Protestant pastors Chris Seidman and Josh Graves have co-written a practical guide to the Beatitudes in their little book,\u00a0Heaven on Earth.<\/em><\/p>\n One of the best things from the Evangelical Protestant tradition is solid, clear, practical, Bible based preaching. A good Evangelical preacher can hold his congregation\u2019s attention for a good 30 minutes or half hour and the congregation are used to taking notes, receiving solid content and practical applications of the Scriptures to the challenges of every day Christian discipleship. It\u2019s something Catholic priests and deacons could learn from. This book sounds like the vibrant, motivating and inspiring preaching that one might hear in a Bible based, dynamic mega church. No surprise then that the authors are both senior ministers at thriving Evangelical churches.<\/p>\n In the ten short chapters of this 140 page paperback pastors Seidman and Graves pack numerous faith stories of individuals who have lived out the crucial challenges of the Beatitudes. We meet friends and fellow church members who cope with grief and poverty, illness and addictions, family breakdown and personal tragedy, and in the midst of the human frailty and weakness the authors show how God\u2019s mercy and grace carries them through. We see those who have learned from experience that the poor of spirit inherit the kingdom of heaven. We meet those who mourn and are comforted. We are given examples of those who show mercy and receive mercy.<\/p>\n This is not a theological book, nor a paradoxical, challenging or subversive book. It does not pretend to be a full length academic treatment of the Sermon on the Mount. Instead it is a practical book to encourage and help ordinary Christians do battle with the Beatitudes, and to learn how to press on in life\u2019s difficulties to find God\u2019s amazing and unexpected blessing.<\/p>\n