There is a lonely phone box in the area where the tsunami hit Japan. This 'Phone on the Wind' has become a pilgrimage site for people to go and 'talk' to their departed loved ones, seeking comfort in their loss. Christians seek communion with the dead through Christ. This book guides readers in the best ways to do this, using examples from saints and from ordinary people. For example, Saint Monica had a strong devotion to the dead dure to her Northern African traditions.Saint Ambrose showed her how to give the food that she used to take to the dead to the hungry in their honour, and to pray for the dead to Christ in the Eucharist.

I feel slighly uncomfortable about praying for the dead because of the way that I was brought up, but this beautifully written book showed me how to look at it in a different light. I found it very helpful.

I received this ebook from NetGalley in return for an honest review.

At some point in each of our lives, we will face the death of a loved one. So many of us already have. Some of those losses will hit harder than others,

Our Faithful Departed is a look at what happens when we lose a loved one. This book is full of personal stories that help to illustrate the Church’s teachings on death and what it means for those of us still here.

It is so easy to feel like our loved ones are gone, that we are separated from them until it is our time to die. As the author explains, that is not the case. Just as humans were made for communion, so that remains when a loved one has passed. Not only are we called to pray for them, but we can also ask them for prayer too. They are busy waiting to be reunited with their loved ones. The truth is that they never really leave us, our departed are still with us, albeit differently than when they were here with us.

I appreciated the depth of the church’s teachings in this book along with the stories. As someone who has dealt with a lot of lose during the past two years, this book was both thought provoking and comforting. It also helped me see new ways I need to be praying for both those I know that have died and those I do not know.

I voluntarily received a copy of this book from Ave Maria Press. All views are my honest opinion.

An excellent exploration of the Catholic teachings about death. Written in clear easy to understand language the book draws on the writing of popes and saints as well as the experiences of ordinary people to give us consolation, comfort and ways to remember and pray for the dead.

I received an ARC of, Our Faithful Departed by, Leonard J. DeLorenzo, the McGrath Institute for church life. It is so hard when a loved one dies. This book what the Catholic Church says about death, how we can still communicate with our loved ones, and much more. This book really helped me understand death, heaven, and Jesus much more.