Download The Context of Holiness Psychological and Spiritual Reflections on the Life of Saint Therese of Lisieux Marc Foley Books
Download The Context of Holiness Psychological and Spiritual Reflections on the Life of Saint Therese of Lisieux Marc Foley Books
Download As PDF : The Context of Holiness Psychological and Spiritual Reflections on the Life of Saint Therese of Lisieux Marc Foley Books
This book explores both the psychological and spiritual dimensions of the life of St. Therese of Lisieux. The basic premise of this book is that the spiritual life is not an encapsulated sphere, cloistered from the realities of our human existence. Rather it is our response to God within the physical, psychological, social and emotional dimensions of life.
St. Therese did not grow in holiness apart from the human condition. Like all of us, she was emotionally scarred by the fragileness of life. She was deeply wounded by the death of her mother at the age of four, bedridden as the result of a neurotic episode when she was ten, struggled with debilitating scruples most of her life, and suffered an agonizing dark night of faith.
St. Therese was no plaster statue saint. Her life was a real life. As it unfolds before us on the pages of Story of a Soul, we see a pilgrim soul who made her way home to God through many raging storms and dark nights. The specific nature of Therese's trials may differ from our own, but psychological and emotional suffering are our common lot. For example, we may not have know the pain of our mother dying when we were four, but most of us have know the pain of the loss of a loved one. The sufferings that we share with Therese are universal - physical pain, anxiety, anger, sadness, depression, loneliness, doubts of faith, to name a few. These sufferings make doing the will of God difficult, but they are the context of our choices. They are the context of holiness.
Download The Context of Holiness Psychological and Spiritual Reflections on the Life of Saint Therese of Lisieux Marc Foley Books
"I have read many things about Therese and this one is really great. It tells us more about her humanity and makes it easy to understand why she too was really a little soul;"
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Tags : The Context of Holiness Psychological and Spiritual Reflections on the Life of Saint Therese of Lisieux (9780935216462) Marc Foley Books,Marc Foley,The Context of Holiness Psychological and Spiritual Reflections on the Life of Saint Therese of Lisieux,ICS Publications,0935216464,Christianity - Saints Sainthood,Therese,Religion Spirituality / Christianity,1873-1897,RELIGION / Christianity / Catholic,Religion,Religion / Christianity / Saints Sainthood,Thâeráese,,de Lisieux, Saint,
The Context of Holiness Psychological and Spiritual Reflections on the Life of Saint Therese of Lisieux Marc Foley Books Reviews :
The Context of Holiness Psychological and Spiritual Reflections on the Life of Saint Therese of Lisieux Marc Foley Books Reviews
- Saint Thérèse is a fascinating person. Most people know about her, hearing about her "Little Way," which entices them to follow her as a disciple. Her life is much more complicated than "her Way" might normally make it sound. For those who study her, they find that not only is she a child of God (she sees herself as such), but also a disciple of Saint John of the Cross. Most people do not see themselves there, because of the false picture most people portray of him.
There is so much to Thérèse that one book cannot cover her person with any type of justice. One of the books I have loved and recommended about her is I Believe in Love A Personal Retreat Based on the Teaching of St. Therese of Lisieux. It is great to instill in us the confidence and trust we need to follow the Lord, to do God's will and to grow as spiritual persons. It gives us insights on where to begin and what we need to progress and persevere.
This book, "The Context of Holiness," is quite different from anything you will find there, however. It gives the reader a look into some of the interesting facets about Thérèse that may not be discussed frequently, but that made her tick. It puts her into the context of a human being and not a plaster cast saint. This does not take away from her, but establishes the raw material of life that she had to deal and wrestle with. These are similar to many things we all have had to deal with the loss of a loved one, anxiety, anxiety we absorb from others, family life, emotions, growing up, needing others in our life, temptations, insecurity, sickness, scrupulosity, struggling with faith, struggling with emotions, and many more.
As the subtitle suggests, these are "psychological and spiritual reflections on the life of Saint Thérèse." The author, Marc Foley, therefore, from his own background and from other psychological and spiritual sources and figures, examines these things. For instance, after her sister Pauline entered Carmel, Thérèse became very sick. Foley takes us through many testimonies of those, including Freud, who dealt with hysteria, which is what Thérèse's condition seemed to resemble. This does not stamp a diagnosis on Thérèse definitively, but gives us an insight to the complex nature of Thérèse's personality, which was in reality being overcome with intense sorrow. Foley touches also on the demonic as a possible source. Interestingly, he claims a cure resulted not from medical or professional help, but from the intercession of the Blessed Virgin Mary who appeared to her as the "Mother" she truly needed to persevere. I believe he is fair and balanced in his approach here and on other subjects he discusses.
In the struggle that ensues in this whole episode, it would be easy to attribute Thérèse's condition to a mental health issue. Foley does not. He rather assures us that Thérèse is the most same person he has encountered in his life. This is beneficial to the reader, because it brings Thérèse down to our level and we see her as one of us. It allows us to see the context in which she grew in holiness--the context in which she became a saint. It was a context that can be similar in many ways to ours. Her virtue may surpass ours in many ways, but we are on a very equal footing with her when it comes to life settings. The second chapter discussed the "Wounds of Childhood." She had what we all have problems growing up. She too found difficulty in shaking them. She had to deal with them as we do. It is a great section to draw us in, to establish our own kinship with her, as a way to enter into the rest of the book. From her wounds, from her extreme sensitiveness, from her sheltered environment, from all that inhibited her in her personal dealings with others, we see how she was able to overcome and be that person whose life was directed to love of God and others. Foley also shows us a lot of what it took to do this.
It is an incredible interesting book. For that reason, it is a fast read. We want to understand more about her. It's so good, however, that we should take some quiet time for reflection with this. - This book and Marc Foley's The Love that Keeps Us Sane are among my St. Terese favorites. Fr. Foley approaches St. Therese from an entirely different place than most St. Therese commentators. I will admit, I need help. I need God, I need Mother Mary, I need the True Faith, I need Holy Mass, I need a good confessor, I am not an island-person. To know that St. Therese and her parents were real, frail at times-strong at others, people is helpful to my mind, heart, and my will! I know St. Therese is my sister who prays for me before the Throne of our Father and Fr. Foley helps me know her in a way I never had before. Plus, I have been able to share his books with some people who may have had a tough time with St. Therese's autobiography UNTIL they understood where she was coming from. I cannot imagine anyone being disappointed in reading this work.
- I have read many things about Therese and this one is really great. It tells us more about her humanity and makes it easy to understand why she too was really a little soul;
- Lots of great insight to the Little Flower's life and how very, very real her example of holiness has been for thousands. This book helps to get deeper into this Saint's life and help's us to see and realize that, the Lord can turn every mental distress that we may encounter and endure for His glory! What a wonderful book!
- This is a terrific book that provides original insights into the life and psychology of Therese Martin. Fortunately, the originality is not at the expense of plausibility. Fr. Foley must be a terrific confessor and counselor because he has a most penetrating, compassionate and realistic gift for going below the surface while staying true to the known facts. I feel I understand (and admire) Therese even more after reading this all too short book.
- This is a fantastic book that I am recommending to all who love the little flower. Through this book I have gotten to really know her and that holiness isn't just something in the high heavens but here on earth. Our spiritual life is a part of our life. It is all one. gosh I love this little women!
- Outstanding text that I found impossible to put down. Father Foley presents new psychological and spiritual insights into the life an times of St. Therese. If you have thought Therese was intolerably sacharin, read this book. Prepare for a new perspective!
- I already admired St. Therese, but now I admire her so much more for her innocent bravery. This book helped me understand what makes her so great.
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