Reviews
Universal Mother is an absolute gem of a book, overflowing with tenderness and insights. The artwork—stunning, refreshing, and deeply imaginative—provides the entry point into vulnerable and moving reflections. This book is perfect for anyone seeking comfort and spiritual nourishment, that is to say: it's for all of us.
– Maureen O’Brien
Author of "What Was Lost: Seeking Refuge in the Psalms" and "Gather the Fragments: My Year of Finding God's Love"
Many years ago I came upon this Chinese proverb on the wall of the Boston Children's Museum: "I hear . . . and I forget; I see . . . and I remember, I do . . . and I understand." It became a mantra for me of how important the senses are to art and contemplation and how doing completes the act of contemplation. And such is the very center of Holly Schapker's and Cecelia Dorger's book, Universal Mother. It is not a book one reads but a book one prays, contemplating each of Schapker's paintings of the different faces of Mary, looking and praying for the illumination of God's Spirit, then reading each of the co-authors' thoughts and meditations. And as for the doing, there are abundant blank pages for the reader/observer to use to set down one's own reflections in words or music or drawing/coloring. As in the life of prayer, doing follows contemplation. This is an exquisite handbook for prayer as contemplation and action as creative expression, all centered around Mary, the mother of Jesus, the Mother of God. I highly recommend this lovely journey into the Divine. "Doing" this book is its own reward; it provides an understanding that only doing can inspire. "I do . . . and I understand."
– Fr. Murray Bodo, OFM
Franciscan Priest and Author
