Father James Martin, SJ, best-selling author of My Life with the Saints, Between Heaven and Mirth, and Jesus: A Pilgrimage tries his hand at
fiction in The Abbey: A Story of Discovery.
Mark is a former architect who now works as a handyman at the Abbey of Saints
Peter and Paul. He wonders how his life got off-track and his self-worth hinges
on whether a woman accepts his advances. Anne is Mark’s landlord. She is
middle-aged, divorced, and struggles every day with the death of her teenage
son three years before. Father Paul is the Abbot at Saints Peter and Paul.
Mark’s boss, he will be become both his and Anne’s confidant and spiritual
director, without them even realizing that is what he is offering.
The Abbey is a
quality work of Catholic fiction. It deals with the real-life difficulties
people sometimes have with faith. As a priest himself, Fr. Martin can offer an
honest look at what it means to be a priest and wrestle with one’s vows. He
also has both offered and experienced spiritual direction and knows the
heartaches and questions that individuals bring to that process.
While the characters, especially Anne, develop and grow in
their relationship with God during the course of the book, there is no radical
change. As is often the case in the spiritual life, small steps are taken
slowly. One can only hope the characters will eventually make their way home
into full communion with the Catholic Church. There is also some rough language
in the book, including taking the Lord’s name in vain, which may be in keeping
with the characters’ personalities but could have easily been avoided with no
detriment to the story.
Overall, however, The
Abbey has the potential to do much good. As a work of Catholic fiction
published by a big name with a well-known publisher, it has the possibility of
reaching and evangelizing those who might not usually pick up a work of
Catholic fiction. For those who are firm in their faith, it provides some
enjoyable reading that touches the heart and offers insights into the workings
of an abbey and those who dwell there.
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