2009 Catholic Press Association Award Winner!
To read the Gospel of Mark is to embark on a journey that begins in a desert and ends with a boulder rolled away from the tomb. In between, Jesus teaches his disciples, calls them to journey and learn what it means to follow him, and guides them to Jerusalem, the scene of the Passion.
In The Spiritual Landscape of Mark, Bonnie Thurston has adapted a retreat that she gave to the Society of the Sacred Cross at Tymawr Convent in Wales, thereby inviting all of us to embark on this spiritual journey. Mark's gospel is full of places' desert, house, sea, valley, mountain, city, cross, garden and the winding roads between them. Thurston's prose invites us to go away to a quiet place and reflect awhile on what it means to be Jesus's disciple, to follow him across the hard landscape. Along the way there will be glimpses of his glory when he stills the storm and is transfigured on the mountain, when he heals the sick and feeds the hungry. Still, the primary lesson is the difficult way to which we are called, along with the great joy of knowing that Jesus has initiated the journey and leads us exactly where we need to go.
Bonnie B. Thurston, PhD, lives in West Virginia in solitude. She is ordained in the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) and the author of several books, including Philippians in the Sacra Pagina series and Religious Vows, the Sermon on the Mount, and Christian Living (Liturgical Press), and Preaching Mark (Fortress Press).
Show more2009 Catholic Press Association Award Winner!
To read the Gospel of Mark is to embark on a journey that begins in a desert and ends with a boulder rolled away from the tomb. In between, Jesus teaches his disciples, calls them to journey and learn what it means to follow him, and guides them to Jerusalem, the scene of the Passion.
In The Spiritual Landscape of Mark, Bonnie Thurston has adapted a retreat that she gave to the Society of the Sacred Cross at Tymawr Convent in Wales, thereby inviting all of us to embark on this spiritual journey. Mark's gospel is full of places' desert, house, sea, valley, mountain, city, cross, garden and the winding roads between them. Thurston's prose invites us to go away to a quiet place and reflect awhile on what it means to be Jesus's disciple, to follow him across the hard landscape. Along the way there will be glimpses of his glory when he stills the storm and is transfigured on the mountain, when he heals the sick and feeds the hungry. Still, the primary lesson is the difficult way to which we are called, along with the great joy of knowing that Jesus has initiated the journey and leads us exactly where we need to go.
Bonnie B. Thurston, PhD, lives in West Virginia in solitude. She is ordained in the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) and the author of several books, including Philippians in the Sacra Pagina series and Religious Vows, the Sermon on the Mount, and Christian Living (Liturgical Press), and Preaching Mark (Fortress Press).
Show moreBonnie B. Thurston, after years as a university and seminary professor, lives quietly in her home state of West Virginia. She is the author of many books on Scripture and spirituality and eight books of poetry. These include Liturgical Press publications Saint Mary of Egypt: A Modern Verse Life and Interpretation;Shaped by the End You Live For: Thomas Merton’s Monastic Spirituality; Maverick Mark: The Untamed First Gospel; The Spiritual Landscape of Mark;Philippians in the Sacra Pagina series; and Belonging to Borders: A Sojourn in the Celtic Tradition (poetry).
Thurston’s work is unique and any study of the gospel of Mark would
be enriched by her work.The Christian Librarian
If you want to see something new in the work of the first
evangelist, a couple of hours spent with this book might well be
the prompting that you need.The Way
Poetry (the author’s own, and that of others, including R.S.
Thomas), references to spiritual writers––including several to
Thomas Merton––and to other parts of Scripture are scattered
throughout each chapter such that the writing never becomes dull or
predictable. . . . It would make an excellent gift for anyone at
any stage of the journey of discipleship, including the bored, the
busy, and the beginner.The Merton Journal
This lovely book originated as a series of retreat conferences to
the Society of the Sacred Cross Tymawr convent in Wales. . . . The
term 'landscape' is significant because that is the approach
Thurston, a biblical scholar who has given strong emphasis to the
spirituality of the biblical text, takes in reflecting on the
message of Mark. For each symbolic part of the landscape the author
offers the reader probing reflections on the meaning of the gospel
for Christian life.The Bible Today
The book's testimony will be continued in the transformed lives of
those who have allowed its narrative to change them. It would make
an excellent gift for anyone at any stage of the journey of
discipleship.The Merton Journal
The importance of this book is . . . that Thurston is able to draw
fresh insights from thinking spatially, propelling the reader into
engagement with the Gospel text and with the compelling person of
Jesus. . . . Thurston speaks from a place where scholarship and
prayer intersect. Her prose reflects a deeply internalized reading
of Mark’s Gospel. This is not an erudite study, but rather an
imaginative enlivening of the Gospel.National Catholic Reporter
Bonnie Thurston has more than done her homework on the Gospel of
St. Mark. In this book she narrates insight from her lectio.
Christians are never done with the Gospels and it is imperative
that we each have our own direct access to that precious text, but
sometimes there’s commentary from the person on the path ahead of
you. With this book we are invited to that retreat once upon a time
in Wales.Meg Funk, MegFunk.com, Our Lady of Grace Monastery, Beech
Grove, Indiana
This timely work (as we enter a new lectionary cycle) will bless my
preaching without question. In this accessible piece Jesus comes
close to us. Not only was my mind fed, but this book ‘spoke to me’
intimately. The painful places in my life became comforted. The
uncertain became a welcomed friend, and a holy place. This will
likely become required reading for those seeking standing in our
tradition. . . . This book is simply a gift. I receive it as
grace—Good News!The Reverend Thaddaeus Burwell Allen, Regional
Minister, The Christian Church (Disciples of Christ), Parkersburg,
West Virginia
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