Title: Paths to Renewal: The Spirituality of Six Religious Founders  Author: Zachary Grant, OFM Cap  ISBN: 0-8189-0794-0  Paperback: xx + 172 pp.  Price: $9.95 + shipping  To Order call: 1 800-343-ALBA (2522) Please have your Master or Visa card ready To order online click here.

At the close of the 20th century, as we prepare to embark on a new millennium, we are more and more aware of the fact that "our difficult age has special need of prayer. In the course of history -- both in the past and in the present -- many men and women have borne witness to the importance of prayer by consecrating themselves to the praise of God and to the life of prayer, especially in monasteries and convents. So, too, recent years have seen a growth in the number of people who, in ever more widespread movements and groups, are giving first place to prayer and seeking in prayer a renewal of their spiritual life" (Pope John Paul II). This book emphasizes the fact that personal conversion must be the basis of world renewal. Saints Augustine, Benedict, Dominic, Francis, Ignatius, and Teresa of Avila show us how the two are always linked.

 

Zachary Grant, OFM Cap., Rector of Saint Francis Chapel and Information Center in Springfield, Massachusetts, has been a Capuchin friar since 1948 and a priest since 1956. In this book he has drawn upon his experiences as a follower of St. Francis of Assisi, as a parish priest, as a missionary in Central America, and as a spiritual assistant to Secular Franciscans. His comparison of the saints whom he calls the Great Six is offered as a means to understand which reforms are called for in the Church and world of our present generation as it enters the third millennium. Religious of most congregations will find in this work their own spirituality and how it can be traced back to one or another of these great saints. Reviews "Well-trodden pathways: Quick trip through the spirituality of the Church over the last 2000 years: Paths to Renewal: The Spirituality of Six Religious Founders , by Fr. Zachary Grant, OFM Cap, with a foreword by New York Cardinal John O'Connor. The author, who has been a pastor, missionary in Central America and spiritual assistant to Secular Franciscans, singles out the work of Augustine, Benedict, Dominic, Francis, Ignatius and Teresa of Avila -- each as a saint who understood that sanctity and reform are the bedrock of Church renewal; he aims to examine their traditions, and then asks the reader to examine how these saints are models for Christians today walking into the Third Millennium. His 9 chapters offer historical synopsis, comparisons of basic similarities and differences, prayer in each tradition, apostolic 'profile' and spirituality of each -- and the oft-forgotten but basic tenet of the Church: 'Everyone Can Be Holy.' His Epilogue suggests some challenging 'possibilities' (questions) about Church structures on the local level. Of special interest: The Appendix listing roots of religious life in its present form." --Crux of the News, September 21, 1998 "Zachary Grant, a Capuchin friar, has served as a parish priest, a missionary in Central America, and a spiritual assistant to Secular Franciscans. His study of the spiritualities of the 'Great Six' was reviewed by members of the six traditions. He discusses their history, differences and similarities, relationship to Jesus, contributions to Church reform, modes of prayer, apostolates, distinctive virtues, and the challenges their followers face today." --Theology Digest, Winter 1998 "Each chapter -- and there are ten -- studies a different aspect of each of the six spiritual giants (Augustine, Benedict, Dominic, Francis, Ignatius and Teresa of Avila) who founded religious orders as we know them today. The first chapter offers an historical synopsis of each saint's life and connects him/her chronologically from Augustine (354-430) to Teresa (1515-1582). Subsequent chapters weigh each life and balance one against another to see the similarities and differences in 1) Prayer, 2) Ministry, 3) Identity with Christ, and 4) Initiation of Church Reform.... This is a powerful tool with which to study the charism of religious life as it impacts Church history; and it holds out the hope for new dimensions in the near future, based especially on lay involvement, such as 'associates.' Carefully researched, brief, accurate. Recommended for high school, college, and public libraries, as well as for religious communities." --M. Catherine Blooming, H.M. in the December 1998 issue of Catholic Library World Top of Page