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The Wisdom of the Desert
- Sayings from the Desert Fathers of the Fourth Century
- Narrated by: Greg Chun
- Length: 1 hr and 53 mins
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Publisher's summary
The Wisdom of the Desert was one of Thomas Merton's favorites among his own books, surely because he had hoped to spend his last years as a hermit.
The personal tones of the translations and the blend of reverence and humor so characteristic of him show how deeply Merton identified with the legendary authors of these sayings and parables, the fourth-century Christian fathers who sought solitude and contemplation in the deserts of the Near East.
The hermits of Screte, who turned their backs on a corrupt society remarkably like our own, had much in common with the Zen masters of China and Japan, and Father Merton made his selection from them with an eye to the kind of impact produced by the Zen mondo.
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Who was medieval Italy's Francis of Assisi? Millions knew him as the saint who first received the stigmata of Christ, as a champion of the poor, and as a mystic who possessed a divine rapport with the natural world. But few know that Saint Francis also created an extraordinary system of practices to radiate a joyfulness of spirit inward to the soul and outward to the world. On The Way of Saint Francis, scholar and friar Murray Bodo reveals the life of this celebrated saint and shares specific meditations, prayers, and teachings to cultivate the 5 great keys of Franciscan spirituality: Silence, how to use inner and outer quietude to prepare a sacred dwelling place within; Purification, true forgiveness, the secret to purifying the heart; Openness, how to embrace your deeper suffering and simpler joys in the manner and spirit of Saint Francis; Response, the way of the Poor Christ, a life made rich through prayer, contemplation, and selfless service; Time, how we enter the state of the timeless divine. You will learn how to use each of these miraculous keys to open the door to the cell within - a sacred inner space of stillness and strength available to you at any time and in any situation - and to transform yourself into a true instrument of peace.
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Way of St. Francis
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Light from Old Times
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When A. W. Tozer was a young preacher newly ordained into the ministry, he wrote a prayer that he published 30 years later under the title "The Prayer of a Minor Prophet." Fifty years after his death, Dr. Tozer's prophetic writings and sermons continue to deliver God's Word to His people. The test of a prophet is that his message transcends generations; even when he is gone, a prophet's message remains fresh and vital.
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So much more than the title
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Illuminating wisdom! Thank you!
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The role of personal prayer, worship in common, everyday work, and Christian service is treated in simple, almost biblical, words. Life Together is bread for all who are hungry for the real life of Christian fellowship.
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Fantástico!!
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No Greater Love is the essential wisdom of Mother Teresa - the most accessible and inspirational collection of her teachings ever published. This definitive volume features Mother Teresa on love, prayer, giving, service, poverty, forgiveness, Jesus, and more. No Greater Love is a passionate testament to Mother Teresa's deep hope and abiding faith in God and the world. It will bring readers into the heart of this remarkable woman, showing Mother Teresa's revolutionary vision of Christianity in its graceful, poetic simplicity.
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Wonderful
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Many believers feel stunted in their Christian growth. We beat ourselves up over our failures and, in the process, pull away from God because we subconsciously believe He tallies our defects and hangs His head in disappointment. In this new edition - now with a foreword by Michael W. Smith, testimony by Rich Mullins and the author's own epilogue, "Ragamuffin Ten Years Later," Brennan Manning reminds us that nothing could be further from the truth.
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JUST AS WE ARE, NOT AS WE 'SHOULD' BE
- By Kindle Customer...Tony Chiarilli on 08-30-12
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Life of St. Anthony of Egypt
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In this audio program, Merton will challenge you with questions about man's individual destiny, the human condition, prayer, and the nature of time. Originally delivered in 1965, these timeless lectures have been remastered and released as a set for your enjoyment. Delivered with wit and profound insight, these recordings will transport you into the abbey where Merton taught and imparted his spiritual wisdom.
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Fabulous book, unbearable delivery
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Thomas Merton on Solitude and Togetherness
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For Merton, being contemplative meant living out the essential elements of the spiritual life. Having lived out the challenges and triumphs of a contemplative life, Merton had a plethora of practical advice to offer. If the inspiration of the Holy Spirit is truly at work daily, then what does it look like? How can we identify its authentic presence? If it's important to spend time in silence with God, how do we go about entering into it fruitfully?
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A must read
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What listeners say about The Wisdom of the Desert
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- Hilary
- 01-16-24
Well presented and executed.
The simplicity of the program, the clarity of the translations, and the fact that these sayings are preserved as they were intended.
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- John C Schupp
- 01-29-21
Great overview of the desert fathers
Great overview of the desert fathers. Some history of them and then some of their sayings.
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1 person found this helpful
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- Teddy
- 02-07-23
Better to read it yourself
This seems like it must be very profound—the west’s answer to the Blue Cliff Record—but it is read at warp speed, with each saying numbered and quickly recited like a grocery list. You get no chance to absorb any of it and the effect is the opposite of what Merton intended.
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- Adam Shields
- 08-01-21
150 sayings & stories for Desert Fathers
A few weeks ago there was a sale on Audible and I picked up several audiobooks for under $3. The Wisdom of the Desert is probably not the best book for audio. It is a collection of 150 sayings or stories about the 4th-century desert fathers. These are sayings that, like poetry, are designed more for contemplation than consumption. Here are a few examples:
“What can we gain by sailing to the moon if we are not able to cross the abyss that separates us from ourselves? This is the most important of all voyages of discovery, and without it all the rest are not only useless but disastrous.”
“An elder was asked by a certain soldier if God would forgive a sinner. And he said to him: Tell me, beloved, if your cloak is torn, will you throw it away? The soldier replied and said: No. I will mend it and put it back on. The elder said to him: If you take care of your cloak, will God not be merciful to His own image?”
"It was said of one of the elders that he persevered in a fast of seventy weeks, eating only once a week. This elder asked God to reveal to him the meaning of a certain Scripture text, and God would not reveal it to him. So he said to himself: Look at all the work I have done without getting anywhere! I will go to one of the brothers and ask him. When he had gone out and closed the door and was starting on his way an angel of the Lord was sent to him, saying: The seventy weeks you fasted did not bring you any closer to God, but now that you have humbled yourself and set out to ask your brother, I am sent to reveal the meaning of that text. And opening to him the meaning which he sought, he went away.”
As others have said, there are many nuggets of wisdom here. And there are stories that show how far culturally we are from the desert fathers. I need to get a print version of this and read it again slowly.
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4 people found this helpful