God of Surprises

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In terms of content and presentation the book is very good and will give you an awful lot to think about, it certainly changed my view on a lot of topics, especially the seeking guidance chapters. I had a Christian education (Anglican, not Roman Catholic)but Christianity never really 'caught' for me.

Although not recommended by the author I did read straight through it without doing the exercises at the end of each chapter. Hughes finishes by writing on the nature of the growing relationship with Christ one should expect as one becomes more aware of, and able to influence, the orientation of one's desires. I was particularly taken with a simple yet profound definition of sin - the refusal to let God be God in my life. The 103 third parties who use cookies on this service do so for their purposes of displaying and measuring personalized ads, generating audience insights, and developing and improving products. Religion, as it is often presented and understood, not only fails to give importance to the awareness of one’s inner self, but even actively discourages it.

I read it a few years ago and was captivated by his thoughts about finding God in unexpected places - such as in ourselves as he has made us in his image. Above all, it is a useful book – a book to be used by those who find it hard to forgive themselves: the stumblers and agnostics who hardly dare believe that God is within them. Other than that I would recommend the book but be prepared to read it quite slowly and really take the time to dig into the exercises if you want the full benefits. That the world often misuse 'the name of God' - and use it as an excuse to do something seemingly good but creates destruction and division (e. False images we may have of God, constructs of our upbringing, experiences or ideas can disturb and stifle us.

Yet, the degree of personal objectivity and ability required to judge one's own emotions and progress as suggested in this book is in reality very hard to even begin achieving. The remainder of his thesis is essentially a guide to a personalised and internalised adaptation of the Ignatian Spiritual Exercises as a way of `finding' this hidden treasure. At the end of the chapter, he presents some biblical texts which could be useful for imaginative contemplation.

This book aims to suggest some ways of detecting the hidden treasure in what may be considered a most unlikely field, oneself. What is so special about this book is the refreshing yet gentle way Hughes approaches the reader and the respect he has for the individual paths each person takes towards the great mystery of who God is. In this chapter the author expresses his inner feelings regarding nuclear war and beautifully presents the Christian approach to nuclear weaponry and warfare. When people imaginatively contemplate on the Gospels, they are often surprised by the Christ they meet. I am now going to work my way through more slowly looking up the scriptural passages as well as the exercises.

Chapter Five shows how the journey is not only made with our minds and with the religious part of ourselves, but involves our whole being and affects every aspect of it, our relations to other people, our attitude to health, wealth, reputation, power, and our reactions to the economic, social and political structures in which we live. The Third Chapter deals with the ups and downs of our inner selves and false images of God we may have. This book took apart what I thought I knew, challenged my apathy, correctly anticipated most of my doubts and areas of weakness, and gave me a new way to explore my faith. Creative and consolatory feelings are those that lead us to discovering more of our hidden treasure, whereas destructive and desolatory feelings lead us away from it.

This truth is illustrated in a letter written by an imaginary parish priest complaining of the disruptive behaviour of one of his parishioners. Even if you take God out of it, as I did, it provides amazing insight and structure into how to know yourself better, to stop trying to take all your worries and deal with them yourself, and ultimately giving you tools to be able the understand how to live a more fulfilling life. Our inner selves can tell us the direction our lives should take and supply the inspiration and energy to take it.