The Glorious Pursuit: Embracing the Virtues of Christ

Rating:
Summary: A Compassionate Hitting where it hurts
Review: Gary Thomas has once again delved into the classics and his own personal life and produced a testament which will last the test of time. This is a very thought-provoking book, and one I highly recommend. NavPress doesn't usually pander to the fluffy kind of spirituality, and Gary focuses on the virtues and the practice of them and application of them in the Christian life. He realizes, of course, and holds to the fact that without Christ, nothing we can do will get us into heaven, not even practicing the virtues. We must be one with Christ first before any of this will mean anything significant. But the practice of these, which include gentleness, purity, et al., is a wake-up call to the church. May we all pay heed!!!

Rating:
Summary: Excellent! A Must Read!
Review: I am very glad that I read this book. I have been recommending it to my closest friends. I met Gary and his wonderful wife in Virginia last year and found him personally "in synch" with this terrific book. High integrity.

Rating:
Summary: An easy to read book on Spiritual Virtues
Review: The beauty of this book is the simplicity in which the material is presented. The author, Gary Thomas illustrates easily the virtues of Christ and the ways of incorporating them into daily life in order to grow spiritually. Thomas borrows a lot from St. John of the Cross, St. Theresa of Avila and most of all, from John Climacus. (He freely admits his sources, as well) This book, though, is much more accessible in its writing to the common reader. My only complaint is that the author tends to stretch metaphors to the breaking point where the comparison is almost silly sometimes. It does not detract from the book, though. For anyone who enjoyed this book, I would recommend the Ascent of Mt. Carmel and Dark night of the soul by St. John of the Cross, Interior Castle by St. Theresa of Avila, and The Ladder of Divine Ascent by John Climacus.