I just finished reading this wonderful book. From the first page I was captivated by the simplicity of the writing and the horror of the story. The book recounts the time that Fr. Bernard spent in the concentration camp of Dachau.
It is a beautiful account of humanity, humility and the best and worst of what we can do to each other. The horrors portrayed in this book had a deep impact on me. I always knew that life in a concentration camp was horrible but to actually read a first person account of the day-to-day life with all its moments was very eye opening.
The incredible hardship these men endured, and the constant ridicule and hunger they lived with is hard to imagine. Yet these men still managed to find Christ in all this mess. Some of the most amazing moments in the book come when these starved and barely alive men get to sneak in a small piece of the Eucharist, and are overfilled with joy that they can have their Lord with them in this suffering.
This book is incredibly important. It reminds us how the Nazis treated those who believed in Christ. The book is very graphic and truthful. I highly recommend it to everyone.
You can purchase the book here
Thanks to the Insight Scoop blog I now have something to look forward to to read in March! This would make a perfect birthday gift for me *cough*.
"Without Jesus, we do not know what 'Father' truly is. This becomes visible in his prayer, which is the foundation of his being. A Jesus who was not continuously absorbed in the Father, and was not in continuous intimate communication with him, would be a completely different being from the Jesus of the Bible, the real Jesus of history… In Jesus' prayer, the Father becomes visible and Jesus makes himself known as the Son. The unity which this reveals is the Trinity. Accordingly, becoming a Christian means sharing in Jesus' prayer, entering into the model provided by his life, i.e. the model of prayer. Becomng a Christian means saying "Father" with Jesus, and thus becoming a child, God's son—God—in the unity of the Spirit, who allows us to be ourselves and precisely in this way draws us into the unity of God. Being a Christian means looking at the world from this central point, which gives us freedom, hope, decisiveness, and consolation."
Pope Benedict XVI
I just finished reading a great C.S Lewis book "Till We Have Faces: A Myth Retold". It is a wonderfully written retelling of the Greek myth of Cupid and Psyche.
Even though C.S Lewis used pagan images the story has deeply Christian overtones.
The book wrestles with several important issues, faith vs reason, the problem of pain, sin and much much more. It is a deep philosophical work as well as a great story.
I will not go into details about the plot because that would spoil it for all of you who want to read it. It basically is about three sisters and is told from the
point of view of Orual the eldest. Her youngest sister Psyche possesses great beauty and that beauty makes the gods jealous, to the point that Psyche has to be sacrificed
to the gods. Orual loves Psyche deeply and the sacrifice makes her feel as if the gods have stolen all the joy from her life. The book is Orual's complain against
the gods. There is lots more in there but I will not reveal anymore.
I highly recommend this book.
I have finally finished reading the Pope's new book "Jesus of Nazareth". It took me longer than normal due to very limited reading time.
This book has been wonderful, and like most books by Joseph Ratzinger it made me discover new things about my faith I have never even thought about.
The Pope is trying to bring out the real image of Jesus as described in the Gospels. He takes you on a journey from the Baptism in Jordan till Transfiguration. In the process he is exposing the inaccurate portrayals of Jesus that we see today. His message is that the only real Jesus is the Jesus of the Gospels. He does this so well that after reading this there is no doubt about it!
I highly recommend this book and can't wait for the next volume!
Today is the first day of June, which means that my New Testament reading cycle gets reset! We are back at the beginning!
I try to read The New Testament twice every year, in six months cycles. Each day there is a reading from the Gospels as well as from the other books of The New Testament. Today I start Gospel of Matthew and The Book of Acts.
I will also be following the Navarre Bible study for the Book of Acts. I love Navarre commentaries, they are filled with passages from church documents as well as the church fathers. I strongly recommend getting them. Soon I will have the complete New Testament set.