality and Christian identity. [Suggested by Matt Smucker]

Morse, Kenneth I. Listen to the Sunrise: Hymns and Prayers. Elgin, Illinois: Faithquest, 1991.

In the pages of this devotional book, you will find works on nature, Christainity, theology and philosophy by a Brethren writer and editor. [Suggested by Matt Smucker]

Norris, Kathleen. Amazing Grace: A Vocabulary of Faith. New York: Riverhead Books, 1998.

Norris writes that this book is "an exploration and a record of my engagement with some of the words in the Christian lexicon that most trouble and attract me. I hope the reader will indulge me as I try on my scary words for size, as I wiggle them around on my tongue, as I play with them, and let their odd stories unfold; words I can no longer separate out from the community of faith but nevertheless must believe are not a private language for believers only." [Suggested by Jim Lehman]

Norris, Kathleen. The Cloister Walk. New York: Riverhead Books, 1996.

More reflections (even deeper and richer) from the author of Dakota (see that entry). [Suggested by Jim Lehman]

Norris, Kathleen. Dakota. New York: Houghton, Mifflin Company, 1993.

Reflections from an urbanized poet and intellectual whose journey from agnosticism takes her on paths to the religious roots of her family in South Dakota, to a small rural Presbyterian church, and to a Benedictine Abbey in Minnesota. As her faith grows deeper and more resonant she never looses her open questioning mind. [Suggested by Jim Lehman]

Nouwen, Henri. Beyond the Mirror: Reflections on Death and Life. New York: Crossroad, 1990.

Writing out of his own near-death experience as the result of a freak accident, Nouwen invites us into reflections about "Where is God and who is God for me?" in the midst of unexpected interruptions in our lives. "The great spiritual task facing me," asserts Nouwen in the aftermath of this near-death experience, "is to so fully trust that I belong to God that I can be free in the world . . ." [Suggested by Joel Kline]

Nouwen, Henri. Can You Drink the Cup? Notre Dame, Indiana: Ave Marie Press, 1999, 5th printing.

This spiritual writer takes a look at the metaphor of the cup from three perspectives, holding, lifting and drinking, and articulate the basics of a spiritual life. [Suggested by Matt Smucker]

Nouwen, Henri. Here and Now: Living in the Spirit. New York: The Crossroads Publishing Company, 1994.

The author comments on the theological concepts of joy, suffering, conversion, prayer, disciplined living, compassion and others by using real life situations to deepen our understanding of God's love and our faith. [Suggested by Matt Smucker]

Nouwen, Henri. In the Name of Jesus: Reflections on Christian Leadership. New York: Crossroad, 1989.

Drawing upon the story of Jesus' temptations, Nouwen speaks of the temptations to be relevant, to be spectacular, and to be powerful. Sharing about his own movement from an academic community to worship with the mentally challenged at a L'Arche community, as well as biblical insight, Nouwen urges us to struggle with the movement from relevance to prayer, from popularity to ministry, and from leading to being led. [Suggested by Joel Kline]

Nouwen, Henri. The Inner Voice of Love: A Journey Through Anguish to Freedom. New York: Doubleday, 1996.

Adapted from Nouwen's journal and written during a time of deep personal anguish and crisis, The Inner Voice of Love invites persons to walk through their own times of loss and brokenness, while seeking to keep their sight focused on the incredible gift of God's love. [Suggested by Joel Kline]

Nouwen, Henri. Life of the Beloved: Spiritual Living in a Secular World. New York: Crossroad, 1992.

This book is a personal witness to the affirmation of God that reveals the wonders of the spiritual journey and renews the fire of faith. [Suggested by Matt Smucker]

Nouwen, Henri. The Living Reminder: Service and Prayer in the Memory of Jesus Christ. New York: Seabury, 1977.

You and I are called to be living reminders of Jesus, and Nouwen seeks to answer the question, "Who am I as a living memory of God?" Nouwen speaks of persons of faith as healing reminders, sustaining reminders, and guiding reminders. [Suggested by Joel Kline]

Nouwen, Henri. The Only Necessary Thing: Living a Prayerful Life. Compiled and edited by Wendy Wilson Greer. New York: Crossroad, 1999.

A compilation of many of Nouwen's best writings about what it means to live a life of prayer, beginning with the conviction that "our desire for God is the desire that should guide all other desires." Topics include solitude, discipline, living as God's beloved, listening, community, and forgiveness. [Suggested by Joel Kline]

Nouwen, Henri. Reaching Out: The Three Movements of the Spiritual Life. New York: Image Books / Doubleday, 1975.

This book by a Catholic priest, outlines the journey to living a more spirit-filled life with the ultimate goals of a closer union with God. [Suggested by Matt Smucker]

Nouwen, Henri. The Return of the Prodigal Son: A Story of Homecoming. New York: Doubleday, 1992.

Nouwen's personal interpretation of the familiar parable of Jesus, based upon his viewing of Rembrandt's painting, "The Return of the Prodigal Son." Key themes include homecoming, affirmation as God's beloved children, and reconciliation. [Suggested by Joel Kline]

Nouwen, Henri. The Road to Peace. Edited by John Dear. Maryknoll, New York: Orbis Books, 1998.

Though Nouwen is most noted for his writings about the personal journey of faith, he always took care to remind his readers of the connection between intimacy with Jesus and connection with a hurting and broken world. In this book peace activist John Dear compiles many of Nouwen's writings about social justice and peace, and highlights Nouwen's encouragement for peacemakers to ground their actions in prayer and in a spirit of joy and love. [Suggested by Joel Kline]

Nouwen, Henri. Show Me the Way: Readings for Each Day of Lent. New York: Crossroad, 1992.

A series of Lenten meditations, drawing upon Nouwen's frequent writings about the spiritual life. The daily meditations invite readers top make the psalmist's prayer, "Show me your way, O Lord," their own prayer. [Suggested by Joel Kline]

Nouwen, Henri. Turn My Mourning into Dancing: Finding Hope in Hard Times. Nashville: Word Publishing, 2000.

A collection of Nouwen's unpublished works brought together after his death by editor, Timothy Jones. These text outlines how we can let God move through our suffering and dance into God's comfort and grace. [Suggested by Matt Smucker]

Nouwen, Henri. The Way of the Heart: Desert Spirituality and Contemporary Ministry. San Francisco: HarperSanFrancisco, 1981.

Drawing upon the experience of the 4th and 5th century desert Christians, Nouwen considers the significance of solitude, silence, and prayer for contemporary spirituality and ministry. [Suggested by Joel Kline]

Nouwen, Henri. With Open Hands. Notre Dame, Indiana: Ave Maria Press, 1972.

One of Nouwen's earliest books, With Open Hands reminds us that praying is no easy matter. To allow our lives to become more and more lives of prayer demands courage, honesty, patience, and trust. The book is a treasure of powerful words about the gifts that come as we continually open ourselves to the wondrous and challenging love of God. [Suggested by Joel Kline]

Nouwen, Henri. The Wounded Healer: Ministry in Contemporary Society. New York: Image Books / Doubleday, 1972.

The spiritual writer describe how in our own woundedness, we can become a source of life for others. [Suggested by Matt Smucker]

Peace Pilgrim: Her Life and Work in Her Own Words. Santa Fe: Ocean Tree Books, 1988.

Inspiring and thought-provoking reflections, sayings, and comments on peace and the life of the spirit by a woman who gave up all money, shelter, and security and walked many thousands of miles back and forth across the United States from 1953 until her death in 1981. [Suggested by Jim Lehman]

Remen, Rachael Naomi, M.D. Kitchen Table Wisdom. New York: Riverhead Books, 1996.

"Stories that heal," vignettes from the author's therapeutic work with cancer patients, people traumatized by injury, and the terminally ill, told with intelligence, sensitivity, and narrative power. [Suggested by Jim Lehman]

Remen, Rachael Naomi, M.D. My Grandfather's Blessings. New York: Riverhead Books, 2000.

"Stories of strength, refuge, and belonging," more inspiring vignettes from the author's work as a therapist. (See Kitchen Table Wisdom.) [Suggested by Jim Lehman]

Ritchie, George G. with Elizabeth Sherrill. Return from Tomorrow. Old Tappan, New Jersey: Spire Books, Flemming H. Revell Company, 1988. (first published in 1978)

Remarkable account of the longest and most detailed near-death experience on record, in which Ritchie meets Jesus and sees many things that give the reader food for thought. [Suggested by Jim Lehman]

Saliers, Don E. Worship and Spirituality. Akron, Ohio: OSL Publications, 1996, 2nd printing.

Looking the rituals of our faith, baptism and communion, this author provides great commentary to the Christian experience and how to life a life in the Spirit. [Suggested by Matt Smucker]

Schlink, M. Basilea. Realities. Trans. by Larry Christianson and William Castell. Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 1966. (This may no longer be in print.)

Unusual account of the life, faith, and projects of a small group of German women who formed a sort of protestant convent in Darmstadt in the years after World War II. A good example of a thorough-going effort to conduct the financial side of life entirely by faith. [Suggested by Jim Lehman]

Sparrow, G. Scott. I Am with You Always: True Stories of Encounters with Jesus. New York: Bantam Books, 1995.

A study of encounters with Jesus in dreams and visions. Anecdotal evidence for the living reality of Christ that make the reader ponder the surprising disparity between Christ and conventional notions of him. [Suggested by Jim Lehman]

Stella, Thomas. The God Instinct. Notre Dame: Sorin Books, 2001.

In this book, Tom Stella shows what can happen when we move from certitude to doubt, from stability to searching; when cherished beliefs are cast adrift; when life experiences seem to tell us that the "right" answers no longer seem so "right". Each chapter sheds light on an aspect of our growing realization that life itself is a process of perpetual change that demands perpetual conversion of us and perpetual willingness to glimpse the ways God is present in our ongoing transformation. [Suggested by Paul Schrock]

Tolstoy, Leo. Walk in the Light and Twenty-Three Tales. Trans. by Louise and Aylmer Maude. Farmington, Pennsylvania: Plough Publishing, 1999. (Oxford University Press published the original collection, Twenty-Three Tales, in 1906, in an edition that went through many printings. Plough reprinted that collection in 1999 and added the story "Walk in the Light.")

Folk tales from the pen of the master-simple, direct, with the quality of fable and parable-appealing, enriching, and thought-provoking. [Suggested by Jim Lehman]

Trott, Susan. The Holy Man. New York: Riverhead Books, 1996.

Quietly engaging and thoughtful fable and pilgrim's tale set in an indeterminate country about a very human holy man named Joe who with simple wisdom and a sense of humor shows the pilgrims who seek him more of their real nature than they are sometimes ready to see. [Suggested by Jim Lehman]

Trott, Susan. The Holy Man's Journey. New York: Riverhead Books, 1998.

More of the surprising wisdom of the holy man Joe and how his disciple Anna takes his place as he weakens and dies. [Suggested by Jim Lehman]

Woltersdorff, Nicholas. Lament for a Son. Grand Rapids: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 1987.

One man's account of his effort to accept and understand the sudden death of his son. [Suggested by Jim Lehman]

If you want to add to this list write a bibliographic listing for each book complete with an annotation of two or three sentences. Follow the format already in use in this section. Email your suggestions to Jan Fairchild at btownboilers@gmail.com.