These Catholic mothers’ intractable stance on the topic piqued her curiosity. What, she wondered, lay behind their adamant resistance?
Especially since the Church to which they belonged was riddled with horrible scandals, a Church whose teachings about homosexuality, condom use, abortion and more she vehemently disagreed with.
Meanwhile, as she explored these questions with her friend, a Byzantine Catholic priest named Father Gregory, her creative powers stalled.
An intractable insomnia and psychological malaise descended upon her, and this time, writing offered no comfort, until an unexpected revelation suddenly strikes. To her surprise, she receives an explanation for her longstanding compulsion to write.
This was to be the beginning of her journey towards the Roman Catholic Church. She would learn about the Church’s teachings from Father Gregory, as well as from a devout expatriate Texan Catholic mother who would soon become a bosom friend.
Such is the mystery of sanctified grace that Read would find herself helpless against this pull upon her soul, especially by the Holy Eucharist. She recounts this strange and supernatural phenomenon with poignancy in her final chapter.
She cherishes the serenity and gladness that follow her conversion. Prayer and Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament become desires, not chores. Hers is a solo voyage, however, as even her culturally Catholic Italian husband does not feel the same longing to explore the faith that he grew up in.
Once more, one recalls St Augustine’s enduring words in his Confessions: “Our hearts were made for You, O Lord, and they are restless until they rest in you.” Unless a soul is ready to receive the Holy Spirit, no profound change transpires.
Every conversion story rewards the reader with a renewed appreciation of his Faith, of things deep, simple, or magnificent, that might have been otherwise unknown - even unknowable.
This slim book offers such to all comers, whether they be devout, lukewarm, or even lapsed Catholics. Or perhaps just open-minded and open-hearted readers.
The profound truths on darkness and light, sin and forgiveness, and God’s boundless love for us invest Read’s deeply engaging story.
Ultimately, those books that promote with suspicious facility the power of “positive thinking” and the “prosperity gospel” as keys to earthly happiness are all rendered hollow in comparison.
Certainly, the lack of belief in God deprives one of genuine hope and joy, as many a seeker like Read has
found out.
REGINA | 27