REVIEWS

How Strong Women Pray - review and interview

How Strong Women Pray by: Bonnie St. John Religion – inspirational Hachette Book Group ISBN# 0446579262 Interview with Bonnie St. John

We all face adversity in our lives. How we retain our sensibilities is as personal as there are different people. Author Bonnie St. John’s life story (so far!) is the tale of many lives lived. She lost a leg as a child and was sexually abused by her step-father. How Strong Women Pray is Bonnie’s story as well as 25 other amazing, graceful and impressive women like Barbara Bush, Maya Angelou and Edie Falco. In different ways, each of these women has utilized prayer to bring peace to their lives.

U.S. former First Lady, Barbara Bush is the mother of George W. Bush, President of the United States and Jeb Bush, former Governor of Florida. Mrs. Bush has a reputation for being a strong attentive mother. Her “Barbara’s principles” are a set of rules that her children were raised by. In her section of How Strong Women Pray, Mrs. Bush talks about believing in the power of prayer. While her son George W. Bush has been President, she said she has prayed for her son every day. Mrs. Bush said, “one of her favorite parts of the Bible is the Beatitudes….I love the Beatitudes and I am trying to live my life by them.”

Maya Angelou, too, has already lived many lives. She has been an educator, historian, author, actress, playwright, civil rights activist, producer, director and ultimately, the United States’ most beloved contemporary poet. After a major revelation through prayer, Ms. Angelou says, “now, I pray all the time.”

Golden Globe, Emmy and SAG award winner, accomplished stage actor Edie Falco spent many years as Carmela Soprano, Tony Soprano’s long suffering wife on the HBO series, The Sopranos. Edie Falco came to know the power of prayer when she became sober through Alcoholics Anonymous. Sobriety from alcohol came to Edie one morning when “she woke up and said to herself, I’M DONE.”

How Strong Women Pray is an honest book. Each woman approaches prayer in a different way. These women face the turbulence and chaos of private lives as well as the rigors of modern society. None of these women are victims. They deal with “life on life’s terms.” Without hailing their bravado they share their stories in an effort to provide help for someone else.

Bonnie St. John paused in her very busy life to answer some of my questions.

1. How were the women chose for this book? Because I wasn’t looking for people who were famous for praying, I wasn’t sure who to ask.

I asked a lot of people whether they prayed or not! A lot of people either did not or weren’t willing to talk about it. I had to get a lot of referrals and recommendations from other people. For example, Kathy Ireland recommended Marilyn McCoo. In the end, I had a lot of help from God to get so many prominent women to be willing to talk about prayer, really open their hearts and trust me to write about it.

2. How does prayer nourish you personally?

In every way. Now I pray throughout the day—before a meeting, before a speech, before bed. It helps me to stay confident, loving and focused on what really matters. It gives me courage to do the right thing. I am not saying I am perfect, but with prayer I am a better person.

3. What U.S. Presidential administration did you work in?

The Clinton Administration.

4. In your opinion, is there a big difference between spirituality and organized religion?

Jesus encouraged us to focus more on our relationship with God than on hundreds of rules created by the Jewish leaders. I love going to church and being part of a community, but I want to be in a community that focuses on God more than itself.

5. How does your Higher Power manifest itself in your daily life?

When I remember to pray and stay close, I am more relaxed and more confident. I can make decisions based on God’s love and God’s plan rather than my own ego. I can offer feel the difference of how I would behave or what I would do if I did it my way v. God’s way. Kathy Ireland described a situation where she wanted to make angry remarks at her husband, but when she prayed, she was able to talk to him in a more loving way. In the book, an Admiral talks about finding a solution to a big scandal in the Navy through prayer, a TV producer finds inspiration for a new show, a businesswoman saves 100 people from Hurricane Katrina—prayer definitely makes a difference in the real world.

6. Are women stronger believers than men?

Not necessarily, but I think we talk about it more! In How Strong Women Pray, there are stories of husbands leading wives to church and wives leading husbands to church. I think it can go either way.