The Joy of Discipleship: Reflections from Pope Francis on Walking with Christ

by Pope Francis, Daniel Dinardo (Foreword)

Reflections from Pope Francis on what it means to be a true disciple of Jesus, and how discipleship can frame and form our everyday lives as Christians.

Genres: Religion

154 pages, Paperback

First published February 28, 2016

About the author

Pope Francis (Latin: Franciscus; Italian: Francesco; Spanish: Francisco; born Jorge Mario Bergoglio, 17 December 1936) was the 266th Pope of the Roman Catholic Church, a title he held ex officio as Bishop of Rome, and Sovereign of the Vatican City. He chose Francis as his papal name in honor of Saint Francis of Assisi. Francis was the first Jesuit pope, the first from the Americas, the first from the Southern Hemisphere and the first non-European pope since the Syrian Gregory III, who died in 741.

Born in Buenos Aires, Argentina, Bergoglio worked briefly as a chemical technologist and nightclub bouncer before beginning seminary studies. He was ordained a Catholic priest in 1969 and from 1973 to 1979 was Argentina's provincial superior of the Society of Jesus. He was accused of handing two priests to the National Reorganization Process during the Dirty War, but the lawsuit was ultimately dismissed. He became the Archbishop of Buenos Aires in 1998 and was created a cardinal in 2001 by Pope John Paul II. He led the Argentine Church during the December 2001 riots in Argentina, and the administrations of Néstor Kirchner and Cristina Fernández de Kirchner considered him a political rival. Following the resignation of Pope Benedict XVI on 28 February 2013, a papal conclave elected Bergoglio as his successor on 13 March.

Throughout his public life, Pope Francis had been noted for his humility, emphasis on God's mercy, concern for the poor, and commitment to interfaith dialogue. He was credited with having a humble, less formal approach to the papacy than his predecessors, for instance choosing to reside in the Domus Sanctae Marthae guesthouse rather than in the papal apartments of the Apostolic Palace used by his predecessors. In addition, due to both his Jesuit and Ignatian aesthetic, he was known for favoring simpler vestments void of ornamentation, including refusing the traditional papal mozzetta cape upon his election, choosing silver instead of gold for his piscatory ring, and keeping the same pectoral cross he had as Cardinal. He maintained that the church should be more open and welcoming. He did not support unbridled capitalism, Marxism, or Marxist versions of liberation theology. Francis maintained the traditional views of the church regarding abortion, euthanasia, contraception, homosexuality, ordination of women, and priestly celibacy. He opposed consumerism, irresponsible development, and supported taking action on climate change, a focus of his papacy with the promulgation of Laudato si'. In international diplomacy, he helped to restore full diplomatic relations between the U.S. and Cuba.

Reviews

[Leah · Rating 2 out of 5]

There were some very good parts that definitely made me think and reflect. However much of the time others it drug on. It was also obvious that this was a collection of his writings and so didn’t have a good flow to it.

[thebookiereviewer · Rating 5 out of 5]

A pretty nice collection of Pope Francis' speeches, papers and so on. It's a very easy, really approachable, reading. Perfect for some nice tranquil reading.


Disclaimer: I got a copy from netgalley for my honest opinion

[Jennifer · Rating 3 out of 5]

I put this one of my tbr because I really enjoyed Pope Francis' other book, The Name of God is Mercy. This one was worth reading, but not as good. The first nine chapters are worth reading for everyone, the last three chapters are far more Catholic centric than the rest, focused on the specific doctrine of the Catholic Church as opposed to Christianity in general.

Here's a few of my favorite quotes and take aways:

p. 32 After referring to Luke 24:6, 8 "This is the invitation to remember their encounter with Jesus, to remember his words, his actions, his life; and it is precisely this loving remembrance of their experience with the Master that enables the women to master their fear and to bring the message of the resurrection to the apostles and all the others (see Luke 24:9). To remember what God has done and continues to do for me, for us, to remember the road we have traveled -- this is what opens our hearts to hope for the future. May we learn to remember everything that God has done in our lives."

p. 41 "We cannot be messengers of God's comforts if we do not first feel the joy of being comforted and loved by him."

p. 73 "Newness always makes us a bit fearful, because we feel more secure if we have everything under control, if we are the ones who build, program, and plan our lives in accordance with our own ideas, our own comfort, our own preferences. This is also the case when it comes to God. Often we follow him, we accept him, but only up to a certain point. It is hard to abandon ourselves to him with complete trust, allowing the Holy Spirit to be the soul and guide of our lives in our every decision."

p. 90 "Saints are people who for love of God did not put conditions on him in their lives; they were not hypocrites but spent their lives at the service of others. They suffered much adversity but without hate. The saints never hated. Understand this well: love is of God."

If these ideas interest you at all, this book is worth your time. 3 stars.

[George · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed this collection of Pope Francis' speeches and writings, which covered a basic but fundamental range of topics from the Catholic viewpoint, including discipleship (as the title suggests), marriage, and concern for the poor, as well as analysis of some parables including the Prodigal Son. Essentially, the Pope encourages readers to remember the disciples who encountered Jesus on the road to Emmaus, following his resurrection (Luke 24:13-35). They go from sadness about his death to joy once they realise it is Jesus and he has returned--and the Pope wants all Christians to feel the same way. The core message is that faith and joy should go hand-in-hand and all Christians should carry around a book of Gospels in their pockets to review it and proclaim the good news through the way they live their lives.

So this book is clearly for Christians who want or need a gentle reminder of their faith, but I think it would also be interesting for those who just want to learn more about modern, mainstream Christianity.

[Adam Johnson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good collection of his speeches.

[Sydney · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars

[Jeff Willis · Rating 3 out of 5]

I thought it would be interesting to hear the actual Pope's thoughts on Christianity. Unfortunately, I didn't know that it was basically a compilation of his prior works. And I'm sorry but I'm not sure how much work is required to "skillfully curate" what someone else has to say. Sounds a lot like someone basically just copied and pasted a bunch of stuff from other sources into book format.

As far as the content itself, it was fine but hardly anything revelatory. The Pope makes some good points about finding joy in the everyday things about the Christian faith (surprise, you should be joyful because the faith is 'good news' for your soul!), but I couldn't find anything in there that hasn't been covered multiple times by other authors, from devotional writers to Christian bloggers. I guess I was hoping for something a little more insightful from the head of the Catholic Church.

I can't say that I'd recommend this book for anybody other than those who are super interested in Pope Francis as a person and want to follow along with his speeches, writings, etc. For everyone else, including those who need or want to hear the message of this book... there are plenty of other resources where you can find the same information.

[T.J. Breshears · Rating 4 out of 5]

It is truly a joy (pun intended) to read Pope Francis' words. He blends the beauty of the Gospel with his deep concern for the spiritual growth of Christians into a wonderful read. This is a compilation from many of his writings and sermons but it holds together exceptionally well. I would recommend this book to anyone wanting to grow in their faith. Its words are deep and I can only imagine it will only be more impactful the more you read it.

[Deb Stransky · Rating 3 out of 5]

Very interesting but not as good as Pope Francis book on Mercy.