I’ve
often heard Fr. John Riccardo speak, with clear, insightful and piercing words,
and so I guess I had expected something bigger-looking than this short
140-page, 8-chapter ditty with a common-sounding title. Glancing at the chapter titles though, I
noted the book IS well-organized (in typical Fr. Riccardo fashion), starting
with questions about the reader’s plan to grow in holiness, and then moving on
to discuss the biggest obstacles faced by most people, and ending with key points
to focus upon to gauge one’s progress.
And each chapter ends with questions, to meditate upon or discuss.
Reading the book, I loved all the saints, insightful authors
and Scriptures quoted to re-enforce Fr. Riccardo’s words, in part because over
the years I’ve read all those referenced books and authors myself and even used some
of the same quotes in my own writings!
And when I read Fr. John mentioning that he had been to a Final Four
game in Atlanta, the very same one which I attended, I thought: “Heck, I could have written this book”!!
But then I thought again of the smallness of this book, and
I realized a great truth: It has taken
me many DECADES to read, to pray and to learn my way to what Fr. Riccardo has (yes)
clearly, insightfully, and piercingly put into this small book. I’ve read many hundreds of books to find the
key truths which Fr. Riccardo has boiled down, for those who may not read so
much, into this one. And I am so
humbled.
The operative word in the title of this book is: “Starts”.
You need to start by buying this book, and then moving forward, as the sub-title
states, day by day. For teens, for
friends, and for those you know who want to make a difference in this world,
this book should be on your Christmas list; it will be on mine. But do as I did, read it yourself before you
give any copies away. Don’t wait decades
to learn what this book can teach you in minutes.
No comments:
Post a Comment