The Sun & Moon Over Assisi: A Personal Encounter with Francis & Clare [Hardcover]

Gerard Thomas Straub (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 2000

I found the story of Francis life to be extremely interesting. He inflamed my imagination. Writing about him, in truth, was a way for me to get to know him better. I didn't realize it, but it was also a way for me to get to know God better.... Francis became my guide, showing
me the way. (from a Pilgrimage Diary)

The Sun and Moon Over Assisi reveals how the lives of the two medieval saints from Assisi--Francis and Clare--helped to transform the life of a thoroughly modern cynic from Los Angeles, California. The major events
of the lives of the two saints are unfolded here in a series of vivid and
engaging stories. Alongside the history of Francis and Clare, another
story unfolds: the story of the spiritual transformation of the author, Hollywood filmmaker and television producer Gerard Straub, illustrating how Francis and Clare still speak to the present-day, secularized person. The author takes the reader with him, in a series of pilgrimage diaries and reflections, to the beautiful Italian sites important to the two saints. With Straub, we traverse the charming Umbrian hill towns, including Assisi, tour its churches and examine the art of Giotto found there. The Sun and Moon Over Assisi tells of an interior pilgrimage that will inspire the modern reader.

--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

The unlikely pilgrim in this highly recommended story is Gerard Thomas Straub, a former television producer who worked on popular soap operas such as "General Hospital" and "The Doctors." Raised as a Catholic, Straub fell into a bout of atheism after a disillusioning stint working for one of television's leading Christian evangelists. Nonetheless, Straub was blessed (or is it cursed?) with a seeker's soul and a novelist's imagination. He couldn't stay away from the quest for spiritual understanding. The upshot is a story within a story: the story of two saints from Assisi, Francis and Clare, as well as the story of how a disillusioned man finds himself in the Umbrian hills of Italy, completely entranced by these two legendary Italians.

If you enter this book as you would a meditation, you'll be fine. If you're looking for a light, straightforward narrative, move on. One must be willing to stop fidgeting and let go of expectations of how a memoir or a biography of a saint should read. Instead, this is a wandering and unfolding book that reveals deeper layers with every turn of page. Not only does it unveil the stories of Francis and Clare, it also reveals the classic human quest, where we face our most vulnerable spiritual questions and fears. Billed as an introduction to Franciscan scholarship, this is really more beautiful and ambitious. Consider it a primer on the art of Christian pilgrimage. --Gail Hudson

Review

"...his encounter with Francis and Clare weaves their stories in with his pilgrimage to the scenes of their lives." -- Theology Digest

"The book is a triumph of faith, and a practical review of how one can deal with doubts." -- Pastoral Life

"Wonderful detail of Assisi when Francis and Clare walked the land, and what it's like now." -- Catholic Parent

"an intriguing interplay of Straub's story to real conversion and the recounting of the wonders of the Franciscan world." -- Catholic Library World, March 2002

...a rich, but still highly readable resource. -- Catholic Extension

A compelling book that is highly recommended. -- Liguorian, February 2001

An extended theological reflection that would be helpful to most as a sourcebook, in the preparation of talks, papers, etc. -- The Way of St. Francis, September/October 2002

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 614 pages
• Publisher: Saint Anthony Messenger Press; illustrated edition edition (September 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0867163933
• ISBN-13: 978-0867163933
• Product Dimensions: 9.1 x 6.3 x 1.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.2 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,080,039 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

30 of 30 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Take the Time, February 19, 2001

By 

Ms. Jane K. Griffin (Carlsbad, California United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Sun & Moon Over Assisi: A Personal Encounter with Francis & Clare (Hardcover)

When I pick up a book on spirituality, that is nearly 600 pages long, I find myself flipping back and forth, counting the number of pages I still have to read (yawn). Having admitted that, I will add that "religion" is probably my first choice when searching for new books. Conversely with this book, I found myself counting the pages to see how many pages were left, because I didn't want it to end. Straub takes us along on his spiritual pilgrimage. In his "Thoughts Scribbled While walking," we can almost chart his spiritual growth (like an ascending line on graph paper). This book will inspire you to follow his lead by pursuing a deeper relationship with God. I was skeptical upon reading his background as a TV/soap writer, but I found it (along with his honesty and humility),to lend credibility to his personal transformation . I have never read a book that inspired me to write the author to tell him how much his writing touched me. This is one author I would like to thank.

This is a book to be savored. As a resident of Southern California, I found his personal observations on the cultural values of Americans right on target. It's too bad this book may never make the N.Y. Times Best Sellers' List, it could change the world.

28 of 28 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Sts. Francis & Clare: Sources for Conversion, October 2, 2000

By 

Domenick Morda (Hilton Head, SC USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Sun & Moon Over Assisi: A Personal Encounter with Francis & Clare (Hardcover)

As St. Francis is a man for all Ages, This book can be read on so many levels. As a straightforward biography of Sts. Francis and Clare it offers a modern no nonsense rendering of the lives of Assisi's greatest progeny. The chapters on Francis and Clare have a spiritual depth that would enhance the formation and understanding of any inquirer into the lives and spiituality of these two great saints.

Straub's honesty and openness in describing his own personal journey from being an atheist to a believer with a special evangelical vocation, the insightful musings of his Pilgrim's Diary, the history of the churches of Assisi all add up to a tour de force. I believe this book will have a great appeal to the general reader in addition to those with a special love for Franciscan and spiritual themes.

Certain parts of the book radiate incandescently. The rule of synergy states that the "whole is greater than the sum of it's parts." And yet, there are so many "parts" in this book that seem to stand alone in excellence at least equal to the power and depth of the whole. The treatment of Francis' timeless elegy to his God's creations, The Canticle of the Creatures, is truly inspired. The poem's majesty is wonderfully underscored by Staub's personal reflections and those the of other writers quoted in praise and awe of St. Francis' spiritually poetic genius. In closing his reflection on the canticle with Fr. Eloi Leclerc's The Language of the Soul's Night, Straub poignantly illustrates how St. Francis was as relevant in elevating souls in the rawest and most dire moments of the twentieth century as he was in the past and, most assuredly, will be in the future.

A specific charism of the Franciscan is to be able to shed the layers of meaningless diversions, vanities and preoccupations that restricts us from either confronting or exposing the truths and essential realities of our lives. Straub is able, in the most literary and articulate fashion, to expose his spiritual (human) doubts and shortcomings as he grapples with the profound search for meaning in his life. His "inner life" is shared with the reader in the most intimate terms without apology or embarrassment. I felt priveleged to become a part of Straub's journey and reveled in the awareness of how much we humans have in common with each other.

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The Sun and Moon over Us, January 26, 2002

By 

A. Haag (San Diego, CA USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: The Sun & Moon Over Assisi: A Personal Encounter with Francis & Clare (Hardcover)

I love this book and, in fact, I'm buying copies to give to friends. The story of the ongoing conversion of the author is an example of the journey of any seeker of God: great awakenings, stumbles, doubts, reassurances, understanding.
The first portion of the book is compelling and hard to put aside. The other chapters, however, are so rich with material from additional sources that I found them best to meditate on, think of as you live your life, and then dip into once again. This is perfect as a devotional for the liturgical seasons of advent and lent.