Tracy T. (charliebear) -
Marsha Sinetar's early work will always be her best. In the early days, as a self-styled seeker of what is good, elegant (Elegant Choices, Healing Choices), and mystical (Ordinary People as Monks and Mystics), Sinetar brought to life the beauty of the process of becoming whole. She didn't choose to define it or encourage anyone toward the process, but only to describe the various roads to wholeness for those who may choose introspection as a lifestyle that might take one closer to self-actualization.
In this book, she has moved to preaching. Although in earlier works, Sinetar's Christian leanings were obvious, they were easy to pass over if the reader was not Christian. In fact, Sinetar's earlier mentions of Christian thought were so abstract they easily could be applied to any religious or even non-religious meaning. She was talking about spirituality.
Holy Work springs from the mind of a full blown, "pass on the good word," Christian who is bent on saving others. Like many very intelligent people who think deeply about spirituality, Sinetar falters when she reaches the stage of preaching. Her words become inexpressive and her thoughts devolve into rambling platitudes. It seems Sinetar has taken her own advice on "truth telling" despite the consequences and crafted a series of lessons for readers to make their ordinary lives and tribulations into "vocations" and "holy work." Only her most devoted Christian readers could put up with these ramblings that seem to go against the very grain of her previous exhortations that self-actualization, indeed, is a highly individualized process. It seems she's now sharing her own road, despite her earlier admonitions to readers not to seek a "professional" opinion to justify one's own. Unfortunately, here Sinetar is preaching to the already converted since, without a background in Christian thought, no one could follow her on this road.
The true and great sadness about this book is its preaching format and inelegant meditations, which deliver more confusion than enlightenment. Better to read Glenn Clark's "I Will Lift Up Mine Eyes" if you want a beautiful and inspiring read on how to let go of your burdens into the hands of God. You cannot avoid the Christianity in Clark either, but, as a minister who walked the walk and talked the talk of deep Christian faith by touching the lives of so many, at least you come away uplifted and with a sense of beauty, a heightened faith, a renewed spirit, and lessons in a process that works.
In this book, she has moved to preaching. Although in earlier works, Sinetar's Christian leanings were obvious, they were easy to pass over if the reader was not Christian. In fact, Sinetar's earlier mentions of Christian thought were so abstract they easily could be applied to any religious or even non-religious meaning. She was talking about spirituality.
Holy Work springs from the mind of a full blown, "pass on the good word," Christian who is bent on saving others. Like many very intelligent people who think deeply about spirituality, Sinetar falters when she reaches the stage of preaching. Her words become inexpressive and her thoughts devolve into rambling platitudes. It seems Sinetar has taken her own advice on "truth telling" despite the consequences and crafted a series of lessons for readers to make their ordinary lives and tribulations into "vocations" and "holy work." Only her most devoted Christian readers could put up with these ramblings that seem to go against the very grain of her previous exhortations that self-actualization, indeed, is a highly individualized process. It seems she's now sharing her own road, despite her earlier admonitions to readers not to seek a "professional" opinion to justify one's own. Unfortunately, here Sinetar is preaching to the already converted since, without a background in Christian thought, no one could follow her on this road.
The true and great sadness about this book is its preaching format and inelegant meditations, which deliver more confusion than enlightenment. Better to read Glenn Clark's "I Will Lift Up Mine Eyes" if you want a beautiful and inspiring read on how to let go of your burdens into the hands of God. You cannot avoid the Christianity in Clark either, but, as a minister who walked the walk and talked the talk of deep Christian faith by touching the lives of so many, at least you come away uplifted and with a sense of beauty, a heightened faith, a renewed spirit, and lessons in a process that works.
