Coming home from the East

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Truarchs

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I have a friend who was raised Catholic but ventured off into Eastern religions for 20+ years as a adult. She was most heavily into yoga and meditation. We have talked about this over the years and I have continue to share my faith with her. I few weeks ago she asked to have lunch and told me she was interested in learning more about Jesus and scripture. It’s my hope that through continued discussions she will return to the fullness of truth.

She is a very kind person who donates her time to charitable concerns of the poor. She said to me she can easily reach a high vertical spirituality but she’s tired of it and is seeking the more horizontal spirituality Jesus taught in working with people and loving our neighbor.

She loves to read. Can anyone recommend a book, or books, that will help someone with a strong Eastern/yoga background to learn again the fullness of truth our great faith has to offer?

[SIGN]Thanks in advance![/SIGN]
 
I don’t know many books and I’d like to bump this topic up for others to reply. 🙂
 
Truarchs said:
I have a friend who was raised Catholic but ventured off into Eastern religions for 20+ years as a adult. She was most heavily into yoga and meditation. We have talked about this over the years and I have continue to share my faith with her. I few weeks ago she asked to have lunch and told me she was interested in learning more about Jesus and scripture. It’s my hope that through continued discussions she will return to the fullness of truth.

She is a very kind person who donates her time to charitable concerns of the poor. She said to me she can easily reach a high vertical spirituality but she’s tired of it and is seeking the more horizontal spirituality Jesus taught in working with people and loving our neighbor.

She loves to read. Can anyone recommend a book, or books, that will help someone with a strong Eastern/yoga background to learn again the fullness of truth our great faith has to offer?

[SIGN]Thanks in advance![/SIGN]
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You might introduce to some of the Saints/Blesseds of the Church so she can see the impact the Faith had on their lives. A good start would be St. Therese of Lisieux’s autobiography, Story of a Soul, followed by St. Teresa of Jesus’s (aka “of Avila”) Life. She won’t understand all of it at this juncture, but if she is open to the truth, than she will recognize the transcendent and the very human in their lives.
 
Great suggestions, and I have a copy of St. Teresa of Jesus’s autobiography. I am pretty confident she will like that book a lot.😃
 
The Gospel of Luke especially
Mother Teresa of Calcutta’s writings
Perhaps Dorothy Day? I haven’t read her.

I will try to continue to think of good things for her to read. “The Lord hears the cry of the poor” - and her compassion for her neighbor is a strong sign that God is working in her heart and her life. Eastern religions teach not to interfere with someone else’s karma…just step over that dying person in the streets of Calcutta. No. God loves the poor, the sick, the dying, those who suffer, and when we share that concern, we are taking on the heart of God into our own hearts.

Here’s a post from this summer from my blog…maybe she will get something from this…
apostolicanchoress.blogspot.com/2007/06/lord-hears-cry-of-poor.html
 
Book with strong emphasis in contemplative prayer will be of interest of anyone with a Eastern monistic background.

In the Cloud of Unknowing.

Anything by John of the Cross, like Dark Night of the Soul, Spiritual Cantlique and Ascent to Mount Carmel.
 
Perhaps even some of the writings of Thomas Merton. I know some think he strayed into heterodoxy. But, being a former practicioner of Eastern religions myself, his writings served me as a bridge from Eastern mysticism into orthodox Christian thought.
 
respond in accord with what she asks you
if she wants to learn more about Jesus and the gospels, ask her to read Mark’s gospel
if she asks about a saint, give her a book on the saint
if she asks about Mass, take her
if she asks about mental prayer, meditation and contemplation, give her a good modern intro to St Teresa of Jesus (Avila)

a common and harmful mistake is bombarding a questioner with books and material, and answering questions they have not yet asked. above all, listen. respond directly and simply to her questions, and offer to lead her to sources for more info
and be her RCIA or confirmation sponsor
 
inthecloud said:
Book with strong emphasis in contemplative prayer will be of interest of anyone with a Eastern monistic background.

In the Cloud of Unknowing.

Anything by John of the Cross, like Dark Night of the Soul, Spiritual Cantlique and Ascent to Mount Carmel.
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absolutely not, these are not for beginners and should be introduced only under spiritual direction

if she is involved in works of charity, get her involved in Catholic service opportunities in the diocese or parish
 
Some of the converts from hinduism into The Church and are active in evangelisation are able to give good reasons for The Truth of Christianity ( not having read much of their material , unsure if all of it is the pure truth from The Church, since some of them might still be in the learning curve , finding it difficult to shed some of the belief systems of generations ! )

One such person is Aravindaksha Menon ( many articles on him are on google )- an interesting life story , from being a hindu to communism to now being in the ministry.

And St.Thomas , the patron Apostle of India ,can be a good intercessor ( along with of course our Bl.Mother ) - to help us all proclaim - “My Lord and My God !”

St.Thomas is depicted carrying the spear ( in memory of his martyr death from hindus) and in turn , let us hope , is a powerful force against new age with its subtle seductions and errors which are somewhat personified by the hindu god -siva , who carry the pitchfork !

Since prayer has to be an important part of the conversion, may I also recommend the Divine mercy prayer (www.thedivinemercy.org - many good articles at this site as well) - The Novena specifically mentions our role of bringing all - nonbelievers , fallen away , sinners …to The Sacred Heart …to be loved and healed !

Blessings !
 
Two recent books are good and not terribly heavy.
Jesus of Nazareth by Pope Benedict XVI
Mother Teresa Come Be My Light - The letters of Mother Teresa - This may be right up her alley. (which was already suggested I see 😉 )
Someone else mentioned the Saints. I have a Calendar book of the Lives of the Saints. It’s a nice little book and in it you find the very best of humanity. The artwork in it isn’t so hot. Some of the saints look like wanted posters.

Otherwise there’s stuff like The Imitation of Christ, Summa Theologica

For future Bible reading, if it gets that far, I would also recommend accompanying it with regular prayer of the Rosary, the Catholic Rosary. The frequent meditations should help enrich the reading no matter where you are in the Bible because of the way things are connected and the way the OT points to the New. You can get a deeper sense of the text and how it applies to Christ by staying focused on the Gospels.
 
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