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Barb Szyszkiewicz reviews new books about conquering negativity by Gary Zimak and Sr. Mary Lea Hill, FSP.

In the month when we celebrate All Saints, it's good to look to their example -- and their advice on living holy lives. New books by Gary Zimak and Sr. Mary Lea Hill, FSP, aim to help readers conquer our tendency toward negativity, as shown in anger, stress, and complaining.

Let Go of Anger and Stress

Let Go of Anger & Stress! by Gary Zimak employs St. Paul's wisdom about the Holy Spirit as an encouragement to transform our mindset. Subtitled "Be Transformed by the Fruits of the Spirit," this book explores each of the Fruits of the Holy Spirit (found in Galatians 5:22-23) and demonstrates how living out the Fruits of the Spirit in mind can change our lives.

Anger and stress are the opposite of the Fruits of the Spirit (love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control), and Gary discusses how yielding control of our lives to the Holy Spirit will give us the grace to resist the temptation to give in to stress and anger. It's significant that the call to action in the book's title is "let go" and not "conquer" or "get rid of" -- that shows that we are holding anger and stress much too close, and are all too ready to grab them out of our emotional toolkit. Gary's book explains the ways St. Paul challenges us, instead, to reach for positive virtues: the Fruits of the Holy Spirit.

Each chapter of Let Go of Anger & Stress! is divided into short sections, so if you don't have a lot of time to read all at once, that won't be an obstacle. The chapters end with a list of the most important points, several reflection questions (keep your journal handy!), and a closing prayer.

If you've listened to Gary speak at a parish mission, podcast, or radio appearance, Gary's writing style will be immediately familiar to you. He writes like he talks: simply and honestly, with relatable examples from his own life. His books aren't filled with buzzwords, jargon, or complicated theology; instead, you will find sincere words from someone who clearly loves God and wants to follow His will.  

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Sr. Mary Lea Hill, FSP, goes by @CrabbyMystic on social media, so it's not a reach that she'd write Complaints of the Saints: Stumbling Upon Holiness with a Crabby Mystic. Anyone who knows me knows of my tendency to complain (even if I turn it into a joke, I'm still often complaining), so it's a comfort to me that saints (AKA people much holier than I am) complained too.

But just because St. Paul, St. Teresa of Ávila, St. Thérèse of LIsieux, St. Damien of Molokai, and St. Faustina, among many others, had their moments of complaining, Sr. Mary Lea reminds readers that this is not an excuse for us to indulge that tendency. 

We aren't getting off scot-free. If we learn from those who were holy before us, then we need to offer this same example to those whose paths we cross, as well as to those who will follow us. (127)

With each of the 66 chapters running just over two pages, Complaints of the Saints is an excellent spiritual read for people who don't think they have time for spiritual reading. The last section of the book emphasizes our call to do better: to follow the holy example of the saints who, we have seen throughout the book, have lived with difficulties and challenges and learned to handle those with grace. Sr. Mary Lea offers concrete ideas at the end of each chapter that will help us channel our negativity in a better direction. Some of these include:

  • Pray the news in order to bring all the events of our history to God's throne (138)
  • Read the life of a saint (80)
  • Pray for couples we know who are experiencing difficulties in their relationships (101)
  • Recall a disappointment that brought you closer to Christ (82)
  • Reflect on a time you blamed another for something that turned out badly (120)
  • Note Gospel incidents that might have sparked both human and holy reactions from those involved (37)

The last part of the book goes through the famous passage from 1 Corinthians 13:1-13, the Characteristics of Charity, expanding upon St. Paul's list with examples from the life and writing of saints and saints-to-be. It's different from the rest of the book, but is an excellent summary of the ideas Sr. Mary Lea discusses in a lighter form in the earlier chapters.

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New books by Gary Zimak and Sr. Mary Lea Hill help Catholics conquer negativity. #catholicmom

These two books were released several months into a pandemic, and the challenges we have faced this year often seem like they'd lead even the most saintly person to complain and to give in to stress and anger. Gary Zimak and Sr. Mary Lea Hill's understanding approaches and sound advice lead us to follow God more closely, even in difficult circumstances.

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Copyright 2020 Barb Szyszkiewicz
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