Forgiveness: Following Jesus Into Radical Loving [Kindle Edition]

Paula Huston (Author)

Editorial Reviews

Product Description

Are you able to forgive those who have hurt you?

If you find it difficult to forgive, this book is your encouragement.

If you’re having trouble accepting forgiveness for something you have done, this is your inspiration.

With honesty, writing about her own failings, Paula Huston examines the intellectual, psychological, social, and spiritual meanings of forgiveness. She asks tough questions and then offers possible solutions, drawing a portrait of a truly forgiving person.

“One of Jesus’ most mind-boggling declarations is that we who hope to follow him must first be willing to forgive the people who have hurt us. Not only does this injunction show up at the heart of the prayer he offers to his disciples (“Give us this day our daily bread…”) but he restates it as a requirement for salvation: “If you forgive others their transgressions, your heavenly Father will forgive you. But if you do not forgive others, neither will your Father forgive your transgressions.” (Mt. 6:11-15)

“He also tells us that if we wish to live in relationship with God, we must first seek forgiveness from those we’ve hurt: “Therefore, if you bring your gift to the altar, and there recall that your brother has anything against you, leave your gift there at the altar, go first and be reconciled with your brother, and then come and offer your gift.” (Mt. 5:23-24). Our damaged relationships with other people, especially when we are responsible for that damage, have a direct effect on our friendship with God.”

Product Details

• Format: Kindle Edition
• File Size: 262 KB
• Publisher: Paraclete Press (November 1, 2009)
• Sold by: Amazon Digital Services
• Language: English
• ASIN: B002VECQP0
• Text-to-Speech: Enabled
• Lending: Enabled
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #118,862 Paid in Kindle Store (See Top 100 Paid in Kindle Store)

More About the Author

(Author Photograph by Dennis Eamon Young). Paula Huston, the eldest of five children, was born in Minneapolis, Minnesota, in 1952. Her Norwegian Lutheran family moved to California when she was only two; she grew up in Long Beach, married at nineteen, and relocated to San Luis Obispo county on the Central Coast in her early twenties. About the time her children, Andrea and John, were born, she began writing short stories; in her early thirties, she divorced and spent several years as a single working mother, which convinced her that she really needed to complete her college education. After remarrying and becoming a stepmother to Kelly and Greta, she returned to school for a B.A. in English, and went on for a Masters in English and American Literature while continuing to write and publish fiction.

She began teaching at Cal Poly San Luis Obispo after completing the Master's degree. While still matriculating, she took a class in ethics that helped spur a return to the Christianity she had abandoned years before. This time, however, she came back to the church as a Catholic, and in the process, shifted to writing spiritual non-fiction. Eventually, she became a Camaldolese Benedictine oblate, a lay associate of a contemplative Catholic hermitage on the Big Sur coast, which means she does her best to live by two ancient rules written primarily for monks and hermits: the Rule of St. Benedict and the Brief Rule of St. Romuald of Ravenna, Italian founder of the Camaldolese. For many years, she and her husband Mike have lived on four acres in the country where, in the spirit of St. Benedict, they produce much of the food they eat, including fruits, vegetables, olive oil, eggs, honey, and wine. She has two small and beloved grandsons, and is currently anticipating the birth of yet another little boy this fall.

Huston is the author of four books and a co-editor and contributing essayist for a fifth, SIGNATURES OF GRACE: CATHOLIC WRITERS ON THE SACRAMENTS. Her essays and short stories have appeared in numerous literary journals and magazines over the years, including AMERICAN SHORT FICTION, STORY, NORTH AMERICAN REVIEW, IMAGE, AMERICA, THE CHRISTIAN CENTURY, and GEEZ. She is a National Endowment of the Arts Fellow in Creative Writing, and a founder and faculty member for a low-residency California State University Consortium Master of Fine Arts program in fiction, creative non-fiction, and poetry. Her work has been honored several times by BEST AMERICAN SHORT STORIES and will appear in BEST SPIRITUAL WRITING OF 2010. She has taught at the Glen Workshop at St. John's College in Santa Fe, New Mexico, and is a frequent retreat leader and speaker at churches and campuses around the country.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Finally: Someone explains how it's done, February 4, 2009

By 

Mary Cichy (Granger, IN) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Forgiveness: Following Jesus Into Radical Loving (Hardcover)

I loved this book. Huston clearly explains the psychology of forgiveness, understands the human struggle behind it, and offers a clear way for healing the most intractable heart.

I often have to force myself to read books that are either spiritual or "self-help" in nature. This one is both, but written so lucidly and engagingly, I found myself unable to put it down--and then wanted to read it again as soon as I had finished.

Forgiveness: Following Jesus Into Radical Loving