The Great Discovery

"The Great Discovery" by Norman Maclean is a set of insightful essays from the early 1900s that focuses on the spiritual and moral shifts happening in society during World War I. It vividly illustrates how war impacted communities, exploring themes of loss, faith, and rediscovering purpose. Maclean describes how ordinary people facing death and suffering find themselves experiencing both deeper faith and a sense of connection with God and their neighbors. The book begins with the author's observations in a small community dealing with the initial impacts from the war, detailing how it disrupts their comfortable lives and pushes them towards deeper faith, especially through prayer, showing how shared suffering and crisis leads the community to find God and discover new directions in their lives.