Birthing the Holy: Wisdom from Mary to Nurture Creativity and Renewal

Review
“Keen insights and fresh perspective on the life and meaning of Mary, the Blessed Mother of Jesus.” --Fr. David L. Guffey, CSC, National Director, Family Theater Productions
“Even if you have known Mary all your life, you will encounter her afresh here in deeply nourishing and empowering ways. Drawing upon centuries of art, theology, and spiritual tradition, Christine Valters Paintner leads us into the sacred act of co-creation with God while Kreg Yingst’s beautiful block prints guide us in thoughtful contemplation of our Mother Mary, ever ancient, ever new.” --Cameron Bellm, author of A Consoling Embrace
“Every name for Mary, like every name for Christ, opens a window to another dimension of a mystery that will never be exhausted. We need a whole litany to even begin our pondering of Mary and the gift she is for us. Christine Valters Painter gives us just that in this richly textured retreat for the contemporary believer.” --Ann M. Garrido, associate professor of Homiletics, Aquinas Institute of Theology
Do you long to feel more alive, to see the vibrancy in your daily life? Do you feel the seeds of a new calling tugging at you?
Look to the Blessed Mother for help. In Birthing the Holy, Christine Valters Paintner—abbess of the online Abbey of the Arts—invites you to better know Mary and her heart through thirty-one of her titles, and, along the way, you’ll nurture the new growth in your life.
The Blessed Mother is known by many beautiful titles, some of which are familiar—Virgin, Queen of Peace, and Star of the Sea—and some we may not be aware of—Vessel of Grace, Greenest Branch, and Our Lady of Silence.
Paintner offers a flexible format to reflect on Mary’s titles through a thirty-one-day personal retreat, a series of novenas, or with visio divina exercises using striking images by printmaker Kreg Yingst. As you reflect on Mary in her role as Mother of Good Counsel, Woman Clothed with the Sun, Mystical Rose, Mother of Sorrows, Queen of the Angels, and other titles, Paintner invites you to hear what God calls you to develop in your life, help that dream or vision grow, and then nourish it in the world.
Whether you’re meeting Mary for the first time in these magnificent titles or revisiting her as a beloved companion, Birthing the Holy invites you to see the exploration of Mary and your life as a spiritual and creative act, one that can help deepen your faith even as it sparks new growth within you.