The Better Part

Fr. Bartunek has created an extensive, Christ-centered resource to serve as a daily meditation companion. The resource is a Bible study on the four Gospels, a survey of saints' writings, a guide to prayer, and a fresh introduction to Jesus rolled into one. The Better Part enables us to read, meditate, absorb and apply the Gospels to our lives, and it serves as a catalyst to personalize times of prayer, enabling us to follow the Holy Spirit's lead along the path of holiness.

"This book should be declared a national treasure! We lead tremendously busy lives, with 1,001 things to do. Even so, every saint and renowned spiritual director through the ages has said the same thing: If we desire to become saints, we must spend time daily in meditation. With this book (which is in its fourth printing!), Fr. Bartunek has created an extensive, Christ-centered resource to serve as a daily meditation companion. Part I is an incredibly practical explanation of how to Christian meditation (along with a cheat-sheet!). Part II contains material to use during your meditations. The resource is a Bible study on the four Gospels, a survey of saints' writings, a guide to prayer, and a fresh introduction to Jesus rolled into one. The Better Part enables us to read, meditate, absorb and apply the Gospels to our lives, and it serves as a catalyst to personalize times of prayer, enabling us to follow the Holy Spirit's lead along the path of holiness. The portable resource has a ribbon to mark your place and contains detailed indices to help you meditate either on the liturgical seasons or the virtues you feel most in need of developing. All four Gospels are included inside the Resource, divided into 303 Units, each one with prayer-sparking commentaries under the subtitles Christ the Lord, Christ the Teacher, Christ the Friend, and Christ in My Life.

It is truly a book for a lifetime.

Fr John Bartunek, LC, ThD, received his BA in History from Stanford University in 1990, graduating Phi Beta Kappa. He comes from an evangelical Christian background and became a member of the Catholic Church in 1991. After college he worked as a high school history teacher, drama director, and baseball coach. He then spent a year as a professional actor in Chicago before entering the religious Congregation of the Legionaries of Christ in 1993. He was ordained a Catholic priest in 2003 and earned his doctorate in moral theology summa cum laude in 2010. He provided spiritual support on the set of Mel Gibson’s The Passion of the Christ while researching the 2005 Catholic best seller, Inside the Passion, the only authorized, behind-the-scene explanation of the film. Fr John has contributed news commentary regarding religious issues on CNN, Fox, and the BBC. He has appeared on Larry King Live, Hannity, and the Laura Ingraham radio show. He also served as the English-language press liaison for the Vatican’s 2005 Synod of Bishops on the Eucharist. His most widely known book is called: The Better Part: A Christ-Centered Resource for Personal Prayer. He has also published two other titles: Meditations for Mothers and A Guide to Christian Meditation. Fr John currently resides in New York, where he is continuing his writing apostolate and teaching Ethics at the Legionaries of Christ Center for Higher Studies.