When it comes to prayer, most of us need reassurance. We see all too clearly the poverty of our efforts to pray, the cloud of distractions that eat away at our prayer like cabbage moths, the gap between our words and our actions … Like any good writer on prayer, Fr Pat O'Sullivan knows how we feel.
Andrew Hamilton sj, from the Foreword
Here is a collection of reflections on prayer, gathered over a lifetime of thinking and praying. And, always, the focus is Jesus. 'Whenever we treat people with love, care, respect, compassion', Pat O'Sullivan says, 'we experience them the way Jesus does – we truly have the mind of Christ. Whenever Jesus is the way we relate – that is, we have his mind in what we do – that is a Jesus event and it deepens our relationship with him …
'If Jesus is at the centre of my life, so that the basic context for any venture, any experience, is my relationship with him, then the whole quality of my life changes. My life becomes a partnership with Jesus.'
As always, Pat O'Sullivan writes in a friendly and accessible style, with many down-to-earth and often humourous stories and examples.
This book is also about things that matter. Prayer is not the decoration on the cake but the flour that goes into its baking, In an earlier period, spiritual writers used to speak about solid devotion expressed in faithfulness to the constant demands made on us in everyday life. They distinguished it from a superficial and emotional faith. This book is solid, but never stolid.
Andrew Hamilton sj, from the Foreword
Fr Patrick O'Sullivan sj grew up in Brisbane, Australia, where he was educated by the Christian Brothers. After school, he went to Melbourne to study for a Bachelor of Arts degree. In 1951 he joined the Jesuits, and was ordained by Cardinal Gilroy in 1962. He taught at St Ignatius' College, Riverview, NSW, and after ordination spent his tertianship in Paray le Monial, France. He completed an MA in Philosophy at Melbourne University, and later did a PhD in Philosophy at Queensland University. His appointments have included Dean of Newman College, Melbourne; Dean and University Chaplain at St Thomas More College, Perth; Vice Rector and University Chaplain at University of Queensland and Rector of Students at Campion College, Melbourne. From 1973-79 he was Provincial of the Jesuit Order in Australia and then Secretary for the Christian Life Communities in Rome, followed by a stint as Pastoral Assistant for the Jesuit Refugee Service, East Africa. While involved in the retreat ministry, he was also editor of the Jesuit magazine of spirituality, Madonna, for a number years, and his most recent post was as resident spiritual director of Corpus Christi Regional Seminary in Melbourne.
