In a world full of hurting, full of suffering, full of emptiness, there is but one balm that can soothe, that can heal, that can fill. Jesus.
As Christians, we know this truth. As Catholics, we are blessed to have access to the comfort that only Jesus can bring through the gifts He left His Church—the sacraments. Sophia Institute Press’s new book Spirit and Life: The Holy Sacraments of the Catholic Church is not the precise answer our world needs. But it is an ornate, enticing road-map that points the way to the answer.
One of the marvels of God’s creation is that He made us
physical beings. And our experiences of the Beauty of this physical world draw
us into the Goodness that always and ultimately leads to Truth. Logos. Jesus
the Christ.
Spirit and Life is an invitation to explore the depth of the sacramental grace Christ offers each of us. He promised His apostles that He would not abandon them. He keeps that promise to every single one of us in the same way He did then—through the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit who animates every recess of our soul when we drink deeply from the sacraments.
Each contributor to Spirit and Life was chosen in prayer—a gift of the Holy Spirit—because they are already using their talents to the glory of God. While using their talents, they’re also bringing others to God by speaking truth and creating beauty and goodness that reflect Him.
Through stunning photography, exquisite design, ancient writing and modern stories, the tapestry of individuals whose gifts have been so beautifully woven together in this seamless masterpiece offers readers an encounter with the wellspring of grace that awaits each of us in the holy sacraments. Just as Mary is the moon who reflects the bright rays of her Son to magnify His glory, so Spirit and Life offers a mere taste of the bottomless beauty and grace available in the sacramental life of the Church.
Spirit and Life: The Holy Sacraments of the Catholic Church opens the door to the path that leads to those sacramental graces in a way that engages the human desire for pleasing, tangible beauty. You will find within its lovely pages the scriptural foundations of the Church’s seven sacraments. You will encounter, perhaps for the first time, the ageless Church teaching for each from great popes and Doctors of the Church of the past to the most current Catechism teachings. Ordained men, religious women and laity from all walks of life share deeply intimate, personal experiences of the life- and love-giving nature of individual sacraments.
All in the hopes that these pages will do much more than beautify a coffee table or enrapture a reader. The hope is that each person who encounters Spirit and Life will be spurred to seek the Spirit and Life that is waiting to engulf them in the sacraments.
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Photo by Annie Spratt on Unsplash
