Divine Books

This brought me some interesting information, some fine Goddess Prayers. Would make a great gift for that Pagan Lady or friend in your life.

When I purchased this book, I was hoping to find many ways to connect with the Goddess and ways to express myself. And I found just that. She includes many prayers and affirmations for health, your life and just for daily living. I wasn't too crazy about the all of the writing, it seemed dry at some points. However, it gives great history behind some goddesses and how to connect with them whenever you feel the need. It also is a great starting point to write your own prayers and affirmations.

A very elegant, wise, and wonderful book for men and women! I really enjoy reading the affirmations and prayers every morning. The writing by Knight is inspirational and magickal.

Sometimes you are at a lose for words regarding a certain subject, need, or your prayers to the Goddess are getting too mundane. This books really helps you find those words, and even write new ones for yourself.

Besides all that. Sirona Knights affirmations to the Goddess are comforting. The affirmations for bedtime are soothing and relaxing.

On one hand, I wasn't to crazy about the writing style, somewhat repetitive. But...the book does have many very beautiful incantations, blessings and prayers! I will certainly use them as a base and only do moderate personalization. The chapters are also nicely laid out with information about the appropriate forms of the Goddess for that topic.

Anderson and Foley are using of a wide range of scholarly research about meaning of storytelling and rituals in the book Mighty Stories, Dangerous Rituals. Vivid real storytelling of common persons in their life and newly analysis of pastoral ministry about various rituals which we cannot easily be aware in our life from birth to death! These are characteristics of this book. While reading this book, we find ourselves we give ourselves up to Anderson and Foley's analysis and nod the head their thoughts.

I recommend this book for pastors and Christian persons. Through this book, I hope the relationship between individual and community, pastoral care and worship, and human and divine is developed. Finally I will quote an interesting passage to those who have some problem for their marriage. "...by reminding parents that their children are not their children because they belong to God. When parents take seriously this understanding of baptism, children are free to leave with a blessing, find their place in the world, and marry, if they choose (p81)."

As a gospel storyteller I have highest regard for the power of the story. This book does a wonderful job of not only explaining the importance for stories in our daily lives, but how our stories connect us with each other and with God. Stories of our lives are not just for each of us individually, but they are also for us as part of the community and they are part of all of our relationships. This book shows the blend between stories and the rituals of our lives as well as how we can revitalize rituals with our stories or how we can create rituals that go with our stories. The way the book is written it draws you in with all of its stories. The authors themselves are wonderful storytellers it seems, and because of this they have been able to show the strength of story for one's life.

"Mighty Stories, Dangerous Rituals" outlines for us what can happen when we connect our personal stories with rituals, and can create deeper connections between individuals, communities and God. Throughout the book, the authors cite a variety of different stories, including their own gift of storytelling.

One of the benefits that you can walk away with from having read this book is perhaps creating more meaningful rituals, such as baptism and weddings. The rituals are designed to include and recognize the personal stories of the people involved.

For anyone who is a minister, worship leader or pastoral caregiver, this might be a useful book to find new ways to bring together both worship and pastoral care.

Anderson and Foley do a wonderful job of collecting stories and demonstrating how important these stories become in the lives of those who have shared and or experienced them. The beauty of this book is that they allow the reader to see themselves in the stories, these are not only the stories of the people mentioned in them, but they are the stories of all of us in one way or another, to one degree or another. Finally, they relate to the reader how the stories of us help to define ourselves. This is a wonderful book, a joy to read, and provides insight to how our stories become ritualized in our lives.

Lutheran pastor Herbert Anderson and Roman Catholic priest Edward Foley thoughtfully examine the importance of connecting stories with ritual in worship and in pastoral care. They believe that our storytelling and ritual enactment can be both mighty and dangerous: "mighty" because human stories and ritual-making are "potential windows to the story of God"; "dangerous" because stories and rituals can also conceal reality and isolate us. This book explores how bringing storytelling and ritual enactment together can enrich baptisms, weddings, and funerals. It also explores the need for new rituals during such crises as miscarriage and divorce--as well as during such transitions as adoption and leaving home. Pastoral caregivers, worship leaders, and others will find the authors' points thought-provoking and their suggestions for joining story and ritual helpful.

The Ups and Downs of Being Round
Taste My Soul

This is the first book of the BEST teen series that a parent can buy for their adolescent child. The main character is very lovable, yet real and human. I HIGHLY recommend this book.

Monica Marie Jones
Author of "The Ups and Downs of Being Round" and "Taste My Soul"

I am really enjoying this new inspirational writing for teens and Simply Divine doesnt dissapoint. My daughter loved the glimpse into the lifestyle of the young, rich and famous. And I loved the message in this book. This should be added to every teens library. Great read!

I would highly recommend this for teens, it's a very good read! Ms. Thomas did an amazing job with "Simply Divine"!

In my personal opinion, it sounds like a calmer version of what I would imagin Bobbie Kristina's life to be like! Take a little bit off her, add a little bit there, and WOW! Being Bobbie Kris...

I have to say that I did enjoy it though! Great job Ms. Thomas!

What a nice change of pace. The storyline was predictable and the main character was a brat, but because I'm such a fan of Ms. Thomas' work, I enjoyed it.

In Simply Divine, we meet Divine Matthews-Harrison, a teenager that has the BEST of everything. Divine's parents are well known singer Kara Matthews and actor Jerome Hardison. Divine and her dad have a poor relationship thanks to his dishonesty. Always having lived the glamorous life, she's popular, owns designer clothes and her hair and nails flawless. Chores! Not for this spoiled drama queen brat.

Kara wins a Grammy and Divine's world is turned in a different direction.
Jerome and Kara's lives spin out of control. So where is Divine? She's sent to Georgia with Uncle Reed and his family.

There has always been a large house with a maid, cook, and driver where Divine has lived. But in Georgia, her family lives in a three bedroom house with only ONE BATHROOM and five people. Can things get any WORSE!?!?!?!

Simply Divine is a very good read that I would recommend to teenagers as well as adults.

Reviewed by: Carmen

Ms. White really gets to the heart of the matter in this guide to internet dating.
I recomend this book highly to anyonne scared or ready to enter the cyber dating scene.5 stars!

If you are reading this review then you have at least a little working knowledge on surfing the Internet. Author D.S. White has a delightful look into riding the wave into another facet of the computer world; online dating.

Through the main character, Divine, the reader is taken through the oftentimes funny, sometimes bizarre and mostly never dull moments in trying to meet that special someone in cyberspace. While the book is slated to a part of a series featuring Divine, there is also practical tips provided by White for those trying Internet dating for the first time or simply interested in finding out what it's all about.

White pens an enjoyable read through a wonderful character while covering a topic that is not only timely, but important to a growing number of people of all ages.

D.S. White is on to something with her blook (blog book), Age Is Just a Number. With its title and concept originating from her blog, we follow a two-year span of the author's online dating life. A life filled with instant messaging, missed connections and misconceptions. The tone of the blook is witty and engaging; partially satiating human nature's desire to snoop. There is also a resource section provided for those who are not internet savvy. Because it is a serial memoir, not only is the subject matter new and relevant, it has room to grow with technology. I recommend Age Is Just a Number to readers who enjoy memoirs, blogs and light, entertaining reading.

Reviewed by Darnetta Frazier
APOOO BookClub

Dating can be one activity that is fraught with frustration and negative emotions. And, if you take yourself out of the game for a little while, you are likely to lose a lot a ground because of a constantly changing world made possible by the role the internet is playing in the dating scene. It is bringing people together that might never have met without it. Meeting people online for the purposes of dating is a scary proposal, but it is being done today at an alarming rate with some positive results.

AGE IS JUST A NUMBER: Adventures in Online Dating by D. S. White is a blook (a blog turned into a book) that goes into the world of online dating from the perspective of Divine. Divine is a thirty-something female, just out of a long-term relationship and learning the dating game has changed. Through her eyes we get a look at her experiences and a few of the pitfalls as she explores online dating.

Written in a journal format that is easy to understand, this blook can be a handy beginner's guide to communicating on the worldwide web. White covers a multitude of blunders and assumptions that can happen in the online community in this first volume of Divine's adventures in online dating. As a bonus she covers several scriptures about relationships as well as providing tons of other resources that can help one in any aspect of dating and the problems associated with it. Although not much new was provided about the online dating experience, this blook did help to highlight many of the things one should be careful about while participating.

Reviewed by Brenda M. Lisbon
of The RAWSISTAZ Reviewers

I like this copy better than mine.Mine doesn't have the author's pretty and wistful face on it.

Mark Musa has produced an extremely readable translation of a text that at times can be next to inaccessible. As a non-Dante scholar, I have struggled with other translations. The notes accompanying each canto also are well done: thorough and very illuminating. Musa's deft pen has turned Purgatory into a pleasure.

By its very title, 'The Divine comedy' announces its theological purpose. For those not so inclined, the 'Inferno' offered many subsidiary pleasures - compelling narrative drive (both in the adventure of two men descinding into hell, and in the stories of the people they meet); an overpowering visual sense, both in the grand design of Hell's geography and the plan of its punishments, and in the individual details of the sinner's torments; and the endearing characterisation of the heroes, Virgil the stern, noble guide, and Dante, the clumsy, gossipy Everyman.

'Purgatory' has fewer of these delights. Here, it is impossible to avoid the doctrine. Every vast visual set-piece (the Angel fighting off the snake in the Valley of the Princes; the Holy Pageant that stuns the Pilgrim in Eden, complete with griffin-drawn chariot; the masque involving violence to said chariot by eagles, foxes, seven-headed monsters and giants) are all so allegorically pre-determined, each feature a religious symbol, that they lack the dramatic force that would have made their images truly poetic.

The plan of Purgatory - the AntePurgatory where those who left repentance to the last moment must wait; the mountain itself, where seven terraces represent the Deadly Sins to be purged; the crowning Earthly Paradise, or Eden, the gateway to Heaven - bears no real comparison, for the reader, to Hell: one's sympathy naturally inclines towards the eternally damned, and one almost resents the complaints of the saved complaining of their discomforture. The stories told the Pilgrim are also of a lesser order - perhaps proving pure evil to be more (aesthetically) attractive than contrition.

There are some moments when genuine terror intrudes - the visions of violation and tempting lust dreamt by the Pilgrim; the baptism of fire he must pass before entering Eden; the show-trial with Beatrice; while tortuous similes and evocations of nature are framed in poetry of intricate beauty (see Borges remarkable essay on the infinite metaphor in Canto 1).

Mark Musa, like most American annotators, has not heeded the lessons of Charles Kinbote, and his commentary to 'Purgatory' is almost loopily overwritten. He is an amiable, enthusiastic and informative guide, and if his translating choices are sometimes questionable, he has the grace to offer other alternatives. His explanation of the purpose of each image or scene makes it easier to follow the poem with greater understanding (if not necessarily enjoyment). But because he concentrates on every line with such minute detail, he frequently misses the wider design, and so, when he is puzzled by lines that don't fit his view of the Comedy, he has a tendency to blame Dante rather than himself.

This is the second volume of Alighieri Dante's classic Divine Comedy. It tells the tale of Dante's journey through Purgatory, led by his guide, Virgil. Having passed through the depths of Hell (the Inferno) in the first volume, Dante and Virgil ascend the mountain of Purgatory, passing its many allegorical characters and observing the penances they must fulfill. The Divine Comedy is a beautiful, epic poem that takes the reader through a wide emotional spectrum and many vivid, picturesque scenes from Dante's fictional afterlife.

This translation was wonderful. Each of the 33 Cantos (Chapters) is set up in this sequence: 1) a short summation by the translator, 2) the poem, and 3) notes on names, characters, and items referenced by Dante. The translator, Mark Musa, even explains in his notes when he has a differing interpretation of a word or phrase than other translators' have had.

Dante used so many references to Greek mythology and events that were common knowledge to educated people of the 13th-14th Century that this poem, without notes, is entirely esoteric and fully appreciated only by the most erudite modern-day readers. Mark Musa brings every reader up to par with his thorough, easily-read notes; thereby making this classic poem a very entertaining and profound experience.

Inferno is the most famous of the trio of volumes of Dante's Divine Comedy. But don't stop there. Purgatory is a beautiful work, illustrating the rise of the human soul through Purgatory's nine ledges. I found it beautiful how the souls were not hurrying. They waited patiently, yet eagerly.

Musa's translation makes all the difference. The language is accessible, but not irreverent or vulgar. A routine I found helpful was to read the introduction to each canto, read the canto, then read all the notes, checking back to reinforce meanings or double check a name or place.

The Pilgrim's journey through this volume is heavily illustrative of God's grace, and yet the idea of each person's responsibilities to God are clear.

Don't stop reading after Inferno. These stirring translations by Musa make it possible to read, understand and love the whole Divine Comedy.

Dante's DIVINE COMEDY: JOURNEY TO JOY, by Kathryn Lindskoog, is a delight to read. This is definitely a reader-friendly retelling of Dante's Christian classic. The original DIVINE COMEDY was written in terza rima, a closely rhymed form of Italian poetry. This version is written in clear and flowing modern English prose, which at times is suggestive of poetry. The reader is given easy-to-follow footnotes, providing historical background and interpretation that make the book readily understandable and enjoyable.

The story can be understood on more than one level. On the literal level, this spiritual adventure first describes Dante's journey, led by the Roman poet Virgil, down through the nine circles of INFERNO, then up the mountain of PURGATORY. There, on PURGATORY's nine ledges, penitent souls move eagerly through repentance and penance, purifying themselves in the joyful knowledge that Paradise awaits them. As an allegory of the Christian experience, PURGATORY relates the pilgrimage of the human soul, homesick for heaven, struggling to be free of an unworthy past, and longing for fulfillment in God.

Dante envisions PURGATORY as a place of unearthly beauty, and here Kathryn Lindskoog's pleasing choice of language makes this book a delight for the reader. Her descriptive passages include such lovely phrases as: "a cliff so steep that nimble legs were useless," ... "a mountain mist...through which you could see only as moles do..." "...gold and fine silver, crimson cloth, ... freshly cracked emeralds - all these colors would look dull next to the grass and flowers in that valley, just as less is always overcome by more." The true glory of Purgatory lies in the sense of eagerness, hope, and anticipation that Dante discovers in the souls he encounters on his journey of spiritual preparation. The book closes with the words, "now I was pure and prepared to rise to the stars."

Diana Eck is a wonderful scholar who has written several great books on Hinduism. Darsan (or "darshan," if you're transliterating it simply for an English-speaking audience) is a wonderfully simple introduction to Hindu iconography and the related ritual experience, a subject that is overwhelmingly broad and often unwieldy.

If you are an undergraduate studying Eastern religions, a graduate student new to Hinduism, a Western devotee wanting better cross-cultural knowledge of how to respectfully relate to your chosen god or goddess as Hindus do, or a curious layperson wanting to know more about the Hindu religious experience and what all the images and rituals are about, this is a great book for you to begin with. This slim volume doesn't go into elaborate depth, but covers a lot of ground and introduces many key terms in a very readable way, and is a useful introductory work.

Not only does this book explain the way Hindus view the iconic (formed) and aniconic (abstract) images of the gods, but also the corollary view and conception of temples and holy personages. The title and key idea in all this is "darsan," which means not only viewing the sacred, but simultaneously being viewed by the gods. The way in which the statues (murtis) are treated with continuous attendance in the form one would typically associate with a human guest--bathing, feeding, clothing, putting to rest, etc.--is made comprehensible via this small book's explanation. The statue, image, or the temple itself is the body of the divine, in which the sacred consents to be present to humans...thus, treating the sacred body with reverence and devotion is deemed appropriate and important.

This book is useful not only to Hindus and those interested in better understanding the Hindu religion, but also any thoughtful person who wishes to consider the relationship of sacred to symbol, and the way in which the divine might be present to us.

This is a required text for just about every introductory course on Hinduism. Essential reading for anyone wishing to understand how Hindus worship and see the divine.

Diana Eck has done an excellent job of sifting through the vast amount of material on Hindu imagery in India and presenting an intelligently distilled interpretation. An excellent read on a very difficult subject.

This book was my introduction to Hinduism, given to me by a friend following my first personal experience with darsan and Hindu devotion. It is a stunningly clear and subtle book, offering a careful, complex discussion of the unique nature of the Hindu conception of the divine. I read it then in 3 days and am rereading it now as a student of Hinduism, looking forward to seeing this great book from a new perspective.

I am really enjoying this book. Anything about the Divine Embrace inspires me. I find this to be an easy read and it speaks to my heart and feeds my soul.

This book was really good. It tells of how to have unity in the church.

From theological, narrative, historical, eschatological, and practical perspectives, Webber traces Christian spirituality from Constantine to today. He guides the reader through past trends in Christian spirituality, their implications for the culture and church in which they occurred, and how they contributed to the current climate of Christian spirituality in North America. The Divine Embrace is a highly recommended volume for the honest critique of misguided spiritualities and Christ-formed suggestions moving forward into the new spiritualities of the 21st century through the story of God; a great addition to the Ancient/Future series.

While I was in Canada for the Holidays, I was blessed to accomplish some reading. The "Divine Embrace" was not a planned read, because I was going to spend most of the time on hockey books. But I brought this book along "case in just". Thankfully I did. This is one of the best Christian books I have ever read. For those of you who read this blog, you know I read a lot. This book dealt with the topic of spirituality in a highly Biblical way. It roots spirituality in the narrative of the God story. Unlike many modern expressions that are centered in self, this spirituality is centered in the story of God. It gives a great overview of the various expressions through the ages of Christianity. This section was extremely interesting. The author continues by fleshing out the practice of spirituality. One of the strongest points of the book is his emphasis on baptism. The book is deep, but readable. It has a spirituality that is highly rooted in the Biblical text. If you are looking for a wonderful book on spirituality and the various expressions of this discipline, this is the book for you. I highly recommend it to Christians that desire to grow stronger in their relationship with God.

Though you wouldn't know it from the title, this is the fourth book in Robert E. Webber's excellent and highly acclaimed Ancient-Future series, one of the most significant contributions to the discussion of the relationship between postmodernism and Christianity. In light of that, emerging church leader Brian McLaren, an admitted fan of Webber's writing, considers THE DIVINE EMBRACE the author's "best and most important book to date." I fully agree, and given that his previous books were all good and important as well, that means McLaren and I place this one in the exceptional category.

One element that makes this book so important is Webber's clarification of the word "spirituality" --- specifically, Christian spirituality as defined and experienced by the ancient church. Webber rescues the word from its ambiguous, anemic use in contemporary society and restores to it all the vibrancy and God-centeredness that is inherent in genuine Christian spirituality. "God has put his arms around us in the divine embrace and has restored our fellowship to him," Webb writes. The book, he explains, is the Christian story of that embrace, "the spirituality that proceeds from it, and how this spirituality can be recovered in a relativistic, postmodern world where spirituality is viewed as a common, contentless experience of otherness." If that postmodern view of spirituality leaves you cold, dissatisfied and more restless than ever, THE DIVINE EMBRACE not only explains why that is but more importantly shows what you can do about it.

Part of Webber's genius lies in his ability to articulate a thorough study of spirituality in a warm, reflective tone. There is plenty of research and information here, particularly about how the Christian view of spirituality was manifested throughout history. But Webber speaks to the heart as well as the mind, and you're likely to find yourself worshiping God right smack in the middle of a section about the devastating effects of scholastic theology on medieval mysticism. And because the concept of the incarnation is central to the entire book, Webber keeps it real and down-to-earth by frequently reminding us that God came to us in the flesh and lived among us.

"Spirituality is grounded in God's embrace of our human condition and the reversal of human life accomplished by God's two hands [the incarnate Word and the Spirit] and modeled for us in Jesus," Webber writes. "Jesus is not only the sacrifice for our sin, the victor over death for us, he is also the perfect example of the one who lives in full union with the embrace of God." He emphasizes that the authentic Christian life is neither a superspiritual one nor a rejection of everyday life on earth: "It is, rather, an intentional living into the purposes of God."

Readers familiar with Webber's other books, including the groundbreaking THE YOUNGER EVANGELICALS, can rest assured that THE DIVINE EMBRACE measures up to the high standard those other books set. And new readers can't do better than to discover the richness of Webber's wisdom, knowledge and insight, as well as his considerable talent as a writer, in this latest volume in the Ancient-Future series.

--- Reviewed by Marcia Ford

As a convert to Catholicism, this book was an eye opener for me. Naturally, there are things within it that cause question for the average person - simply because it is difficult to comprehend how thorough and intricate God's plan is - and was for the blessed woman through whom the Word became Flesh. The book is a "hard read" in the beginning, but once you understand how the Ven. Mary of Agreda uses various terms, the book became one for me that I couldn't put down. I highly recommend this book for Catholics who wish to enrich their understanding of the Divine purpose and plan for Mary and the sacrifices she made to receive graces from God. For non-Catholics who may read this book, a word of truth: Catholics do NOT worship Mary; we honor her - there is a distinct difference, and this book helps the reader understand why Mary is deserving of our honor. I would have given the book 5 stars, but because it is a "hard read", I deducted one star.

Over the past 25+ years, I have become aware of the links between and among the people, institutions, customs and events that we think of as destructive or as healing. I began with the realization that the word "or"usually meant a dissenting, different or opposing choice rather than one that was equal.

How does this relate to "The Mystical City of God?" That term is used to describe Mary, the Mother of God. The mystical city of god, clearly perceived in the early centuries of the Christian faith as Mary, under the relentless elitism imposed by patriarchy became an "or,"forced upon human thinking by conceptsofseparation/dichotomy/powerover/oppression/suppression.

The return to a mainstream of spiritual awareness means going back more than 5,000 years to a time when the WHOLENESS of life was symbolized by the GREAT MOTHER in whose body was formed each human. HER chosen union with the HOLY SPIRIT produced the DI+VINE SON by whose seed--formed in him by The Mother as was everything--all other creation came. This is the essential mystical, physical and metaphysical act and that act is THE TRINITY, ever-renewing and repeating. There is no division/dichotomy/separation in THE VIRGIN: virginity itself means "whole, undivided."

If the Earth is to be free of strife and warfare and any other unnatural disharmony, there must be a return to the understanding, wisdom, respect and honoring of THE HER WHO IS the ALL-IN-ALL as ONLY THE GREAT MOTHER can be. This does not in any way mean a diminution of God The Father: Even the word "woman" contains the word "man" just as all men are born of women. This principle will not change even if the "womb" becomes a test tube.

If there is to be peace on earth, the harmony of Mother Nature must be understood, respected and venerated just as individual men and all men must learn anew to better understand and respect individual women and all women and that power within themselves that comes from their "feminine." The task of women is to resurrect out of passivity their divine roles as priestesses, lovers, warriors and androgyne.

In the words of the woman* who did the recent translations of the poetry from the forty-fourth century of Enheduanna, the Sumerian High Priestess of Inanna: "PROCLAIM!...In the past 30 years women have imagined a religion centered on goddess worship and have begun to reconstruct the myriad pieces of an actual ancient religion whose core was female...an exceptionally powerful goddess. She is "Queen of all given powers" and "unveiled clear light." She is "chosen, sanctified in heaven" and "Queen of fundamental forces/guardian of unchanging cosmic sources." The poet herself proclaims of the Goddess:
you lift up the elements
bind them to your hands
gather in powers
press them to your breast.

This is not that far from the nearest sanctioned and widespread preservation that we have had for two thousand years through Mary, the Mother of the Christ. However, only Mary's "obedience, docility and traditional female domesticity" have been emphasized in order to secure the hold on power of the usurping Greek, Roman and Judaeo-Christian patriarchies. We find that the "the four spiritual [paths]" spoken of by Betty De Shong Meador in her translation and commentary of Edheduanna's poetry have been suppressed: "Warrior, priestess, lover, androgyne..an unsubdued, multifaceted, energetic female force..raw energy bursting for expression..raw libidinous vitality..the whetstone against which the devotee hones her course toward spiritual maturation...Lady of largest heart."

The reclamation of the power of the feminine, of women, as the other half of the human race will bring the peace that the world seeks because it is already "..a coming out of one's self, a transcending of one's own HIStorically controlled situation...a paradoxical situation impossible to maintain in profane time, in an HIStorical epoch, but which is important to reconstitute...in order to restore the initial completeness, the intact source of holiness and power."

To fill this hole in the collective soul of humankind made by spiritual sexism, we could use a process pioneered to deal with other death-dealing choices of lifestyles: addictions. The required struggle, commitment, learning and discipline will be even more. It will take SERENITY (accepting, coming out of denial, about the inequality and missteps that the human species has made in allowing the masculine to dominate, internally and externally), COURAGE (to change this situation--(1)for men and their consorts to give up their holds on privilege and entitlement (2) for women, who are able, (a)to become braver, more outspoken, independent and interdependent in support of other women who are not operating oppressively within patriarchy and (b) to align strongly with the disadvantaged men, children and other animals of the Earth) and WISDOM to discern the new ways.

I am writing this review as both a Catholic who has read the book and because I take great exception to the review by Ms Liouzis who gave the book one star. As Catholics, we are not required to believe private revelations or even appearances by the Blessed Virgin, so you are allowed to find this not worthy of belief. However, I find Liouzis's interpretation of scripture used in her review to be incorrect. Simply read the catechism of the Catholic Church to find out the correct answers to our belief of the Blessed Mother. I'm sorry Ms Liouzis, but your interpretation of scripture falls well short of what the Doctors of the Catholic Church have written. Thank God for the Catholic Church!

PS - I recommend to her (and others) books by Dr Scott Hahn, a convert to the Catholic Church. He will point you in the right direction.

I gave this book a 5 star rating...it is an outstanding book and gives many insights to the life of the Blessed Mother which i kept within myself all my life while loving her..A hard read indeed is not worth a 1 star demerit..That would be like only giving Shapespeare a 2 star rating because some of his books are unfathomable upon the first reading...This is a beautiful book,one to treasure all your life and retain on your Catholic bookshelf

How sad that people would believe the lies of Satan. Where has Jesus or God called Mary the Queen of Heaven, Creation and Mercy? Who said she is our intercessor? Hebrews 7 says Jesus is our High Priest who lives to intercede for us. 1 Timothy 2:5 says "There is one God and one mediator between God and man, the man Jesus Christ." If Mary were coronated in Heaven, you don't think the apostles would have spoken of it, taught it, written of it and celebrated it? Instead, Apostle Paul warns in Colossians 2:8 "See to it that no one takes you captive through hollow and deceptive philosophy, which depends on human tradition and the basic principles of this world rather than on Christ."
Salvation does not come through Mary, anymore than healing would come from a man who prayed for a sick person who then recovered. Jesus is our source. Mary was an earthly vessel that bore His human body, just as Paul was an earthly vessel that bore His anointing. Acts 4:12 says "Neither is there salvation in any other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved." Romans 10:9 affirms "That if you confess with your mouth, "Jesus is Lord," and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved." This is a statement of truth, not a possibility. Purgatory contradicts the truth and mercy of Jesus. Hebrews 10:10 "And by that will, we have been made holy through the sacrifice of the body of Jesus Christ once for all." Hebrews 7:25 "Therefore he is able to save completely those who come to God through him." There is not one parable where the Master returns and places His servants in a waiting room. They either enter in with Him or are banished. To believe in a purgatory is tantamount to saying that Jesus' blood sacrifice is not sufficient!
Mary had nothing to do with creation either. John 1:3 states "Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made." If something or someone contradicts Holy Scripture, then that is a false teacher. God knew Satan's plan to take people's eyes off of Jesus and onto man. That's why He specifically addresses the issue of Marian veneration in the 12th book of Matthew. In response to Mary requesting to interrupt His ministry, Jesus responds by asking Who is my mother? Whoever does the will of my Father in heaven is my mother. And in Luke 11:27-28 we see the following discourse. "As Jesus was saying these things, a woman in the crowd called out, "Blessed is the mother who gave you birth and nursed you." He replied, "Blessed rather are those who hear the word of God and obey it."
Mary was a faithful and obedient servant and child of God, but she was not, is not and will never be more than that. In the views of heaven that are presented in the book of Revelation, the thrones are occupied by Jesus, God, and the male elders; Mary has no mention. Let us turn from extra-biblical nonsense that contradicts the Word of God. Jesus is soon returning for His bride. Let us be as the 5 wise virgins, and not the foolish ones.

Written during a difficult period of Teilhard's life (and published long after its completion, like most of his works), this book weaves together a thirst for knowledge and a burning devotion. It is the result of intense self-scrutiny, and it exemplifies the power and scope shared by many texts suspected of heresy: while wishing to remain squarely within the bounds of orthodox Christianity, Teilhard stays entirely true to his vision from beginning to end and as a result dares to walk on a tightrope; it makes his effort even more moving. The Divine Milieu has its share of tensions - between activity and passivity, immanence and transcendence, involvement and detachment, sacred and profane - but every level ultimately blends in one another. In many ways, this profoundly ethical work is an extension of Teilhard's more science-minded writings, and it draws a lot of its impact from what it has been criticized for: a consideration of activities and passivities universal in its reach, since perfecting the world goes beyond exclusively Christian intentions, even as it strongly relies on Christianity's premises (this is also true of Teilhard's thoughts on evil and 'communion through diminution'). His prose, especially in such an evocative and religious work, is carried by an irresistible flow that may not completely survive in translation.

A very readable theology of the divinisation of our activities and passivities.

The basic idea is that most Christians see their lives, their work, their play, their interests, as separate from the sanctification and unification with God that they desire. We feel like the living of our everyday lives is nonproductive (or even counterproductive) to the life in Christ that bring us to maturity and wholeness in Him. We hold faith and life in two different hands. Many believers actually begrudge their occupations, their interests, as enemies of the life of God being formed in them. This has been true in my own life. For years I would not read any fiction because I felt that life was short and I had no time for "trivial" matters like literature and poetry. My reading was self-limited to nonfiction and theology. Some people will only listen to "Christian" music. Some will watch only "Christian" television.

Teilhard de Chardin was well aware of the anxiety of dualism in our understanding of life and activity. For Chardin, the main point was for us to simply see things as they really are. Teilhard believed that each soul exists for God, and each soul is linked in mystical union to the Incarnate Word. The universe, says Teilhard, exists for the soul. "Everything forms a single whole" and exists for the glory of God. "We must perceive the existence of links between us and the Incarnate Word" and the "interconnections revealed to us in every order of the physical and human world."

Through this interconnectedness (sounds really Zen-like, doesn't it?), God is fulfilling St Paul's words in Romans 8.18-23. "The creation itself will be set free from its bondage to decay and will obtain the freedom of the glory of the children of God." Teilhard says, "In each soul, God loves and partly saves the whole world..." And God does this through our activities! "Owing to the interrelation between matter, soul and Christ, we bring part of the being which he desires back to God in whatever we do" (emphasis his). We do this "to build the Pleroma." (The consummation of "the mystery of the creative union of the world in God," i.e., the kingdom of God in its completed form).

This is the divinisation of our activities. If we but see that we are workers together with God in all that we do, that vision brings an excitement and joy to our everyday, mundane, ordinary lives. Through living those lives God saves the world. "But it is essential to see - to see things as they are and to see them really and intensely."

"By virtue of the Creation and, still more, of the Incarnation, nothing here below is profane for those who know how to see."

"Right from the hands that knead the dough, to those that consecrate it, the great and universal Host should be prepared and handled in a spirit of adoration."

Our lives have divine responsibility. We are to give them wholly to God. Not by making them religious, but by truly seeing that there is no such thing as a division between religious and secular. The universe is the Lord's, and "the Christian knows that his function is to divinise the world in Jesus Christ." As we do this, a transparency occurs. We learn to see in all things the continual creation of God and the beauty of the ultimate unity in Christ.

[He planned] for the maturity of the times and the climax of the ages to unify all things and head them up and consummate them in Christ..." (Ephesians 1.10 AMP)

"...in him all things were created...and in him all things hold together..." (Colossians 1.16-17 NRSV)

Annie Dillard's "For the Time Being" is a meditation on the problem of evil and the nature of love, and in that eclectic book she features the life of Pier Teilhard De Chardin, particularly the way this guy lived so passionately despite persecution and oppression by a church he loved. Dillard's beautiful vision of this man and the exerpts from his works that she quoted really got me interested in this great priest. So, when I ran onto The Divine Milieu on the clearance shelf at the bookstore, I bought it, ran home, and read it that night. It didn't disappoint.

There's no way I can do justice to the book. Teilhard was one of the most passionately loving men to live on this earth, and that comes through even in his prose. It's an intense experience reading it. This is not because it's particularly difficult but because there such an urgency, such an intensity of feeling behind it. Teilhard wants action. He wants the reader to get out of his/her seat and throw his/herself passionately into the human endeavor. I don't think you can read this work and not feel the urge to do so. Even his images are astounding. This isn't what you think of when yo think of theological writing. His is the best sort of theological writing--reaching to poetic heights.

Of course, the theology is wonderful, too. It's not just rhetoric divorced from life. In fact, that is Teilhard's primary point. Behold, the kingdom of God is here all around us, in the surrounding lives and, in fact, in all the surrounding world, and we must be working for that kingdom. We must be working in and for unity with God. Read Teilhard's work and just dive in to life.

Sublime and poetic are appropriate ways by which one may begin to classify this foundational text by the great Jesuit thinker, Teillhard de Chardin. While his ponderings were controversial in his time, they were only controversial insofar as they were taken out of context by those who existed in a philosophical milieu that was perhaps a bit ossified. In the end, Le Milieu Divin stands as a staunchly orthodox work which expresses the sublime role of sub-creational man in rigorously Catholic terms.

Firstly, the text appropriates the relationship between mankind's passivities and activities and how they are divinized. In the end, such divinization becomes possible by the transcending of the self in the Other, an act which is wholly possible in truly engrossing activity as well as the passive reception of the Other in suffering and openness. Beyond this, the brilliant Jesuit reflects on that Milieu which is the center of all Creation, in which creation finds its orientation and motion. This ultimately leads to important exposition of the Eucharist as the center of creation, as the force which lifts it up and gives it the ever-needed orientation. Chardin acknowledges the fact that the Eucharist is that very power which pulls the Earth upward to Divinity, the force in which all passivities and activities find their fulfillment.

I highly recommend this text to all who are willing to struggle with a highly "poetical" text. Chardin's thought is indeed lofty but not impractical. Indeed, the very mission of Love is at stake in this text, and a true desire to be an apostle of Love is all that is require of the reader.

Over thirty years ago, my father tried to introduce me to Teilhard de Chardin. I found myself lost in the abstractions. Only a few days ago I picked this book off the shelf of my own library and discovered in it absolutely sublime writing! Instantly my sense of the Incarnation was deepened and more fully realized, as this man spoke about the meaning of everything each individual human experiences in this world. This is a treasure. I'm not qualified to say much more except read this! And allow me to add that the writing is beautiful and utterly pure. I'm not sure what I mean by pure. Perhaps I mean that it is uncompromising in its vision. This is what I search for, what I long for. I love this.

While visiting friends in NY recently, I came across a copy of CHILDHOOD to CHRISTHOOD. After scanning the first several pages, my interest peaked and I could not put it down. Ms. Ranucci dealt with so many issues I have been facing in terms that were down to earth.

During dinner one evening my friends, wh o had also read the book, and I engaged in a most lively conversation about our trials and tribulations and about how this book helped each of them. Conversation continued into the night and our individual interpretations were most interesting.

So, not only is this book a good read but it also makes for good and spirited conversation which I find lacking in today's culture.

Jocelyne Ranucci's first book, "From Childhood to Christhood" is a remarkable accomplishment. She carefully guides us through her spiritual journey and it is only upon finishing the book that we realize how far we have come in our own journey.

I don't appreciate that the author SPAMMED me to advertise this book. But I looked through it anyway because it said something about Christ on the cover. That is very deceptive.

This book goes WAY against Bible teachings that Jesus is our Lord and Savior.

Acts4:10 Be it known unto you all, and to all the people of Israel, that by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom ye crucified, whom God raised from the dead, even by him doth this man stand here before you whole. 11 This is the stone which was set at nought of you builders, which is become the head of the corner. 12 Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved.

I have read many self-help books and this is by far the best I have read.

Jocelyn Ranucci makes the reader feel as if she were in the room with you and having a conversation. She hits the nail on the head for most things that we find happening in our everyday lives and the formulas DO work.

It has been my bible and am using the tools in all things I do.

A must read!

Jocelyn Ranucci's emotional and descriptive portrayal of her spiritual journey through life is filled with passion and struggle. Ranucci's quest for truth is uplifting and encouraging for those seeking a new beginning and fresh start. It becomes quite evident while reading this piece that it was in fact her strength in spirit that enabled her to persevere during the most difficult times in her life. Her story is proof that with the help of God's strength within us, it is possible for us to overcome the obstacles that we are challenged with in daily life.