Living Memento Mori
My Journey through the Stations of the Cross
by Emily M. DeArdo
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Pub Date Jan 24 2020 | Archive Date Feb 26 2020
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Description
Emily M. DeArdo was diagnosed with cystic fibrosis at eleven, so she knows what it’s like to live with a keen awareness of her own mortality. She draws on the medieval practice of memento mori, “remember you must die,” and shares her personal story with unique and compelling insight into the meaning of Christian life and death. Using the Stations of the Cross as a framework, DeArdo leads you to trust in God’s providence as you confront suffering and death and develop enduring spiritual strength and courage along the way.
Sr. Theresa Aletheia Noble, F.S.P., kicked off a rediscovery of memento mori on social media when she began tweeting about #mementomori and what it’s like living with a plastic skull on her desk. Emily DeArdo said the practice caught on with millennials like her who are searching for what’s real, true, and lasting in life. Trying to find the answer to “is this all there is?” often leads to thinking about death and what happens afterward, she noted.
In Living Memento Mori, DeArdo shares the insight she has gained from living her life on the precipice of death: a willingness to embrace the Cross of Christ can transform the pain and loss we all inevitably experience into a source of spiritual growth. DeArdo shows you how even a life of considerable suffering can be full of joy, hope, and peace.
DeArdo’s life and reflections on mortality give a fresh voice to the traditional themes found in the Stations of the Cross. She offers you the courage to face your own suffering and concerns about death and to follow Jesus wherever he leads. You will discover:
• how memento mori can help you live a deeper spiritual life
• how to unite your sufferings with those of Jesus
• what the Catholic faith teaches about the meaning of suffering
Station by station, DeArdo links her personal and spiritual journey to the suffering of Christ and shows readers how to do the same. Each chapter of Living Memento Mori begins with scripture, includes a quotation from Pope John Paul II’s Salvifici Doloris (The Christian Meaning of Human Suffering ), and closes with three questions for personal reflection or group discussion. An appendix provides readers with a guide to praying the Stations of the Cross with original meditations in the spirit of memento mori.
A Note From the Publisher
She contributed to several studies published by Take Up & Read in 2018 and 2019 and also self-published an eBook, Catholic 101. DeArdo has also been a guest on The Jennifer Fulwiler Show on SiriusXM Radio. She was named Young Catholic Woman of the Year by the Diocese of Columbus in 2005. She was a contestant on Jeopardy! in 2016.
DeArdo, who is a Third Order Lay Dominican, lives in the Columbus, Ohio, area.
Advance Praise
"Emily DeArdo lives on the tree of life with joy. Her love in this book will help you to do the same. It’s a gift for Christian living.”
Kathryn Jean Lopez
Senior fellow at the National Review Institute
“In Living Memento Mori, Emily DeArdo imparts the valuable lessons she has learned while suffering with Jesus by her side. Like the precious drops of Jesus’ blood that spattered the Via Dolorosa, Emily shares valuable jewels of wisdom gleaned from a life lived in the shadow of death, a memento mori that has brought her closer to our Savior.”
From the foreword by Sr. Theresa Aletheia Noble, F.S.P.
Author of Remember Your Death: Memento Mori Lenten Devotional
“This richly layered book brought me to a new appreciation for the Stations of the Cross and a new understanding of the redemptive value of suffering. While the story is a page-turner, it is also a book to be read slowly and contemplatively, to revisit again and again. Emily’s life is a testimony to God’s graciousness. Her willingness to bear witness to some of humankind’s most objectively vulnerable moments is an extraordinary gift of grace to her readers. If you have the courage to take an honest look at the nearness of death and the true gift of every day we live, this skillfully-crafted volume can be a beautiful, life-changing instrument.”
Elizabeth Foss
Catholic author and founder of Take Up and Read
“In my own life, I have found the practice of memento mori and the spirituality of the Stations of the Cross to be places of peace and consolation in the midst of personal suffering and darkness. In Living Memento Mori, Emily DeArdo shares her own journey, her own pain, her own need to face the reality of death, and shows us that hidden in the wounds of Christ, we are never alone.”
Tommy Tighe
Author of The Catholic Hipster Handbook
“Suffering and death are not easy subjects to meditate on, but in Living Memento Mori, Emily DeArdo challenges us to think of our own suffering and inevitable death in a way that brings both wisdom and joy. The honest story of her daily struggle to live with a fatal diagnosis is compelling on its own, but when joined with her unique interpretation of the Stations of the Cross, DeArdo provides a powerful reminder to live each day as if it’s our last and gives readers the courage to embrace our crosses and draw closer to Christ.”
Mary Lenaburg
Author of Be Brave in the Scared
Available Editions
| EDITION | Paperback |
| ISBN | 9781594719677 |
| PRICE | $13.95 (USD) |
Featured Reviews
Mary B, Reviewer
When she was eleven years old, author Emily DeArdo was diagnosed with cystic fibrosis, an incurable genetic disease with an average life expectancy of 30. In “Living Momento Mori,” DeArdo, now 37, reflects on living every day since then with a sense of “momento mori”—the knowledge that she will die—and recounts the struggles she has faced through a unique and innovative Stations of the Cross framework.
I realize that this synopsis makes the book sound rather dour and serious, but nothing could be further from the truth—DeArdo’s lively voice animates the narrative, and the courage with which she has faced so many medical obstacles, including a double lung transplant, is inspiring. Her personal story alone would make this book worth reading in the same category as Paul Kalanithi’s “When Breath Becomes Air” or Julie Yip-Williams’ “The Unwinding of the Miracle,” but DeArdo layers in spiritual reflection and hard won practical advice on how to live with suffering that elevates “Living Momento Mori” to the level of essential life guide—whether that life includes a fatal illness or just the normal suffering and obstacles we all face every day.
Religion and Spirituality is not an area I gravitate to at all, but “Living Momento Mori” transcends genre: It’s the story of an extraordinary woman facing extraordinary challenges, told in a fresh, funny and wholly original voice. A must read and perfect as a Lenten devotional.
Thank you to NetGalley and Ave Maria Press for providing me with an ARC of this title in return for my honest review.
Reviewer 451445
A book to read, meditate on and cherish. I don't think there was a single page where I didn't learn something or feel inspired to delve deeper. The only caveat for me is that it is written from within the Catholic tradition with quotes from the Pope etc. I only mention this because I am from the Evangelical Orthodox Protestant tradition but read this to broaden my horizons. I'm glad I did as I found my soul nourished. Recommended.
Thanks to NetGalley and Ave Maria Press for ARC.
Wendy C, Reviewer
**I received an advance copy of this book in exchange for my honest review**
I had the pleasure of meeting Emily in 2015, and ever since I have greedily devoured her writing. Her humor and zest for life are evident in her candid, honest blog And in the essays she writes for take up and read. Not surprisingly, I was greatly looking forward to this book!
With Living Memento Mori, Emily does not disappoint. She shares her unique journey of being a double lung transplant survivor, and parallels her health journey to that of Jesus making His way to Calvary. Emily does a great job of illustrating the value of suffering, and of reminding us we're not alone in our struggles. Exploring these themes while being ever conscious of how our time on Earth is fleeting, Emily gives us a roadmap - reminding us that Jesus has already walked this path before. Further, it's up to us to take up our cross and follow him as we prepare for the conclusion of our earthly lives and the commencement of eternal life in heaven with him.
Living Memento Mori would make a great Lenten read. I can also see it being a helpful book to ponder not only with the simple, daily struggles of life, but particularly after a difficult diagnosis, during times of transition in life, or a life crisis.
Barb S, Media/Journalist
I didn’t think I’d want to touch a book on the topic of death when the idea seemed way too close for comfort as it was, but I truly felt that DeArdo gets it. I needed to read this book. Each of the 14 chapters corresponds to one of the Stations of the Cross. DeArdo begins each chapter with a short meditation on a particular Station, then discusses her own spiritual journey as well as the particular health challenges she faces as a cystic fibrosis patient and lung transplant recipient. Keep a notebook or journal handy as you read: every chapter concludes with several questions for journaling.
Janet P, Reviewer
An inspiring and spiritually rich book about suffering. Within the framework of the Stations oi the Cross, DeArdo looks atr many aspects of suffering and pain, often using her own struggles as the bawsis. Each short chapter ends with a few questions.
Unlike so many religious books it's not overly pius, nior is it heavy-haned. It's rewarding and comforting instead.
I highly recommend it.
Traci R, Reviewer
An excellent resource to use as one thinks through the stations of the cross. A nice blend of personal story and biblical teaching. Highly recommend.
Amanda M, Reviewer
Emily's story and her way of telling it is very inspiring. I am so thankful I was able to read this book and get to know another's journey with chronic illness.
We all know that the Christian life is full of suffering and that suffering leads to death... but that doesn't mean we are going to like suffering. Emily does a really great job reflecting on the Stations of the Cross and tying her own story into them. Her life really has been lived remembering that death is coming and she shares that with us. She also includes meditations for the Stations of the Cross at the back of the book which are really lovely.
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