Rediscover Jesus (Dynamic Catholic)

Hello my loyal readers and new readers stopping by on the #RediscoverJesus blog tour hosted by Dynamic Catholic! Today, I am reviewing the latest book from dynamic (pun intended) speaker Matthew Kelly. It is entitled Rediscover Jesus, and is a follow-up work to his life-changing book Rediscover Catholicism. I just know that this book is going to be the next big thing in Catholic publishing! Here's my brief review.

Rediscover Jesus is an approximately 200 page hardcover with a purple dust jacket and deckle-edged pages. I'm not sure what it is about deckle-edged pages, but they seem to be heavily favored by publishers lately. The book itself is 40 chapters long, with no chapter spanning more than five pages. The choice of 40 chapters seems deliberate by the author as 40 is a very important Biblical number, i.e., the Flood, the Israelites wandering in the desert, and Jesus' time in the desert. With the purple dust jacket and 40 chapters, I wonder if Matthew Kelly intended this book to be a daily Lenten read. If he didn't, I would highly recommend doing so! At the end of every chapter are four things to help the chapter crystallize in your brain - 1. Point to Ponder, 2. Verse to Live, 3. Question to Consider, 4. Prayer. I would recommend writing each verse down on a notecard and trying to memorize them, but that may just be the former Protestant in me.

The book is short, but powerful. Each chapter, which can be read in ten minutes or less, provides a jolt to start your day and also make you uncomfortable...in a good way. Kelly points out how little we actually know about Jesus, going so far as to say, "The thing that unsettles me is that sometimes I think I know people on the periphery of my life better than I know Jesus." This was a slap in the face, and it was one that I desperately needed to read. Chapter 40 "The Hour of Power" addressed two things I struggle with - silence and adoration. There's something about sitting there alone with God in silence that is intimidating to me. I have a hard time keeping my mind from wandering; keeping my mouth shut and letting God talk; and just sitting still in the awesome presence of God. This is definitely something for me to work on, but I believe I will have to incrementally build up to an hour, because I am weak.

This level of conciseness that Matthew Kelly achieves in this book makes this book very approachable. He didn't use flowery language or overly complicated language. He just laid it out for you plain and simple. I have a habit of saying that some books are a challenging read, but this book was instead a read that challenged you. As Catholics, we don't really think about a personal relationship with Jesus like our Protestant brethren do, but we need to! This book shows us not only that we need that personal relationship, but helps us to achieve it as well. I read through this book quickly, because the book lent itself to that style of reading. However, I have placed this book on my shelf to read again during Lent. Then, I will take my time and read through each chapter a day to let the message fully sink in and take hold. I strongly recommend this book to all Catholics.

You can now order your copy of Rediscover Jesus on Amazon.com or BarnesandNoble.com.
Thank you for participating in the #RediscoverJesus blog tour! To read tomorrow’s final stop, please visit Lisa Hendey at CatholicMom.com.

Joy to the World (Image Books)

Today I am kicking off the Scott Hahn Joy to the World blog tour. In addition to posting a review of the book, I was also asked to reflect on what Christmas means to me. There is also a giveaway at the end, so be sure to read all the way to the bottom.

Review:
Dr. Scott Hahn has written many books throughout his years as a convert. He has covered the Mass, Sacraments, and sometimes high theology. Joy to the World, however, is his first book dedicated solely to Christmas. Dr. Hahn begins with a personal tale of his family's time in Bethlehem and the impact it had on his daughter Hannah. He then explains that the city of Bethlehem isn't a place you just visit and forget, but changes your life. We then get to the heart of the book in which Dr. Hahn details and explains various aspects of the Christmas story.

Dr. Hahn talks about the differences between St. Matthew and St. Luke and the way they presented the details in their respective Gospels. He talks about genealogies and the key figures listed. He discusses Herod and the killing of the Holy Innocents. There's of course a chapter on Mary, and to my surprise even St. Joseph gets his own chapter. Much appreciated and deserved! There were shepherds and magi, and even focus on the star that led the Magi. He explains that St. John Chrysostom believed that it was actually an angel and not a star. There's even a chapter that talks about all the journeys the Holy Family went on, such as the flight into Egypt.

However, my favorite chapter was the one on the Presentation of Jesus in the Temple. I admit that I already knew most of the theology Dr. Hahn explained in this chapter, but I was thrilled that he took the time to explain it and tie it into the Christmas story. One interesting bit of theology is how Jesus' circumcision was foreshadowing to His crucifixion. My favorite mind-blowing theological point that Dr. Hahn made dealt with the lack of a ransom offered for Jesus THE firstborn son. Since no ransom was paid, Jesus belonged to God and was in service to God. This makes the troubling passage of twelve year old Jesus being found in the Temple (Luke 2:48-49), less troubling. Of course he was in His Father's house! That's where He belonged!

Christmas came early this year with the October release of Dr. Hahn's book Joy to the World. If you want to know why Christ's coming mattered then and still matters today, you need this book. If you are someone who simply likes to keep the focus on Christ during Christmas, you'll want this book. Whether it is a treat for you or a gift for someone else, you will not be disappointed. It is perfect to read anytime of the year, not just Advent and Christmas.

To read an interview from Dr. Hahn on his book, click here. This book was provided to me for free by Image Books in exchange for an honest review. If you found this review helpful, please click here and hit Yes!

Personal Reflection
Christmas to me means charity. In addition to picking a child or two off our parish's Angel Tree, my wife and I also give to a program that supplies goats to our sister parish in El Salvador. Each year, we save up money to buy goats that help provide a livelihood to needy families. We also have fun picking out names for the goats. One year, I had a William Goat, as in Billy Goat. It's corny. I know, but I'm okay with that. What does Christmas mean to you?

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Check out Day 2 of the blog tour by William O’Leary – Catechesis in the Third Millennium.

Mary of Nazareth Blog Tour/Rosary Crawl Day 3

Today, I am pleased to be part of another blog tour, sponsored by Carmel Communications, which you can learn more about here. This one is for a wonderful movie being released (today in fact) by Ignatius Press, entitled Mary of Nazareth. In order to promote this beautiful film and companion book, Mary of Nazareth: The Life of Our Lady in Pictures, we on the blog tour are going to share with you a video clip that corresponds to a mystery of the Rosary, and either an interview, a review, or our own personal thoughts on Mary and the specific mystery. Today, I will be sharing with you my thoughts on The Presentation of Jesus in the Temple, which is the Fourth Joyful Mystery. Before I share my reflections, let us first get our minds right by praying this decade of the Rosary. We will then view the clip, and I will provide a brief reflection on it.

Fourth Joyful Mystery: The Presentation in the Temple
"And at the end of eight days, when he was circumcised, he was called Jesus, the name given by the angel before he was conceived in the womb. And when the time came for their purification according to the law of Moses, they brought him up to Jerusalem to present him to the Lord (as it is written in the law of the Lord, 'Every male that opens the womb shall be called holy to the Lord') and to offer a sacrifice according to what is said in the law of the Lord, 'a pair of turtledoves, or two young pigeons"' (Lk 2:21-24).

"Jesus' circumcision, on the eighth day after his birth, is the sign of his incorporation into Abraham's descendants, into the people of the covenant. It is the sign of his submission to the Law" (CCC, 527).

Our Father, 10 Hail Marys (contemplating the mystery), Glory be to the Father.



The Presentation in the Temple is a Feast Day that is widely forgotten/ignored in the West, but the East hold it in high regard and consider it one of the twelve Great Feasts. It is celebrated on February 2nd. Why this day? Because this is 40 days after the Nativity, and would have been when Mary's ritual purification was complete. There are some key points to notice in this scene. For starters, we see that Joseph brought two turtledoves for the sacrifice. Turtledoves were the poor family's offering. Had Joseph and Mary been wealthy, they would have brought a lamb for sacrifice. Jesus, the King of Kings, chose to be born into a poor family to show his great humility. If you are familiar with the Old Testament, you will notice that there was no offering to redeem Jesus from service to Yahweh. From this, we understand that Jesus was now in complete service to God. You could also say that He was not redeemed, because he was the One sent to redeem us all from our sins.

I have always loved the figure of Simeon in the Bible. Though, he is in such a brief section, his appearance packs a punch! Here is a man who has been waiting his entire life for the coming of the Messiah.We too should be awaiting this glorious Second Coming and remember we are in this world, but not of this world. If you notice in the video clip above, Simeon also recognized Mary. Some would view this as taking a creative license. However, according to Tradition, Mary was taken by her parents to the Temple as a young girl. She lived there and served as a Temple virgin until she was betrothed to Joseph. We can find this tradition in the Protoevangelion of James. This feast is celebrated on November 21st and unfortunately is largely unknown in the West. I invite you to take the time about both Mary's Presentation and Jesus' Presentation. They reveal small, but key parts of Salvation History that will enrich our understanding of both Jesus and Mary.

Ignatius Press has been releasing many great movies the past several years, and Mary of Nazareth continues that remarkable streak. In this movie, we see an intimate portrayal of the life of the greatest saint Mary. And while it will bring us closer to Mary, she will bring us closer to her Son Jesus. This movie will be a benefit for Catholics and Orthodox, and could even be used as an evangelization and educational tool for reaching Protestants. Be sure to check out my buddy Sarah's site, Snoring Scholar, tomorrow for the next stop on the Rosary Crawl.

Back to School Blog Tour with Nicole Lataif (Pauline Books and Media)

Today, I have the pleasure of participating in another blog tour. This one is sponsored by Pauline Books and Media. Children's author Nicole Lataif is posting today, and is going to share a little insight on what she was like as a child reader. Nicole is a talented children's author, and her book Forever You was one of the first children's books I ever formally reviewed. It's great if you haven't checked it out yet. She also has recently written a new book called I Forgive You, which I (thanks to Pauline Books and Media) will be giving away three copies of at the end of this post. So without further ado, here's Nicole! 

True Confessions of a Children’s Book Author: I Once Hated Reading

By: Nicole Lataif

I was in the second grade sitting in my room on a pink beanbag chair…reading.

My father came into my room after thirty minutes.

“How many pages have you read?” he asked me. “Two,” I said.

Thirty minutes after that he came back in. “Now how many pages have you read?” he asked.

 “Just three,” I sighed.

Although I have always loved writing, that was the day that I learned to hate reading. I learned that I wasn’t very good at reading, my pace of reading clearly perplexed adults and that even if I had two full days, I still wouldn’t have finished that boring, enormous book.

For years, “reading” meant so many things to me other than enjoyment. It meant embarrassment, arguments, frustration, and sadness. So, so many things.

Until…

Fast-forward a few years later.

I was in seventh or eighth grade and had just finished reading R.L. Stine’s entire mystery series in a month. A month! I couldn’t read his books fast enough. I read Beach House, Hit and Run, Blind Date…every last one of them. (Reading those book titles still gives me the creeps!) I LOVED mystery stories, which led me to love the show Law and Order, which led me to becoming an adult who is constantly scared that she’s going to get mugged (but, I digress)...

My point: I found out what I loved to read, and only then did I start to love reading.

Kids do need to learn to read about topics that do not interest them. As adults, they will inevitably need to read important material that they don’t find appealing. I’ve been there. However, some little second graders need an advocate. They need the opportunity to grow into a love of reading. Some kids can’t see past their frustration or fear of reading. Those feelings snowball into a kid who abhors the idea of picking up a book.

I wonder what would have happened if someone had asked me:

• Do you like the book that you are reading?
• What do you like or dislike about it?
• Are there parts of the story that you don’t understand or find boring?
• Do any of the characters remind you of someone you know?
• Do you want to try reading another book and coming back to this one later?
• Do you want to put that book down and hop a plane to Disney World right now? (Just kidding!)

I’ve obviously grown up and over my struggles with reading. I write children’s books; (one book even won an award!), for Pauline Books & Media, the publishing house of the Daughters of St. Paul.  I am a reformed reader turned writer and I love helping kids to do the same.

So, I petition you—if your child hates reading, find out why. It may not be that they hate reading, but rather, they haven’t yet found that perfect book.

Nicole Lataif is the Founder and Editor of KidsFaithGarden.com and Author of the 2013 Catholic Press Association Award and 2013 Christopher Award winning book Forever You: A Book About Your Soul and Body, published by Pauline Books & Media. Forever You is also available in Spanish as Siempre Tu. Her second book, I Forgive You: Love We Can Hear, Ask For and Give teaches kids 4-8 what forgiveness is all about. Nicole is available for speaking engagements, school visits, interviews, and guest blogging. Media inquires may be sent to kidsfaithgardenonline@gmail.com

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Chosen: Your Journey Toward Confirmation Blog Tour

As a convert who married a cradle Catholic, my Confirmation experience was much different than my wife's experience. She was confirmed with a group of her classmates, people she knew, in 8th Grade. I was confirmed on an Easter Vigil in my 20s, with a group of people I didn't know. What's more is our children have the potential to have a different experience than both of us. Our archdiocese has bumped the age of Confirmation back to 11th Grade to encourage children to have a more active part in their salvation. There is also the hope that we won't have a high disappearance rate from adolescence to adulthood. Unfortunately, the change happened before guidelines and teaching materials were developed. FORTUNATELY, Ascension Press has developed just such a program for Confirmation called Chosen!

As someone who reluctantly taught 7th Grade Religious Education before (and lived to tell about it), I know first hand how tough it can be to reach teens. It takes knowledge of the Faith, love of the Faith, and a dynamic personality to keep them engaged and interested. Therefore, I knew that in order for Chosen to succeed, it would need an amazing line up of young, dynamic Catholic speakers. Well, how do the names Jason Evert, Chris Stefanick, and Leah Darrow (just to name a few) strike you? Can you say JACKPOT?! Ascension Press did a marvellous job selecting a veritable Who's Who of awesome Catholic speakers for this project!

I also love that this series is filmed both in the U.S. and internationally. It reminds me a bit of Fr. Barron's Catholicism series in this regard. Your teens will be transported to places like Rome and New Orleans (Sorry Brian Butler, but New Orleans didn't invent Mardi Gras, Mobile, AL did!) all while learning the tenets of the Catholic Faith. But what will they be learning you ask? With 2000 years of history, there is an unending wealth of knowledge they could learn. Chosen, however, focuses on topics that matter both to teens and in the grand scheme of life. They'll learn about God, Jesus, Mary, Salvation History, the Sacraments, and even Chastity!

Each lesson (24 in all) is only 15-25 minutes long. At first, I was like, "This isn't enough time to teach all the beauty that Catholicism has to offer." After having some time to think about it, I now see that when I was their age 15-25 minutes can feel like an eternity. So it makes total sense to keep the videos, brief, powerful, engaging, and lively! I tried to put myself in a teenager's shoes and figure out which video would have spoke the most to the teenage version of me, but then I realized that was foolish. Teenagers, like all people, have different interests and different tastes. So I just decided to pick what spoke the most to me now and that was the last two videos, "How do I build the kingdom?" and "Where do I go from here?" The answers to these questions were pertinent for both teenagers and adults. We all need to become great; become more like Jesus, and do our job to bring people to the one, holy, catholic, and apostolic faith!

Apart from the great videos, there are also great workbooks and guides. I've used Ascension Press' study programs before, and they always deliver high quality resources. They went the extra step this time though. Normally, you get a Leader's Guide and a Student Workbook. However, with Chosen, there is also a Parent's Guide AND a Sponsor's Guide. With this all-encompassing approach, everyone in the process is involved and educated, not just the child being confirmed. This program is not a one-size fits all magic pill that will fix all your Confirmation woes, but let's be honest...no program is. This is definitely a valuable tool that can be utilized by all, and your parish would do well to invest in it. I know I will be recommending this to our Director of Religious Education (DRE) and all DREs I know in my Archdiocese.

If you'd like to see a trailer for Chosen, check out the video below:



In case you missed any of the previous blog tour days, here you go. There's interviews, giveaways, and great perspectives from some of the world's best Catholic bloggers.

• April 8 – Lisa Hendey @ CatholicMom
• April 9 – Kathy Schiffer @ Seasons of Grace
• April 10 –  Lisa Schmidt @ The Practicing Catholic
• April 12 – Jackie Francois @ Jackie and Bobby
• GIVEAWAY @ CatholicMom
• April 15 – Sarah Reinhard @ Snoring Scholar
• April 15 – Rolando Moreno @ Catholic World Report

Catholicism Blog Tour Day 1 and a Contest

Welcome to Stuart's Study. Today, I am kicking off a blog tour for the world-renowned book Catholicism by: Fr. Robert Barron. In order to celebrate the release of this book in paperback and pay respect to the fact that it has sold over 100,000 copies, Image Books and Word on Fire are hosting this blog tour and sponsoring a contest where the winner can win a trip for 2 to Rome and Paris. You'll have to read to the end of this post to find the contest link though. (Don't cheat and scroll down early!) Today, I will be featuring Chapter One, entitled "Amazed and Afraid."

Chapter One serves as the jumping off point for Fr. Barron's book Catholicism. Before we embark on his epic journey through Roman Catholicism, he sets the stage and provides in great detail who Jesus is. We first look at Jesus' humanity. "Deus fit homo ut homo fieret Deus (God became human so that humans might become God.)" Ponder that for a minute. God in His infinite majesty and grandeur humbled Himself and took on human form. However, he didn't come and make Himself a worldly Caesar, king, or pharaoh in some great city. He was born in an insignificant town to a poor teenage girl, and with His birth the world was never the same again.

After His birth, there is little mention of His childhood except for two instances in the Temple - His Presentation and His Finding. We instead jump straight to His ministry. Fr. Barron points out that other great religious teachers (Buddha, Mohammed, Confucius) insisted the focus be on their teachings and words. Jesus wanted the focus on more than His teachings and words. He wanted people to be drawn to Him; to develop a personal relationship with Him. By doing so, they will develop a personal relationship with God the Father.

The rest of the chapter is not only my favorite part of this chapter, but quite possibly of the book. Fr. Barron opens up the Old Testament for us and explains the four-fold mission of the Christ. 1. Gather the scattered tribes of Israel. 2. Cleanse the Temple of Jerusalem. 3. Definitively deal with the enemies of the nation. 4. Reign as Lord of Heaven and earth. After reading detailed explanations of each of these four things, it puts a new light on the Gospels and how one reads them. We can also better understand why Jesus performed certain actions, like his Healings.  Yes, there was mercy involved, but God was also calling His children back to Him through Jesus.

To enter the contest click, here. Tune in tomorrow at Seasons of Grace as Kathy Schiffer highlights and reviews Chapter Two of Catholicism entitled, "Happy Are We: The Teachings of Jesus."