The Little Black Book

The "Little Black Book" is a Lenten resource handed out in many parishes that contain brief reflections based on each of the daily gospels.  The idea behind the book is that you take 6 minutes from your day to reflect on the daily gospel.  The book is small enough to fit in a purse, backpack or even pocket.  Using a form of Lectio Devina (Divine Word), a few words or a phrase from the gospel of the day is printed, and a reflection on that selection is printed beneath it.  Many of the reflections end with questions, encouraging and probing the reader to look deeper in their own life and see where the scripture meets them.  Each day also has a page where an anecdote is told, a Saint is described, or an interesting fact is brought forth that may not have been previously known.  Ultimately, the book is meant to encourage growth in personal prayer life during the time of Lent.

In Passing on the Faith, the different authors take a look at Christianity and try to look at how to pass of the faith to the next generation.  In Taize, France, Br. John writes that creating a level of trust and a feel of community among the young people that travel there is a big part of what engages them and helps them connect.  Phan asserts that a knowing one's identity leads to questions of religious identity such as, "who do I belong to?" and "whose am I?  Religious Identity is a lifelong, communal project.  In the last section of this book, Miles and Winston look at just what it is that is pushing young people away from faith and how to engage them.  Miles expliains that going away to college has become a statement of separation for young people, and the milestone transition events into adulthood (getting married, starting a family, etc) are happening later in life.  Our American Society looks to entertain its audience and is competing with faith.  Winston says that religion must balance the following: an authentic experience, it must be accessible and it must be animating.  

In a world of distractions, the "Little Black Book" does have one thing on its side: its goal is to not take away large amounts of time from the person reading it.  It emphasizes that reflections should only take 6 minutes out of your day--this confirms the notion in the last section of Faith as it realizes it is competing with a world of cell phones, television shows and endless distractions.  The "Little Black Book" is extremely accessible and easy to use.  However, this book does not overly engaging for young people based on the authors of Faith.  It is an individual activity and does not encourage the reader to seek out any kind of community (an important component for youth).  The little anecdotes make an attempt at being animated and engaging, but many fall short.  It is a nice personal resource, but ultimately, does not meet the standards that Heft and his contributors feel is necessary to "pass on the faith."