Theology of Home II: The Spiritual Art of Homemaking

by Carrie Gress, Noelle Mering

In this second installment of  Theology of Home , Carrie Gress and Noelle Mering turn their attention from the home itself to the art of homemaking.
 
Though there has been a resurgence in the domestic arts and a desire to live a simpler lifestyle, the role of a homemaker is still unpopular. Viewed as an unfulfilling and even oppressive way of life, many women feel a sense of shame or futility in managing the world of their home.
 
Theology of The Spiritual Art of Homemaking  turns this misguided notion on its head, shining new light on the role of a homemaker as it relates the deepest truths of the Faith with an honest and fearless understanding of the modern world. Rather than looking to the 1950s for inspiration, Gress and Mering forge a new path by looking at the gifts women can offer those they love.
 
Filled with beautiful photography and interviews with several inspiring women,  The Spiritual Art of Homemaking  
   
Whether single, married, or a working or stay-at-home mother, discover how to bring beauty, order, and vibrancy to the people and place you love Home.
 

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

236 pages, Hardcover

Published October 19, 2020

About the author

Carrie Gress is a Fellow at the Washington, D.C.-based think-tank, Ethics and Public Policy Center and a Scholar at the Institute for Human Ecology at Catholic University of America.

Carrie Gress has a doctorate in philosophy from the Catholic University of America and was the Rome bureau chief of Zenit's English edition. She is the co-author with George Weigel of City of Saints: A Pilgrimage to John Paul II s Krakow and the author of Nudging Conversions, published by Beacon Publishing in 2015.

A mother of four, she and her family live in Virginia.

Reviews

[Bethany Stewart · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book was a suggestion of what I may like on my library page. Nowhere in the description did the library say it was a catholic book. It is very much a catholic book written for catholics. I knew that as soon as I saw the publisher. I decided to read it even though I am not catholic. I expected it to be very Marian devotion heavy. It was not. Obliviously there were theology things I did not agree with but overall, it was a good reminder of the importance of mothers. There were lots of quotes from saints and not a lot of scripture. The book itself is beautiful. The pictures are lovely.

The biggest reason I'm giving it 3 stars is because of the layout. I'm not sure what the publisher was thinking. You will be reading a chapter, then it will start a new story about a person. Then jump back to where you were in the chapter. It was very confusing and not well planned out. The personal stories were my favorite but just thrown in in strange places. The other problem I had was the title. It says homemaking when the book is really about mothering. I don't see those things as interchangeable. Not all homemakers are mothers.

If you're looking for a to do list of how to be a better homemaker this is not the book for you. If you would like some encouragement that being a mother is your highest priority, this would be a good read.

[Katie Marquette · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a beautiful book. While the first Theology of Home collection focused on the Home, this edition fouses on the Homemaker. I almost found it deeper and more intimate, with the detailed, raw portraits of women throughout the book and the emphasis placed on the spritual realities of homemaking and motherhood (both spiritual and physical). Filled with stunning photographs, lively anecdotes, theological truths, and cultural observations, this book is as thought provoking as it is visually satisfying. Well done!

[Kelly Guilbeau · Rating 5 out of 5]

Absolutely beautiful. Thought-provoking and deeply catholic on the topics of home, motherhood, and beauty.

[Brynna King · Rating 5 out of 5]

Man. This book was a breath of fresh air in my life. It’s taken me a bit to write a review because of how much I loved experiencing this book and didn’t know whether I enjoyed it so much because of the season I’m in, or because it’s actually a really good book (I’m choosing to believe it’s both). While I am not Catholic (and this book definitely is), I enjoyed learning more about Catholicism through the writing and images, and while I didn’t agree with everything theologically, I also felt like there was room for that. Mostly I felt validated that my decision to stay home and care for my home and children is worthwhile, and that just because I can’t see the immediate fruit of this choice, it doesn’t mean that there isn’t any.
For any woman (whether working at home or not), who is looking to understand more about homemaking in a spiritual sense, whether that is with children and family you have, or people that are in your sphere of care, I would highly recommend this book.

“This book is an invitation to reconnect the dots between home and home making, to help us hardwire the concepts of homemaking as the deeply purposeful art of sheltering and nurturing the souls of others, offering them a place to grow into the people God intends them to be.” (P. 14)

[Tanya · Rating 5 out of 5]

A new favorite! The first book is a great addition any Christian woman’s personal library, but this book is a must have! This will be one of those books you just don’t read once and pass along, you will want to read this one over and over again.

[Kayla · Rating 2 out of 5]

2.5/5
Beautiful book but the Catholicism was too much. Little to no scripture references. Rather, the authors quoted various Popes and Saints and popular quotations. Hardly any mention of, if at all, Jesus. Tons of Mary references that aren't Biblical and Marian doctrine which I heavily disagree with. This also wasn't about the home per se or homemaking. It was about mothering and commentary about family, marriage, etc. which was fine, but didn't really learn anything new. Some of it was encouraging but I expected more I guess. I agree with others that the format and editing was strange. A passage would be cut off and the next page would be pictures or a new story so then you'd have to flip back to remember what the passage was. The format was clunky and the black and white photographs and story interrupted the flow.

[Chloe Sinnamon · Rating 5 out of 5]

A delight, and very nearly just as good as the first.

[Katie Groom · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love these books.

[Rachel · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved every beautiful page of this book!

[Leah Yenor · Rating 5 out of 5]

Home is more than just a place full of people and collections of items. Its a concept and an idea, with its own atmosphere and culture that deeply affects the beliefs about self and God of the members within.

I loved this book! Just like the first one, the pictures are beautiful and the writing thought provoking. It inspires the home maker to strive for higher more spiritual goals in facilitating a home environment and culture. These two books truly helped me realize the calling of homemaker. It does not offer practical advice so much as it shows different elements of what makes up a home and how it affects the people within, as well as provides stories of real women in a variety of circumstances and how they built up their own home culture. I definitely come away with a desire to purposefully cultivate my own homes culture and spiritual aura. I can now speak to what it means to have a theology of “home” and to be a spiritual homemaker.

[Taylor Monzalvo · Rating 3 out of 5]

Gorgeous pictures and some beautiful, encouraging words about homemaking, but also this was too Catholic for a non-catholic like me.
There were several Marian references that are completely opposed to the Bible (e.g. thanking our “Blessed Mother” for the gift of coffee, advice to “turn to our Blessed Mother when you feel overwhelmed; she will strengthen and guide you”).

I loved how the authors clearly and consistently convey the sacredness and importance of tending to your home, serving others, and mothering (I also appreciated their inclusion of saints/nuns in spiritual mothering as a calling of all women and not just those who are married with children).

[Mary Kate Zander · Rating 5 out of 5]

Theology of Home I was both a joy and a balm to read, and Theology of Home II is a meticulous continuation of that sentiment. Carrie and Noelle manage to show both the joys and sorrows of womanhood in a way that is expressly nonpolitical and true to the very core. As a former career professional in the nonprofit space turned SAHM, I find solace and inspiration in reading their stories and the stories of the women they interview. They are the wives/moms/creatives/intellectuals I aspire to be. I may have loved this second installment of TOH even more than the first. Looking forward to diving into 3 and 4!

[Maxine · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is beautiful. The binding, pictures, cover, fonts- everything works together to make this book a work of art. The focus is in the homemaker. To bear good fruit we must have good soil. I thought this book was much better than the first.

[Lauren Lloyd · Rating 4 out of 5]

I LOVED so much about this book. I love the values and the spiritual importance and centeredness of home it champions. I JUST WISH the book had been written after a thorough and receptive reading of The Dissident Daughter. And maybe Pagan Meditations by Ginette Paris.

[Caitlin · Rating 3 out of 5]

The pictures are just captivating and beautiful and the book is extremely well written. But I wouldn’t call this a “theology”, instead a “philosophy” is a better term. It wasn’t what I expected or hoped for at all, using hardly any scripture to back up their points. Not only that, this book is written by Catholics and is very much catholic, which is not written anywhere in the description.

I wouldn’t recommend it but I did appreciate their high view of women and their encouragement to mothers and their work in the home. I have a lot to think about, but sadly, also a lot to sift through.

[Shelby Poinikiewski · Rating 2 out of 5]

Pretty pictures. Not really what I was hoping for. It should be called "Theology of women" or "women's role in homemaking" or something. It talks more about women, pregnancy, mothering, than homemaking. Not super inclusive of all the other Catholics who aren't moms but are still interested in making a house a home and incorporating our faith and spirituality. Meh.

[Anna Rose · Rating 4 out of 5]

I have loved this series so much. It’s like flipping through a glossy beautiful thick magazine, but make it wise big sister advice and spiritual food. And the photos just make you stop and soak in the light. Gahhhh !!! So good

[Ashley McClellan · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was beautifully written. It spoke so deeply to my heart. This book allowed me to see my home in a new way, to see it as a form of ministry. The tradition, design, and theology in this book were wonderful. The theology of who & what the homemaker does for their family was so inspiring as a stay at home mom. I put the teachings of this book into practice each and every day. I am so thankful for this recommendation from a friend. (Also, it makes VERY beautiful coffee table book!!)

[Kerianne Noel · Rating 5 out of 5]

Theology of the Home II is not merely beautiful to hold and glance through - it is full of the kind of truth, goodness and beauty that inspires one with the conviction that what happens in the home and what women have to offer the world ripples into eternity. It is one I can see myself returning to occasionally for a quick dose of inspiration. I can‘t speak to how it would appeal to Christians outside Catholic circles (I suspect it would depend on how you already feel about the church) but there are positive take aways that apply well beyond Catholic circles. I love the anecdotes of Saints and modern Catholic women which, while interrupting the flow of each chapter‘s main thread, spoke to the diversity within the church herself: the women and photographs of the domestic spaces they occupy reflect the fact that the Catholic faith is one that is practiced all over the world. I also appreciated that homemaking and domesticity were not exclusively discussed in terms of stay at home motherhood and that the experiences of working and single women were also given consideration. I went back and forth between a four and five star rating, but settled on five as I think the creators of this book did what they set out to do really well. This rating therefore reflects my opinion of this book not in comparison to the great spiritual writers but more in comparison to other coffee table type books.

[Robin Carroll · Rating 1 out of 5]

This book claims to be a book about the spiritual art of homemaking. This book is actually a coffee table book with reasonably pleasing photographs with long form essays seemingly taken from old blog posts about culture war topics such as staying at home instead of working. Move along to better fare if you have an actual interest in the spiritual art of homemaking.

[K · Rating 5 out of 5]

A great book to have out to look through. Beautiful pictures and interesting spiritual thoughts on being a homemaker and not just the creation of a beautiful home.

[Heather · Rating 2 out of 5]

The production values of this book are high quality. Everything about it feels and looks beautiful. The idea is lovely, too, but it was not quite the best fit for me as a reader.

I felt like the ideas embodied here were oddly stale. The deep, theological aspects of homemaking are something that I've pondered upon myself, but more than that, the tidbits herein all sounded like things I'd already encountered somewhere else.

They really are little tidbits, too. The authors make some attempt to unite the contents into a whole, but it is a loose confederacy of ideas at best. It reads like lots of nice little vignettes from so many blog posts. Which is, I suppose, what it may really be.

Besides the overall bits-and-pieces feel, there are a lot of actual "interrupters" that pop up like slick advertisements in an old woman's magazine, trying to wrest your attention from the main articles which they interrupt.

I know that as a Protestant reader, I am by definition not the target audience. However, I have to say that I've found many friendly Catholic resources whose Romishness I can shrug off or interpret for my own context. Here, though, the Marian focus and veneration of saints is really off-putting for those outside the Roman church.

And maybe it really is for a small subset of homemakers, anyway? Although the text does not state so, the photographs are 100% of sun-drenched, ultra-modern, California-looking homes inhabited by hipster dads and barefoot women in flowing natural fabrics. This isn't me. This isn't who I want to be, either, really. It all looks nice . . . and very, very carefully staged and as though it will probably feel dated at some point. Thus the beautiful photography actually became off-putting as I worked through the book.

I did read it all, even though I was hurrying just to finish by the end, and it was not without some good thoughts, but even as I closed the back cover, I realized that I was hard pressed to remember specific details to carry with me.

I hope this book will find its target audience, because I do believe it could offer encouragement to weary or worried homemakers, but it isn't the book that could do that for me.

[Miranda Spear · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.8

This was a wonderful read! The second installment of the Theology of Home series did not disappoint. Many of the reviews mentioned they were looking for more practical or physical discussions of homemaking and I will admit, if that is what you are looking for, this book isn't it. However, the material inside is honestly worth so much more.

The second installment of the series discusses how central women are, how we fit into the beautiful plan God has designed for motherhood and how we can use our gifts to create not just a house, but a home. A home isn't just a place to drop our things and lay our heads down at night, but a place where we foster relationships, create safe-spaces for our family and lead out virtues by example. The inserts of various women's stories were inspiring. The quotes were wonderfully sprinkled about. The pictures were wonderful. This was a book that I think could be a wonderful book to discuss among other women and go even deeper beyond the topics discussed.

The only reason this was not a 5-star book for me was just how the book was laid out. All of the material was amazing, but the women's excerpts were often randomly put in-between already rich paragraphs. The strange interruptions interrupted the reading, or I had to make sure I went back to see the excerpts. Otherwise, this is a great book!

[Kylea · Rating 3 out of 5]

Let me start by saying, this book is very beautiful. Both the photographs and the prose. It had a great many insightful thoughts to share, and I truly appreciated the encouragement and ideas strewn throughout.

That being said, I am not Catholic. This book came recommended to me by someone who isn’t catholic but found a lot of genuine knowledge of faith in the home to be shared. And I agree to a point. I found a lot of good tidbits and stories and points that were very well written and I agree with. I even learned some new things. However, I would not pass this book along to someone new or immature in their Christian faith. There were so many references to Mary as a figurehead whom is prayed to, worshipped, revered, and called Queen. This is grossly wrong. If you have read the Bible, you will know only God is to own that position of being worshipped. Mary was only ever human and a sinner. I could have overlooked a couple inferences of Mary worship/prayer, but it was scattered many times throughout. Obviously, the authors are Catholic and I knew this, but going into it, I was told the focus was not on Catholicism. I should’ve known better.

So 3 stars. Because I did learn some things, but it was shadowed by the heavy Catholic influence of worshipping and praying to Mary.

“In the spiritual physics of service, the more deeply we seek to serve Him, the more fruitful will be our service to others.”

[Stef · Rating 4 out of 5]

A beautiful book! Would make a wonderful gift for a single woman still discerning her vocation, or a young mom overwhelmed by life's demands. As an older woman I can't say that I learned a lot, but it's always good to see things from other women's perspectives. It helps to clarify one's vision, reaffirm choices made, and tweak where tweaking is needed.

The only complaint I have about the book is the fact that some narratives were "interrupted" in the middle by pictures and a woman's profile or an essay. I found that a bit distracting. Perhaps if there's a second edition the editor could consider putting the pictures/essays/profiles at the end/beginning of sections/chapters instead of in the middle.

[Librarian Anna · Rating 4 out of 5]

A beautiful, thought provoking book that really captures the feminine experience.

If you're picking this book up with the idea that it's going to be a "how to" guide on homemaking then you will be sorely disappointed. This book goes far deeper than how to properly fold a fitted sheet and how to set a table.

No, this book gets to the heart behind what it truly means to be a woman and a homemaker. Pulling stories and photos from women of all different walks of life alongside their own stories, Carrie Gress & Noelle Mering do a spectacular job of reconciling the thankless load of women with the eternal value of their work.

Highly recommend!
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️☆

[Katie · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book gave me just the shot in the arm I needed for a perspective shift at this particular season in my life. The Theology of Home series thus far (I & II) have really offered encouragement to me as a homemaker without romanticizing it into something it’s not. The authors seem to acknowledge the hidden, HARD and often mundane reality of the homemaker while simultaneously encouraging the homemaker to continue striving for excellence in the little things because it’s a long-game with great significance for society. The photography is gorgeous and the vignettes throughout the book are inspiring, too.

[Laila · Rating 1 out of 5]

Really was not it. I think I would have given it 3 stars prior to the last 25% of the book. It lost 2 stars in last 25% of the book because it just really did not redeem itself and I found myself wishing it was over already.

I just didn’t get anything out of it. I agreed with most everything she said (except some small snippets that made it sound like the woman’s ideal place is at home). I just thought it was super boring and didn’t say anything super compelling or insightful.

I do think I’ll read the first one: Theology of The Home because that synopsis was more of what I was looking for anyway when I found this one.

[Crystal · Rating 3 out of 5]

The photos were nice but there was less "meat" to the book because of them I think. I felt the topics could have gone a bit deeper. Each topic only really had a few pages given all the photos and multiple insert stories. The separate stories were very jarring and distracting to my reading of the chapter. I did not care for the layout of this book at all. That being said it is worth the read but see if you can borrow a copy. As a women it was uplifting to read but I didn't take away any concrete steps to make any changes in my homemaking.

[Katie Evans · Rating 4 out of 5]

At the heart of every family is a mother. It’s sometimes easy to think that being a homemaker doesn’t matter much, but the homemaker truly sets the mood for the entire family. I remember being younger and appreciating when my mom cleaned the house and lit a candle in the kitchen. It would instantly make feel cozy and content. It’s so important for a mother and homemaker to make their family feel loved. Folding laundry, vacuuming, and cooking dinner can often feel like unimportant work, but when you think of these everyday chores as a way to show your family how much you love them, it really changes how you feel while completing them.