Christ in His Saints

Christ in His Saints
By Patrick Reardon

I believe that next to the scriptures themselves, the next best thing to read as a Christian is the lives of the saints. From the beginning Jews and Jews who became "Christians" have looked to their forefathers and mothers in the faith as examples, heroes and guides. A skim of Hebrews 10 and 11 confirms this, along with many other examples. But they did not gloss over the foibles and follies of the saints, but saw them examples of the grace of God working itself out in their lives. Fr Patrick's book on the saints is something of a primer for all Christians to help introduce us, or just to remind us, that we are part of a great cloud of witnesses that are not only fine examples of repentance, faithfulness and perseverance, but also of one Body with us in Christ our Lord. As the early Christians would say, "One Christian, no Christian." We are saved together as a body, while the only thing we can do alone is go to hell.

There are 14 main sections that focus upon various types of personalities from the bible, both Old and New Testaments. Each section contains about 10 or 11 devotionals that are each about 3 pages long. Topics include repentant saints, loyal saints, saints in need of improvement, saints in worship, suffering saints, clever saints, interceding saints, saints under pressure, gentle saints, zealous saints, visionaries, questioners, and persevering saints. For Protestant readers who may feel uncomfortable with the idea of talking about "saints" in a way that sounds too "Catholic", they may ease into the idea by knowing that it is more like a hall of fame that is held up as an ideal, just as St. Paul says, "Imitate me as I imitate Christ." There is no competition between the honor we give to the saints and the worship we give to the Holy Trinity. Besides, "God is glorified in his saints," the Apostle declares in 2nd Thessalonians 1:10. Moreover, this book is only concerned with saints from the bible, so that is safe enough if you are hesitant. Who knows, maybe you will find yourself wanting to know what the disciples of the Apostles thought about the faith and how they lived and died for it.

While I highly recommend Butler's Lives of the Saints (4 Volume Matched Set) , they can be rather bulky and intimidating, and expensive. On the other hand, this slim volume is sure to become a standard as it is both educational and devotional, aimed at nourishing the soul without breaking the bank. Readers may find the following books useful as well: Any Friend of God's Is a Friend of Mine, St. Thomas Aquinas and St. Francis of Assisi: With Introductions by Ralph McInerny and Joseph Pearce, Father Arseny, 1893-1973: Priest, Prisoner, Spiritual Father : Being the Narratives Compiled by the Servant of God Alexander Concerning His Spiritual Father.