The Joy of Discipleship: Reflections from Pope Francis on Walking with Christ - Paperback

by Pope Francis (Author), Daniel Dinardo (Foreword by)

"Dear friends, be glad Do not be afraid of being joyful "
--Pope Francis, from The Joy of Discipleship

Near the end of Luke's Gospel, two disciples slowly make their way home from Jerusalem to the village of Emmaus. At the outset, they are deeply saddened by Jesus' tragic death. By that evening, however, they have made a 180-degree turn: from dejected disciples to followers filled with joy--a joy they simply must share with others as fast as they can. What accounts for this change? They have encountered the risen Christ

In The Joy of Discipleship, Pope Francis reminds us that joy should be one of the defining characteristics of any person who has truly encountered Jesus. This skillfully curated collection of homilies, speeches, and other documents from Pope Francis, compiled and edited by James P. Campbell, offers a fresh perspective on why Christian disciples should be so joyful in the first place and how that joy might manifest itself in our individual daily lives. Covering a broad range of themes--Christ's Resurrection, mercy, wealth and poverty, the Christian family, and more--The Joy of Discipleship moves us to meditate on Christ and then inspires us to move out from our own four walls, jubilantly proclaiming God's transforming love in word and deed.

For anyone who wants what Pope Francis has--an active, abiding, authentic love for Jesus Christ, for the Church, and for the people of this world--The Joy of Discipleship will point the way.

"This volume gives us a portrait of the Pope and what amazing joy fills his life, his mind, his teaching . . . his discipleship "
--From the foreword by Daniel Cardinal DiNardo

Author Biography

POPE FRANCIS was born Jorge Mario Bergoglio on December 17, 1936, in Buenos Aires, Argentina. He was ordained a priest in 1969, and from 1973 to 1979 served as Argentina's Provincial Superior of the Society of Jesus. He became the Archbishop of Buenos Aires in 1998, and was created a Cardinal in 2001. On March 13, 2013, Bergoglio was named successor to Pope Benedict XVI. Pope Francis is the first Jesuit Pope in history.

JAMES P. CAMPBELL, D.MIN., father of two children and grandfather of six, is a religious educator and author. He is the coauthor of the Finding God religious education program and has three post-graduate degrees, including masters degrees in theology and history and a doctorate in Ministry in Christian Education from the Aquinas Institute of Theology. He lives in Rockford, IL, with his wife Barbara.