The Fire in the Cloud: Lenten Meditations : Daily Reflections on the Liturgical Texts [Paperback]

Francis Martin (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: March 2002

The Fire in the Cloud was God’s glory that led the people of Israel in their Exodus through the desert. In Lent, which is our Exodus, God’s glory leads us in Scripture, where his Word is the burning flame. Scripture scholar and Bible teacher Father Francis Martin helps us respond to Christ, our Light, with insightful and inspiring meditations on the liturgical readings for every day of Lent.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Father Francis Martin serves as Professor of Biblical Theology at the John Paul II Institute for Studies on Marriage and Family, and spiritual advisor to the Mother of God Community, both in the same Archdiocese.He has written over 30 articles, books, and other works (tapes) for scholarly, popular, and pastoral audiences. In fact, he was one of the founders and contributing writers for The Word Among Us.

Product Details

• Paperback: 205 pages
• Publisher: Charis Books (March 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1569552649
• ISBN-13: 978-1569552643
• Product Dimensions: 7.9 x 5.3 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 6.2 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #841,129 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars What a blessing this book is..., December 7, 2001

By 

M. Floria (USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Fire in the Cloud: Lenten Meditations : Daily Reflections on the Liturgical Texts (Paperback)

As a lay member of the Catholic Church, I am grateful to Francis Martin for bringing scripture and prayer to life. He has the ability to illuminate certain truths contained in scripture by explaining the texts from a fresh perspective. Also, this book gets into the real flow of the lenten season, tying the daily liturgical readings together and building upon them so that they make personal sense. This book is such a great devotional, it's not the typical "syrup-sweet" kind of reflection that I've read before. It's a scholarly review and explanation, sort of a prayer in it's own right. I'd like to get a few copies for my close friends and family so we can move through the lenten season together.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars High protein nourishment and deeply satisfying, December 24, 2001

By 

John J Farren (New Haven, CT United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Fire in the Cloud: Lenten Meditations : Daily Reflections on the Liturgical Texts (Paperback)

Fruit of the author's life-time dedication to the Scriptures, deep prayer, and spiritual direction, The Fire in the Cloud is a wonderful companion for Lent. The work is based on solid Scriptural scholarship, as well as liturgical history and theology, but is not concerned to draw us to these; rather, it draws us directly to Christ. It builds on the author's experience as student of the Scriptures, teacher, preacher, confessor and guide of souls. The power of Christ to transform our lives shines warmly from its pages. It's a simple and handy companion for Lenten observance and will do the reader more good than many other observances. It's solid nourishment for a time of fasting! You could hardly give a friend a better gift than this one, for it will bring all who use it rich fruit. Congratulations to Servant Publications for making it available!

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars From a Trappistine nun, February 26, 2002

By 

Sister Barbara Smickel (Crozet, VA, USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Fire in the Cloud: Lenten Meditations : Daily Reflections on the Liturgical Texts (Paperback)

Those of us who seek to be nourished by the Lenten liturgy are always on the watch for a fresh approach, a new and deeper look at these texts which are so familiar and "well-worn," yet capable of touching something deep with us that waits to be awakened to total receptivity and total gift.

Fr Francis Martin's book, THE FIRE IN THE CLOUD, is as striking as its title suggests. Reading it, praying it, is a personal journey into the desert. There the cloud shelters us, the fire burns us - and we are drawn beyond our familiar comprehensions to a landscape where new possibilities of self-gift are the horizon to which God's love beckons us through the texts set before us each day.