Thirsting for God

THIRSTING FOR GOD: A Journey Towards Restoration and Renewal. By Nicholas King SJ. Kevin Mayhew (UK). 2003

Reviewed by Russell Pollitt

In the introduction to this book, Fr Nicholas King writes: “The theme of this short book, thirsting for God, originated in a very dark time in my life I had gone into what seemed dreadfully like atheism” says the writer in the introduction to the book.

He describes how the words of Psalm 42, printed on the front of an altar cloth in Guyana”My soul thirsts for you, O God” led him to a deeper understanding of the deep thirst we all have for God. He describes how we often fail to recognise the deep desire and thirst we have as one for God and how often, perhaps, we seek to quench our thirst in ways which are not from or of God.

The rest of the book attempts to help the reader identify their thirst and reflect more deeply on the deep longings of our all too often fragile and wayward hearts.

The book is divided into seven sections, each one dealing with a different thirst we may experience. Each chapter begins with an opening prayer and then a short reflection on the focus of the chapter.

Nicholas King well-known to readers of The Southern Cross for his long-running column of reflections on the Mass readings then relates a short story from his own life experience or experience in pastoral ministry on the varying attempts people make to quench their longing. These attempts may be wayward at first, but they lead to a deeper understanding of the self and God.

Following this story, King reflects on different texts from the New Testament which draw the reader into prayer and reflection on their own thirst for “the mystery to which we give the deceptively easy name of God.”

Each chapter ends with three questions to help the reader focus and a closing prayer.

The real strength of this little booklet is the way King has translated the New Testament passages that he has used. He has tried to stay as close to the original Greek as possible.

The footnotes, which accompany the translation, help the reader to better understand what at times may seem awkward or clumsy in the actual text. We read and hear passages from the New Testament regularly. This regularity may cause us to think that we know the contents of the passage, and so pay half-hearted attention, or we miss out on what the writer intended to tell us.

It is impossible to do this with this book. Well-known narratives from the New Testament come to life and some may even hold a very different meaning to what we have become accustomed to!

King’s “fresh” translation itself focuses the attention of the reader and facilitates the exploration of the deep thirst within as one grapples with the frankness and sometimes shocking clarity and directness of the text.

The chapters are well set out and could be used for a prayer period each day. The book may also be useful in a group setting, in a prayer group for example.

The questions at the end of the chapter are useful to the individual but may be particularly useful for discussion in a group.

Thirsting For God can be recommended to anyone who thirsts for God but particularly those who are struggling with God and may find themselves in an uncomfortable or frightening darkness where God seems far, or even non-existent, and life is a void with no purpose or meaning.