Mystery Stories: A Journey Through the Rosary

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Summary: Sources for Prayer, Meditation, and Homiletic Material
Review: I found Jim Carney's "Mystery Stories" a fruitful source for prayer and meditation. In the past, some authors tended to make their reflections on the life of Jesus and Mary so pietistic and saccharine that they were unpalatable. Thankfully, Carney's writing is based on scripture and on real true humanity as we experience it. Whether the rosary is your favorite devotion or not, Carney's "Mystery Stories" are such that I found myself becoming part of the scenes and conversations between Jesus, Mary and the people, both good and bad, who filled their lives. He treats the joyful, sorrowful and glorious mysteries not as devotional treastises but as real life experiences of Jesus and Mary as they walked this earth, the same one you and I journey on as we live out our own personal salvation history.

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Summary: Shedding Light on the Mysteries
Review: James L. Carney's "Mystery Stories: A Journey through the Rosary" is an important work. There is nothing else like it on the market -- no one has made such a devoted effort to bring the mysteries of the Rosary to life in such a meaningful, genuine, and spiritually-uplifting manner. His book has given me new insights into the real people that populate Scripture -- from Jesus, Mary, and Peter to smaller characters such as Elizabeth or Pontius Pilate. So often in the past I viewed these figures as two-dimensional, "holier than holy" characters that lived in a "different" world than my own -- and I subsequently found myself struggling with my Scriptural readings. Mr. Carney's book has helped me bridge this gap.

The author's research is meticulous, his prose clear, and his passion evident. His reflection questions at the end of each chapter are great aids for personal meditation, small faith communities, or catechesis. The Sorrowful Mysteries are particularly powerful as meditative reflections for the Lenten season -- I would recommend these for Christians of all stripes.

This book has expanded my appreciation and understanding of the Rosary, of Scripture, and of my own relationship with Christ. "Mystery Stories" will remain an essential element of my prayer life for years to come. I commend Mr. Carney for his inspired effort, and encourage readers to take a chance on this book.

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Summary: Well -researched, informative
Review: This book if full of information to make the mysteries of the rosary come alive. It is very well researched and documented. I highly recommend it to anyone, not just Christians and not just Catholics.

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Summary: Just what I was looking for!
Review: This is fantastic! Anyone who prays the Rosary regularly knows that sometimes you really need some "meat" for your meditation. And most of the Rosary booklets out there are just that - booklets, which are fine in their way but don't really give you much to think about. I prefer to have LOTS of material to chew over while I'm meditating on each mystery, so much that I can't possibly finish it all in one sitting. There is an average of 15 pages devoted to EACH mystery, which provides a very substantial meal! I'd compare it to Kevin Orlin Johnson's "Rosary : Mysteries, Meditations, and the Telling of the Beads" - if you liked that one you'll love this one too!

Rating:
Summary: Just what I was looking for!
Review: This is fantastic! Anyone who prays the Rosary regularly knows that sometimes you really need some "meat" for your meditation. And most of the Rosary booklets out there are just that - booklets, which are fine in their way but don't really give you much to think about. I prefer to have LOTS of material to chew over while I'm meditating on each mystery, so much that I can't possibly finish it all in one sitting. There is an average of 15 pages devoted to EACH mystery, which provides a very substantial meal! I'd compare it to Kevin Orlin Johnson's "Rosary : Mysteries, Meditations, and the Telling of the Beads" - if you liked that one you'll love this one too!

Rating:
Summary: Shedding Light on the Mysteries
Review: This profoundly moving book is really more than a book; it is an experience in the humanizing of Jesus, Mary, and Joseph, their family and friends as well as Jesus' enemies and detractors. All of these individuals become very real, and very much alive. The author's docudrama approach realistically fills in historical gaps with skill and imagination.

The power of the 15 stories, as told by Carney, and the emotions they bring forth in the reader, require some time to pause for reflection and settling in. They wrench your emotions with both their beauty and their pain. At once, this book will fill your spirit and nurture your soul.

Friends who do not read very much could not put the book down. Mystery Stories: A Journey Through the Rosary, is nothing short of inspired.