A Season for the Spirit: Readings for the Days of Lent

by Martin L. Smith

Spiritually hungry readers who want to breakthrough to a deeper experience of prayer and want practical help for Lent need look no further than to Martin Smith's A Season for the Spirit.

Originally commissioned by the Archbishop of Canterbury in 1991, A Season for the Spirit provides forty daily meditations for Lent, leading us on a journey of discovery in which we find that Christ, through the Spirit, embraces every aspect of our humanity. Each meditation concludes with a prayer and passage of scripture or quotation for further reflection and study. While it aims to assist a daily practice of personal prayer, it is also widely used by groups who pledge to meet regularly so that members can share their thoughts, reactions, and spiritual experiences.

Genres: Religion, Nonfiction, Christian, Theology

192 pages, Paperback

First published January 17, 1991

Reviews

[R. Allain · Rating 5 out of 5]

Having been raised in the Catholic tradition, where established dogma rules and any personal deviations are, uh, discouraged, "Seasons for the Spirit" made for a startling, intimate spiritual journey. For here, author Martin L. Smith masterfully merges the psychological breadth of a therapist, the wisdom of a sage and the accessibility of a beloved uncle to navigate some of the thornier aspects of growth in the spirit. And each passage unfolds as easily as a journal. The result makes for a deeply humane and validating experience - revealing, if it was still necessary (and it is), that Christianity is not doomed to being dour and rigid. Rather, like the Spirit itself, it crackles and weaves - and is endearing. It accommodates, rather than stifles, us. Hence, for anyone seeking a fresh way of seeking holiness - and wholeness - Smith's Lenten explorations deserves considering - truly, in every season.

[Amanda Liddle · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow. So deep. Challenging! Any stream of Christian can find treasure here with your eyes open. I did this study it 8 years ago and then again this year (2022).

I remember some of the profound points from last time and can see how they’ve positively impacted my life. Also so many more layers and fresh truth this time. Would love to do it in a group context and discus with many different personalities!

I didn’t finish before Easter - just finishing now in May. It’s good for anytime of the year.

Sometimes, when taking about our blindness or lack of authenticity - he writes as if it shall always be this way. But there I add my hope and charismatic ‘fervour’ that some things have changed and are changing as God’s Spirit keeps working in us all! Hallelujah! God will finish the work in us that he has started and bring it to completion.

[Monica · Rating 5 out of 5]

While written specifically for Lent, this book takes you to spiritual depths that can be experienced again and again at any time of the year. Thought and spirit provoking, one cannot help view Christ and one own’s spiritual experience with more depth and breadth. I’m thankful for this book!

[Paigeforeman · Rating 4 out of 5]

A great collection of thought-provoking essays for Lent. Appreciated how the author often meditated on justice issues.

[Bernard Delcourt · Rating 4 out of 5]

We had it read aloud in the refectory of our monastery. Very good Lent devotional.

[Bob Stains · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have read this book during every Lent for at least 20 years and I always come away with new perspectives and more nuanced understandings about faith, God, Jesus and how the Spirit can move.

[Lawrence Rello · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read this every year. It is one of the best books to read during Lent!

[Jackie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Spiritual reading for Lent.

[Mary Nuttelman · Rating 4 out of 5]

Not your typical doom and gloom, these thought provoking daily readings for Lent guide the reader toward a more attainable understanding of the season.

[Sophfronia Scott · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book has been my constant companion in this season of Lent and I plan to read it every year from now on. Smith challenges the reader to contemplate a deeper level of acceptance of God and our connection to the Spirit in a way I have not read elsewhere. Smith's most striking point, which he makes again and again, is that each of us is not just part of the universe--we each contain the whole of the universe within us. And as such, God is constantly reaching out to us fully and in love because we all are, individually, the whole of his creation. But, no matter how spiritual you think you may be, many of us resist that love on a daily basis either out of ego or shame or general feelings of unworthiness. Smith's book takes us on a 40-day journey to seek out those pockets of resistance and break them down so we can fully receive what God has to offer us. This book is certainly a journey worth taking, and Smith is the right and gentle, compassionate one to guide us.

[Alan · Rating 3 out of 5]

I planned to read it as it is meant to be read, one reflection per day, but . . . I got behind. I got caught up right before Holy Week, but it wasn't the experience I had hoped for. It was rushed.

I really liked the meditations at the beginning of the book, when I was reading it as planned. I love the idea that we can find the entire community within ourselves, and, therefore, it is important to treat each one of those internal individuals as Christ told us to treat everyone--as if they were Christ.

I plan to reread it again next Lent, intending to do it "right" that time!

[Sunny · Rating 4 out of 5]

Beautifully written mediations on faith, but from a humanist perspective. Funny that a Christian theologian can write in such real and simple terms, and yet few rarely do. The chapters in this book served as meditations for my Lenten season a few years ago. I plan to reread them this year.

[Ruth Ann · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the first time I've ever gotten really engaged in a book of readings for Lent or Advent. There's a great deal of perceptiveness about human nature here, as well as gentleness about our limitations.

[Kate Layzer · Rating 5 out of 5]

Beautiful, piercing, insightful, helpful. Smith has that distinctively English gift (think C.S. Lewis, Dorothy Sayers...) for looking unflinchingly at human weakness. This book has been a friend and guide to me in my spiritual journey.

[RF]

This is great book of daily readings for the season of Lent. I used it two years ago, and will use it this year as well.

[Jaci · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of the best Lenten daily readings books.

[Jonathan · Rating 2 out of 5]

I dunno. I just didn't like it that much...

[Jane H · Rating 2 out of 5]

While I doggedly finished this, it didn't do much for me. I think it was more due to the writing style than to the actual content, but I was expecting something different.

[Frank Ogden · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a wonderful and inspiring text to read for Lent. Smith challenges the reader to explore the assigned text and meditate with it on a daily basis.