Fire of Mercy, Heart of the Word, Vol. 3 Meditations on the Gospel According to St. Matthew / Erasmo Leiva

For the other two volumes please click here.

To the unstudied eye, St. Matthew's gospel can seem a terse narrative, almost a historical document and not the tremendously spiritual (and doctrinal) storehouse that it is. In his third volume of meditations on Matthew (chapters 19-25), Erasmo Leiva continues to show Matthew's prose to be not terse so much as economical-astoundingly so given its depth. The lay reader can derive great profit from reading this. Each short meditation comments on a verse or two, pointing to some facet of the text not immediately apparent, but rich with meaning.

Leiva's work is scholarly but eminently approachable by the lay reader. The tone is very much of "taste and see how good the Lord is" and an invitation of "friend, come up higher!". The goal of the book is to help the reader experience the heat of the divine heart and the light of the divine Word.

Leiva comments on the Greek text, demonstrating nuances in the text that defy translation. He uses numerous quotes from the Fathers and the Liturgy of the Church to demonstrate the way the Tradition has lived and read the Word of God. His theological reflection vivifies doctrine by seeking its roots in the words and actions of Jesus.

"Fire of Mercy has become a classic of Catholic culture. It is certainly original, like no other meditation on the Scriptures you will ever read."
- John Saward, Author, The Beauty of Holiness

"This is a biblical commentary with scholarship and, above all, a prayerfulness that is a great gift to the Church. "
- Sr. Wendy Beckett, OCD  

Erasmo Leiva-Merikakis obtained his Ph.D. in Comparative Literature and Theology from Emory University. Formerly a Professor of Literature and Theology at the University of San Francisco, he is now a Trappist monk at St. Joseph's Abbey in Spencer, Mass. In addition to Vols. 1 & 2 of Fire of Mercy, he is the author of several other books including The Way of the Disciple and Love's Sacred Order.