Coming Home to Your True Self: Leaving the Emptiness of False Attractions

by Albert Haase OFM, Mulholland Jr., M. Robert (Foreword by)

Overview

"God is at home. It is we who have gone out for a walk."—Meister EckhartIn Coming Home to Your True Self, Albert Haase invites you to return home—and shows you the way to get there. "Home," he writes, "is the sacrament of the present moment. It is only living right now, right here, that we discover our lives and this world awash in the grace of God."Using the story of the prodigal son to illustrate the far country of our false self and the way back home to our true self in Christ, Haase introduces us to the spiritual disciplines that can help us find the path home to the Father.Rich with insights from Haase's experience as a spiritual director, this is a book for the weary, the lost, the regretful and guilty—essentially, a book for us all. No matter how long you've walked, God is still home.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780830835171
Publisher:	InterVarsity Press
Publication date:	04/18/2008
Pages:	180
Product dimensions:	5.50(w) x 8.20(h) x 0.70(d)

About the Author

M. Robert Mulholland Jr. (1936-2015) was emeritus professor of New Testament at Asbury Theological Seminary and the author of several books, including Shaped by the Word, The Deeper Journey, Revelation and the landmark spiritual formation book Invitation to a Journey. He also served as pastor of Shirley Community Church in Shirley Mills, Maine.During his extensive academic career, Mulholland served as adjunct professor at the Academy for Spiritual Formation and taught at several seminaries and universities around the world, including Wesley Theological Seminary, Harvard University, McMurry University, Moscow Evangelical Christian Seminary (Moscow, Russia), West Africa Theological Seminary (Lagos, Nigeria) and Baltic Mission Center Theological Seminary (Tallinn, Estonia). An elder in the Kentucky Conference of the United Methodist Church, Mulholland was a frequent speaker at Bible and spiritual renewal conferences. He and his wife, Lynn, have two children.

Albert Haase, O.F.M. (Ph.D., Fordham University), is adjunct professor of spirituality at Catholic Theological Union in Chicago, Illinois. He is also director of the School of Spirituality at Mayslake Ministries in Westmont, Illinois. A former missionary to mainland China for over a decade, he is the coauthor of Enkindled and the author of Instruments of Christ (both published by St. Anthony Messenger Press).

Table of Contents

Foreword by M. Robert Mulholland Jr.

Preface

1. The True Self: Home Sweet Home

2. The False Self: Leaving Home

3. Coming Back Home: Breaking Free of the Pigpen

4. Graced Guilt: How Our Sin Can Bring Us Home

5. Present to the Presence: How Prayer Makes Us Prayerful

6. Penance: Preserving Relationships

7. Discernment: Becoming a Dream Keeper

8. The Spiritual Director: A Companion on the Journey Home

9. Continuing Home: The Ongoing Work of the Spirit

Conclusion

Appendix A: Designing a Rule of Life

Appendix B: Finding a Spiritual Director

Appendix C: Charts and Lists

Notes

What People are Saying About This

Gerald L. Sittser

"It occurred to me while reading this lovely book that Albert Haase is a wise and seasoned Christian man. It comes through in page after page. This book is informed, insightful and practical, everything you want a book on spirituality to be. Haase knows the subject so well that he writes from the inside, making it simple and clear. Coming Home to Your True Self made me want to do what the title says--find my true self in God. But more than that, it helped me make progress to that end."
— Gerald L. Sittser, author of A Grace Disguised and Water from a Deep Well

From the foreword by M. Robert Mulholland Jr.

"I believe Coming Home to Your True Self will be a significant blessing for those who hunger for a genuine spiritual journey."

Emilie Griffin

"Albert Haase has captured the simple essence of the spiritual life in this readable treatment that flows easily from Jesus' parable of the prodigal son. Illustrating his points with lively personal stories, Fr. Haase illuminates such classical spiritual terms as detachment, discernment and penance, making them live for the modern reader. He draws deeply on the teaching of Jesus and shows us how to 'come home' to our true selves. A fine guidebook for those who long for a deeper relationship with the Lord."
— Emilie Griffin, author of Doors into Prayer: An Invitation

Ruth Haley Barton

"Haase is a wise and winsome guide for the spiritual life and his book is a helpful companion for the journey of coming home to the true self."
— Ruth Haley Barton, author of Sacred Rhythms

Br. Patrick Hart

"Franciscan Albert Haase has done it again. Coming Home to Your True Self will receive a . . . warm reception from his readers, since it is steeped in the mystical tradition of the West from the Christian Scriptures to the desert dwellers of Egypt, and then through the Franciscans and the Dominicans, especially Meister Eckhart, which is becoming so popular with those seeking God in journeys of faith and love. It is highly recommended to all who seek the one thing necessary."
— Br. Patrick Hart, O.C.S.O., Abbey of Gethsemani

Richard Rohr

"This is practical and profound spiritual guidance! If we do not clarify some of these foundational issues, there will be no real flourishing in our search for God. Albert Haase makes very substantial ideas readable, personal and even adventuresome. What a good Franciscan!"
— Richard Rohr, O.F.M., Center for Action and Contemplation and author of Everything Belongs

Editorial Reviews

"Haase very skillfully and with great reader friendliness offers today's Christ followers a lovely, gently presented compilation of ancient spiritual traditions written in contemporary style. Extremely practical and inspirational, readers from all walks and stages in the spiritual walk will find this material refreshing and instructional."

Michele Howe

"I believe Coming Home to Your True Self will be a significant blessing for those who hunger for a genuine spiritual journey."

From the foreword by M. Robert Mulholland Jr.

"This is practical and profound spiritual guidance! If we do not clarify some of these foundational issues, there will be no real flourishing in our search for God. Albert Haase makes very substantial ideas readable, personal and even adventuresome. What a good Franciscan!"

Richard Rohr

"Highly recommended for anyone who longs for a deeper relationship with God and his/her neighbor."

John B. Shewmaker

"Haase is a wise and winsome guide for the spiritual life and his book is a helpful companion for the journey of coming home to the true self."

Ruth Haley Barton

"Franciscan Albert Haase has done it again. Coming Home to Your True Self will receive a . . . warm reception from his readers, since it is steeped in the mystical tradition of the West from the Christian Scriptures to the desert dwellers of Egypt, and then through the Franciscans and the Dominicans, especially Meister Eckhart, which is becoming so popular with those seeking God in journeys of faith and love. It is highly recommended to all who seek the one thing necessary."

Br. Patrick Hart

"It occurred to me while reading this lovely book that Albert Haase is a wise and seasoned Christian man. It comes through in page after page. This book is informed, insightful and practical, everything you want a book on spirituality to be. Haase knows the subject so well that he writes from the inside, making it simple and clear. Coming Home to Your True Self made me want to do what the title says—find my true self in God. But more than that, it helped me make progress to that end."

Gerald L. Sittser

"Albert Haase has captured the simple essence of the spiritual life in this readable treatment that flows easily from Jesus' parable of the prodigal son. Illustrating his points with lively personal stories, Fr. Haase illuminates such classical spiritual terms as detachment, discernment and penance, making them live for the modern reader. He draws deeply on the teaching of Jesus and shows us how to 'come home' to our true selves. A fine guidebook for those who long for a deeper relationship with the Lord."

Emilie Griffin

"Haase's book provides a wonderful frame for the spiritual journey, a very helpful summary and collection of wisdom from the Christian tradition, as well as examples from Haase's own spiritual direction practice. Here is a book for the troubled, the lost, the weary, the regretful, the guilty, and the hopeful—all who are longing to come home and to be at home with God, themselves, and others."

Douglas H. Gregg

"'Home is where the heart is' would be a good tag line for this collection of sage, prayerful advice from Franciscan author Haase."

--Publishers Weekly, April 21, 2008

"Albert Haase has captured the simple essence of the spiritual life in this readable treatment that flows easily from Jesus' parable of the prodigal son. Illustrating his points with lively personal stories, Fr. Haase illuminates such classical spiritual terms as detachment, discernment and penance, making them live for the modern reader. He draws deeply on the teaching of Jesus and shows us how to 'come home' to our true selves. A fine guidebook for those who long for a deeper relationship with the Lord."

--Emilie Griffin, author of Doors into Prayer: An Invitation

"Franciscan Albert Haase has done it again. Coming Home to Your True Self will receive a . . . warm reception from his readers, since it is steeped in the mystical tradition of the West from the Christian Scriptures to the desert dwellers of Egypt, and then through the Franciscans and the Dominicans, especially Meister Eckhart, which is becoming so popular with those seeking God in journeys of faith and love. It is highly recommended to all who seek the one thing necessary."

--Br. Patrick Hart, O.C.S.O., Abbey of Gethsemani

"Haase very skillfully and with great reader friendliness offers today's Christ followers a lovely, gently presented compilation of ancient spiritual traditions written in contemporary style. Extremely practical and inspirational, readers from all walks and stages in the spiritual walk will find this material refreshing and instructional."

--Michele Howe, FaithfulReader.com, July 2008

"Highly recommended for anyone who longs for a deeper relationship with God and his/her neighbor."

--John B. Shewmaker, Catholic Library World, December 2008

"I believe Coming Home to Your True Self will be a significant blessing for those who hunger for a genuine spiritual journey."

--From the foreword by M. Robert Mulholland Jr., author of Invitation to a Journey

"It occurred to me while reading this lovely book that Albert Haase is a wise and seasoned Christian man. It comes through in page after page. This book is informed, insightful and practical, everything you want a book on spirituality to be. Haase knows the subject so well that he writes from the inside, making it simple and clear. Coming Home to Your True Self made me want to do what the title says--find my true self in God. But more than that, it helped me make progress to that end."

--Gerald L. Sittser, author of A Grace Disguised and Water from a Deep Well

"Haase's book provides a wonderful frame for the spiritual journey, a very helpful summary and collection of wisdom from the Christian tradition, as well as examples from Haase's own spiritual direction practice. Here is a book for the troubled, the lost, the weary, the regretful, the guilty, and the hopeful--all who are longing to come home and to be at home with God, themselves, and others."

--Douglas H. Gregg, Presence, December 2008

From the Publisher

"Franciscan Albert Haase has done it again. Coming Home to Your True Self will receive a . . . warm reception from his readers, since it is steeped in the mystical tradition of the West from the Christian Scriptures to the desert dwellers of Egypt, and then through the Franciscans and the Dominicans, especially Meister Eckhart, which is becoming so popular with those seeking God in journeys of faith and love. It is highly recommended to all who seek the one thing necessary."

Brother - Patrick Hart

"I believe Coming Home to Your True Self will be a significant blessing for those who hunger for a genuine spiritual journey."

M. Robert Mulholland Jr.