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Against an Infinite Horizon: The Finger of God in Our Everyday Lives
Filled with personal anecdotes, healing wisdom, and fresh reflections on scripture, Against an Infinite Horizon , one of Fr. Ronald Rolheiser’s most beloved books, leads us to a deeper experience of the beauty and poetry of Christian spirituality.
240 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1995
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Displaying 1 - 19 of 19 reviews
March 20, 2012
Although Rolheiser isn't a ‘new’ author, he's a new discovery for me. This is my first book by him, but not my last. Against an Infinite Horizon: The Finger of God in Our Everyday Lives is supposed to give the reader a language with which to ‘see the holy in all things’.
I find that a bold and audacious claim for obvious reasons as well as because it mixes metaphors in doing so and yet it's in the very act of using our language in positive new ways—which the author illustrates here—that the reader is shown how to stretch his/her spiritual sight. Packed with stories, examples and anecdotes, collected from friends, family, and personal experience few books provide such a wide panorama, both singular and luminous.
There were several stories from the Bible which I will never read or hear the same again. One was the Old Testament story of Jephthah’s daughter which can be viewed as a parable for the journey of Life. In a certain sense we all die ‘virgins’ with unfulfilled hopes and dreams mourning all that didn’t come to fruition in our short lives on this earth ... a much better interpretation than a child sacrifice narrative.
Later the author suggests entering the Passion story as the person of Peter betraying Our Lord just after He had been scourged. Then coming face-to-face with Him and actually seeing His Face. What do you, as Peter-the-Betrayer, see in that Face? Sadness? Disappointment? Forgiveness? Now repeat the meditation over and over until you – Peter – look up and see Jesus looking at you with nothing but Love. My description doesn’t begin to do justice to the actual one in the book. It was so beautiful it had me in tears.
Father Rolheiser described the love of God as ‘mother’ and ‘father’ and the importance of moving beyond sexual stereotypical thinking where God is concerned. He emphasized the value of ancient rituals to healing, sanctifying, and healthy living. He explained women’s anger at alienation from the structure of the church and men's experience of grief due to alienation from the soul of the church which both stem from the same hunger to be blessed. We are all living and lamenting the ‘unfinished symphony’.
Against an Infinite Horizon teaches seeing in new ways and as such is worth savoring—would that I had. Either I couldn’t or didn’t make myself stop and ponder the author’s stories and ideas like I wish I had done. Also, I noticed the reader of the audio book read at a disconcertingly fast pace. While this might be desirable for most works of fiction, this book is best taken at a contemplative pace.
Do as I say, not as I did! (sigh)
I find that a bold and audacious claim for obvious reasons as well as because it mixes metaphors in doing so and yet it's in the very act of using our language in positive new ways—which the author illustrates here—that the reader is shown how to stretch his/her spiritual sight. Packed with stories, examples and anecdotes, collected from friends, family, and personal experience few books provide such a wide panorama, both singular and luminous.
There were several stories from the Bible which I will never read or hear the same again. One was the Old Testament story of Jephthah’s daughter which can be viewed as a parable for the journey of Life. In a certain sense we all die ‘virgins’ with unfulfilled hopes and dreams mourning all that didn’t come to fruition in our short lives on this earth ... a much better interpretation than a child sacrifice narrative.
Later the author suggests entering the Passion story as the person of Peter betraying Our Lord just after He had been scourged. Then coming face-to-face with Him and actually seeing His Face. What do you, as Peter-the-Betrayer, see in that Face? Sadness? Disappointment? Forgiveness? Now repeat the meditation over and over until you – Peter – look up and see Jesus looking at you with nothing but Love. My description doesn’t begin to do justice to the actual one in the book. It was so beautiful it had me in tears.
Father Rolheiser described the love of God as ‘mother’ and ‘father’ and the importance of moving beyond sexual stereotypical thinking where God is concerned. He emphasized the value of ancient rituals to healing, sanctifying, and healthy living. He explained women’s anger at alienation from the structure of the church and men's experience of grief due to alienation from the soul of the church which both stem from the same hunger to be blessed. We are all living and lamenting the ‘unfinished symphony’.
Against an Infinite Horizon teaches seeing in new ways and as such is worth savoring—would that I had. Either I couldn’t or didn’t make myself stop and ponder the author’s stories and ideas like I wish I had done. Also, I noticed the reader of the audio book read at a disconcertingly fast pace. While this might be desirable for most works of fiction, this book is best taken at a contemplative pace.
Do as I say, not as I did! (sigh)
July 29, 2008
Fr. Ron Rolheiser is one of the most intelligent Catholic writers I've ever read. Some of my favorite quotes:
"And God saw that it was good, indeed it was very good!" This tells us how God feels about us and the world, and it contains the implication that we should feel the same way about ourselves and the rest of the world: "good, very good!"
In the torment of the insufficiency of everything attainable we come to understand that here, in this life, all symphonies remain unfinished.
What if the pious were more liberal and the liberal were more pious?
Some of my favorite sections were on how the process of God entering our lives follows how Mary gave birth to Christ; Eucharist and receiving; marriage and sexual intercourse; the gender of God; and social justice.
This would be a great book in a discussion group, too! Many, many things to ponder. I will definitely read it again.
"And God saw that it was good, indeed it was very good!" This tells us how God feels about us and the world, and it contains the implication that we should feel the same way about ourselves and the rest of the world: "good, very good!"
In the torment of the insufficiency of everything attainable we come to understand that here, in this life, all symphonies remain unfinished.
What if the pious were more liberal and the liberal were more pious?
Some of my favorite sections were on how the process of God entering our lives follows how Mary gave birth to Christ; Eucharist and receiving; marriage and sexual intercourse; the gender of God; and social justice.
This would be a great book in a discussion group, too! Many, many things to ponder. I will definitely read it again.
August 17, 2011
Brilliant. Very critical and thoughtful discussions about everything from the restlessness of humanity to marriage to the Church to the archetypal anger of men and women. Just wow. I'm glad I listened to it read though because I'm not sure I would have been able to get through reading it. (December 2009)
October 2, 2025
This was a very good book to read in this season.
Finding God in the ordinary things.
Finding out that nothing is truly "ordinary."
Finding the finger of God in our lives, seeing against an infinite horizon.
I will say, I would recommend this to Christians further along in their faith journey. There are some slippery theological conversations that are rich and good, but to someone who has a lesser understanding, or better put, a less firm biblical ground that they're still building up, I would not give this book to them. I do have some disagreements around his perspectives on gender and sexuality, although there was nothing that felt outright unbiblical. Just some grey area nuances that I just see differently from him on. He does a good job not making these convictions of his "hills to die on." (The biggest example of that is his argument of calling God "He" and also "She," since God has both fatherly traits and motherly traits, too, and that He exists beyond gender. I find that to be extremly unhelpful in the cultural moment we're in right now.
This book has so much to offer, though. I find Rolheiser to be one of my favorite authors now. He really gets life, and he really gets God. Even in the context of some real disagreements I have with his theology, I absolutely love his writings on God. Very rich, very deep, very good.
Rating: 8.75/10, five stars!
Finding God in the ordinary things.
Finding out that nothing is truly "ordinary."
Finding the finger of God in our lives, seeing against an infinite horizon.
I will say, I would recommend this to Christians further along in their faith journey. There are some slippery theological conversations that are rich and good, but to someone who has a lesser understanding, or better put, a less firm biblical ground that they're still building up, I would not give this book to them. I do have some disagreements around his perspectives on gender and sexuality, although there was nothing that felt outright unbiblical. Just some grey area nuances that I just see differently from him on. He does a good job not making these convictions of his "hills to die on." (The biggest example of that is his argument of calling God "He" and also "She," since God has both fatherly traits and motherly traits, too, and that He exists beyond gender. I find that to be extremly unhelpful in the cultural moment we're in right now.
This book has so much to offer, though. I find Rolheiser to be one of my favorite authors now. He really gets life, and he really gets God. Even in the context of some real disagreements I have with his theology, I absolutely love his writings on God. Very rich, very deep, very good.
Rating: 8.75/10, five stars!
October 31, 2024
DNF. I got about 30% through the book and had to stop. The book, in my opinion, used gross over generalizations about various subjects but seems to always relate it back to sexual connection or sexuality in one way or another. I understand the connotation of the society we live in where “sex sells” but the relatedness used repeatedly, at least in the beginning of the book, makes it hard to connect or continue to engage in the content.
The author uses the idea of being rewarded by a parent as a child as a way to avoid being incarcerated later in life, which holds some water but is expressed as a very generalized approach.
Overall, the pages I got through I thought the author took round about explanations and somehow related it to sex more than I would’ve expected in a book. I originally bought the book hoping to find a connection and deepen my understanding of faith, but this book seemed more like a pastoral scolding than having theological foundation.
The author uses the idea of being rewarded by a parent as a child as a way to avoid being incarcerated later in life, which holds some water but is expressed as a very generalized approach.
Overall, the pages I got through I thought the author took round about explanations and somehow related it to sex more than I would’ve expected in a book. I originally bought the book hoping to find a connection and deepen my understanding of faith, but this book seemed more like a pastoral scolding than having theological foundation.
January 17, 2023
A beautiful book of essays that enlighten the heart to the beauties and mysteries of God found within many aspects of our lives. Rolheiser communicates deep to the human heart ways in which we might interact with God in our homes, lives, systems, and ethics. Especially impactful is the author’s chapter on blessings. Truly a beautiful book.
January 11, 2023
Challenged my assumptions that Catholicism was all ritual and hardly spiritual. Beautifully written.
January 11, 2025
I was good with most of this but there was a chapter on gender that fell flat. But I like what this guy writes. Lots of wisdom.
March 13, 2025
My favorite Catholic 🔥
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August 2, 2011Sometimes it was hard to see how the parts of this book fit together; I found myself re-skimming the chapters to reassure myself that I hadn't missed anything. However, feeling a need to re-read some of it is also a good thing; I found most of this book worth remembering. Rolheiser gave great advice about maintaining healthy spirituality--realizing the limitations of life, mourning those limitations, recognizing the role of religion and spirituality in filling our emptiness. He strikes an admirable balance between the typical attitude of the Catholic Church and the typical attitude of secular society to sexuality. The former devalues passion, the latter devalues restraint. I found that Rolheiser described the power of sex very well. Overall, this was a refreshing view of Catholic spirituality that reawakens my appreciation of that tradition. Many more Catholics should read this book; it's the sanest and most insightful thing I've seen in Catholic writing in months.
January 16, 2016
This book was pretty fantastic, and it makes me want to return to his The Holy Longing, as well as pick up some other of his writings. Like some other Christian contemplatives, there are parts of his outlook that would give some conservative Christian readers fits for their lack of Christian particularity/specificity.
March 26, 2016
Fr Rolheiser points a clear path to finding inner peace yet acknowledges the journey is a fragile one. He is one of he very best Spiritual writers of our time. Take this with you - for times when you can read quietly - there is much to consider: social justice, the paschal mystery, building relationships, etc.
February 7, 2010
Some wonderful insights, some very underdeveloped ideas, some popular notions a bit forced into traditional Christian language. This is one book I would have liked to discuss with the author at length
May 14, 2015
Rolheiser speaks to my soul. I resonate with his longing for a new innocence. For eyes to see God in all people and all places. He has a generosity and tenderness in his understanding of God's nature.
I was blessed to read this as part of my weekly getaways with God.
I was blessed to read this as part of my weekly getaways with God.
July 11, 2008
A wonderful book for allowing ourselves to look at the big pictures. To see ourselves as part of creation and God's special chld.
June 10, 2010
The beginning of this book was really helpful and inspiring but the back half got a bit snarky.
March 26, 2016
It was good, but nothing special
December 19, 2015
I really enjoyed this book. Rohlheiser puts life in perspective and enhances the view of God in our lives. I strong recommend.
August 8, 2021
This is vintage Rolheiser, though not his best (which would be The Holy Longing) but intimations thereof.
Displaying 1 - 19 of 19 reviews