What I Read and Watched in June 2023

This was a hectic month as we taught our classes, kept up with ministry responsibilities, and tied up loose ends before leaving our apartment for six months of home assignment. I am looking forward to easy access to libraries and cheap books in the U.S!

The books I read in June are listed in order of favorite to least favorite, although I enjoyed them all:

All the Light We Cannot See by Doerr, which I reviewed at Goodreads. (some foul language, but what an amazing story!)

Holy Happiness by Kinlaw - a superb series of sermons on Genesis 1-3 

Praying the Bible by Donald S. Whitney seemed a little hokey at first, but when I began to put it into practice, I received rich dividends. Still learning how to pray through the Psalms. 

The Way to Pentecost by Chadwick was another devotional book that encouraged me to trust in Christ's strength and not my own.

The Medieval Mind of C.S. Lewis - I learned a lot, but it was uphill climbing.

A Maid in Arcady by Ralph Henry Barbour - Vintage fiction that I read when sidelined by a bad cold.

I finished up three books that I have been reading for months: All Things Wise and Wonderful has been our date night read-aloud since September of last year and evoked much laughter and a few tears. I started Amazing Grace: 366 Inspiring Hymn Stories in January, but finished it early because I couldn't just read one a day. I also finished Living a Life of True Worship, my favorite 40-minute Bible study from Precept Ministries.

 All our Friday night movies this month were via my library's Hoopla app. Lilies of the Field with Sidney Poitier (for which he won an Oscar) was delightful. The Hallmark Hall of Fame, Harvest of Fire was also excellent. (The trailer makes it look a lot more melodramatic than it was. And I got a kick out of seeing Eric Mabius from the Signed, Sealed, Delivered movies as a gawky teenager.) Finally, we watched the Hallmark mystery, Abracadavar, which had just the right amount of suspense for me (very little. ha!) 

What about you? Did you read or watch anything commendable?

Blessings,

Introduction to the Devout Life by St. Francis de Sales

Introduction to the Devout Life has been on my TBR list for at least 20 years so when I heard that the Catholic Classics podcast was going to cover it, I jumped on board. What better way to understand a Catholic classic than through the eyes of two priests? I ended up getting "two-for-the-price-of-one" because they not only commented on each chapter, they read the chapter at the beginning of each episode.

The book is based on actual letters written to Madame Louise de Charmoisy, the wife of one of St. Francis' cousins, who had asked him for spiritual guidance. He was later encouraged to compile his advice into a volume aimed at a more general audience. In the book, he addresses his letters to "Philothea" (lover of God) and it is written in a wonderful, fatherly tone.

Therefore, my daughter, I say that although it is lawful to amuse yourself, to dance, to dress, to feast, and see seemly plays, - at the same time, if you are much addicted to these things, they will hinder your devotion, and become extremely hurtful and dangerous to you. The harm lies, not in doing them, but in the degree to which you care for them. It is a pity to sow the seed of vain and foolish tastes in the soil of your heart, taking up the place of better things, and hindering the soul from cultivating good dispositions.

One of the great strengths of the book is its powerful imagery. After he advises Philothea to read and ponder over Scripture each day, he writes, At the end of your meditation linger a while, and gather, so to say, a little spiritual bouquet from the thoughts you dwelt upon, the sweet perfume whereof may refresh you through the day.

Sometimes the chapters were meaty enough to require no additional comments. At other times the chapters were "just okay," but the commentary that followed was stellar. On Day 16, for example, the subject was on the necessity of humility and Father Gregory remarked, We can enter this life of humility because we realize it is not ours to create, but ours to enter into. There's a beauty to that. There's a difficulty, but also a beauty and a confidence that we ought to have as Christians that God is at work. He loves you. He wants to share His life with you. And that's what the devout life is all about. Full stop. That's what we are chasing after. Like Holiness, it's His gift to give and ours to receive.  

Even though I underlined something on almost every page, I'm not sure why I am not more enthusiastic about Introduction to the Devout Life. The Catholic emphases were off putting at times, which may be why I don't recommend it wholeheartedly. It could be because my top book in 2022 was William Law's A Serious Call to a Devout and Holy Life, which I think is more accessible. 

While I couldn't always keep up with the podcasts, I managed to read one short chapter from the book each day and was enriched by each one. I'm very glad I finally tackled this devotional classic.

Blessings,

The Story of King Arthur and His Knights by Howard Pyle

I had been primed for Howard Pyle’s King Arthur and His Knights by two previous retellings of the Arthurian legends (Green’s and Knowles’). But I wasn’t prepared for how deeply I would love this third version.

From the very first page, I was captivated by Pyle’s affection and reverence for this legendary king. In the introduction he wrote, I believe that King Arthur was the most honorable, gentle Knight who ever lived in the world. And those who were his fellows of the Round Table – taking him as their looking glass of chivalry – made, altogether, such a company of noble knights that is hardly to be supposed that their like will ever be seen again in this world.

Truly his heart was “stirred with a noble theme.”

Unlike the two previous authors I read, Pyle manages to weave the legends together into a cohesive and beautiful adult fairy tale, which I found enthralling and at times achingly beautiful. Because he was unconcerned with brevity (this is the first of four volumes), he also includes many details that the others left out about Guinivere, Sir Pellias, Excalibur, Merlin, and much more.

The rich language made my heart sing! At times it was something simple like the black knight being called the “Sable” Knight. At other times it took on fabulous fairy tale tones such as, Thus died that wicked man, for as King Arthur drave past him, the evil soul of him quitted his body with a weak noise like to the squeaking of a bat, and the world was well rid of him.

I normally hate moralizing in books, but I thought Pyle was very effective in making connections between the knight’s actions and his expectations that his readers would also live lives of faithfulness and honor:

So endeth the story of the winning of Excalibur, and may God give unto you in your life, that you may have His truth to aid you, like a shining sword, for to overcome your enemies; and may He give you Faith (for Faith containeth Truth as a scabbard containeth its sword), and may that Faith heal all your wounds of sorrow as the sheath of Excalibur healed all the wounds of him who wore that excellent weapon. For with Truth and Faith girded upon you, you shall be as well able to fight all your battles as did that noble hero of old, whom men call King Arthur.

This is a book that I can’t wait to own so that I can underline it to my heart’s content. I listened to the audio version by Stuart Langton (via Hoopla) and then read the chapters on my kindle to savor them a second time. Though the language is occasionally difficult, most of the old-fashioned words can be deciphered within their context. Highly recommended if you love beautiful storytelling.

 I am only on the beginning of this fantastic journey. There are no less than 456 books listed at Goodreads of Arthurian Legend retellings!

Blessings,