Money As Sacrament: Finding the Sacred in Money [Paperback]

Adele Azar-Rucquoi (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: November 19, 2002

Too taboo to discuss in public, but central to many private conversations, money and the power it has over us is always on our minds. In MONEY AS SACRAMENT, Adele Azar-Rucquoi examines how money affects women's outlook on life, relationships, confidence, independence, and inner peace. As a former nun who grew up running the cash register at her immigrant father's grocery, the wife of a formerly homeless man, and the unsuspecting heir to a substantial inheritance later in life, Azar-Rucquoi's defining life experiences have transformed how she relates to money and helped her develop keen perspective and uncommon wisdom on how money impacts lives. In MONEY AS SACRAMENT, Azar-Rucquoi looks at how women are deeply conflicted by wealth—or the lack thereof—and encourages us to recognize its inherently multifaceted meaning. In this thoughtful and provocative collection of 50 stories about women who grapple with such issues, Azar-Rucquoi inspires us all to finally make peace with the mighty dollar. • Women make approximately 90 percent of their family's money-based decisions.• Women have a 70 percent chance of being responsible for their own financial matters, and an 80 percent chance of being responsible for someone's else financial matters.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"I have been deeply shaped, conditioned, and blessed by a unique relationship with money. My life-defining experiences have emerged as the central pieces in my spiritual puzzle: those years working the register in a grocery store, then as a nun in a convent followed by lean seasons of church service, and then falling into my parents' ample inheritance and living off it. Looking back, I am amazed by how my confusion at each juncture served to shape my authority on the subject of money. In these days of intense commerce, as banks speak real time, stock brokers trade at light speed, and families are caught up in their own high-speed spending cycles, I believe we are desperate to locate the meaning of it all. Where's the spirit in all this currency, in all this exchange, and what is it telling us? For me, money had come to have that distinct coldness of the enemy. Did others see it the same? I longed to know if other women struggled as much with the meaning of money as I did. I wanted to know how they handled it, how they talked about it, and how they shared it with their families and communities. Seeking these answers, I began interviewing women from all walks of life—women with and without money. This book is the culmination of these very personal conversations and the enlightenment they brought me. No more do I think of money as a worldly possession, but rather, as a synthesis of matter, spirit, and exchange." —From the Introduction

About the Author

ADELE AZAR-RUCQUOI is a former Catholic nun and schoolteacher who leads seminars for women grappling with the complex issues associated with money. Azar-Rucquoi lives in Maitland, Florida.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 219 pages
• Publisher: Celestial Arts (November 19, 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1587611376
• ISBN-13: 978-1587611377
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6.1 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 11.5 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (12 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,045,059 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Eye-opening; thought provoking, July 24, 2004

By 

CK "CK" (United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Money As Sacrament: Finding the Sacred in Money (Paperback)

Once I started this book, I could not put it down. With each part of Adele's journey, I took a deeper look into my own life's journey and my relationship with money. Do we ever make peace with money? If so, how? These are questions I never really thought of before. But when reading this book, I felt compelled to answer them. And these answers --- and the path I took to find them --- are making a profound difference in how I am leading my life.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Money as Sacrament-, July 24, 2004

By 

J. L. Wooten - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Money As Sacrament: Finding the Sacred in Money (Paperback)

This book came to me at the perfect time in my life! I am 43 years old, and on my own for the first time in my life, following the end of a 21 year marriage in which my husband and I played the traditional roles of male/provider and female/homemaker. I was very uneasy and quite frustrated at the financial place I was in. In addition, the topic of money is not one that many of my friends felt comfortable talking with me about, especially now that we were coming from different perspectives.

Reading Adele's wonderful book was a blessing to me in 3 ways: it was full of good information and lessons, it changed the way I view money in my life, and I realized that many other women have been in similar, or worse situations, and they have found their way. It really lessened my fears and concerns, and helped me to trust that everything is as it should be. This is a much needed book on a very important topic.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Life Opening Book, April 21, 2003

By A Customer

This review is from: Money As Sacrament: Finding the Sacred in Money (Paperback)

This book is a breath of fresh air for anyone struggling to have a healthy relationship with money in their life. The book is a compilation of stories of how various women have dealt with their money challenges of proverty and prosperity throughout their lives. The most helpful lesson I learned from this was thinking of money as something available to serve your life...rather than serving money itself. Azar-Rucquoi does an excellent job of showing that God wants an abundant life for all of us - and the real solution is to trust Him in whatever financial circumstances we find ourselves in. It was an enjoyable read and I applaud the author for her unique and relevant way of handling a very elusive subject.