This is a historic week as we join the global Church in celebrating the 100th birthday of Benedictine monk Brother David Steindl-Rast. Known worldwide for his pioneering work on interreligious dialogue and his profound teachings on gratefulness, Brother David has spent a century widening our circles of understanding and compassion.
To honor his lifelong legacy and inspire your own spiritual journey, we are thrilled to feature four incredible new titles now available from Paulist Press. We have the special anniversary volume, In Widening Circles, edited by Klaudia Menzi-Steinberger that celebrates Brother David's centennial birthday with moving tributes from global figures like the Dalai Lama, Jon Kabat-Zinn, and Anselm Grun; Coming to Our Senses by Gunilla Norris, the author of Deep Friendship, Becoming Bread, and Being Home invites readers into an embodied spirituality, teaching us how to use our physical senses to experience the divine presence in everyday life; The Challenge of Mercy by Cardinal Walter Kasper delivers a powerful theological reflection, illustrating why the message of mercy remains the essential, beating heart of the Gospel today; finally, the revised second edition of 101 Questions and Answers on Deacons by Deacon William T. Ditewig updates his essential guide, offering a clear and comprehensive look at the crucial missionary role of permanent deacons in the modern Church.
A Birthday Prayer for Brother David Steindl-Rast
God of all grace, we thank you for the gift of Brother David Steindl-Rast and his one hundred years of life, faith, and devotion. We bless you for his ministry of gratitude, which has taught millions to find joy and wonder in every moment. May his example inspire us to open our hearts, widen our circles, and live each day with grateful hearts. Amen.
In Widening Circles
Honoring the 100th Birthday of David Steindl-Rast
Edited by Klaudia Menzi-Steinberger
In this book, diverse voices of companions and fellow travelers inspired by his work compose a vivid portrait of Brother David. In stories, reflections, and testimonies of love and gratitude, friends such as His Holiness the Dalai Lama, Anselm Grun, Fritjof Capra, Joan Halifax, Rupert Sheldrake, David Whyte, Ken Wilber, and many others bring him vividly to life.
A unique interview, along with personal photographs and evocative images of the places that shaped his life's journey, deepen this portrait. Brother David appears as a Benedictine monk of silence, an advocate for the marginalized and for ecological responsibility, a scholar and author, the founder of Grateful.org, and an untiring voice for interreligious understanding. This book invites readers to walk a path of gratitude, compassion, and kinship.
David Steindl-Rast is among the most widely known mystics of our time. He was born in Vienna in 1926 and studied at the Academy of Fine Arts and the University of Vienna. After earning his doctorate in psychology and anthropology, he moved to the United States, where he entered the Benedictine monastery of Mount Saviour in New York State in 1953. He was, among other things, a cofounder of the Center for Spiritual Studies and has been engaged in interreligious dialogue as a bridge-builder between religions since 1966. Today, he continues to write from his monastic home in Austria, serving as a living embodiment of the grateful presence he has spent a lifetime teaching.
Klaudia Menzi-Steinberger has devoted herself to Brother David's life's work since 2010. As the founder and editor of the online library Bibliothek David Steindl-Rast OSB, she curates his spiritual legacy to make it freely accessible worldwide as a source of inspiration for present and future generations. She also prepares the source texts for the Brother David AI chatbot developed by the University of Salzburg.
"We have bodies that are wise. We have senses that connect us to our surroundings and to each other. We also have hearts that can intuit and guide us. Inner nudges from our hearts are important. To be fully alive we need to pay attention to them. It is in coming to our senses that we combine all the ways we can know into a lived soulfulness." —from the Introduction
"Timeless wisdom, poetic and true, to return to again and again as you journey on the path. Coming to Our Senses is a beautiful invitation to enter the flow of our lives and discover the boundless mystery of who we really are." —Tara Brach, author of Radical Acceptance
Gunilla Norris, has been a psychotherapist in private practice for more than fifty years and has felt privileged to accompany many people on their journeys to growth and healing. Her special love has been teaching meditation and leading contemplative workshops. She has published numerous books on spirituality, including Being Home and Becoming Bread.
In a world marked by division, indifference, and suffering, mercy can seem like a fragile or even outdated ideal. Yet in this profound and timely work, Cardinal Walter Kasper argues that mercy is not only relevant—it is essential. Indeed, it is the very heart of the Gospel and the key to understanding Christian life today.
Building on his landmark study Mercy: The Essence of the Gospel and the Key to Christian Life—a work that Pope Francis praised, saying, "This book has done me so much good"—Kasper here offers a clear, accessible presentation of his central insight: that mercy is the defining attribute of God and the foundation of authentic human existence.
Drawing deeply from Scripture, theology, and the lived experience of the Church, The Challenge of Mercy traces the biblical vision of a God who hears the cry of his people and, in Jesus Christ, reveals mercy as the fullness of divine love. Mercy is not opposed to justice, Kasper shows, but fulfills it.
At once intellectually rigorous and pastorally compelling, this book offers a vision of Christianity that is both faithful to tradition and responsive to the needs of our time. It is an invitation to encounter the God who is rich in mercy—and to become, in turn, agents of that mercy in a wounded world.
Walter Kasper is a German cardinal of the Roman Catholic Church. He is president emeritus of the Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity. He is the author of Accepting the Mystery: Scriptural Reflections for Advent and Christmas and A Path into Life: Reflections for Lent and Easter.
"We have used this work for years in helping in the understanding of the role of the deacon in the Church. This revision shows the ever-evolving work of deacons in their role as missionary disciples. This volume will be a valuable tool in responding to the many questions people have, both those discerning the diaconal vocation and those served by the ordained deacon." —Deacon Dennis Dorner, chancellor and director of permanent diaconate, Archdiocese of Atlanta
"In this second edition, Deacon Bill continues with his easy-to-follow process and his laymen's terms to help anyone better understand the ministry of the diaconate. We give this book to those who attend deacon information nights in our diocese; it has been well received and answers many questions people actually forget to ask. 101 Questions & Answers on Deacons is an invaluable tool for deacon directors and directors of formation." —Deacon Jim Grevenites, Diocese of St. Petersburg
"Almost sixty years ago, Pope Saint Paul VI promulgated his affirmative response to the request of the Second Vatican Council to restore a renewed diaconate. Yet, even now, many of the faithful, priests as well as laity, and even deacons, have questions about the diaconate. All of this makes Deacon Ditewig's updated edition of 101 Questions & Answers on Deacons more valuable than ever. This book remains a great resource for diaconal inquiry, formation, life, and ministry, as well as for anyone wanting to learn about the diaconate." —Deacon Scott S. Dodge, DMin, director, Office of the Diaconate, Diocese of Salt Lake City
William T. Ditewig is a deacon of the Archdiocese of Washington, DC. Ordained a deacon in 1990, Deacon Ditewig has since served in parish, diocesan, national, and international ministry, also researching and writing extensively on the diaconate. He is a retired Navy Commander.
