Title: The Challenge of the Gospel: Reflections on the Sunday Gospels, Cycle C  Author: Joseph A. Slattery  ISBN: 0-8189-0968-4  Paperback: x+ 150 pp.  Price: $15.95 + shipping  To Order call: 1 800-343-ALBA (2522) Please have your Master, Visa or American Express card ready. To order online click here.

Once again, in this the third and final volume of his thoughtful reflections on the Sunday Gospels, Father Slattery shows how St. Luke -- whose writings so dominate the readings for Cycle C -- manifests the compassion and love of Jesus for the poor, the downtrodden and the outcasts of this world. As in his other two volumes, Fr. Slattery challenges us to deny ourselves, take up our cross each day and to follow in the footsteps of Jesus. By pointing out the ways in which the Gospel message can and must be lived if it is to bear fruit in our lives and in the world in which we live, he once again afflicts the comfortable and comforts the afflicted in challenging us to take that message to heart and to put it into practice every day. All who consult this volume will find their lives and liturgical worship meaningfully enhanced by a careful consideration and application of the thoughts and sentiments expressed herein. Priests and deacons will likewise find much that will be helpful in their homily preparation.

 

Fr. Joe Slattery, a native of Dublin, Ireland, was ordained for the diocese of Richmond, Virginia in June 1966. He received his Ph.D. in religious studies from the Catholic University in Washington, DC in 1980. After spending several years in parish and adult education work for the diocese, he accepted an invitation to spend some time in the missions, first as Director of Ministry to Priests for the Southern African Catholic Bishops' Conference and then as part-time lecturer at St. John Vianney National Seminary in Pretoria (1997-2002). In 2003, he taught courses in biblical and pastoral studies at St. Charles Lwanga National Seminary in Windhoek, Namibia. Upon his return to the States, he was made pastor of The Church of the Holy Family in Virginia Beach, Virginia where he presently resides. Reviews This volume completes a trilogy of books on the Sunday gospel selections of the lectionary cycles. The readings themselves are referenced but not included, and this is not intended as a commentary on the biblical text itself. Rather, the author draws on his experience as a parish priest and as a missionary to Africa to present full-blown meditations or brief homilies inspired by the biblical passages and by his rich pastoral background and sensitivity. Those looking for solid spiritual reading and homilists searching for good ideas will appreciate this book. --Donald Senior, C.P. in The Bible Today, July/August 2006 From earlier reviews of his homily series, The Challenge of the Gospel: "Father Slattery understands that the true gift in preaching is discovery. Slattery has applied the educational adage, "the best way to learn a subject is to teach it" to the art of preaching. His Sunday reflections are exercises in reflection as a means of spiritual development. The reflections are not exhaustive exegeses but are rather lessons learned from his encounters with the world and the Scriptures. They are lessons learned from his own experiences. But having been ordained in Dublin, ministered in Virginia, studied at Catholic University, lectured in Pretoria, and teaching in Namibia, Father Slattery's experiences are neither shallow nor parochial. The reflections average two pages in length." --William Fitzgerald in Catholic Library World, March 2005 Top of Page