Following Christ: Essays on the Spiritual Life

This book is an attempt to give some insights into the spirituality of the New Testament and outlines from the same scripture on how to follow Christ. I try to cover who Christ is, his basic teachings, and how he understood his teaching as applied to the individual Christian: what does it mean to follow Christ in each of the salient points in the life of Christ? Who is Christ? What really did he mean? Why did he come? In what ways does he speak? What is the meaning of the pascal mystery and how does it apply to each one of us? What does Christ's death and resurrection mean for each one of us? What does it even mean to follow Christ? What of the difficulties in Christ? Is all this even possible in our own lives and how? What are the obstacles for us in following Christ such as anger, violence, hatred, love of enemies, the demands of the gospels, etc? These many topics are covered.This is a devotional book based squarely on the life of Christ in the New Testament which comes down to us from the primitive Christian community and embodied in these sacred writings. The book is comparatively short as are its chapters. But the teaching in each chapter is compact and insightful into the kind of spiritual life Christ calls his disciples to follow. As Saint Paul put it, "Be imitators of me as I am of Jesus Christ." This kind of spirituality I want to communicate and share with my readers. This imitation of Christ is what spiritual life is for the Christian and the summation of his life.

Mr. Riga is an author, novelist, theologian and lawyer. He has written thousands of articles and over 30 books on all subjects. He has written on theological subjects for years, particularly on Scripture. He is well versed in the subject and has a Ph. D in religion. His background is varied from Chaplain in Vietnam with the 101st division to law professor to novelist to Counselor at Law. His life experiences gives him a unique perspective on the subject of this book which makes it an enriching experience for the reader.