Book Review: Moving in the Spirit by Richard J. Hauser, SJ

Moving in the Spirit by Richard J. Hauser, SJ

There's a bunch of self-help books that follow a basic strategy. The author has discovered some system that works very well for him- or herself to deal with a specific problem. That system has been in use for several years (if not decades) and has become easy to "put on paper." Maybe the author has been quantifying or "lecture-fying" parts of the system because of a career in academics or in guiding others. This book is an example of one such system. 

The author, Richard Hauser, developed a system for making important decisions over his lifetime, starting out of high school with the decision to pursue a college and family life or a vocation to the Jesuits. In January of his senior year, he favored the college/family choice but did not feel peace with that decision. The more he reflected on a vocation, the more certain he became of that was the right choice. He started a spiritual journal which at first was sporadic and mainly used during stress-causing parts of his life. The journal helped him search for peace, the peace that comes from following the promptings of the Holy Spirit. He developed a system to track his moods and analyze his important life decisions. The journal became a tool to record his experiences and to plan for future decisions and actions. 

The book establishes the basic pattern of a Christian spiritual life, starting from the law-obeying level that is more external and superficial. Christianity is seen as a set of obligations to be met on this level. A deeper relationship is gained when Christians look for the movement of the Holy Spirit within themselves, imitating Christ not just in obedience to commandments but in patterns of action, quality of heart, and zeal for serving God and others. Prayer life also deepens on this path, working through stages of meditation and contemplation. Hauser then applies his personally successful technique to following this path. He gives detailed examples from his own life and specific tools to follow the technique.

I found his technique interesting but not inspiring for me. Certainly the goals of growing in awareness of divine inspiration and acting on that inspiration are important for everyone. The book provides one way to get there, just not the way for me.

Slightly recommended--there's also one or two ads at the end of chapters encouraging readers to buy the book in bulk for their parish. I found that off-putting.