In her memoir, Flunking Sainthood, Riess failed twelve different spiritual practices over the course of a year but discovered to her surprise that even the ones she failed most spectacularly taught her something important. In this beautiful daily devotional, readers who want to go deeper into the twelve spiritual practices will find 365 days of guidance, arranged according to monthly practices such as gratitude, generosity, prayer, Sabbath-keeping, and hospitality. Each day includes a short scripture verse, an inspirational reading from a contemporary or classic spiritual thinker, and a brief prayer, reflection, or follow-up action related to the day's theme. These daily devotions help readers understand that spiritual growth is a lifelong journey without a fixed destination--and that there is great compassion for all of us who are flunking sainthood.
About the AuthorSince 2008,
Jana Riess has been an editor in the publishing industry, primarily working in the areas of religion, history, popular culture, ethics, and biblical studies. From 1999 to 2008, she was the Religion Book Review Editor for Publishers Weekly, and continues to write freelance reviews for PW as well as other publications.
She holds degrees in religion from Wellesley College and Princeton Theological Seminary, and a Ph.D. in American religious history from Columbia University. She speaks often to media about issues pertaining to religion in America, and has been interviewed by the Associated Press, Time, Newsweek, People, the Boston Globe, USA Today, the Los Angeles Times, and Newsday, among other print publications, as well as "Voice of America," the "Today" show, MSNBC, and NPR's "All Things Considered," "Tell Me More," and "Talk of the Nation."
She is the author or co-author of many books, including
The Prayer Wheel;
Flunking Sainthood;
What Would Buffy Do?;
Mormonism for Dummies; and
The Writer's Market Guide to Getting Published, and
The Next Mormons: The Rising Generation of Latter-day Saints. Her book
The Twible: All the Chapters of the Bible in 140 Characters or Less . . . . Now with 68% More Humor! won first place in the non-fiction category in the Writer's Digest Annual Self-Published Book Awards.
She is a senior columnist for Religion News Service.
