From his experiences conducting parish missions and teaching about Franciscan service, a Siena friar has published a book of nine personal stories that offer the opportunity for prayer and reflection.
Outside the Walls: Encountering God in the Unfamiliar by Fr. Kenneth Paulli, O.F.M. is the result of many talks he has given about ministering to others and how all of us can make that same outreach.
In sharing his stories, Fr. Ken shows how going beyond one’s usual boundaries – both personal and spiritual - allows us to experience God. He tells of being approached by a young pregnant woman in Haiti while helping in the aftermath of the 2010 earthquake, and of meeting a true salt-of-the-Earth Irishman during a golf trip to the Emerald Isle, and what he learned from each.
“St. Francis’ ability to fully respond to what God was asking of him happened only after he left the walled city of Assisi, once he stepped out into the larger world,” said Fr. Ken, an associate professor of education.
Each chapter is a story that can stand on its own, about a time when he went “outside the walls” to encounter someone whose life touched his and ultimately motivated him to reflect, “Okay, God, what are you asking of me?”
He added that it is a fitting read for the Lenten season, “given its theme of spiritual renewal.”
Each chapter closes with a call to action couched in a series of questions and a prayer.
The book can be purchased through Amazon, Westbow Press and Barnes & Noble. Fr. Ken is also planning a signing this spring on the Siena campus.
“What happened to St. Francis still happens to us,” said. Fr. Ken. “There are still daily opportunities for all of us to step outside our walls of comfort and to grow as individuals.”
