THE TABLET
June 23, 2007
Take Time This Summer to Read

This edition of The Tablet contains suggestions for summer reading.  In many ways books are a passion for me.  I have nearly 3,000 volumes, which are catalogued in the computer according to the Library of Congress coding system by author and title so that I can easily find a book when needed.  The project is not yet complete. It is, however, a great asset to me when I am preparing sermons, talks and generally other times when I want to find a book that I have already read or one that I have not yet read pertaining to a subject that I must comment on.  Books indeed are our friends because they bring to us knowledge and allow us to learn more about our world and sometimes about ourselves.

To be able to read is a wonderful gift that perhaps we take for granted.  Unfortunately, a good part of our adult population, who are not even immigrants, are not able to read anything that is complicated.  Adult literacy is something that we must look to decrease in our society.  The written word, as has been said so many times, is more powerful than the sword.  There is great potential for changing the world and making it a better place when we pay attention to the written word.

Spiritual reading is one of the spiritual exercises good for all of us to adopt, not just priests and Religious, but also the laity.  Reading some part of a spiritual book each day gives us the input we need to turn our lives and hearts to God in order to recognize and fulfill our spiritual needs.  There are many good spiritual books that can meet this need.  The old classical books, such as The Imitation of Christ by Thomas a Kempis or the wonderful book, Our Daily Bread, published here in Brooklyn by the Confraternity of the Precious Blood, will provide for us spiritual insights. Although written in the language of the past, the considerations and thoughts are very valuable.

This summer, I look forward to finishing the book by Pope Benedict XVI, written as Joseph Ratzinger, entitled Jesus of Nazareth, and published by Doubleday in our country.  I have begun to read it and find it a fascinating insight into the life and person of Jesus Christ.  The book is both a scholarly presentation, but more importantly a personal insight into who Jesus Christ is for our Holy Father.  Written in the style of The Lord by Romano Guardini, a book written over fifty years ago, it exhibits the same disciplined approach to understanding the life of Jesus Christ is followed by our Holy Father.  In reading any particular passage, we find not only a depth of scholarly understanding, but  true spiritual insight that makes Jesus come alive jumping from the pages of the book.  I recommend it to your reading.

Another book I have begun and will finish this summer is in Italian.  Entitled Una Vita con Karol, it is the result of a conversation that Cardinal Stanislao Dziwisz had with an author who transcribed the conversations.  The book is an extraordinary insight into the life of John Paul II, whom Cardinal Dziwisz simply calls Karol.  Indeed, for almost forty years, Cardinal Dziwisz was the constant companion of John Paul II from his days as Archbishop of Krakow to the day of his death.  This book also gives an insight into John Paul II unlike any other I have found in any publication or commentary.  I am sure it will soon be translated into English.

Reading, I believe, is always an exercise in putting out into the deep.  Whenever we stop to read a book, to listen to books on tape or search the Internet for information, we open ourselves to new thoughts and find the needed input and stimulation that allows us to find more truth about the world, ourselves and most especially God when spiritual reading is our subject. 

Take time this summer, with perhaps the extra leisure available to you, to read the Word of God, the works of spiritual writers and good novelists who give us insights into the human condition as it relates to God.

                                                     * * * * *

t