A renewal in prayer

“The intention was never to write a book. The intention was to give retreats for people on the path of prayer and to help them understand the path of contemplation.” These words from Fr. Wayne Sattler, pastor of the Church of Saint Anne in Bismarck, gets to the heart of why he wrote and published his first book, And You Will Find Rest.

The path to the publication of his book was long and full of twists that constantly reminded Fr. Sattler that this book was never about him, but instead about renewing the path of prayer as found in the teachings of St. John of the Cross and St. Teresa of Avila.

The process started for Fr. Sattler in his own prayer life as he found himself returning again and again to the teachings of St. John of the Cross. One day many years ago, on the feast of St. John of the Cross, Fr. Sattler read through The Dark Night in 24 hours and everything started to click.

He then spent 30 days discerning his own vocation while staying with some Carmelite Hermits. There, he put together notes for a retreat based on The Dark Night’s insight into prayer. He began giving this retreat for Missionaries of Charity around the world and teaching classes to the diaconate program in the Bismarck Diocese.

As he taught the material, he realized that many seemed to find St. John of the Cross too stark in his descriptions. “As I tried to explain John of the Cross, I found myself resorting to [Teresa of Avila’s] language to help soften what was being described,” explained Fr. Sattler. This inspired him to put together their two great works, The Interior Castle and The Dark Night, to help those he was teaching better understand contemplative prayer. Often, we focus on what we do in prayer as opposed to where God acts.

For close to 15 years, Fr. Sattler gave retreats and taught classes on the path of contemplation in this way. The idea for writing a book sparked from a continuous request from people for a copy of the notes.

“The intention has always been just to guide people in prayer and then wanting this to be in people’s hands so they could have it after I leave their presence,” Fr. Sattler said. The greatest challenge of writing And You Will Find Rest was taking a spoken retreat and turning it into written words.

Finding a publisher

Most of the book was written during his six years living as a diocesan hermit in a one-room cabin in a remote area of the state from 2006-2012. When he was called to return to parish ministry in 2013, he had finished a rough draft and submitted it to a publisher before parting ways due to differences in theology and methods of marketing for profit. At this point, Fr. Sattler believed his book might never be published.

Years later, he was talking to Msgr. Shea, president of the University of Mary, about the University of Mary Press. “I asked him how his printing press was going and he said, ‘Well, it’s not a real money maker,’ and that stirred in me,” described Fr. Sattler. “I came back to him later with [my rough draft] and said, ‘Listen, I have something I don’t want to make money on, I just want to get it out there.”

Father Sattler’s book had found a home. It was published and physical copies were first available in May of this year.

While And You will Find Rest may not make him or the University of Mary Press rich off profits, it has already enriched the lives of many people who have read it, and Fr. Sattler’s desire is for it to continue doing so. The book can be read by and applied to anyone—Catholics, non-Catholics, those just starting or those already proficient in prayer.

“I hope [readers] grow closer to Christ and that they become more aware of God’s activity in prayer,” explained Fr. Sattler. Through his book, Fr. Sattler hopes to teach the importance of what God does in prayer and the sweetness of this tangible experience, just as he did in his previous retreats and classes.

Daily prayer

His advice for anyone hoping to learn from his book is to make a commitment to daily prayer. He also advises the reader early in the introduction that, like the works of St. John of the Cross and St. Teresa of Avila, And You Will Find Rest is not a quick read. It is meant to be patiently read as a lived experience.

Everything about the physical appearance of the book was carefully planned to be conducive to this hands-on approach. The margins of the book were purposefully left wide for annotations. The hard cover was chosen to ensure the book could be read over and over without falling apart.

The cover title and image were also thoughtfully chosen. The title, And You Will Find Rest, references scripture and is a synthesis of the book. The title might seem counterintuitive to some, but as Fr. Sattler explained, “The path of purification is hard, but it does lead to that interior rest in God.” Even the Rembrandt painting on the cover, which was not Fr. Sattler’s original choice, ties together the different elements found in the works of St. John of the Cross and St. Teresa of Avila.

Father Sattler hopes to write and publish a sequel to this book. And You Will Find Rest walks through the first four dwellings of The Interior Castle, the first night of The Dark Night, and then the fifth dwelling of The Interior Castle. But, there remains a sixth and seventh dwelling from The Interior Castle to visit along with the second night in The Dark Night that Fr. Sattler aims to explain in his future book.

If you are looking to grow in understanding of contemplative prayer, And You Will Find Rest is available for purchase at St. Anne’s Parish, Spirit of Life Parish in Mandan, retail stores, Mayo Pharmacy and Parable Christian Store in Bismarck, and University of Mary’s bookstore and Amazon account.

Prayer retreats

Father Sattler will be leading a mini retreat on his new book on two separate occasions— Tuesday, Oct. 6 at Spirit of Life in Mandan, and on Tuesday, Nov. 10 at the Church of Saint Anne in Bismarck, each beginning at 6:30 p.m. He’ll speak about the teachings of St. John of the Cross and St. Teresa of Avila and what God does in prayer. Copies of his book will be available for purchase ($22/copy; prior to or after the retreat either at Saint Anne’s or Spirit of Life), and he will do a short book signing following the discussion. If you are interested in attending, register with Spirit of Life’s parish office by Oct. 1; you may contact the parish office at 663-1660 or [email protected]. The talk will be live-streamed on their Facebook page. For the event at Saint Anne’s, no registration is needed.