By Tim Otto

Jack Bernard wrote that his life goal was to learn how to pray. I didn’t realize that until after he died and I read it in some of his writings. But as soon as I read that goal of Jack’s, it made perfect sense of who he was. Whether standing in a grocery check-out line or counseling someone as a pastor at the Church of the Sojourners, Jack always seemed to be in a conversation with God. Jack was often having an inner dialogue with God about how to participate in God’s loving work and play. Hanging out with Jack was great because it felt like being invited into the conversation that he was already having with God. Being with Jack, we found ourselves relating our thoughts and actions to God in a way that we hadn’t previously.

Happily, Jack wrote a book that allows something of that conversation to continue. Brazos Press has published Jack’s book with the title How to Become a Saint: A Beginners Guide. While the title is somewhat more provocative than what Jack may have intended (Jack’s own title for the book was Grace and Holiness), it does capture the audacity of Jack’s book. Jack claims that a real holiness is possible for all of us. He reminds us that holiness doesn’t mean getting it all right, but giving our all to God. And if that is what God asks of us, then our good and faithful God will make it possible.

Jack doesn’t suggest any formulaic techniques to become holy. An avid reader of the desert fathers, mystics, and saints, Jack relays ancient Christian wisdom in a way that the opens up those riches for the modern reader. In the first half of the book Jack treats topics such as humility, faith, love, and obedience. The last half of the book is devoted to concrete practices such as prayer, scripture reading, money, and discerning God’s will. Although other books on discipleship (such as Richard Foster’s Celebration of Discipline) treat similar topics, one strength of How to Become a Saint is the seriousness with which Jack takes the church (as the necessary context for discipleship). Every practice finds its home in Christian community.

How to Become a Saint is written out of Jack’s own struggles with growing into Christian maturity. It is an honest look at how growth might happen given all of our human sin and weakness. As such, it probably won’t appeal much to those for whom the Christian life is humming along “just fine.” But for those of us yearning to see the promises of God realized in our lives and yet constantly beset by the evidence of our own lack of progress, Jack’s book is a helpful and hopeful read. I find myself returning to it often and highly recommend it for both group and individual study as a guide for discipleship in the context of communities and churches.