The Friendship of Christ: Exploring The Humanity of Jesus Christ

by Robert Hugh Benson

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Genres: Catholic, Religion, Spirituality, Theology, Nonfiction, Christianity, Christian

146 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1912

About the author

Mrsgr. Robert Hugh Benson AFSC KC*SG KGCHS was an English Catholic priest and writer. First an Anglican pastor, he was received into the Catholic Church in 1903 and ordained therein the next year. He was also a prolific writer of fiction, writing the notable dystopian novel Lord of the World, as well as Come Rack! Come Rope!.

His output encompassed historical, horror and science fiction, contemporary fiction, children's stories, plays, apologetics, devotional works and articles. He continued his writing career at the same time as he progressed through the hierarchy to become a Chamberlain to Pope Pius X in 1911, and gain the title of Monsignor before his death a few years later.

Reviews

[Rosamund Hodge · Rating 5 out of 5]

Absolutely amazing. I cried.

[Leslie Moellering · Rating 5 out of 5]

Eye-opening insights into our relationship with Christ as friend. I would very much like to get a print version to read so I can chew a bit more slowly.

[Lisa Royal · Rating 5 out of 5]

A beautiful book. I’ve read it several times over the years and it always moves me.

[Monge Gustavo · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ha sido una sorpresa. Es un libro que rezuma esperanza, humanidad, realismo cristiano de saberse amigos de Cristo.

[Prince Cad Ali Cad · Rating 5 out of 5]

Anyone familiar with Mons. Robert Hugh Benson probably has his myriad of fictional works to thank - from the earliest example of dystopia (Lord of the World) to historical fiction (Come Rack, Come Rope) to his then-contemporary dramas (Initiation), Mons. Benson proved himself an incredibly capable writer, and one much beloved. While each of these books has a profound spirituality to them (Initiation, in my opinion, being the best of his fictional works), in The Friendship of Christ Mons. Benson displays a spiritual maturity unadorned with story - unless you count the great romance of God and man.

It is intimate spiritual reading, and its goal is what every man and woman’s should be in this world - not merely to be followers of Christ, but His friends. Did He not seek such friendship even with those intent on destroying Him, such as when he greets Judas in the garden? How are we, then, to spurn such noble advances by so giving a God and be content with a mere religiosity in place of a relationship? The book will bring a man to tears, so utterly romantic are Mons. Benson’s words on that divine Love which seeks not only service by man but their intimacy with Him.

There are many, many moments when Mons. Benson breaches some wall and reveals a truth long hidden (the matter of Christ in sinners and sufferers and how we serve Him in them, the fact that heresy is always born of men who are friends of Christ and have intimacy with Him, the danger and desirability of spiritual malaise, etc). So profound is the book that, as I read it, I became genuinely alarmed that more people had not referenced or recommended it. Many times I'd heard people saying one should read Lord of the World or one of his other novels, but never the work which so clearly marked the man as a spiritual master and Priest. But it is this work which truly gives ground to all his other creations - it is this prism through which all his stories are seen in their purity. For Mons. Benson truly was a friend of Christ, and God so blest him with many great works to show that friendship.

Should become a staple of anyone's library, and read and read again.

[Graychin · Rating 5 out of 5]

I don’t generally rate or write reviews of devotional or theological books, and in fact I rarely read them outside of Lent, but this is such a good one. When Robert Hugh Benson (1871-1914) was received into the Catholic Church it was a scandal in Britain; he was the son of the Anglican Archbishop of Canterbury. He went on to become a Catholic priest but is best remembered today for his novel The Lord of the World, which some consider the first-ever work of dystopian fiction.

The Friendship of Christ is a short book, published a couple years before Benson’s death. It is not an argument for or against anything, but a collection of Benson’s sermons which he edited for publication as a single volume. It is a deeply and very specifically Catholic book, but I think any Christian might profit from it. The middle section (Part II) I found especially powerful. Though it is not a work of apologetics, if anyone were to ask me, “Why be a Catholic?” I might be tempted to simply hand him a copy of this book and say, “Here’s why.”

[Ann Kerley · Rating 5 out of 5]

A good book with a refreshing and personal approach to the spiritual life. I was especially impressed by his insight into the reality of the average person's changeable responses to holy inspiration and how one justifies the gradual loosening of dedication to achieve the task required. He seems to have an innate understanding of the human psyche.
I have read his work - The Lord of the World - a prophetic work and one of the first dystopian novels. Benson was a most unusual man saw into the future in a way that only a true prophet can, in liaison with the God of history.

[ANDREW R BEAN · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Friendship of Christ

I only discovered Robert Hugh Benson a few weeks ago, and was amazed. His writing is like a cross between Theresa of Avila and C.S. Lewis - two of my favorite authors, certainly in a religious context. His novels based in Elizabethan England are engaging and moving, while The Friendship of Christ reveals an intense personal relationship with Christ, as one understands from Theresa's autobiography and The Way of Perfection. My only criticism is that the Kindle edition I have has some typos, most notably some missing punctuation.

[Drew · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is perhaps my favorite spiritual book. This is essentially a collection of sermons that Monsignor Benson preached in Rome in 1914. Benson shows how Christ comes to us personally through the interior life, and via the exterior in the sacraments of the Church, the priest, and other people. The book finishes with a beautiful account of Our Lord's resurrection on Easter Day. I think this book is the clearest and best of example of his devotion and preaching style. A must-read!

[Felipe C · Rating 4 out of 5]

Es un libro sencillo para introducirse en la amistad con el Señor y el papel de la oración.
Lo recomendaría para introducción de las vías purgativa, unitiva e iluminativa. Las explica de manera sencilla y vuelve a enamorarte de ese camino de la oración. A partir de 16 años, con un deseo de amistad con Cristo, lo recomiendo.

La tercera parte más floja.
La edición de Rialp muy cuidada y buena, como siempre.

[Natali Sánchez · Rating 5 out of 5]

“La amistad de Cristo no se mide por emociones, sino por la entrega silenciosa, por el amor que persevera incluso cuando Él parece callar" este libro llego en el momento en que más necesitaba redescubrir a Cristo, no sólo como divinidad, sino como amigo. Leer al padre Hugh es sencillamente esperanzador.
La amistad, no solo con Cristo, puede vivirse desde la alegría, esperanza, pero también desde el dolor y el miedo, ser amigo es serlo en todo momento, incluso cuando parece que no lo somos.

[Don Mario · Rating 4 out of 5]

Sermons of a little more than a hundred years ago, but still thought (and prayer) provoking. Here and there I found some very powerful intuitions that owned the book a fourth star.

Omelie di poco più di cent'anni fa, ma ancora molto stimolanti per la riflessione e la preghiera. Qua e là ho trovato alcune intuizioni molto potenti, che mi spingono ad innalzare il giudizio alla quarta stella.

[Pablo Galiana]

Describe brevemente las características de las vías purgativa, iluminativa y unitiva; luego aconseja sobre cómo descubrir al Señor en su Santísima Humanidad (en la Eucaristía, en la Iglesia, en el sacerdote, en el pecador, en el enfermo) y termina con unas consideraciones sobre las siete palabras de Cristo en la Cruz. Libro piadoso y de doctrina sólida, adecuado a todo tipo de personas.

[Robert · Rating 5 out of 5]

This a great book and gift that any Catholic and Follower of Jesus Christ.
To see him has a best friend in our lives. And all the ways he comes to us. Has our Divine Lord, but also has our Best Friend.
And the Joy he wants to share with us and how much he wants to walk this life with us, the ups and downs.

[James Dobbins]

An excellent guide to a deeper relationship with Christ

This book takes you in a journey, the most important journey you will ever take, a journey into the heart of Jesus. You will not read this book and remain unchanged.

[readeroftheland · Rating 5 out of 5]

A timeless invitation to walk closely with Christ. Robert Hugh Benson’s The Friendship of Christ is a gentle yet profound reminder that faith is not just a belief but a relationship. Have a Blessed Palm Sunday filled with peace and grace.

[Kate · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is one of the best books on the spiritual life that I have ever read.

[Carlos Bazaldúa · Rating 5 out of 5]

Un libro en el que te va introduciendo en la vida y amistad con Cristo. Conocer la amistad desde la parte humana y como Cristo va enriqueciendo esta amistad y transforma la vida.

[David · Rating 5 out of 5]

An absolute joy to read. A marvel.

[Danish Papist · Rating 5 out of 5]

A profound meditation on Christ and an invaluable accompaniment during the Lenten season.

[Peyton Smith · Rating 5 out of 5]

Epic. Definitely one to come back to over and over again

[Rebecca · Rating 5 out of 5]

should be a classic

[Donna · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow! A deeply spiritual book that I could identify with both in listening and in reading. It shook my soul.

[Derek Barber · Rating 5 out of 5]

A deep and profound book on Catholic Spirituality that takes some work to fully appreciate yet I have found it is very much worth the effort. It is a book that I found myself reading slowly and prayerfully and it in that approach in which I found the greatest benefit.

[ShepherdsDelight · Rating 3 out of 5]

74/100 (= 3.8/6) ≈ 3 Stars
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I made the mistake again of trying to listen to a spiritual book. These kinds are better suited for slow morning meditation. After a certain point I wasn't following properly. The dry reader didn't help the case. I have a few other works of Msgr. Benson's non-fiction lined up for future reading and hope to pay closer attention ("Paradoxes of Catholicism" and "Christ in the Church") -- I blame myself partially for my apathy.

[Jeff Miller · Rating 4 out of 5]

"The Friendship of Christ, which bears an imprimatur, is based on sermons Benson preached in London and Rome in 1910 and 1911. In the first part of this book, he shows how one enters into a personal relationship with Jesus Christ through the purgative and illuminative ways. In the second part, he discusses several modes in which Christ offers us His friendship here and now, such as in the Eucharist, in the Church, in the priest, in the saint, in the sinner, in the average person, and in the sufferer. In Part III, Benson recalls how Jesus Christ proved the depth of His friendship with us by willingly accepting death on the cross for our sake, and how He raises His friends to everlasting life with Him."

I found this book on Librivox and since I was already a fan of Msgr. Benson it was an easy pick. This is a very good collection of homilies pertaining to the incarnation and the life of Christ and how it touches on the spiritual life. Certainly worth reading. The volunteer reader at Librovox does a capable reading of these homilies. Though the sound level could have been punched up a bit.

Free on Librivox: http://librivox.org/the-friendship-of...

ebook versions: http://www.archive.org/details/friend...

[Josh · Rating 4 out of 5]

“The Friendship of Christ” falls into that genre of books that charts the spiritual progress of souls as they progress toward perfect unity with Christ. This also happens to be a genre that I’ve never had much appreciation for. However, of the books in this category (which includes, among others, saints John of the Cross and Teresa of Avila), I’ve found Msgr. Benson’s to be the most engaging and helpful. Much of the text’s dryness – which reflects my disinterest - had me on the verge of giving the book 3 stars, but there were too many of those great Benson passages – those that provide much to reflect on - to demand a 4 star. The man was truly a master of the English language and the book would be worth reading, even if, like me, you’re not particular engaged by the subject, for the beauty of this man’s writing.

[Lele · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very inspirational and deeply intelectual book.

[Peter Millington · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a gentle yet passionate book. A fantastic introduction to spirituality.

[Liz]

Pa