Sacred Heart: Gateway to God

As I came across this page, I saw two very different reviews - one praising the books beauty; the other speaking of the author's lack of originality and condescion. While I firmly agree with the first perspective - for this strikes me as a very beautiful book and a very original one too - I wonder if I can clarify some of the division here. This is an *unusual* book in its genre, in that the author interweaves a great deal of material about the traditions concerning the Sacred Heart, with perhaps a near-equal amount of material about her own life story and theological quest! It is easy for me to imagine certain readers being irritated with the latter. Perhaps scratching their heads and saying: Why is this woman telling us all about herself? Not me. Wright's recollections of her life feel very, very human to me. Very moving indeed, by a woman living a very genuine Christian journey ... Beautiful indeed, and her authenticity only serves to *undergird* what she is saying about that very human symbol of the divine ... The tender, Sacred Heart of Jesus. Still those who prefer straight theology should be warned. There is very useful theology here in my opinion, but it is also presented with an unusual amount of the author's HUMANITY. And for me, that makes it all the more beautiful.

This lovely book introduced me to a long tradition of devotion to the Sacred Heart, to the wounds of Christ, and other related themes. I didn't know much about these traditions when I began reading, but I almost feel I found my own heart here. I discovered that some of the imagery I encountered in my own prayer had a long history; connecting to that history has been an important means of growth. I especially appreciate how Wright weaves her own story through her discussions of the development of these devotions: she's not adopting the detached, distant stance of the scholar, though there's plenty of scholarship here. She's instead connecting at a personal, even poetic level (there's much poetry here as well), and that helped me connect too. This has been one of the most formative spiritual books of my life, and I have recommended it to many people I know. It's a book I return to often, and if I were stranded on a desert island, I could do a lot worse.