The Royal Way of the Cross

Have you ever been so deeply affected by a book that you were reluctant to recommend it to someone else -- fearing that someone else's cavalier dismissal of it would amount to a trampling of a fine pearl? Well, that is how I feel about this book. As C. S. Lewis would say, this is a book that you need to yield yourself to. Let down your guard long enough to hear what he has to say. Why would your guard be up in the first place? Well, this book was written by a Catholic bishop, which could earn it black marks from the get go from some Evangelicals. (Full disclosure: I was raised a Catholic, but am currently a conservative Evangelical; Reformed in soteriology and Dispensational in eschatology and with respect to baptism.) And not only that, if you look up Fenelon's name in an encyclopedia, you will probably see that he is associated with a now largely discredited movement called "Quietism." (At the risk of oversimplication, one could say that a Quietist was someone who was overly passive in their spirituality.) But Fenelon is a true genius on the subject of spiritual simplicity and humility. At times (in keeping with the charges of Quietism) he does seem to advocate being a spiritual doormat, but he is such a wonderful corrective to the prevailing spirit of the American church. And you might recall that our Lord Jesus not only modelled non-resistance to a great extent, but also gave us the Sermon on the Mount (much to the chagrin of many theologians!). Here's a brief snippet from Fenelon (p. 43) that I have meditated on countless times since having read this book over three years ago: "Love obscurity and contempt" (In the above "love" is an imperative verb, "obscurity" and "contempt" are nouns.) Yes, as believers we should humbly accept not getting the credit we feel we deserve (obscurity) or being treated as an inferior (contempt), but why should we LOVE these things? Because, Fenelon would argue (think Rom 8.28), God has allowed this obscurity and contempt to come into your life to bless you and make you more like His Son. And unlike some of His other blessings (e.g., a successful career, a beautiful wife), obscurity and contempt are not likely to foster pridefulness in your heart! That is just one example. This book is really eye-opening and practical when it comes to humility and dealing with suffering and setbacks. I would especially recommend this to a believer who has the maturity to put what Fenelon is saying within the context of the whole counsel of God. He is just a human writer and not everything he says is perfect, but here is a beautiful little book from which much can be learned. If I were reading this review would I grade it helpful? I don't know. I DO know that I've done a poor job of communicating what it felt like to read it for the first time. Anyway, you could worse than take a chance on this book!