Surrounded by Love: Seven Teachings from St. Francis - Softcover

Bodo, Murray

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1632532379 ISBN 13: 9781632532374

Publisher: Franciscan Media, 2018

Synopsis

In his newest book, Fr. Murray Bodo, OFM, brings to life seven teachings from the life and writings of St. Francis of Assisi in the prayerful, lyrical style his readers will recognize. These seven teachings are both a way and a destination, the way being transformation and the destination being the love of God. St Francis invites us to go on a journey from love through love into love.

The seven teachings outlined here--plus an eighth teaching on love, the teaching behind all teachings--define a spirituality for our own time that anyone can learn to practice in his or her own life, anyone who has an attitude of reverence for others and for the earth and all of nature, and who acknowledges the existence of a higher power that is beyond what one can perceive with the senses.

St. Francis was not a medieval theologian but a teacher of wisdom who used sayings, stories, and rituals to show us how we can allow God to transform our lives. In this, as in everything else, he was following in the footsteps of Jesus, who is the mystery of the fullness of God among us. You, too, can follow in Jesus' footsteps with these teachings:

• The First Teaching: The Wonder of the Incarnation
• The Second Teaching: The Paradox of Evangelical Poverty
• The Third Teaching: Live the Gospel
• The Fourth Teaching: Go and Repair God's House
• The Fifth Teaching: Making Peace
• The Sixth Teaching: All Creatures Are Our Brothers and Sisters
• The Seventh Teaching: The Joy of Humble Praise and Service of God
• The Teaching of Teachings: Love

This simple map for living is why St. Francis is still admired today in our fractious and divided world. What he teaches, if lived, brings joy, which is the result of union with God, who lives with us and within all of creation.

Meditating on these teachings from St. Francis will give you hope; for hope is the grace to imagine a future more positive, more loving, and more joyful than the world we now find ourselves in. As St. Francis used to say to his brothers, "Let us begin to do good, for up to now we have done nothing."

About this title

Review:

Advance Praise for Surrounded by Love

A beautiful meditation on the spiritual wisdom of the Poverello and its practical value for today. In this elegantly written book, Murray Bodo brings Francis of Assisi's life experiences and teachings into dialogue with our contemporary world, showing our need for the breathtaking beauty of the Franciscan spiritual and theological visions.
--Mary Beth Ingham, CSJ, Franciscan School of Theology

Fr. Murray Bodo illuminates the grace of the Franciscan tradition and its ongoing relevance, importance, and timeliness with each of his brilliant and poetic books. Surrounded by Loveis both an introduction to and a meditation on the wisdom of St. Francis of Assisi that the world so desperately needs today. This is a must-read book!
-- Daniel P. Horan, OFM, author, God is Not Fair and other Reasons for Gratitudeand Dating God: Live and Love in the Way of St. Francis.

Whether you are new to the Franciscan tradition or deeply rooted in its spirituality, Surrounded by Love is a wonderfully inspiring read. While the stories of St. Francis may be familiar to many, Murray Bodo's storytelling ability and poetic insights give them a renewed character, allowing the reader to enter into the mind and heart of the great saint in a profound way.
--Casey Cole, OFM, founder of Breaking in the Habit Media and author of Called: What Happens After Saying Yes to God

Fr. Murray Bodo has lost nothing of the joy, freshness and vitality that characterized his writing when he was a newly vowed young friar. Yet, his latest work, Surrounded by Love: Seven Teachings from Saint Francis, possesses something else: wisdom. It is a gift received after a lifetime spent serving others: as friar and priest, as pilgrimage leader, as teacher and mentor, as companion to the countless friends he has made around the world. What emerges here are seven teachings passed on to Fr. Murray through close and intimate relationship not only with St. Francis of Assisi, but with Jesus Christ himself. Thank you, Fr. Murray, for the gift of this newest book.
--Bret Thoman, OFS, author of St. Francis of Assisi: Passion, Poverty, and the Man Who Transformed the Catholic Churchand St Clare of Assisi: Light from the Cloister

To live a Franciscan life, we must live the Gospel and embrace its basic truth. Murray Bodo clearly and poetically expresses how the Franciscan life is to be lived in this seven-part outline of the way St. Francis of Assisi embraced the Gospel life, underscoring each essential principle with quotes from early Franciscan works.
--Barb Szyszkiewicz, OFS, editor of CatholicMom.com and managing editor of Today's Catholic Teacher

About the Author:

MURRAY BODO, O.F.M., is a Franciscan priest and member of the Franciscan Academy. He is the award-winning author of numerous books, including the bestselling Francis: The Journey and the Dream, Francis and Jesus, three books of poetry, and most recently Surrounded by Love: Seven Teachings from Saint Francis. Bodo has had his poems, stories and articles published in magazines and literary journals in the United States and Ireland. He resides in Cincinnati, Ohio, and spends summers in Assisi as a staff member of Franciscan Pilgrimage Programs.

About this edition

• Publisher: Franciscan Media
• Publication date: 2018
• ISBN 10: 1632532379
• ISBN 13: 9781632532374
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 160