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    The Supreme Gift
    The Supreme Gift
    The Supreme Gift
    Ebook54 pages45 minutes

    The Supreme Gift

    By Paulo Coelho

    4.5/5

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    About this ebook

    "I thought that I had already thought about everything you could think about Love when Henry Drummond's sermon fell into my hands. My life changed a lot from the moment I read the words in this book and tried to put his teaching into practice." Paulo Coelho

    "If I speak in the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I am a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal."

    At some point, all of us have heard this passage from St. Paul's Letter to the Corinthians. But do we really understand his message?
    At the end of the 19th century, the young missionary Henry Drummond was asked to replace a famous preacher. Though at the beginning he did not convince the audience, they were soon captivated by his analysis of the words of the Apostle Paul.
    This sermon, The Greatest Thing in the World, has become a classic and is, without doubt, one of the most beautiful texts ever written on love. Drummond broke it down into the following nine elements: patience, kindness, generosity, humility, gentleness, dedication, tolerance, sincerity and innocence.
    Contrary to what we are used to hearing, the greatest treasure in the spiritual life is not faith, but love. No matter what your religious beliefs are, this feeling is, without doubt, the most rewarding way to live.

    In The Supreme Gift, Paulo Coelho adapts Henry Drummond's text, offering a real and powerful message that will help us incorporate love into our daily life and experience all its transformational power in our lives.
    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherSant Jordi
    Release dateJun 18, 2015
    ISBN9788461680566
    The Supreme Gift
    Author

    Paulo Coelho

    One of the most influential writers of our time, Paulo Coelho is the author of thirty international bestsellers, including The Alchemist, Warrior of the Light, Brida, Veronika Decides to Die, and Eleven Minutes. He is a member of the Brazilian Academy of Letters and a United Nations Messenger of Peace. Paulo is the recipient of 115 international prizes and awards, among them, the Chevalier de l'Ordre National de la Légion d'Honneur (Legion of Honor). Born in Rio de Janeiro in 1947, he soon discovered his vocation for writing. He worked as a director, theater actor, songwriter, and journalist. In 1986, a special meeting led him to make the pilgrimage to Saint James Compostela (in Spain). The Road to Santiago was not only a common pilgrimage but a turning point in his existence. A year later, he wrote The Pilgrimage, an autobiographical novel that is considered the beginning of his literary career. He lives in Geneva, Switzerland.

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    Reviews for The Supreme Gift

    4.5/5

    53 ratings6 reviews

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    • 5/5
      Beautiful! Short read. It is simple to understand yet deeply profound message
    • 5/5
      It is different from other books by the author.
      The style, language, diction and central theme. It is nonetheless a beautiful read.
    • 5/5
      Paulo brings to life a message preached a long time ago. I have never seen love explained in simple and yet practical steps. Thank you so much, I am blessed. I will be a better person as a result of this book. Love is eternal
    • 5/5
      Perfect book to explain love.. beautiful masterpiece from the author
    • 4/5
      It was written straight forwardly. After reading the book, it changed my perception towards love. Love is what everybody needs in order to make the world a better place. Paulo did a great job in this book.
    • 5/5
      nice book, so much information I gained. thanks a lot.

    Book preview

    The Supreme Gift - Paulo Coelho

    Translated from Paulo Coelho's Portuguese original

    by Margaret Jull Costa.

    Original Title: The Greatest Thing in the World (Henry Dummond, 1851-1897), freely adapted by ©Paulo Coelho, 1991

    (http://paulocoelhoblog.com/)

    Translated from Paulo Coelho's Portuguese original by Margaret Jull Costa, 2013.

    Published by: Sant Jordi Asociados, Agencia Literaria S.L.U.

    Barcelona, Spain

    www.santjordi-asociados.com

    Cover design: Mireia Barreras, 2013.

    Cover image: Stock.xchng Thiago Ariano.

    Layout design: Mercè Roig, 2013.

    All rights reserved.

    No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without the prior written permission of the publishers.

    ISBN 978-84-616-8056-9

    Do you see this woman? I entered your house; you gave me no water for my feet, but she has wet my feet with her tears and wiped them with her hair. You gave me no kiss, but from the time I came in she has not ceased to kiss my feet. You did not anoint my head with oil, but she has anointed my feet with ointment. Therefore I tell you, her sins, which are many, are forgiven—for she loved much. But he who is forgiven little, loves little.

    Luke 7: 44-47

    Towards the end of the nineteenth century, on a chilly spring afternoon, a group of men and women from different parts of England met together to listen to the most famous preacher of the day, eager to hear what he had to say.

    However, having spent eight months travelling in various countries of the world, engaged in the exhausting work of evangelisation, the preacher felt completely drained and empty. He looked at the small audience, attempted a few phrases, then gave up. The Spirit of God had not touched him that afternoon.

    Feeling sad and not knowing quite what to do, he turned to another missionary who was among those present. The young man had recently returned from Africa and might have something interesting to say, and so the preacher asked him to speak in his place.

    The people who had gathered in that garden in Kent felt slightly disappointed.

    No one knew who this young missionary was. In fact, he wasn’t even really a missionary. He had decided not to be ordained as a minister because he had doubts that this was his true vocation.

    In search of a reason to live and in search of himself, he had spent two years in deepest Africa, inspired by the example of other people in pursuit of an ideal.

    The audience in that garden in Kent were not at all pleased with this change of speaker. They

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