Lenten Prayers for Busy People: A Forty-Day Retreat Wherever You Happen to Be

By William J. O'Malley and William J O'Malley Sj S.J.

Book Overview

Drawing from the Bible, literature, lyrics, and original prayers, writer and teacher William O'Malley has composed a six-week cycle of morning, midday, and evening prayers and meditations. From Ash Wednesday to Easter Sunday, each entry provides spiritual nourishment. The book's last sentence is: "Holy Friend, the end is the beginning. Amen."

In addition to psalmists and evangelists, contributions come from writers and poets such as Flannery O'Connor, Bob Dylan, Simone Weil, Rainer Maria Rilke, C.S. Lewis, Alice Walker, G.K. Chesterton, Gerard Manley Hopkins, Thomas Merton, Dorothy Day, and John Donne.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1570755620
• ISBN13: 9781570755620
• Release Date: December 2004
• Publisher: Orbis Books
• Length: 288 Pages
• Weight: 0.75 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.6" x 5.5" x 8.3"

Customer Reviews

Good for a lenten meditation

We have enjoyed O'mally's Daily Meditations for Busy People and this was also very good.

40 days with the Likes of Will Shakespeare and Bob Dylan

Facing questions about how to react to the sadness of Good Friday while anticipating the triumph of Easter, Fr. O'Malley decided to write a book to help himself and others who are not "giants of the spiritual life." Instead of giving up something for Lent, he suggests we enrich our faith through the morning, daytime, and evening prayers for each day of the season. The sessions contain psalms and other scripture passages, prayers of dedication to God, and readings from such diverse sources as the sonnets of William Shakespeare and lyrics of Bob Dylan. Each of the three prayer periods could be completed with adequate reflection in about 15 minutes, more with deeper meditation. Those who are really pressed might commit to one prayer period a day and continue through the book beyond Lent. This is a good Lenten resource for small church communities.