Spiritual Formation Library Archives

“Teach Us How To Pray” – A series on prayer with Msgr. John Esseff Episode 1 – Discerning Hearts

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Prayer is assumed as something we know how to do, but do we? The Church has been constantly teaching her children throughout the ages. The Mass, of course, is our central act of prayer. But to truly deepen our prayer, even our worship in the Mass, we must appreciate who God is. God is a Trinity, He revealed Himself to us. He is Three Persons in One God. We experience and express their relationship when we pray “Glory be to the Father, Glory be to the Son,

Glory be the Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning, is now and ever shall be world without end”. When we pray “Glory be to the Father”, He really hears us…He is present, He is truly with you. What does that mean when we pray? It is a relationship. The same is true in relation to the Son and the Holy Spirit. Msgr. Esseff, in this first lesson on prayer, breaks this open in a very deep and important way…the importance of Trinity and presence. Msgr. Esseff also begins an introduction to the importance of the Liturgy of the Hours and the Psalms.

Be sure to visit Msgr. Esseff’s website: “Building A Kingdom of Love”

IP#135 Christopher West – The Heart of the Gospel on Inside the Pages

Christopher West is a pioneer in the area known as “The Theology of the Body”, a teaching found in the Wednesday audiences of Bl. John Paul II over the course of many years. In “The Heart of the Gospel: Reclaiming the body of the New Evangelization”, Christopher shares his insights and deeper understandings found in over 20 years of experience with this work and it’s relevance for our faith lives today. In the course of the book, he also answers those objections to his approach in the past. He dives deeply into the teachings of Pope Benedict XVI, the teachings of the Saints, and above all, Sacred Scripture to find a richer expression of this important work and its message for our world today. Below is the complete interview I had with Christopher which lasted close to an hour. His humble, candid, honest approach to our discussion reveals his care and concern for the subject and great love for the work given to us by our late great Holy Father, Bl. John Paul II.

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You can find Christopher’s book here

“The light of the Gospel, which is a clear but at times painful light, can illumine human sexuality to its very depth in order to transform it and bring it to its full beauty. Here lies the great strength of Blessed John Paul II’s Theology of the Body. In this peaceful and positive response to critics, Christopher West proves once again that he is a faithful and inspiring interpreter and communicator of this great pope’s teaching, a teaching so urgently needed for an effective proclamation of the Gospel.” —Christoph Cardinal Schönborn, cardinal archbishop of Vienna; general editor, Catechism of the Catholic Church; and grand chancellor, International Theological Institute for Studies on Marriage and the Family

“Christopher West has gone to the desert … and come back stronger than ever. Those who may previously have thought his work was one-sided in its celebration of the body and sexuality will find here, brought out more clearly than ever, the deep balance and integration that has always been the foundation of his work.” – Most Reverend Robert J. Carlson, Archbishop of Saint Louis, Chairman, USCCB Committee on Clergy, Consecrated Life and Vocations

IP#132 Kevin Lowry – Faith at Work on Inside the Pages

Faith at Work: Finding Purpose Beyond the Paycheck is fantastic…a remedy for spirituality seekers in the workplace (and in the home as well)! You have to love a work that begins with conversion as a goal. Kevin Lowry offers concrete helps which assist all of us deepen our relationship with Christ and His Church, and live authentic lives as Catholics in the world. Great for individuals and for group study as well.

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“Too many Christians treat ambition and success as if they’re four-letter words…. For a Catholic in business, they can be touchstones of sanctification.”— Scott Hahn, Ph.D., professor of biblical theology, Franciscan University of Steubenville

Be sure to visit Kevin Lowry’s website at Grateful Convert

Check it out here

IP#130 Fr. Milton Walsh – In Memory of Me on Inside the Pages

What is the “Roman Canon”? Fr. Milton Walsh helps us to answer that question and enter deeply into the mystery found in this beautiful Eucharistic prayer. Drawing from the best of biblical and liturgical scholarship, Fr. Walsh offers a beautiful meditation that can help priests, religious, and laity deepen their understanding of the text that for centuries was the only Eucharistic prayer used in the Roman Rite. This is a great book to give those in Catholic Adult Formation programs, like the RCIA, Diaconate training, Religious Education Catechist, as well as to the average “pew person” who longs for a deeper encounter in the depths of our Sacred Liturgy.

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You can Fr. Walsh’s book here

With a revised English translation of the venerable Roman Canon, many Catholics will be hearing it with new ears. This book will help them hear it with a new heart. Don’t just study the new words, step into the soul of Eucharistic Prayer I. —Rev. Paul Turner, Former president of the North American Academy of Liturgy