A Spiritual Journey - Hardcover

Pennington, Basil

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Hardcover

ISBN 10: 1557254737 ISBN 13: 9781557254733

Publisher: Paraclete Press, 2006

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Join Basil Pennington as he travels along the coast in Caesarea, in the hill country of Nazareth and Cana, down by the lake in Capernaum and Tabor, through desert shrines such as Jacob's Well and the mystical Qumran, in the holy city of Jerusalem, on Mt. Sinai, and finally, back to the beginnings of the Christian story, to Bethlehem. Readers familiar with the Holy Land---sacred in all three of the world's Abrahamic faiths---will delight in Pennington's apt descriptions and reflections while in familiar places. And Christian readers, in particular, will appreciate an attentive monk's meditations on The Cross, The Tomb, The Upper Room, The Temple, Stations of the Cross, Olivet, Bethany, and The Nativity. "When Basil would come into a room all eyes would focus on his enormous presence, the gorgeous beard, the overflowing energy, and the sympathy and compassion he offered to everyone. . . . He wanted to fill the world with people who were on the transformative journey into Christ." ---Thomas Keating, from the preface

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Review:

Basil Pennington, famous for his writings on centering prayer, had the privilege of making a pilgrimage to the Holy Land in late spring 2004. This book is a diary of his trip, as well as his final work; the manuscript was complete at the time of his death but was published posthumously. The book really serves as a travel journal-and an exciting one because it includes personal reflections by Father Pennington on events from the life of Jesus that happened at each site he visited. He often describes the situation there today, then compares it to the time of Christ as he imagined it. This book can provide an amazing interior journey for anyone. Father Pennington describes each location with such detail that the reader gets a great sense of being there too, and even of being "on retreat" with him. He shares with much emotion the significance of being present in the Upper Room, atop Calvary, at Jesus' tomb, and so forth. His personal reflections read like profound homilies. Father Pennington also describes scenes around the towns and villages, many of which are still as they were when Jesus lived there, and expresses dismay that many people lack proper reverence in those holy places. For example, he talks of mingling with Jews and Muslims who give little heed to Christians and what they are about. But then here minds himself (and the reader) that the majority of locals probably did not pay much attention to Jesus two thousand years ago either. The book includes Father Pennington's own "unofficial" translations of Scripture stories that occurred at each site he visited. Pictures of him at significant biblical locations are included throughout the book as well. This Journal allows us to share in some Of Father Pennington's most personal thoughts and reflections as he visited the most sacred places in the world. The book shows how the trip changed his life. Journey in a Holy Land provides excellent material for meditation during Lent since it closely retraces the steps of Christ in his own final earthly journey. It would also be a great guide for anyone who plans to visit the Holy Land. David Werthmann Linguorian November 1, 2006 'When Pennington, a Cistercian monk best known for his work Centering Prayer, died June 3 from injuries suffered in an auto accident, the manuscript of what has become his last book was found on his desk. This journal of his travels to the land he calls "thrice holy" for its significance to three major religions consists largely of observations from his first trip, but also incorporates three later tours. In some ways, the journal is an unremarkable book recording a pilgrim's daily movements and habits, I-however, as with any trip, the mundane often morphs into the exceptional, particularly when Pennington visits places where key events in the life of Christ are said to have occurred. In one such instance, the crucifixion comes alive for him at the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, where he sees the passion as totally enmeshed in life, in contrast to the sterile pictures and images in many churches. In another, the most disturbing of his trip, an old man approaches Pennington for help in finding the body of his drowned son as the monk is contemplating Christ's words, "I will make you fishers of men." Pennington's reflections make for thoughtful reading that will be appreciated by Christian readers, especially those who have traveled to Israel. (Feb.) Publisher's Weekly November 14, 2005 A question pops up as soon as one reads the title: Why call the book journey in 'a' Holy Land rather than Journey in 'the' Holy Land? After all, the substance of the book deals with the author's spiritual adventures in the Holy Land. My take on the title is this: Granted the importance of the material locations, more important are the prayerful experiences of the author about the holy land of his inner life with God. We learn a good bit about Pennington from the Preface by his former abbot, Thomas Keating, and from the author's own statements. The Preface by Keating is the homily he delivered for Pennington's funeral. From this homily and from the author's own statements, we gather that Pennington was larger than life, exuberant, adventuresome, a man ready for any challenge, an initiator of action. He was also prayerful, introspective, aware of his limitations and his need for God's grace and forgiveness. In the course of his journey, the author refers frequently to centering prayer, for which he had become famous through his books and lectures. But in this book he is more concerned about the events that took place in various locations of Palestine and the New Testament passages that describe these events. He provides his own translations of the New Testament texts and appends his prayerful reflections. His reflections are insightful and practical.. Here are some examples: In Nazareth he quotes and meditates on Luke 1:26-38, the Annunciation. He spent a long time in silence. He then engaged in centering prayer, losing himself in God's presence. He has a sense of the Word being made flesh anew in his own life. He observes that we can do nothing better in our lives than to provide another life for the Word in our world today. After this, he quotes Luke 4:16-30. Though the scene begins and remains a beautiful and marvelous narrative of Jesus' claim to be the fulfillment of Isaiah 61:1-3 ("The spirit of the Lord GOD is upon me..."), Pennington reflects on the rejection of Jesus by his townspeople. He concentrates on the terrible experience it had to be for Mary. At that time and in the future, Mary must have suffered from the snide remarks of the people of Nazareth. Pennington confesses that there is something about Nazareth he does not like. Yes, he does revere it as the place where the Son of God became flesh. Mary's sufferings, however, remind him how religiousminded people can sometimes be nasty. At Calvary, Pennington notices the strange mingling of languages, activities, groups moving about or resting. He wonders whether Calvary should be like this. Maybe so. Maybe it is a reminder that Jesus' passion, even though the greatest act of love, played itself out in mayhem. It points to the fact that Jesus did not hesitate to immerse himself in a world that was far from perfect in order to permeate it with the grace and love of God. These examples indicate, I think, the flavor of Pennington's reflections in the Holy Land. They also suggest the simplicity of his style. He does not seem to make any special effort to tickle the ears with fancy language. This leads to a feeling of immediacy: He is in direct contact with whoever is willing to listen. The book has a map of main sites in the Holy Land visited by the author. In general, this is a fine book. Those who read it with prayerful care will come to a deeper appreciation of the Gospels and a closer walk with God in the holy land of their spirituality. Hilarion Kistner, O.F.M. St. Anthony Messenger July 20, 2006

About the Author:

M. Basil Pennington, OCSO, was a monk at St. Joseph's Abbey in Spencer, Massachusetts. Perhaps the most prolific and widely-travelled Cistercian monk in history, Pennington has written previously of his travels to India, China, Mount Athos, and now, the Holy Land. He was the author of numerous books including the classic, Centering Prayer (more than one million copies sold), O Holy Mountain, and Seeking His Mind. Dom Basil died in the summer of 2005 from injuries sustained in a car accident. Thomas Keating, OCSO, his former abbot, wrote the foreword to this book.

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