Beginning Again: Benedictine Wisdom for Living with Illness
by Mary Earle
Trade Paperback, 144 pages
Published: 10/01/2004
Publisher: Morehouse Publishing
ISBN: 0819219657
Price: $12.95
In 1995 Mary Earle was hospitalized with acute pancreatitis. When she was able to return home, she still faced a long recovery. She had to stay in bed most of the time, and eating was difficult some days. The busy life she had always known was gone, and she had to begin again.
Like others who suffer from serious or chronic conditions, Mary Earle found that living with illness can require major adjustments in life. Using St. Benedict's ancient Rule—his way of ordering the life and days of religious communities—Beginning Again teaches readers how to discern a rule of life that helps them with changes in resting and activity levels, with food restrictions, and requirements for medicine or medical treatment. The ancient Benedictine concepts of stability, obedience, and conversion can help anyone living with illness, even those who are dying.
Beginning Again is a practical resource, written for those who know little about St. Benedict and his Rule of Life, with exercises to help readers discover how to live with God at the center of their lives and illnesses. It is useful for those living with illness, and for clergy, counselors, and spiritual directors who care for them.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Mary C. Earle is a spiritual director, retreat leader, writer, and Episcopal priest. She is the author of Broken Body, Healing Spirit: Lectio Divina and Living with Illness, and the co-author of Holy Companions: Spiritual Practices from the Celtic Saints, and her latest, Beginning Again, all available from Morehouse Publishing. She lives in San Antonio, Texas.
Help explorefaith when you purchase BEGINNING AGAIN... or any other item from Church Publishing, Inc., our Partner in Ministry.
Also available at amazon.com