Finding True Happiness: Satisfying Our Restless Hearts (Happiness, Suffering, and Transcendence) by Fr. Robert J. Spitzer, SJ.
In some ways this is a seemingly odd book bringing together arguments from physics, a technical analysis of the four levels of happiness, along with help with prayer. Moving from physics to prayer. Still as a whole it is quite cohesive and instructive.
I learned a lot from his detailed looking at the four levels of friendship. The division from first level of happiness in material pleasures up through transcendental spiritual fulfillment. I found even the discussions of the first three levels to be very helpful as they are all interrelated and are not exclusive to each other. The apologetic aspect of the book which addresses arguments for God from philosophy and science do some of the spadework for the fourth level of happiness and that the fullness of happiness lies with God. His last book New Proofs for the Existence of God: Contributions of Contemporary Physics and Philosophy went into much more detail over these details.
His look at prayer and contemplation takes a Ignatian path along with Fr. Spitzer unique way at looking at things. This was well-worth reading. I also enjoyed how he related his own experiences to topics covered, especially his own struggles and accouters with grace. This is the first book of a trilogy.
- Volume 1 – Finding True Happiness: Satisfying Our Restless Hearts
- Volume 2 – Our Spiritual Destiny: The Unconditional Love of God
- Volume 3 – Seeing God’s Light in the Darkness: How to Suffer Well
This part-analytical approach to friendship and growing in love of God will not appeal to everybody. For myself I have continued to reflect about what he wrote in the weeks after reading this book.
Who Designed the Designer?: A Rediscovered Path to God’s Existence by Michael Augros
This books offers a thoroughgoing look at arguments for the First Cause. It takes a look at all the arguments for First Cause along with answering objections to those arguments. One of thee author objectives was to offer a non-polemical approach to this in answering questions from atheists, which he met. Basically this offers evidence for the existence of the God of the philosophers and focuses only on philosophical arguments and not scripture. While the attention is almost fully on First Cause arguments, there are also related arguments such as the problem of evil.
This is meant for a general audience and the author totally leads you through the philosophical arguments. A very useful book and really explores the arguments in a helpful way.
2 comments
Finding True Happiness: The author says there will be a quartet, which confused me in looking through the book because only 3 books are ever listed. I also found this a worthwhile book, albeit with two odd halves joined together.
Have you read JP2’s Love and Responsibility? The reference to levels of friendship sound similar to the paradigm he sets up (I believe he borrows parts of it from Aristotle). If I recall correctly, the idea was that the first level of friendship is for personal gain, the second mutual benefit, and the final and most perfect form is for the good of the other.