Proclaim with Wonders

by John Rea sm

Reviewed by Glen McCullough
Pleroma Press 2013, 167 pages, RRP $29.99

Fr John Rea sm

Written as a sequel to Fr John Rea’s “Witness to Wonders”, this book sets down over 100 stories of miracles of healing as told by those who were healed.   Fr Rea’s intention is to show how signs and wonders work as an evangelical tool, and “build faith and hope and leave no doubt that Jesus Christ is alive and active in the world today”.

Fr Rea is a Marist priest ordained in 1955. Through the Catholic Charismatic Renewal he discovered the power of praying with faith, and since then has had a long and widely accepted ministry of healing in a variety of settings (including the Pacific Islands, Australia and the USA). 

Three times in the book Fr Rea points out that those who have experienced miracles just need “to state what happened. There is no need to say more, much less to argue with those who are sceptical about it. It is those who hear the account who have to decide to accept it or refuse to believe”. After reading an apparently endless array of miracles in the book, I would suggest one can’t help but believe.

The book is easy to read, although Fr Rea switches between writing of himself as “I” and various third persons (the compiler, the writer, for example), which I found confusing at times.

The book will appeal to those who have experienced miracles or are active in the Charismatic Renewal, or to someone wondering if a miracle is possible. I was affected by the book, and as a consequence have resolved to tell the story of my own healing many years ago.

Available from Pleroma:

order@pleroma.org.nz

or Freephone: 0508 988 988
(within NZ only)

You visited me - A Pastoral Care Companion

by James B Lyons

Fr James Lyons

Reviewed by Fr Brian O’Connell s.m.

Pleroma Press 2013, 118 pages,
RRP $15.00

This is the fourth edition of a book of the same name first published in 1998 as a handbook and ritual for lay people taking Communion to sick people in their homes. It has been completely revised and updated, much enhanced with extra prayers and resources for the lay minister.

The core of this small book is the Rite for Holy communion to the Sick at Home. It contains directions and options. It is preceded by several pages of practical advice for the visiting Minister of Communion. It even has a short piece by a family doctor. This would give the lay minister confidence and awareness of all the different factors that make each visit to the sick unique.

The rest of this small volume has a great variety of meditations, prayers and images in colour. The visitor can choose from these according to the situation, or use them for their own preparation.

The book is beautifully presented on dense glossy paper, sturdy and quite rigid. For me it was hard to find the page and keep it. A system of plastic page tabs would help.

This volume is a ‘must have’ for a minister to the sick though, to add depth and grace to this wonderful ministry.

Available from Pleroma:

order@pleroma.org.nz

or Freephone: 0508 988 988 (within NZ only)