Reviews

The Jesuit Guide to (Almost) Everything: A Spirituality for Real Life by James Martin

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hooliaquoolia's review against another edition

4.0

If you had a good experience with the Catholic Church after the Second Vatican Council, it was probably because of the Jesuits. If you had a bad experience with the Catholic Church prior to the Second Vatican Council, it was probably because of the Jesuits. It’s an interesting conundrum that many contemporary Christians, specifically Catholics, face: how to think about a religious order that has historically been so enmeshed with colonialism and imperialism that it’s hard to separate the two, but in the 21st century has become one of the loudest voices for reform in the Church. I won’t pretend to know the answer, and in truth it’s probably irrelevant here, because this book is not about the history of the Jesuits but rather the application of Ignatian spirituality to everyday life.

In that purpose, I think it succeeds. Martin is an effective communicator who understands how to best frame things for a secular audience to make them simple but punchy—at points I was thinking “ah, so that’s what Wharton taught you.” There were several sections I really enjoyed: specifically, his discussion of chastity and loneliness, and his stringent criticism of capitalism. Hell yeah brother! Say it louder for the incels in the back pews!

However, there were certainly some cringe moments, all revolving around some topics I touched on in my first paragraph. I mean, he is an old white guy, so am I super surprised that he praises a Jesuit priest who ministered to slaves while conveniently forgetting to mention that that same priest was actually a slaveholder himself? No. Will I ever give up the belief that we need to confront the legacy of Christianity and colonialism? No.

Overall, the book is still a solid instruction on Ignatian spirituality. I believe that a frank discussion of spirituality in everyday life, not as a product sold to you by a wealthy white woman, but as a practice that both strengthens your bonds with your faith and your community, is something that is sorely lacking from intellectual spaces across the country. I’m delighted that Martin includes references to the Zen tradition here, and to specific areas of community work as wealths of spiritual growth. Meditation has a strong history in the Christian tradition, and community work is literally what Jesus preached, and I’m very sick of conservative Christian acting like they are the sole property of heathens and communists. Martin makes a strong case for altering your spiritual habits in order to challenge yourself, while defending the fundamentals of spiritual discipline. Martin and I can agree to disagree on many things (no, conservative Catholics, not the things that you’d like me to disagree with him on), but nonetheless I greatly enjoy him as a writer, thinker, and overall counselor to many who find themselves on the fringes of their Christian communities.