POVERTY
Author: Raniero Cantalamessa, OFM Cap
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In four chapters – corresponding to the four meditations conducted by the author for the Papal Household in Advent 1994 – Father Cantalamessa deals with each of four different aspects of poverty in the light of the Gospel message of Christ: (1) Negative material poverty, an unfortunate social condition endured by far too many which is dehumanizing and must be combated; (2) Positive material poverty, an evangelical ideal which liberates people from their inordinate attachments to the things of this world; (3) Negative spiritual poverty, sometimes referred to as the poverty of the rich because it is characterized by the absence of spiritual wealth and of truly human values; and (4) Positive spiritual poverty, otherwise known as the wealth of the poor, the finest blossom on the tree of biblical poverty. Following the example of St. Francis of Assisi who wrote: “I warn all the brothers and exhort them not to despise or judge those whom they see wearing soft and fine clothing, and enjoying luxuries in food and drink; each one should rather judge and despise himself,” the author shows how wealth, properly appreciated and used in the service of the poor, can actually be a source of blessing and peace.
About the Author: Raniero Cantalamessa is a Franciscan Capuchin Priest. Born in Ascoli Piceno, Italy, in 1934, he was ordained priest in 1958. Former Professor of History of Ancient Christianity and Director of the Department of Religious Sciences at the Catholic Univerity of Milan, in 1979 he resigned his teaching position to become a full time preacher of the Gospel. In 1980 he was appointed by Pope John Paul II Preacher to the Papal Household and was confirmed in that position by Pope Benedict XVI in 2005 and by Pope Francis in 2003. He is frequently invited to speak in many countries around the world, both to Catholic and Protestant audiences. His numerous books on spirituality have been translated in more than twenty foreign languages.
Book: 144 pages
ISBN: 978-0-8189-0788-3
Prod. Code: 0788-3
