Last November 14, the Augustinian Recollect Friar Bruno D’Andrea presented his new work at the Librería Paulinas de San Bernardo in Madrid: In the one Christ we are one. Augustinian spirituality at the heart of life. . The event gathered members of the Augustinian Recollect family, university professors and readers interested in the thought of Saint Augustine. The presentation was conducted by Fr. Alfonso Davila, director of communication of the Order.
The new book, published by Editorial Paulinas, was born from the desire to make the richness of Augustinian spirituality accessible to the general public, uniting academic rigor with pastoral experience. The author, who holds a doctorate in theology and is a specialist in patristics, wanted to show how the spiritual keys of St. Augustine-the search, accompaniment, friendship and service-can profoundly illuminate life today.
“This book is like a great loom,” explained Friar Alfonso in his intervention, “where Bruno interweaves Scripture, experience, community life, Augustinian tradition and profound reflection. A tapestry full of colors that presents us with a God who gives himself to us, who cares for us and who walks with us”.
During the presentation, Friar Bruno shared the keys to his work with a deep and close discourse. “This book is born of three fundamental motivations”.explained the author. The first, his immersion in the field of Augustinian studies; the second, his desire to “make accessible to a wider public” the treasure received through contact with the Fathers of the Church; and the third, his concern to “deepen the task of spiritual accompaniment”, a pastoral challenge increasingly necessary in today’s Church.
The structure of the book: a proposal of accompaniment from the Trinity
The book is structured in three parts: Three companions, A Search y At the Heart of Life. Through them, Friar Bruno proposes a common thread based on the metaphor of the pilgrim, very present in the spirituality of St. Augustine.
The first part stresses that “Father, Son and Holy Spirit are the three great companions of every Christian”, and recalls that Augustine is nourished by a profoundly Trinitarian faith. The second part revolves around the existential quest of the human being: “Who am I? What do I want to be? Who is behind this world? And the third part brings this search down to earth in daily life: “Augustinian spirituality offers orientations for the course of our daily lives”, affirmed Friar Bruno, “to put into practice the teachings of the Master of Nazareth: forgiveness, friendship, mission, service”.
St. Augustine as an inspiration for today
Friar Bruno also shared some particularly provocative images from the book: Lent as a time of pilgrimage, fear as a universal experience that is transformed into trust thanks to Christian friendship, and the washing of feet as a model of service. Christ washes our feet,” said the author, “even if it is hard for us to accept it. And he invites us to do the same with others, as a Church on the way out”.
Bruno pointed out the relevance of Augustinian spirituality in the light of the magisterium of Pope Leo XIV. He underlined three points of contact: the call to unity as a leaven of mission, the commitment to a “disarmed and disarming” peace, and the urgency of a Church open to the world, capable of announcing and allowing herself to be challenged by history.
“This book does not seek to speak only about St. Augustine,” he concluded, “but to dialogue with real life from the richness of his experience. A work that thus becomes an invitation to encounter, discernment and communion. A living, luminous and profoundly human spirituality.
With this publication, Pauline Editions is taking another step forward in its efforts to bring texts that nourish our faith and spiritual life to the general public. In the One Christ We Are One is now available in bookstores and is a key reading for all those who wish to deepen their understanding of Augustinian spirituality with a contemporary perspective.