In the Spirit of Happiness (Hardcover)

by Monks of New Skete (Editor) "IT IS MANY YEARS NOW since he first visited the monastery, though the details of that day linger quietly in his memory..." (more)
Key Phrases: first fervor, sacred reading, unceasing prayer, Father Laurence, New Skete, Brother Marc (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com
The wise and cheerful monks of New Skete (How to Be Your Dog's Best Friend) believe that our spirits are meant to be happy. So within these pages, the popular monks of Cambridge, NY, offer useful suggestions for mastering the elusive art of happiness. And while this might sound like a book written by jolly Friar Tucks, it is in fact an intelligent, informed discussion on the soothing power of prayer, mercy, compassion, and devotion. It also opens the doors to the private life of monastic living--helping readers to see that even nuns and monks experience rapture as well as doubt and despair.

In most of their chapters, the monks speak to the principles of spiritual happiness, such as "The Discipline of Change," "Practice Sacred Reading," and "River of Mercy." Interspersed with these lively and useful chapters, the monks have inserted seven "Interludes" in which they speak about monastic living. The result is a thoroughly satisfying package, filled with advice, reflection, warm personal anecdotes, and a delicious taste of what it means to live the contemplative life. --Gail Hudson

From Publishers Weekly
Known for their popular dog-training books (How to Be Your Dog's Best Friend, etc.), the monks of New Skete are a contemporary religious community in the Eastern Orthodox tradition. The Cambridge, N.Y., group supports itself through farming and breeding German shepherds (hence the dog books), among other enterprises. Writing in unison, the monks articulate the principles of their monasticism and spiritual practices. The monks believe that "the world itself is a cloister" and that all humans are entitled to happiness, which they define as a "deep and lasting interior peace... [that] comes only with the struggle to search out and accept the will of God in our lives." Readers expecting the standard primer on simple living should be forewarned that this work, while luminous at times, is also profound and challenging. Wary of the current vogue for individualistic spirituality, the monks advocate learning by following a teacher, meditating, reading and reflecting on Scripture, praying silently and embracing discipline. The value of liturgical worship and community are beautifully and movingly portrayed. The monks depict their beliefs with remarkable depth and certainty, but the use of dialogue between a composite "Seeker" of wisdom and Father Laurence, their