“Prayer
transforms us, for it is impossible to come into contact with God without being
changed. The change is proportional to
our openness, our disposition, to being transformed by God.” (p. 24).
A Lenten Journey with Jesus Christ and St. Thomas Aquinas is a wonderful resource to help Christians understand the importance of prayer, the necessity of ongoing transformation, and the value of the Sacraments. This book is one that could easily be used for a group study as well as for journaling, personal prayer, and contemplation.
I enjoyed reading this book with its single serving size insights from St. Thomas Aquinas to go with the Gospel readings for each day of Lent and Holy Week. Dominican author Fr. Paul Jerome Keller has done a magnificent job of incorporating brief passages from one of the most well-known and widely read members of the Order of Preachers, Thomas Aquinas, into daily meditations that are perfect for the season of Lent. Fr. Keller has selected poignant passages from Aquinas’s vast works as the precursor to his own short reflections and original prayers written on the Gospel for each day.
During the season of Lent, we are all encouraged to enter into a deeper relationship with the Lord Jesus Christ through prayer, fasting, and almsgiving. These practices are intended to bring us closer to Jesus not only as we prepare for the upcoming Easter season, but also as we move beyond it and live out our call to apostolic action.
If we are truly changed from the inside out by our encounters with the Lord, then we will not be content to return to our former ways. We will be inspired and called to keep moving forward into a more intimate relationship with the Source of All Love and Mercy.
“The real benefit of prayer is that we are lifted to God; in our conversing with Him, which often should involve more listening than our own talking, we are deepened in our love of God.” (p. 23).
For more
information or to order your copy of A Lenten Journey with Jesus Christ and St. Thomas Aquinas, click here. I
received a free copy of this book from Tuscany Press in exchange for an honest
review.
