St. Thérèse of Lisieux: A Transformation in Christ

At his best, Thomas Keating is an inspired spiritual writer, whose work can lead one both to greater awareness of the divine life and much intellectual stimulation. None of his work is free of a tendency to stretch quotations from scripture to make a point, yet, in such works as The Mystery of Christ, the overall impact is powerful and thought-provoking.With this said, A Transformation in Christ is highly disappointing. It actually references little in Thérèse's life and work, and seems very contrived - as if the idea for connecting the parables and Thérèse's spirituality was a fine one until the author put pen to paper. The parables are presented as if Father Keating were recording some random thoughts during a meditation, and do not include exegesis or in depth treatment.One with Father Keating's ability should have produced far better than this, particularly considering that neither Thérèse nor Jesus leave one with a paltry amount of material with which to work.