Book Review — He Leadeth Me
“What can ultimately trouble the soul that accepts every moment of every day as a gift from the hands of God and strives always to do his will?”
Father Walter J. Ciszeck
This is the story of a Catholic priest who along with a fellow priest entered the Soviet Union to preach the Gospel. They both thought it would be prudent to remember the Mass, in case their missals were confiscated. They knew, if discovered, it would mean years in gulags or worse. That is exactly what would happen. Captured by the Russian army during World War Two, Fr. Walter J. Ciszek was sent by the NKVD to the notorious in Lubianka Prison in Moscow, where he would spend five years before being convicted of being a “Vatican Spy” and sent to gulags Siberia for fifteen years. It would be laughable if it wasn’t so serious. Fr. Ciszek was final been given the option of “confessing” or die. So, for twenty-three years, he would suffer in Soviet prisons and labour camps. He would be released and go to America in a prison exchange in 1963 for two Russian spies, thanks to the efforts of family, friends and the good officers in the U.S. State Department.
This is the second book on his experiences. The first book was With God in Russia, Ciszeck didn’t feel he gave enough of an account of how he was sustained during those years. Many men died, especially those who gave up hope. He always trusted in God, which what sustained him through all those years. He never saw his survival as anything special or extraordinary, but he did thank God for persevering sustaining all that time. He wanted to write, focusing more on his spiritual experiences and consoling others when times get rough. He took the attitude while he was there to do the best and most professional work assigned to him while in those labour camps. He was also still able to provide Mass, be it in secret or wit as discreet during lunch breaks outside the camp when they were working. The bread and wine, needed for the Mass was able to be smuggled in. One of the things I thought about that this was still the time when you fasted after midnight, not eating anything if any men wanted to participate communion. It meant not even having their breakfast, knowing it would be after midday before receiving the Eucharist. I imagine they would be really hungry. That would have been a sacrifice, as today, and has been since the mid-1960’s, you only need to ‘fast’ for an hour before communion. I almost think this could be one of the reasons many Catholics don’t believe in the real presence.
This account is encouraging, and I hope could serve as an example if or when we Catholics and non-Catholic Christians in the West may also be able with God’s help, to sustain and hope if or when persecution does come to us. We need to remember to show a love for God and our fellow Man. Fr. Ciszeck’s experiences, his stories of the Russian people, and the authorities is a book all Christians should read and be inspired and trust in God in those darkest hours when all hope is lost. I thank Catholic commentator Patrick Coffin for recommending this book.
Author: Walter J. Ciszeck. S.J.
Minimum Age: 12+
Type of Book: Biography
Book Length: 208
Published: 1973
Note: This book review is from Carl Strehlow, a valued member of Coffin Nation. ______________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Tweet to Patrick HERE
Follow Patrick on Facebook HERE
Subscribe to the Podcast and the YouTube Channel
(Click on the images and then click on subscribe)
Apple/Mac Users:
Android Users:
Subscribe to the YouTube Channel:
While you are there, please leave an honest review.
Comments