Colleen Carroll Campbell - The Heart of Perfection: How the Saints Taught Me to Trade My Dream of Perfect for Gods

Praise for

THE HEART OF PERFECTION

Catholics and Protestants have much to learn from the saints and from this self-revealing book by Colleen Carroll Campbell. Colleen unveils the reality discovered by many who have gone before us that true satisfaction, peace, and joy are not the results of our efforts to live a perfect life, but come as a gift of Gods love. To all who are burdened with shame and guilt in their efforts to do life right, the message of this book is liberating.

Gary D. Chapman, Ph.D., New York Times bestselling author of The Five Love Languages

Whenever you find yourself comparing, competing, and trying to earn a gold star in life, read The Heart of Perfection . Colleens writing is grace-filled and life-giving. I loved this book!

Sarah Mackenzie, author of The Read-Aloud Family and Teaching from Rest

In The Heart of Perfection , Colleen Carroll Campbell explores the real lives of saints with the scrutiny of an investigative journalist and highlights their quest for the perfect love of God.In this deep and thoughtful reflection on herself, the generations of perfectionist women she came from, and with a broad-daylight expos of the lives of the not-so-perfect saints, Campbell realizes that setting the bar so high is detrimental; trying to be perfect only results in beating yourself up for not being perfect. The Heart of Perfection is a must-read for those of us whose pursuit of perfection is just creating the perfect trap.

Jeannie Gaffigan, executive producer of The Jim Gaffigan Show and author of When Life Gives You Pears

This book is absolutely excellent and meets a very present need of many people. I wish it to be read by everyone! Not always consciously, we are marked by a certain perfectionism, the feeling that to deserve Gods love and the love of others we must be perfect beings and follow a faultless journey to God. This perfectionism may seem generous and express the commitment to be good Christians, but it is actually disastrous.From her personal experience, from the example of the saints, from her meditation on Scripture, Colleen shows us with great spiritual truth and psychological sharpness how this perfectionism manifests itself, its consequences, and how to get rid of it to enter into the true freedom of the children of God.

Fr. Jacques Philippe, author of Searching for and Maintaining Peace and Interior Freedom

Todays culture preaches salvation through perfectionism, and many of us have ended up stressed out and miserable from trying to do everything the right way. The Heart of Perfection gives us permission to step out of the straitjackets weve forced ourselves into, and walk in the freedom of Gods unconditional love.

Jennifer Fulwiler, author of One Beautiful Dream

With lyrical prose and candid storytelling, Colleen Carroll Campbell unpacks the perfectionism that keeps many of us striving to impress God and others, often to exhaustion. Instead of offering the quick fix of self-help platitudes, Campbell draws us into the rich and complex lives of the saints[who] become like friends in Campbells telling, revealed to us as wonderfully human yet transformed by grace.

Katelyn Beaty, author of A Womans Place and former managing editor of Christianity Today

Through engaging personal testimony and masterful re-telling of lives of relatable saints, this book effectively heals wounds that keep us from the joyful freedom of the children of God.

Fr. Michael Gaitley, MIC, author of 33 Days to Morning Glory and 33 Days to Merciful Love

Colleen Carroll Campbell, with a rich blend of personal experience and the witness of the saintspoints the way to freedom from a burden that God never wanted us to carry.

Timothy M. Gallagher, OMV, author of The Discernment of Spirits

Campbellbalances confessional anecdotes with persuasive modern interpretations of the lives of the saints in this enjoyable testimony.Campbell is a fluid writer, making her histories and personal anecdotes blend seamlessly.Perfectionists of any religious persuasion will benefit from this gratifying work.

Publishers Weekly

Delving into Campbells journey is like looking in a mirror revealing our own fears, pride, shame, and fantasies of control that hold us back from accepting Gods grace.Campbell does not invite us to a watered-down spirituality that resigns us to a Youre okay, Im okay mentality. Instead, she opens up a world of radical dependence on Gods grace and the patient, humble obedience that draws us close to the heart of Jesus.

America Magazine

Part hagiography, part self-help, Campbells latest is a useful guide for perfectionists and others to the rigors of humility and the joy of grace.

Booklist

Poignant.There is so much to relate to in this book.The saintly wisdom makes this well worth the read.

National Catholic Register

Comforting yet challenging.Colleen Carroll Campbell writes with the confidence and spark of an experienced writer as well as with the contagious personal passion of a spiritual seeker.

Br. Joseph F. Schmidt, FSC, author of Everything Is Grace: The Life and Way of Thrse of Lisieux

ALSO BY COLLEEN CARROLL CAMPBELL

My Sisters the Saints: A Spiritual Memoir

The New Faithful: Why Young Adults Are Embracing Christian Orthodoxy

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Copyright 2019 by Colleen Carroll Campbell

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First Howard Books/Atria Books hardcover edition May 2019

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Interior design by Michelle Marchese

Jacket image by Shutterstock/Vik Y

Author photograph by Amber Montgomery

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data is available.

ISBN 978-1-9821-0616-4

ISBN 978-1-9821-0618-8 (ebook)

Excerpt from Story of a Soul, translated by John Clarke, O.C.D. Copyright 1975, 1976, 1996 by Washington Province of Discalced Carmelites, ICS Publications, 2131 Lincoln Road, N.E., Washington, D.C. 20002-1199, U.S.A. www.icspublications.org.

Excerpt from General Correspondence Volume Two , translated by John Clarke, O.C.D. Copyright 1988 by Washington Province of Discalced Carmelites, ICS Publications, 2131 Lincoln Road, N.E., Washington, D.C. 20002-1199, U.S.A. www.icspublications.org.

Excerpt from The Poetry of St. Thrse of Lisieux, translated by Donald Kinney, O.C.D. Copyright 1995 by Washington Province of Discalced Carmelites, ICS Publications, 2131 Lincoln Road, N.E., Washington, D.C. 20002-1199, U.S.A. www.icspublications.org.

Excerpt from The Spiritual Exercises of St. Ignatius by Louis J. Puhl, S.J. (Newman Press, 1951). Reprinted with permission of Loyola Press. To order copies of this book, call 1-800-621-1008 or go to www.loyolapress.com.

For my children:

Clara Colleen,