Ordinary Graces: Christian Teachings on the Interior Life

By: Lorraine Kisly

Book Overview

An essential collection of the deepest spiritual, religious, and psychological teachings of Christianity -- the fruit of two thousand years of inner experience and insight from Christians of all denominations and all walks of life. Ordinary Graces is divided into ten cycles of passages embodying the great themes of Christ's teachings, among them: coming into the presence of God or, as we call it now, the present; truly understanding who our neighbors are and learning to love each of them; acknowledging and praising the Creator; struggle, disappointment, and other obstacles; the power of faith; the intention and variety of prayer; and reaching an understanding of why we are living in these bodies. While each passage stands alone, the different voices call to one another across the centuries and over vast geographical and cultural divides. Some of the names will be familiar -- the Desert Fathers, Julian of??Norwich, C. S. Lewis, Dietrich Bonhoeffer, S?ren Kierkegaard, St. Teresa of Avila, Vincent van Gogh, John Donne, Thomas Merton, and Meister Eckhart -- but many of them will be new to readers. Lorraine Kisly has sought out not only unfamiliar passages by famous Christians, but also writers we may have overlooked. As each voice joins the chorus, our understanding of Christianity's inner tradition deepens, and we can see more clearly ways of incorporating its truths into our daily lives.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0609606743
• ISBN13: 9780609606742
• Release Date: November 2000
• Publisher: Harmony
• Length: 264 Pages
• Weight: 1.00 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.1" x 5.8" x 8.6"

Customer Reviews

writing from the inside out

In returning to favorite quotations I choose those passages in which the authors express personal experiences of grace. Having the courage to write from the inside out reveals an authenticity which the selections that are intended to alter another's behavior do not. The last entry in the book, one of several included elsewhere by Meister Eckhart demonstrates this beautifully. "The eye in which I see God is the same eye in which God sees me. My eye and God's eye are one eye and one seeing, one knowing and one loving." In like manner the champion of little graces, Brother Lawrence confesses, "I turn over my little omelet in the frying pan for the love of God. When it is done, if I have nothing to do, I bow down to the ground and adore God from whom has come the grace to make it." Petru Dumitriu, in the chapter The Sacrament of Presence admits, "My own humble experience is not that of ecstacy. I do not levitate, I am not somewhere else, nor outside myself, not with God-nothing of that. Just a poor brute suddenly stopping halfway down the stairs, or slowly taking off his glasses. But those two or three minutes in the life of a man, are the reason why I shall not have lived in vain." And finally, Julian of Norwich ".....I was filled with an everlasting security that supported me completely, and I was without fear. This feeling was so blessed that I experienced nothing but peace and rest, and there was nothing on earth that could have disturbed me." No 'thou shalt's in those entries. Thank you Lorraine Kisly for this rich collection crammed with Ordinary Graces.

A surprise and delight

This book is beautifully conceived and executed. It is a rich collection of Christian spiritual writing rather loosely organized by general themes such as repentence and transformation. The selections are marvelous. There was nothing familiar (this is no "greatest hits") and there is astonishing breadth and quality. A constant surprise: selections that sounded very 'modern' in their psychological penetration are often from an obscure writer from the sixth century. So much hits home. I came away proud of my Christian heritage, determined to tap into it further, and inspired to take advantage of all the 'ordinary graces' available to me (and to everyone!).

Invaluable for Pastors

This book is a true gift -- full of deep, angular passages by thoughtful Christians from a huge variety of times and places. As a pastor, I find myself going back into it while working on sermons. Not for a clever line or for a cute quote by someone famous to give credence to what I want to say. No, these passages bring me deeper into the most profound truths of the faith. They improve my own thinking and praying and preaching.

Ordinary Graces by Lorraine Kisly

With great warmth and feeling, "Ordinary Graces" brings to light timeless human need to move from self-love to love of God and of others, from doubt to faith, from despair to hope. One feels connected to an unbroken thread of believers through the centuries. The book made me newly aware that "the body of Christ" links all generations and that the fruit of "the vine and the branches" nourishes every soul.

Ordinary Graces - An extraordinary collection

Ordinary Graces opens with a joyful celebration of the wonder of God's creation followed by a gradual unfolding of the Christian message that culminates in divine union. The passages are carefully selected so that each reflects upon and illuminates those that precede and follow it. As the book progresses, a path of work is traced, its demands increasing in difficultly and deepening in meaning. Kisly's thoughful selections are in an invitation to examine one's life and choose the path of truth. These selections cover 2000 years of Christianity, with remarkable passages that flow smoothly between the centuries. Highly and enthusiastically recommended