The Disciplined Heart: Love, Destiny, and Imagination

In this book, Simon, a professor of philosophy at Hope College, examines works by Flannery O'Connor, Tolstoy, Isak Dinesen and Wallace Stegner in hopes of unraveling the mystery of human love. Through her reading of various literary works, Simon poses several questions that touch upon many Christians' lives: Are there types of affection that Christians should avoid? Should a Christian aspire to be everyone's friend? How can we be sure that we are becoming what God intends us to be, and doing what he intends us to do? Studying fictional lives for clues to our own, Simon suggests, can teach us how to discipline our hearts in the mysteries of love and grace. In the end, Simon argues that we live in darkness, growing toward God in fits and starts, not knowing with any certainty that we walk a holy way. But the living itself teaches us how to love. By grace we fulfill our destinies and by grace come insights, however fleeting, into the destinies of those we love. Simon's book offers a penetrating and illuminating glimpse into the vagaries of human love and the wonders of God's grace. (Mar.)