Description:
In The Reed of God, Caryll Houselander portrays Mary as profoundly human and wholly open to God, offering a timeless vision of the Mother of God as a model for all who seek to bear Christ into the world.
Brief description:
Caryll Houselander (1901-1954) was an English artist who became one of the most popular Catholic spiritual writers of modern times.
Although in poor health for most of her short life, her literary and artistic output was remarkable. Beginning in 1927 until her death in 1954, she wrote and published constantly. With the publication of This War Is the Passion in 1941, she became one of the most popular and highly respected religious writers of the period.
Review Quotes:
"The Reed of God is the best book I've ever read about Mary. It is life-changing. Caryll Houselander's breathtaking insights into the faithfulness, patience, and love of the Mother of God reveal a beautiful portrait of Our Lady as a model for Christian living. We, too, can offer our fiat, wait patiently as Christ is made incarnate in us, and seek the Christ Child in every moment of our days as Mary leads us to closer intimacy with Jesus through her example and her love. A perfect read for Advent, Lent, or any season, The Reed of God will open your eyes to the call to be full of grace--a reed through which God will play his song. It is a spiritual classic not to be missed."--Haley Stewart, Managing editor of Word on Fire Votive and author of The Grace of Enough and Jane Austen's Genius Guide to Life
"This gem of a book shows why Mary's vocation is ours as well: Each of us must bear Christ into the world. In words as fresh and relevant today as the day she wrote them, Houselander explains why the emptiness we all feel is a space made especially for Jesus. Whether that space presents as a chalice made to carry wine, a hollow reed formed to play a song, or a nest lined and ready to receive life, we can find its purpose in contemplating the Blessed Mother."--Sarah Christmyer, Editor of the Living the Word Catholic Women's Bible and author of Becoming Women of the Word
"Such a work can only come from a deep and abiding love for Mary. Take these words to heart, and there Jesus will be conceived in you."--Curtis A. Martin, Founder and CEO of FOCUS
"People foraging in the libraries of religious houses for a book that can be read without mortification in time of retreat will come across The Reed of God, browse in it, get lost in it, and search catalogues for years afterward in search of a secondhand copy."--Ronald Knox, English Catholic priest, theologian, author, and one of the most prominent twentieth-century converts from Anglicanism to Catholicism
"The first time I read The Reed of God, Mary's emptiness--compared to the emptiness of the world--resonated with my own desire to be emptied of everything that gets in the way of a close relationship with Jesus. The image of a hollow chalice ready to be filled with the fullness of God has remained with me for years. Through her timeless and prolific writing, Caryll Houselander gifts us with insights into Mary's beautiful human heart that remained united to God through her real and relatable joys and sorrows, hopes and disappointments. The Reed of God offers us a constant companion on our journey of faith, with Mary guiding us always closer to her Son, Jesus."--Sarah Damm, Writer for WINE: Women in the New Evangelization
"There may be no better entrée into Marian faith and devotion than Caryll Houselander's The Reed of God. Accessible yet profound, this little gem of a book gives witness to the inherent unity of faith and devotion, theology and spirituality. It is as rewarding to the cradle Catholic as to the recent convert or even to the curious outsider, proffering an approach to thinking about and praying with Mary, the Mother of Jesus. Years ago, Louis Bouyer suggested that genuine theological anthropology is Mariology, and Houselander paints a portrait not only of Our Lady but of the life of the believer after her example, as one totally open to the workings of grace and, precisely for that reason, as truly free."--Msgr. Michael Heintz
Pastor of Saint Pius X Catholic Church in Granger, Indiana
"I keep a stack of The Reed of God books in my office, so often do I give it to spiritual directees in need of a renewed relationship with the Blessed Mother. Caryll Houselander is a genius at holding in perfect, holy, dynamic tension the extraordinary paradoxes that mark the life of Mary and her Son. In these uniquely imaginative pages, readers will find their relationship to Mary and Jesus refreshed, clarified, and beautifully deepened."--Liz Kelly, Catholic author, speaker, and spiritual director
"As a young mother, I often find myself feeling overwhelmed and discouraged, wondering if my hidden actions matter. This beautiful book has encouraged me in my own vocation as I try to remain faithful in the little, hidden things. No matter your vocation, The Reed of God will encourage you to be open to the ways that God will work in your ordinary life--for it is little, ordinary saints that the Church needs today."--Michele E. Chronister, Author of Mary Holds My Hand and editor of Rosaries Aren't Just for Teething