A Gift of Joy and Hope by Pope Francis Translated from the Italian by Oonagh Stranksy Book Review

In A Gift of Joy and Hope, Pope Francis is a book with the goal to teach readers about the power of a smile- that many of us have lost from our childhood. He explained how Jesus is God’s smile and how Jesus died for our sins. All we need to do is look around to see the countless ways in which God smiles at His people. He explained how darkness is become more mainstream and we are losing our hope. We can discover great hope in coming to our Heavenly Father and receiving His rest. We don’t have to live overworked and tired all the time. We can see hope when we look in the face of a child and we are seeing them smile back at us. God can provide us with a smile if we chose to realize that we are in face His child. 

 

 

One of my favorite chapters touched on the topic of sadness. We can obtain freedom from depression and sadness when we chose to provide service to others and becoming united as community. We can become like the disciples of Christ and live for Christ. Pope Francis explained how there is a famine of hope in the world and how we can transmit hope out unto the world. He encouraged readers to throw themselves into the arms of their Father and to always remember that He loves us. He revealed how important the church is and how it needs us to be at peace, showing compassion, being in communion, praying, and to bear witness to others. 

 

 

 

I would recommend this amazing book on the teaching of Pope Francis to anyone who is seeking a positive book filled with the teachings of Christ. I immensely enjoyed how he discussed the power of smiling and how many of us don’t know how to laugh, smile, or cry anymore. I liked how in the book he shared what we can learn from children and to get our hope and joy back. I truly believe if we would listen to the teaching in this book and God’s word then we would see more kindness in the church and outside the walls of the church. I also liked how at the end of the book he included a special interview and prayers we can pray.  

 

 

 

 

 

"I received this book free from the publisher, Hachette Book Group/Faithwords for my honest review.”

 

 

 

 

If you would like to purchase a copy, check it out on Amazon.com:

 

 

 

 

 

https://www.amazon.com/Gift-Joy-Hope-Pope-Francis/dp/154600369X/