Author: SusannahDB

Seamless Faith: Simple Practices for Daily Family Life Traci Smith

Emotional Response-5

Scholarly Response-4

What a wonderful gift this book is. Churches should gift it to all families in their congregations. No matter what your family looks like this book has something for you. You’ll find ways to see the sacred in your daily life no matter where you are on life’s journey!

Here’s what you find in this book-Part 1 is traditions. You’ll find ways to mark the holy days and the regular days of life. Part 2 is ceremonies. “For the purposes of this book, a ceremony differs from a tradition or spiritual practice in that a ceremony is an isolated event and does not happen with regularity, as a tradition or spiritual practice does” (15). Part 3 is spiritual practices. You will find ways to pray, learn about ancient and more modern spiritual practices. These three parts of the book will give you 50 ways to be more attentive to God at work in your life and in the lives of those you love. Each practice gives you an introduction, appropriate age, time required, materials to have ready, an explanation for how to do the practice with notes and variations.

This book is perfect for anyone who is busy (everyone) because it is not a story. You don’t need to read through page by page. You can search for the next upcoming holy day (Easter, page 34). You can look for a different way to pray (Candle Prayer, page 78). You can read two practices I do regularly (New Year’s Eve, page 32 or Almsgiving, page 93). There is no wrong way to read this book.

I recommend this book for all families (whatever your family looks like-seriously an Aunt can use this with her nieces and nephew, a Grandpa could use this book with his grandchildren, a parent and children, spouses could read it together, you can read this book by yourself too). I recommend each church have at least one copy of this book for their staff and education ministry team. It is an amazing resource for an intergenerational workshop. I recommend that everyone read this book and (if it is within your budget) buy a copy to share with someone who needs it. And after you’ve read it, I’d love to know your favorite practices.

To find out more about Traci Smith, check out her website.

Call the Midwife Jennifer Worth

At the suggestion of many friends, I have watched and fallen in love with the BBC series, Call the Midwife. I highly recommend watching it. You can enjoy it on Netflix or on PBS. Because I love to read, I wanted to read the books too. On a recent road trip, I listened to the first book on CD. It is wonderful.

This is the memoir of Jenny Lee. She is a midwife who served in the East End of London in the late 1950s. She enters the homes and lives of families and gives us a glimpse into their world. She is a gifted storyteller who transports us back to a previous time. We meet large families, prostitutes, young mothers, the other midwives and the nuns who live and work together, and the children of the East End.

I love that the nuns are presented as faithful followers of Jesus who live out their faith without forcing it on others. They gather for prayer regularly. The midwives who live with them are welcome to join them for prayer but are not required to worship with them. One difference between the show and book is that this book ends with Jenny feeling inspired by Sister Monica Joan’s words, “Go with God.” As the book ends, Jenny is beginning to read the Bible.

I recommend both the book and the series to history lovers, women, mothers, and anyone who wants an engaging read or good television. This story is not typical of the theological works that I review and yet, I loved seeing faith in action in the lives of the nuns. I hope you’ll give Call the Midwife a try.