Instrument of Peace: Meditations on the Prayer of Saint Francis
Alan Paton
May 2025 · Christian Audio · Narrated by Mike Lenz
headphones
Audiobook
2 hr 51 min
Unabridged
family_home
Eligible
info
reportRatings and reviews aren’t verified Learn More
Want a 19 min sample? Listen anytime, even offline.
Add
About this audiobook
Lord, Make Me an Instrument of Thy Peace.
Thus begins the beloved prayer of the Italian friar Saint Francis of Assisi, which well expresses his sentiments as a preacher of peace, love, and unity. Author and anti-apartheid activist Alan Paton drew upon the Prayer of Saint Francis to write Instrument of Peace (originally titled Instrument of Thy Peace) while his wife Dorrie lay dying of emphysema. Among many others, Paton said he wrote this book for those who wish with all their hearts to be better, purer, less selfish, more useful; who do not wish to be cold in love, and who know that being cold in love is perhaps the worst sin of them all; who wish to keep their faith bright and burning in a dark and faithless world; and who seek not so much to lean on God as to be the active instrument of His peace.
"Sometimes we cannot pray because we are fallen into a melancholy and therefore have for the time lost our hope and our faith and have no one to pray to," Paton wrote. "I am in unrepayable debt to Francis of Assisi, for when I pray his prayer, or even remember it, my melancholy is dispelled, my self-pity comes to an end, my faith is restored, because of this majestic conception of what the work of a disciple should be."
Thus begins the beloved prayer of the Italian friar Saint Francis of Assisi, which well expresses his sentiments as a preacher of peace, love, and unity. Author and anti-apartheid activist Alan Paton drew upon the Prayer of Saint Francis to write Instrument of Peace (originally titled Instrument of Thy Peace) while his wife Dorrie lay dying of emphysema. Among many others, Paton said he wrote this book for those who wish with all their hearts to be better, purer, less selfish, more useful; who do not wish to be cold in love, and who know that being cold in love is perhaps the worst sin of them all; who wish to keep their faith bright and burning in a dark and faithless world; and who seek not so much to lean on God as to be the active instrument of His peace.
"Sometimes we cannot pray because we are fallen into a melancholy and therefore have for the time lost our hope and our faith and have no one to pray to," Paton wrote. "I am in unrepayable debt to Francis of Assisi, for when I pray his prayer, or even remember it, my melancholy is dispelled, my self-pity comes to an end, my faith is restored, because of this majestic conception of what the work of a disciple should be."
About the author
Political activist Alan Steward Paton was born on January 11, 1903 in Natal, South Africa. He attended Maritzburg College and Natal University. He taught at Ixopo High School and Maritzburg College. In 1935, he was appointed principal of Diepkloof Reformatory for African Boys in Johannesburg and became interested in race relations. Although he intended to become a full-time writer after the publication of his first book, he instead became involved in politics. He was a member of the Liberal Party of South Africa, serving as vice-president, chairman, and president before the party was forced to disband in 1968 because of its anti-apartheid views. Paton is best known for his political activism and his first novel, Cry, the Beloved Country. He also wrote a second novel, Too Late the Phalarope, and two autobiographies, Toward the Mountains and Journey Continued. He died on April 12, 1988 in Lintrose, Botha's Hill, Natal.
Rate this audiobook
Tell us what you think.
Listening information
Smartphones and tablets
Install the Google Play Books app for Android and iPad/iPhone. It syncs automatically with your account and allows you to read online or offline wherever you are.
Laptops and computers
You can read books purchased on Google Play using your computer's web browser.
