For Christians of our time, Megan McKenna explores the meaning of the blessings and woes pronounced by Jesus on the plains of Galilee. She calls us to the heart of the gospel and to be converted to discipleship in Jesus kingdom of God.Readers learn about Jesus teachings through his parables as well as through insightful stories about Zen masters, Jewish rabbis, Japanese gods, Sufi mystics and stories told by wellknown figures such as Thomas Merton and Leo Tolstoy. We learn that compassion, the source of blessings, means being with others in their pain and suffering and knowing their pain as our own.Megan McKennas reflections on Lukes Blessings and Woes makes clear why Jesus brings not peace but division. I have seldom been more challenged by the message of Jesus than by reading these reflections. And yet, this book is itself finally the best of blessings.Bishop Thomas J.

GumbletonArchdiocese of Detroit.