Book Review

Radical Amazement: Contemplative Lessons from Black Holes, Supernovas, and Other Wonders of the Universe
By Judy Cannato
ISBN: 1893732991; Sorin Books, www.sorinbooks.com

Reviewed by Sharon Willan
March/April 2008

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This contemplative book by Judy Cannato inspires the reader to both radical amazement of the universe and radical gratitude to the Holy One who created it. This account of evolution shows how the graced presence of the Holy One spills over in creation and continues today… 13.6 billion years of Incarnation—God among us.

Cannato, a spiritual director, retreat facilitator, and a Catholic, reminds us that we have only to look at a night sky, sunset, full moon, eclipse of the sun or all of nature to be drawn into a contemplative moment with our Creator. She points also to the devastation resulting from greed and power that destroys beauty and life. Cannato weaves scientific knowledge of the universe together with our rich Christian heritage to give us a new story—a story of wonder. It is her hope that living in and out of this universe story will lead us to an amazing God and give us the motivation to work to preserve the Earth—our home.

Each chapter is filled with scientific anecdotes leading to a “contemplative moment,” with suggestions for meditation and for conversing with the Holy One. The scientific data culled from the most recent science journals, discoveries from space probes, and the Hubble telescope sightings are written in simple terms and are easily understood. Cannato’s specialty is linking our Christian heritage to the science, revealing that the two do not contradict each other and there is but one truth.

Judy Cannato urges us to perceive the connectedness to all living and nonliving things, to become more aware of the home in which we live. She also challenges us to become universal humans who recognize the interconnectedness of the whole universe. Cannato says that respect for all humans, all living creatures, all non-living things, will help humanity turn the tide from greed and exploitation to ecological awareness.

This is a book for our time—a time when humanity’s footprint falls heavily on the Earth. A new awareness is called for now.

Cannato writes, “Living in freedom requires that we recognize the connectedness that is the basic reality of our existence… Living in freedom in a conscious way means that we are always becoming part of the greater whole, trusting that the Creator is continuing to create, not only within us, but all around us. Living in freedom also means being content to be incomplete and unfinished—because ‘complete’ and ‘finished’ are irrelevant as we participate in a process that began billions of years ago and will continue for billions more. Living in the freedom for which Christ set us free means not judging—ourselves, first of all, and all others—for everything is incomplete, everything is trying its best to live in the tension between self-preservation and self-adaptation, transcendence and dissolution, love and fear.”

Our world is in desperate need of this kind of freedom. With Judy Cannato, we can become scientifically knowledgeable, contemplative, and learn to live in the process where “the whole creation has been groaning in labour pains until now...” (Romans 8:22)

Sharon Willan is a trained spiritual director in Franciscan Spirituality. She facilitates the spiritual component of Scarboro’s four-month lay mission preparation program.

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