Books

SPIRITUAL DIRECTION: Who Is It For and What Are Its Benefits?

Reviewed by Michael Gilchrist

Contents - Feb 2007 - Buy a copy now Editorial: The Church and globalisation - Peter Westmore Education: Australia's Catholic school systems: the case for radical surgery - Michael Gilchrist News: The Church Around the World East Timor: priests threatened with execution - Peter Westmore Fr John Speekman: Vatican orders reinstatement of wrongly removed Sale Diocese parish priest - Michael Gilchrist Priesthood: Orthodox priests in a divided Church - Fr John Trigilio The Church and the environment: address the moral pollution first - Wanda Skowronska Salesians help rebuild post-tsunami Sri Lanka - Br Michael Lynch Why we need holy days of obligation - Joanna Bogle Music: Johann Sebastian Bach and the heavenly choir - Fr Finbarr Flanagan Letters: Shared guilt - Errol Duke Letters: Lost! - Moya and Leo Morrissey Letters: Truth and love - Chris Hilder Letters: Root Cause - Marie Kennedy Letters: Safe-sex? - Jack Blair Poetry: Gender-Bender Autos - Bruce Dawe Letters: Limbo? - Lawrence R. Hurley Letters: Manipulating language - Carol V. Phillips Letters: Obedience - Matthew Buckley Letters: Latin Mass - John Gariano Letters: Religious materials - J.W. Smith Letters: Catholic dolls - Anne Cramer Books: TREASURE IN CLAY: The Autobiography of Fulton J. Sheen - Michael Gilchrist (reviewer) Books: BEGINNING AT JERUSALEM: Five Reflections on the History of the Church - Sr Mariana Handley (reviewer) Books: SPIRITUAL DIRECTION: Who Is It For and What Are Its Benefits? - Michael Gilchrist (reviewer) Books: B.A. Santamaria's correspondence published by MUP Books: New Titles from AD Books Reflection: Why the Church must continue to uphold priestly celibacy - Fr Pat Stratford

SPIRITUAL DIRECTION:
Who Is It For & What Are Its Benefits?
by Fr Michael de Stoop
(Catholic Communications Sydney, 2005, 64pp, $10.00. Available from Freedom Publishing)

Under Cardinal George Pell's leadership, the Sydney Archdiocese has developed some of the most active and effective youth evangelisation programs in Australia. Among these is Catholic Youth Services whose chaplain is the author of this invaluable little book.

Fr Michael de Stoop is one of a new generation of Australian priests characterised by an infectious enthusiasm for the Catholic faith and a desire to spread it among young Catholics. His book is based on practical experience in providing spiritual direction for the young men and women in Sydney who set aside one or two years to help parishes establish youth groups or help Catholic schools run retreats.

In his foreword, Cardinal Pell describes Fr de Stoop's aim as to help "all serious young Catholics to become more Christ-like".

The book is divided into concise sections containing a wealth of practical tips for those involved, e.g., "What is spiritual direction?", "The biblical and ecclesial foundations", "History of spiritual direction", "What can I expect a spiritual director to do?" and "What to look for when choosing a spiritual director".

The clear, attractive layout make it easy to follow the book's suggestions, while the numerous quotes from Scripture, the saints, Vatican II and the Catechism of the Catholic Church provide a solid foundation.

The strong endorsements of Spiritual Direction from many leaders in youth ministry around Australia confirm the book's practical value and orthodoxy. For example, Melbourne's Shannon Donahoo (an occasional contributor to AD2000) writes: "This book will be useful for all levels of youth ministry as well as in schools (especially in preparation of retreat programs). As a teacher, I consider this to be a valuable resource in teaching authentic R.E. If you are interested in growing closer to the Lord - or helping others to - then you must read this book!"

Reprinted from AD2000 Vol 20 No 1 (February 2007), p. 18