Return A Guided Lent Journal for Prayer and Meditation

FR. JOHN BURNS Illustrated by Josiah Henley

Reorient your mind and heart this Lent so you can more fully experience the joy of Easter—Christ’s victory over sin and death.

In this beautiful guided journal for prayer and meditation, Fr. John Burns—author of the bestselling and award-winning book Adore invites you to strip away your confusion, attachments, and sin so you can return to the Lord and undergo real and lasting conversion.

In the liturgy’s first reading on Ash Wednesday, the prophet Joel call us to wholehearted conversion: “Even now, says the Lord, return to me, with your whole heart, with fasting and weeping and mourning, rend your hearts, not your garments, and return to the Lord, your God” (Jl 2:12–13).

Each week throughout Lent, Burns breaks down these two verses:

• Week 1: return to me—recognize the need to reorient our lives through Lent;

• Week 2: return to me with your whole heart—reorient not only the mind but also the heart to the Lord;

• Week 3: return to me with fasting—acknowledge hardness of heart and the value of discipline;

• Week 4: return to me with weeping and mourning—bring forward personal agonies and unbind hidden bitterness that divides us from God; and

• Week 5: Rend your hearts, not your garments, return to the Lord, your God.

Then, during Holy Week and the Resurrection on Easter, you are invited to weave our own stories into that of the Paschal Mystery. Burns uses the opening prayer of each day’s Mass—called the Collect—as a starting point for your meditations through the forty days leading up to Easter Sunday. He also focuses on the traditional Lenten practices of prayer, fasting, and almsgiving, which come together as our sacred penance during this solemn season, and ultimately lead us to heaven.

Each day of Return includes the prayer from the Collect, an inspiring meditation, thought-provoking reflection questions, and a prayer. There’s plenty of space for journaling as well.

Return features stunning original art by Josiah Henley of Heart of IESVS. Free weekly companion videos, a downloadable discussion guide, and other resources make this book perfect for parish-wide, individual, and book club use leading up to Easter.

“In Return, Fr. John Burns reminds us that Lent is meant to be hard—that we are supposed to forget ourselves and give everything we’ve got to loving God through prayer, fasting, and almsgiving. This journal challenges you to take a hard look at your relationship with God and to set goals for moving closer to him through the sacraments, prayer, and liturgy.”

—Kristin Reilly and Jill Greenwood

Founders of Many Hail Marys at a Time

“Simple and direct, Return evokes the deepest calling of Lent: to repent and believe. This journal will challenge you every day of Lent and in doing so, transform your relationship with God. Rooted in the prayers of the Mass, this resource can easily be used in conjunction with the daily Mass readings and parish life.”

—Fr. Josh Johnson Host of the Ask Fr. Josh podcast

978-1-64680-216-6 · 224 pages · $13.95

On-Sale Date: January 2, 2023

Foreign Rights: World · 5.5" x 8.5" · Paperback Category: Catholicism / Lent Imprint: Ave Maria Press

FR. JOHN BURNS is a priest of the Archdiocese of Milwaukee and author of the bestselling books Adore: A Guided Advent Journal for Prayer and Meditation and Lift Up Your Heart: A 10-Day Personal Retreat with St. Francis de Sales.

More In This Series

Restore

978-1-64680-148-0, $13.95

Adore 978-1-64680-119-0, $10.95

Behold 978-1-64680-194-7, $11.95

978-1-64680-218-0 · 160 pages · $15.95

On-Sale Date: April 21, 2023

Foreign Rights: World · 5" x 7" · Paperback Category: Catholicism Imprint: Ave Maria Press

EMILY JAMINET is the executive director of the Sacred Heart Enthronement Network. She is the author of the award-winning book Secrets of the Sacred Heart and the coauthor of Divine Mercy for Moms, The Friendship Project, Pray Fully, and Our Friend Faustina.

AUTHOR’S OTHER TITLES

Secrets of the Sacred Heart

978-1-64680-019-3, $14.95

Pray Fully

978-1-59471-973-8, $15.95

The Friendship Project 978-1-59471-761-1, $15.95

Divine Mercy for Moms

978-1-59471-665-2, $15.95

Holy Habits from the Sacred Heart

Ten Ways to Build Stronger, More Loving Relationships

Emily Jaminet

Jesus invites you to experience his love through devotion to his Sacred Heart, a powerful source of spiritual and personal healing that can also transform your relationships with family, friends, and others around you.

In Holy Habits from the Sacred Heart, Emily Jaminet—executive director of the Sacred Heart Enthronement Network—identifies ten habits and virtues that come from the Sacred Heart. She also shows how you can intentionally practice these virtues in order to get closer to Jesus and strengthen the relationships that are most important to you.

Having Jesus at the center of family life isn’t reserved for the pious; it’s a form of practical spirituality that is open to everyone. Devotion to the Sacred Heart of Jesus has been a cornerstone of Jaminet’s life, bolstering the faith of four generations of her family members. In this book, she shares her own story as well as the real-life experiences of regular Catholics whose families have been changed for the better by the love and virtue that came from devotion to the Sacred Heart.

The habits and virtues include:

• Encounter the King: welcome Jesus into your home with the virtue of docility;

• Welcome the Light: have courage to rid your heart of shame;

• Let Go of the Need to Control: rediscover the liberating virtue of humility;

• Put Jesus at the Center of Relationships: experience the release of forgiveness; and

• Live in the Kingdom of Peace: experience the transforming power of prudence.

Each chapter includes a prayer, reflection questions, and wisdom from St. Margaret Mary Alacoque—who began the Sacred Heart devotion—and the Catechism of the Catholic Church.

Features And Benefits

• The 2021 annual conference of the Sacred Heart Enthronement Network drew more than 2,000 people in-person and online.