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Seven Gifts of the Holy Spirit
Many of us fail to recognize that obtaining the seven gifts of the Holy Spirit is absolutely essential to getting to heaven. We often block their reception through our own faults. We fail to see how they are passed on or strengthened in the sacraments. And, sadly, we forget to petition God in prayer to bestow these gifts upon us. In these pages, Dr. Kevin Vost ï¿1/2ï¿1/2ï¿1/2 best-selling author of The One-Minute Aquinas ï¿1/2ï¿1/2ï¿1/2 provides us with a substantive yet readable introduction to the seven gifts and how we can humbly submit our wills to the stirrings of the Holy Spirit. As Dr. Vost explains, these God-given gifts help us to conform our lives to His image, intellect and will. They prevent us from being drawn into frustration ï¿1/2ï¿1/2ï¿1/2 and possibly self-destruction ï¿1/2ï¿1/2ï¿1/2 by following our own sensual appetites. Indeed, the gifts of the Holy Spirit are the only path to being fully happy on earth and in the life to come. With St. Thomas Aquinas and St.
208 pages, Paperback
Published December 15, 2016
77 people are currently reading
135 people want to read
About the author
Kevin Vost
39 books52 followersKevin Vost, Psy. D. (b. 1961) has taught psychology at the University of Illinois at Springfield, Lincoln Land Community College, and MacMurray College. He is a Research Review Committee Member for American Mensa, which promotes the scientific study of human intelligence.
He enjoys reading the Classics (especially Aristotle and the Stoics) and St. Thomas Aquinas in his spare time.
He enjoys reading the Classics (especially Aristotle and the Stoics) and St. Thomas Aquinas in his spare time.
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Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
June 2, 2021
Great book on the gifts of the Holy Spirit. It is a fairly easy read, but with some parts that challenge the intellect to go deeper - which is encouraged by the Holy Spirit Himself.
December 22, 2016
Dr. Kevin Vost has been one of my favourite Catholic authors since I discovered him a number of years ago. With every book of his I read I have a greater appreciation for his knowledge, his writing and his own personal example of living a life of faith. In the preface to this volume Dr. Vost talks about the progression in his writings and how they build upon each other. He states: "While researching for a biography of St. Albert the Great in 2011, I came across an earlier biographer's declaration that within an author's first book can be found the kernels of all of his subsequent works. Upon a little reflection, I found that this sure is true for me, as the kernels contained in Memorize the Faith! (Sophia Institute Press, 2006) have popped into all kinds of subsequent books." And from that book has now sprung three other volumes and to date cumulating with this one. Those three books are:
Unearthing Your Ten Talents
The Seven Deadly Sins
The Seven Gifts of the Holy Spirit
Each of these three volumes growing from a chapter in that earlier book. But of the 8 books I have read by Dr. Vost this one is the most stirring. This book will challenge you on many fronts.
In this volume Dr. Vost draws heavily from St. Thomas Aquinas's Summa Theologica. He also draws extensively from the writings of the saints, and the catechism. But this book is not just an academic treaty. It is not simply theology for the sake of writing another book. It is truly a field manual or a guidebook for those of us who would grow in our faith, seek to grow in the gifts of the spirit and be prepared for spiritual battle or to be warriors for Christ Jesus!
Each chapter in this volume follows the same format:
Profile in Giftedness - Examples from Saints
Angelic Analysis - Main Teaching
Profile in Grace - An Example from History
From these three building blocks each chapter tackles a specific gift:
Fostering Fear of the Lord
Practicing Piety
Acknowledging Knowledge
Fortifying Fortitude
Counting on Counsel
Unwrapping Understanding
Welcoming Wisdom
When I go to review a book I try and think of both the strengths and weaknesses of the book. To be honest the greatest strengths of this book are the ease of reading it, and the immediately applicable knowledge. And I cannot really think of a fault!
The subtitle of this book on the cover is, 'Understanding The Invincible Gifts You Need For Spiritual Battle' but on the title page it is 'Every Spiritual Warrior's Guide to God's Invincible Gifts' I am not sure why they are different but both resonate with me and are strong calls for why this book should be read and applied. This was an incredible read. I have already added it to next year's reading list again with the goal of finishing it right before doing the Novena to the Holy Spirit for the Seven Gifts prayed in the days leading to Pentecost as is mentioned in the conclusion of this book. I have also added a few of Vost's book that I have yet to read. For to be honest everything he has written that I have read is excellent.
This is an amazing read that will immediately impact your life!
Read the review on my blog Book Reviews and More and reviews of other books by Dr. Kevin Vost. As well as an author profile and interview with Kevin.
(Note: This book is part of a series of reviews: A Year of Reading Intention - Catholic Reading!)
Unearthing Your Ten Talents
The Seven Deadly Sins
The Seven Gifts of the Holy Spirit
Each of these three volumes growing from a chapter in that earlier book. But of the 8 books I have read by Dr. Vost this one is the most stirring. This book will challenge you on many fronts.
In this volume Dr. Vost draws heavily from St. Thomas Aquinas's Summa Theologica. He also draws extensively from the writings of the saints, and the catechism. But this book is not just an academic treaty. It is not simply theology for the sake of writing another book. It is truly a field manual or a guidebook for those of us who would grow in our faith, seek to grow in the gifts of the spirit and be prepared for spiritual battle or to be warriors for Christ Jesus!
Each chapter in this volume follows the same format:
Profile in Giftedness - Examples from Saints
Angelic Analysis - Main Teaching
Profile in Grace - An Example from History
From these three building blocks each chapter tackles a specific gift:
Fostering Fear of the Lord
Practicing Piety
Acknowledging Knowledge
Fortifying Fortitude
Counting on Counsel
Unwrapping Understanding
Welcoming Wisdom
When I go to review a book I try and think of both the strengths and weaknesses of the book. To be honest the greatest strengths of this book are the ease of reading it, and the immediately applicable knowledge. And I cannot really think of a fault!
The subtitle of this book on the cover is, 'Understanding The Invincible Gifts You Need For Spiritual Battle' but on the title page it is 'Every Spiritual Warrior's Guide to God's Invincible Gifts' I am not sure why they are different but both resonate with me and are strong calls for why this book should be read and applied. This was an incredible read. I have already added it to next year's reading list again with the goal of finishing it right before doing the Novena to the Holy Spirit for the Seven Gifts prayed in the days leading to Pentecost as is mentioned in the conclusion of this book. I have also added a few of Vost's book that I have yet to read. For to be honest everything he has written that I have read is excellent.
This is an amazing read that will immediately impact your life!
Read the review on my blog Book Reviews and More and reviews of other books by Dr. Kevin Vost. As well as an author profile and interview with Kevin.
(Note: This book is part of a series of reviews: A Year of Reading Intention - Catholic Reading!)
June 16, 2017
Any good Christian knows the seven gifts of the Holy Spirit. Located in Isaiah 11, they are fear of the Lord, piety, knowledge, fortitude, counsel, understanding, and wisdom. Late last year, Sophia Institute Press published a book by Dr. Kevin Vost that examined each of these gifts through the lenses of St. Thomas Aquinas and St. Bonaventure. There are seven chapters (one for each gift) and each chapter follows the same structure - "1. Grasping the gifts, 2. Embracing the sacraments, 3. Examining our thoughts and deeds for obstacles to the gifts, 4. Practicing prayer, 5. Cultivating virtues, beatitudes, and fruits, 6. Flying to our Mother's aid, and 7. Imitating Christ. Each chapter also concludes with three brief essays - Profile in Giftedness, Angelic Analysis, and Profile in Grace.
Most of the gifts of the Holy Spirit are pretty straightforward. Yes, people sometimes mix up wisdom for intelligence, but people generally know what each means...except for fear of the Lord. People question if they should be afraid of God or what exactly does it mean? St. Augustine said fear is the avoidance of future evil, St. Thomas Aquinas tells us about four types of fear (worldly, servile, initial, and filial) and how a Christian progresses through these stages of fear as we grow in love of God. This was very helpful on elucidating this often misunderstood gift. At the end of the book is a helpful appendix with several tables serve as a quick guides and also relate the gifts to the Lord's Prayer. Dr, Kevin Vost and Sophia Institute Press deliver another wonderful with St. Thomas Aquinas as the backbone. I look forward to the next one he writes, as he has really helped me (and I'm sure countless others) better understand Aquinas' writings.
This book was provided to me for free by Sophia Institute Press in exchange for an honest review.
Most of the gifts of the Holy Spirit are pretty straightforward. Yes, people sometimes mix up wisdom for intelligence, but people generally know what each means...except for fear of the Lord. People question if they should be afraid of God or what exactly does it mean? St. Augustine said fear is the avoidance of future evil, St. Thomas Aquinas tells us about four types of fear (worldly, servile, initial, and filial) and how a Christian progresses through these stages of fear as we grow in love of God. This was very helpful on elucidating this often misunderstood gift. At the end of the book is a helpful appendix with several tables serve as a quick guides and also relate the gifts to the Lord's Prayer. Dr, Kevin Vost and Sophia Institute Press deliver another wonderful with St. Thomas Aquinas as the backbone. I look forward to the next one he writes, as he has really helped me (and I'm sure countless others) better understand Aquinas' writings.
This book was provided to me for free by Sophia Institute Press in exchange for an honest review.
June 7, 2017
Sometimes difficult to read
This is a Book worth reading even though the wording in some passages is hard to follow and requires re-reading. Maybe that isn't a bad thing since it makes you think about the content. I believe this is an important book for every Catholic who wants to know more about how the Holy Spirit can inspire and interact with us.
This is a Book worth reading even though the wording in some passages is hard to follow and requires re-reading. Maybe that isn't a bad thing since it makes you think about the content. I believe this is an important book for every Catholic who wants to know more about how the Holy Spirit can inspire and interact with us.
May 11, 2018
Good review of the gifts of the Holy Spirit
The author, a devoted follower to and expert on St. Thomas Aquinas, draws heavily on Thomas along with numerous other saints to map out the seven gifts of the Holy Spirit.
The author, a devoted follower to and expert on St. Thomas Aquinas, draws heavily on Thomas along with numerous other saints to map out the seven gifts of the Holy Spirit.
February 14, 2017
Kevin does a great job synthesizing the beauty and truth behind the Seven Gifts of the Holy Spirit. Kevin brings in St. Thomas and other key players from the faith to help shed light on these important gifts. I appreciate Kevin's thorough treatment of the subject, his prayerful attitude, and the practical applications suggested throughout the text.
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews