The Holy Longing: The Search for A Christian Spirituality [Hardcover]

Ronald Rolheiser (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: July 20, 1999

Ronald Rolheiser makes sense of what is frequently a misunderstood word: spirituality. In posing the question "What is spirituality?" Father Rolheiser gets quickly to the heart of common difficulties with the subject, and shows through compelling anecdotes and personal examples how to channel that restlessness, that deep desire, into a healthy spirituality.

This book is for those searching to understand what Christian spirituality means and how to apply it to their own lives.  Rolheiser explains the nonnegotiables--the importance of community worship, the imperatives surrounding social action, the centrality of the Incarnation, the sustenance of the spiritual life--and how spirituality necessarily impacts every aspect of human experience.  At the core of this readable, deeply revealing book is an explanation of God and the Church in a world that more often than not doubts the credibility of both.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

"Long before we do anything explicitly religious at all, we have to do something about the fire that burns within us," writes Ronald Rolheiser. "What we do with that fire, how we channel it, is our spirituality." From the opening chapter, where Rolheiser eloquently compares the burning spiritual fire of Mother Teresa, Janice Joplin, and Princess Diana, readers will be fully engaged in a unique and altogether fascinating discussion of Christian spirituality.

As a regular columnist for the Catholic Herald, Rolheiser has clearly honed his writing skills. Like an eloquent marriage counselor, he deftly tries to reconcile the rift between contemporary spirituality and Christianity. For example, he points to the four pillars that support a healthy marriage of Christianity and spirituality, which are "Private prayer and private morality. Social justice. Mellowness of heart and spirit. Community as a constitutive element of true worship." Building upon these pillars, Rolheiser delves into the more challenging marital tensions with chapters such as "Christ as the Basis for Christian Spirituality" and a "Spirituality of Sexuality." This is an excellent book for any Christian who has longs to create a more holy and lasting spiritual union. --Gail Hudson

From Publishers Weekly

"Spirituality is about what we do with our unrest... [it] is about what we do with that incurable desire, the madness that comes from the gods, within us." Rolheiser (Restless Heart) contends that the late 20th century is marked by a kind of spiritual restlessness, even though the spiritual landscape is littered with a variety of "spiritualities." He argues that there is richness in such spiritual diversity and plurality, but that many seekers lack direction in their spiritual search. Rolheiser develops a Christian spirituality that he believes offers some definite direction for seekers. At the heart of a healthy Christian spiritual life, he says, there must be four essentials: "private prayer and private morality; social justice; mellowness of heart and spirit; and community as a constitutive element of true worship." At the base of Christian spirituality, he notes, is the Incarnation of God in human flesh. If Christians can focus on the embodied character of their theology, then the four essentials of Christian spirituality become easier to embrace. In the latter half of the book, Rolheiser develops sketches of a spirituality of community (ecclesiology), a spirituality of sexuality and a spirituality of justice and peacemaking. We can sustain ourselves in the spiritual life, he notes, by being a mystic, sinning bravely, gathering ritually around the Word and breaking the bread, and worshipping and serving the right God. Rolheiser's program for Christian spirituality is reminiscent of the best work of Henri Nouwen and Daniel Berrigan. (July)
Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 272 pages
• Publisher: Doubleday Religion; 1 edition (July 20, 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0385494181
• ISBN-13: 978-0385494182
• Product Dimensions: 8.2 x 5.8 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 15.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (65 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #16,842 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #75 in Books > Christian Books & Bibles > Catholicism

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

135 of 142 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Reconnecting with spirituality, December 26, 1999

By 

Jon Wergin - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Holy Longing: The Search for A Christian Spirituality (Hardcover)

I am a former Christian and have been on a spiritual journey for some time. I have been looking for a way to redefine my faith, to recommit to at least some of the Christian tenets I rejected years ago. Nothing I read helped me; authors (including C.S. Lewis, among others) all seem to assume that their readers share their faith. But in Rolheiser's book his first line says it all: "This is a book for you if you are struggling spiritually." I was struggling before I read the book, and I still am, but Rolheiser has helped me understand what the struggle is about. This is a book that can be read with benefit by believers and nonbelievers alike.

61 of 63 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Inspiration for the new millennium, December 2, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: The Holy Longing: The Search for A Christian Spirituality (Hardcover)

This is the most inspirational--and challenging--book I've read in this or any year. This book is full of practical advice for increasing the spirituality of both the individual and the church. While Rolheiser is a Catholic priest, the issues he discusses are relevant to all Christians. His ideas on the concept of community I found especially thought-provoking with regard both to church and family. They provide useful ways of maintaining the focus on God even in the loud, messy chaos of everyday life and for worshipping with a community of believers, all of which you might not choose to associate with in other circumstances. Rolheiser's chapter on Christian sexuality as energy can be inspirational for both single individuals and those who are married or in other relationships. I would highly recommend this book for individual study or group discussion among thoughtful Christians of all denominations.

54 of 57 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Best Book on Catholic Spirituality in 10 Years..., June 7, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: The Holy Longing: The Search for A Christian Spirituality (Hardcover)

Rolheiser does an amazing job of taking the reader on a journey of spirituality. He carefully crafted the book to help the reader understand the fundamentals of a solid Christian spirituality. Though clearly written from a Roman Catholic perspective, the writing and insight is so helpful that any Christian would benefit from it. This book will truly help one's reach expand his grasp spiritually.

The man who recommended this to me is brilliant for recognizing it as the best book on Catholic spirituality he had read in the last ten years.

This is the kind of book that starts great discussion groups and leads them to the formation of a community.