Be Transformed: The Healing Power of the Sacraments

by Bob Schuchts

Winner of a 2018 Catholic Press Association Award: Sacraments. (First Place).


How can Christians grow spiritually in the midst of our sinfulness? How can we transform our lives in a way that allows us to share in the resurrection of Jesus? God has already given us the perfect solution—the sacraments. Whether it is the wound of past hurts, the strain in our relationships, or the stress of daily life, we all need to be comforted and made whole by Christ. In this follow-up to his bestselling Be Healed , Bob Schuchts explains how the sacraments can fuel your emotional and spiritual healing and bring you closer to God. Based on more than thirty-five years of experience as a therapist and decades spent in parish ministry, Schuchts demonstrates how each of the seven sacraments can be a life-changing encounter with Christ, communicated through the power of the Holy Spirit. He pairs each healing sacrament with one of the seven deadly wounds that emanated from original sin in the Garden of Eden. We perpetuate and deepen those wounds each time we sin, but the sacraments are God’s remedy for sin. They give us a way to restore us to wholeness in Christ. In Be Transformed , You’ll discover how each sacrament can help you heal from wounds that can impede your relationships and sense of self-worth. With Schuchts’s help, you’ll learn how: Be Transformed offers all of the tools you need for a fresh understanding of the sacraments, including reflection questions, scripture meditations, prayers, and inspiring stories. You’ll come away hungry for the sacraments in a way you never knew possible.

Genres: Catholic, Faith, Spirituality, Religion, Christian, Nonfiction

192 pages, Paperback

Published March 3, 2017

About the author

Dr. Bob Schuchts, Ph.D. is the founder of the John Paul II Healing Center and the author of the best-selling book, Be Healed: Encountering the Powerful Love of Jesus in Your Life, and other numerous titles. He has also contributed to a variety of other publications and has published resources available through the Center.

Bob spent more than 30 years as a therapist, while also teaching graduate and undergraduate courses in marriage and family relationships, human development, applied psychology, and marriage and family therapy. He held adjunct professor positions at Florida State University; Tallahassee Community College and the Center for Biblical Studies in Tallahassee, Florida. He has also taught courses at the Theology of the Body Institute and the Augustine Institute.

Reviews

[Payton Pustejovsky · Rating 5 out of 5]

A book that filled me with hope!! This book touches on how the 7 sacraments of the church heal the 7 deadly wounds. I loved how it’s filled with real life stories and examples (that were at times difficult to read, yet powerful) and how each chapter leads the reader to reflect on their own life, to reflect on scripture, and to pray! Can definitely see myself reading this book again in years to come.

Having read Bob Schuchts’ book Be Healed before this, I had high expectations for this one & they were exceeded! So thankful to have picked up this book during Lent & for the Abiding Together podcast for suggesting it and walking through it as a book study.

[Emily Najvar · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is absolutely amazing. It’s completely changed the way I view the sacraments. Dr. Bob Schuchts beautifully reveals how the 7 Sacraments heals the wounds caused by the 7 deadly sins, and raises us and our hearts to new life and communion with God. All Jesus wants is to be intimate with us and how beautifully the 7 sacraments reveal that! A must read!

[Amanda · Rating 3 out of 5]

I wanted to like this book a lot more than I did. I believe the Sacraments are a wonderful gift in the church. They allow us to see God's work in our lives in a rather tangible way. The writing in the book, however, was sometimes confusing and sometimes frustrating. The author began with an introduction about how we all, to varying degrees, hide our true identity as children of God behind masks. That was an interesting concept. But he tried to illustrate it with a personal story of living a very sinful life while striving for moral perfectionism. This made no sense.

Most of the chapters on specific Sacraments followed this pattern. He would introduce a wound that the Sacrament addressed, with some occasionally beautiful insights. But then he'd go off a deep dive on a specific story that didn't always have a clear connection to that concept and didn't resonate with me at all.

[Kalee Probasco · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very well written! Praise God for this, but I feel like this book wasn’t meant for me in this season of life. I’m just in a beautiful healthy place with Christ. I would’ve loved this when I was on mission or converting. Definitely worth a read!

[Ann · Rating 5 out of 5]

This one’s really gonna help people heal from their wounds and foster healthy relationships. The Sacraments ARE life changing.
I love the Catholic Church.

[Isabelle · Rating 3 out of 5]

Rating 3.5/5
Breaks up the seven sacraments by what wounds or lies they heal/address. Good amount of scripture references and a good reference for the future.

[Rachel Wong · Rating 5 out of 5]

(5⭐️) After avidly listening to Dr Bob Schuchts speak on his podcast Restore the Glory, I have been patiently waiting for his books to come in from the library! Providentially this was the first one to arrive.

This book provided a wonderful and practical look at the importance of the sacraments and the sacramental life, a tangible means of healing that God wants to use in each of our lives. Even though there are some sacraments that I have not/will never experience (i.e. Holy Orders), Dr. Schuchts masterfully breaks open the heart of each sacrament, how the fall and original sin disorders our lives in relation to the order that was meant for us, and how each sacrament is meant to counter and heal those specific disorders and wounds.

Dr. Schuchts weaves in catechesis, personal experience and pastoral examples and presents on each sacrament with mastery and accessibility. I took my time with this book and recommend working through the questions and prayer prompts that he provides with the chapters - it made a huge difference and helped me to digest the material and further bring it to Jesus.

I look forward to reading Be Healed and Be Restored. Thank you Dr. Bob Schuchts for giving the church such a gem!

[Kelsey · Rating 3 out of 5]

I am 50/50 on this one. It echoed a lot of what Schuchts wrote in Be Healed, which was nice as a review and refresher, but that also made it feel repetitive. This was a good pick for our book club and discussions, but I found it hard to get through at times. Some chapters were relevant to me and great to read, and others weren't as good. That's how some of these types of books go sometimes. I could probably get different takeaways at different times in my life if I were to re-read later. My favorite part was the guided scripture reflections and the prayers at the end of the chapters. 5/10

[Tara McMullen · Rating 5 out of 5]

Rich and approachable

This is a beautiful, prayerful and approachable look at the sacraments. The writing was so rich that I can't wait to read it again and glean more from this powerful work.

[Danielle Hines · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of the best spiritual books I’ve ever read! It was a deep dive into the 7 sacraments and how beautiful and healing they are. I highly recommend!

[Lindsay Wilcox · Rating 3 out of 5]

It took me a while to get into this book. After the introduction, it has a chapter discussing the healing and transforming power of each of the sacraments, but I found myself struggling until I discovered the secret: don't stop anywhere in the chapter except the "Take a Moment" sections. The chapters have smaller break points within them, but the writing builds to a crescendo that is set off by discussion/reflection questions. Trust those discussion breaks more than anything else.

The content was much more approachable than the format, however. I generally dislike authors who try to tell me how wounded I am, but Schuchts manages to identify wounds that are so universal anyone can relate to them, for better or for worse. The reflection questions invite readers to connect themselves to the woundedness of our world (even more than what's in our own hearts) and the incredible power of the sacraments to heal those exact injuries. Having read so much about the Theology of the Body, I also appreciated a thorough discussion of matrimony that did not focus on sex.

Because I was in it for the content and not for the healing, I skipped most of the end-of-chapter Scriptural reflections. I'd like to go back to them in the future, though, for some more intense prayer time. This book would be an excellent tool for a retreat, whether in a large group or simply one person reading and praying along.

I received a free copy of this book from Ave Maria Press in exchange for my review.

[Barb Ruess · Rating 2 out of 5]

What I like about this book: it’s very accessible… if you are questioning a sacrament or experiencing one of the emotional wounds he highlights, you can just read and reflect on that issue. I also like the overall premise of actively receiving life thru the sacraments.

What I don’t like: many of the examples feel trite and too convenient. And the overall tone is too preachy for my tastes.

I read this along with a book study from Abiding Together Podcast and that didn’t add much more depth for me either. Overall this one doesn’t resonate with me.

[April Stephens · Rating 5 out of 5]

So far, at the end of November, Be Transformed: The Healing Power of the Sacraments is my favorite book of the year. Reading it as part of a small group, we had many fruitful discussions about how the book challenged us to look at our root wounds, and we could see how God heals us through the Sacraments. I learned a lot about myself and had many chances to practice gratitude as I read these pages. There was very little (if anything) I disagreed with the author about, since it all resonated with me. Thank you, Bob Schuchts, for writing this book.

[Tracie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very well written. I enjoyed going through each section. The meditations and prayers were very helpful. My favorite line is the book was a clear answer to the goal of our spiritual life on page 17, “to be transformed into the image of Christ so that we share in the Devine intimacy that he enjoys with the Father and Holy Spirit”. As a goal oriented person and this being a question I have sought answers to, it made this book all the more special. I will be reading this again!!

[Anne Jones · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great Message for This Time

I’m in a ministry program that deals with healing, inner healing, transformation, intimacy with the Lord and evangelization through the gifts of the Holy Spirit. I read this book for Lent with the Abiding Together podcast, and read “Be Healed” by Bob Schuchts for my class at the same time. The two books are right on point with what I am learning through Encounter Ministries!

[Emily · Rating 5 out of 5]

Y'all it's so good. If you want a better understanding of how the Catholic sacraments affect your daily life, or just a good cry, pick it up! I read it as part of the Lenten Book Study from Abiding Together with my best friends. It has deepened my understanding of God's love for me, and it encouraged me to do some hard things this year. The author roots his writing in scripture, tradition, and anecdotes so there is something to connect to for everyone.

[Liz · Rating 5 out of 5]

Read this for Lent and discussed with friends. It was quite intense (in a good way) and goes through seven core wounds and how each one is healed/remedied by one of the sacraments. This would be a really good book to read in adoration as it’ll stir up a lot to reflect on/pray through. I recommend pairing it with the Abiding Together podcast episodes that discuss it.

[Patricia · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Presence of the Lord

Reading this book I wasn’t sure what to expect besides some knowledge of faith. The healing of some deep wounds uprooted itself were I wasn’t expecting it. It lead me more and more to my childhood past at a specific time. This book is just the beginning of unpacking the first hurts and pain. Thank you

[Betsy Koestler · Rating 3 out of 5]

Lots of good nuggets of wisdom in this book. It sparks great discussion and is best read with a group. I found the good ideas unfortunately diluted with a lot of personal anecdotes. Therefore the book was a little overly-long and dull for the amount of actual content in it. It seemed like it may have needed a bit more editing. More content, less about the author’s experience.

[Mariah · Rating 5 out of 5]

Truly wonderful and transformational. "Came to this book through the Abiding Together podcast Lenten study but it took me much longer than 40 days to complete it because of how much wisdom is packed in this! Truly a book to sit, study, listen and pray with and increased my love of the Catholic Church and its Sacraments

[Omar Fernandez · Rating 5 out of 5]

Al inicio, leer este libro fue como bueno, es la continuación de Se Sanado y pues debe ir de la misma manera, el libro en sí se basa en los sacramentos y su uso en la vida cotidiana para alcanzar una cercanía al encuentro con Jesús, Dios y el Espíritu Santo. Gran libro, recomendado que lean Se Sanado antes.

[Kathryn · Rating 3 out of 5]

Started off strong and then got bogged down by stories and opinions. The Baptism section really missed the mark for me. What could have been beautiful turned out to be, in my opinion, overly devoted to condemning Margaret Spencer.

[Shelly · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great information and insight on the Sacraments and the transformative healing of living in the Sacraments. This was recommended in an RCIA class and I then heard about it on the Abiding in Faith podcast. Good Read!

[Penelope Pugh · Rating 4 out of 5]

The book focuses on the sacraments and how each can be healing for us. Well written and approachable, though deep material. Thoughtful and helpful reflection questions throughout. Read this as a Lenten study, though it could be done any time.

[Fr. Mark · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent! Dr. Bob creates a self-guided retreat by going through the 7 Sacraments as remedies for our identity wounds. Very different from his first book in style, but powerful and insightful.

[Elena Salgado · Rating 5 out of 5]

Beautiful

This is so well.written. I have to go back and read it again.So much goodness to soak up. It is definitely transformative.

[C.J. · Rating 3 out of 5]

Some valuable insights on the reality of healing; some checkpoint-type stories illustrating what that looks like; perhaps a bit too much talking.

[Emma · Rating 5 out of 5]

Powerful and deeply transformative book...I especially recommend this for anyone who forms others in the Catholic faith.

[Kathryn Zeuthen · Rating 5 out of 5]

Beautiful book that has great insight and also exercises to help.

[Marybeth · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fabulous book about the healing power of the sacraments.