Fr. Michael Gaitley to speak on new book in Park City

Intermountain Catholic

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PARK CITY — As part of a nationwide book tour, Fr. Michael E. Gaitley, MIC will visit St. Mary of the Assumption Catholic Church on Monday, March 16.

Fr. Gaitley, who is director of Evangelization for the Marian Fathers of the Immaculate Conception and director of Formation for the Marian Missionaries of Divine Mercy, led a two-day Divine Mercy retreat at the parish last April. The parish worked for more than two years to bring him in as the retreat leader.

“It’s a long process to get these well-known speakers to your parish,” said parishioner Linda Lukanowski, who helped organize the retreat and the upcoming visit. ““We built a relationship with him and his crew over a period of time. We made sure that we spoiled them rotten. I just think we built a nice rapport.”

During his upcoming visit, Fr. Gaitley will speak on “Finding the Father in The Gospel of John,” the subject of his latest book, 33 Days to Greater Glory: A Total Consecration to the Father through Jesus, Based on the Gospel of John.

“The Gospel of John is my favorite Gospel,” Fr. Gaitley said by email. “I love it because it so powerfully reveals the glorious goodness, generosity and love of God, our heavenly Father. I wrote 33 Days to Greater Glory to help people enter more fully into the Heart of the Father. While the book can be read at any time, it’s the third consecration book after 33 Days to Morning Glory (a consecration to Jesus through Mary) and 33 Days to Merciful Love (a consecration to Jesus, the Divine Mercy). The way I see it is this: Mary leads us to Jesus and Jesus then leads us to the Father – so this book is the third in the series.”

At St. Mary’s, “I’ll be talking about the love of God the Father as revealed in the Gospel of John,” he said. “What I’d like readers to know about the book is that it’s a perfect companion for Lent, because it provides a daily meditation on the Word of God, specifically on the greatest of the Gospels, the Gospel of John.”

The free presentation will be followed by a book signing. The book 33 Days to Greater Glory also includes Fr. Gaitley’s novena of consecration to St. Joseph, “Nine Days to Joseph.”

The talk and book signing should appeal to “anyone who has been a follower of his Hearts Afire program  – everything he does leads us toward understanding the Divine Mercy message,” Lukanowski said.

Fr. Gaitley is the author of nine books. He lives and works in Stockbridge, Mass., home of the National Shrine of the Divine Mercy.