"A chaplain doesn’t have a leisurely hour in which to explain God. The suffering is right there, and its urgency demands an immediate response." ~ from Kate Braestrup's Beginner's Grace
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| Choosing Hope: Moving Forward from Life's Darkest Hours by Kaitlin Roig-DeBellis with Robin Gaby FisherAuthor Kaitlin Roig-DeBellis survived the Sandy Hook Elementary School massacre along with her entire first grade class by quickly packing the students into the classroom's bathroom. After the shootings, she faced professional frustration and felt despondent, but channeled her emotions into projects that would aid children in needy schools. In Choosing Hope, which includes dark accounts of the horror she endured, Roig-DeBellis offers inspiration as she recounts how her faith sustained her determination to overcome despair and allow hope to prevail in her life. |
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Focus on: Spiritual Practices
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| Beginner's Grace: Bringing Prayer to Life by Kate BraestrupPrayer is not reserved for formal worship and can be part of any kind of daily experience, but people often feel they need help learning to pray. In response to this need, author Kate Braestrup, a Unitarian Universalist minister, gives examples of prayers derived from many faith traditions, organizing them according to situations Braestrup herself has experienced -- including a "Hospital Prayer" invented alongside the anxious mother of a newborn. Braestrup's anecdotal style vividly portrays the uses of prayer in real-life situations. You may find her earlier memoir, Here if You Need Me, equally inspiring. |
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| One Perfect Word: One Word Can Make All the Difference by Debbie MacomberThrough much of her life, bestselling novelist Debbie Macomber has made it her practice to choose a single word to study and make part of her daily religious practice for a year. In One Perfect Word, she explores the power of words to inspire, guide, console, and reveal one's inmost desires. Drawing on her journals, the writings of others, and remembered anecdotes, she connects the significance of individual words to the power of faith. While Macomber is a Christian and draws from Christian writings, readers seeking more depth in any spiritual practice will find her book inspiring. |
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| The Hidden Gifts of Helping: How the Power of Giving, Compassion, and... by Stephen G. PostAccording to author Stephen Post, a professor of preventive medicine, helping others causes the release of brain chemicals that reduce stress and increase a sense of happiness. In The Hidden Gifts of Helping, Post advises taking on the discipline of altruism through a regular practice of good deeds. He reveals how applying this principle eased his own stress after he lost a job and explains how it can work for anyone. No matter how you help, to the best of your ability -- knitting shawls for the seriously ill, donating money for disaster relief, tutoring children -- you'll find serious life challenges easier to handle. |
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| The Sabbath World: Glimpses of a Different Order of Time by Judith ShulevitzThe weekly observance of Sabbath is an essential component of Judaism that has asserted its influence by making the seven-day week nearly universal. The Sabbath's exacting requirement of six work days and a day of rest may clash with modern 24-7 schedules, but in The Sabbath World journalist Judith Shulevitz engagingly details the spiritual and cultural advantages of Sabbath practice for busy people, since it can offer a change of pace even if not undertaken for religious purposes. For another accessible book on the Sabbath, try Joseph Lieberman's The Gift of Rest. |
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Contact your librarian for more great books!
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