‘The Inspiration of Succession’

LATEST BOOK  Polish-born Father Zbigniew Tyburski, pastor of Ss. Cyril & Methodius Parish, Boonton, has written “The In­spiration of Succession,” a book about a fictional family that achieves success through hard work and harnessing their creative potential in areas of technology and the sciences.

New book by Boonton priest chronicles family’s legacy of hard work, success, helping the poor

BOONTON  Peter and Theresa Mancini, immigrants to the U.S. from Italy, embody the promise — and ultimately the realization — of the American Dream. After years of struggle, sacrifice and hard work, they finally strike it rich, making millions on Peter’s “big idea”: an invention that eases traffic gridlock by carrying passenger cars, like a ski lift, on a cable system above the four bridges out of Manhattan.

Meet the Mancinis — the fictional family that populates “The Inspiration of Succession,” the latest book by Father Zbigniew Tyburski — whose members, down through the generations, each learns to harness their creative potential in various areas of technology and the sciences. Armed with those gifts, they make an array of cutting-edge discoveries and inventions — their own “big ideas” — that not only make themselves rich, but also make significant improvements to the world. Not only that, generations of Mancinis come up with their own “big ideas” to put some of their wealth at the service of the poor — all while staying rooted in their families.

“With this book, I want to show fulfillment through hard work and taking a risk, which people should try to do. Creativity is a facet of every human being, not reserved only for some select people with professions such as painters, sculptors or writers. Any accomplishment is possible. All of heroes of the book express the limitless capacity of human achievement,” said the Polish-born Father Tyburski, pastor of Ss. Cyril & Methodius Parish here, who wrote “Inspiration,” a 93-page work of fiction, last winter during 10 weeks of recovery after suffering a broken leg while on sabbatical in Edmonton, Canada. “The parents inspire their children and grandchildren to be open to everyone and happy and to know that they can do something for others,” he said.

Peter and Theresa’s four well-educated children find success through hard work. Their son, Frank, invents a sink tap that can switch between dispensing water and coffee. Another son, Rick, creates an antenna device that picks up “alive” words of wisdom from a few chosen people of the past. Their youngest son, Luke, builds a device that recognizes a person’s identity and thoughts, writes Father Tyburski in “Inspiration.”

The Mancinis’ daughter, Lucy, discovers a powerful healing product, that she calls “Gesechos,” which contains elements of 217 healing herbs that cures many health issues. She and her husband establish an institute and give the product away to sick people with two suggestions: that recipients make a donation to the institute and volunteer “to help poor, lonely and abandoned people,” the priest writes.

“The poor and abandoned people, who learned it was Lucy’s idea, told her that she had established a heaven on Earth. The world began to show its new face with people’s goodness,” writes Father Tyburski, who tells the story later in the book of how the younger generations of the family work together to help the poor in other ways.

“Inspiration” promotes Catholic values, even through it does not contain lots of religious language or themes. That’s because Father Tyburski said, “I want this book to be open to everyone, not only Catholics.” But he asserted, “Catholic values are there,” such as a rootedness in faith, a devotion to family and serving others, especially the poor.

This book presents a fanciful story that starts with the reality of the family’s Catholic faith, when Peter first meets Theresa at a small shrine in their impoverished village in Italy, underscoring that their lives are rooted in Christ.

“…With God’s blessing, they were a married couple, receiving the Sacrament of Marriage, which to them had a much deeper meaning than only a wedding ceremony…Theresa and Peter were well prepared for their life together and felt God’s essence in their union,” writes Father Tyburski, who previously wrote “The Encyclicals of John Paul II: Foundations of Catholic Faith and Morality,” and has taught about the Polish saint’s social teachings at Seton Hall University, South Orange.

After retiring, Peter and Theresa continue living out their Catholic values by spending more time with their children and grandchildren and inspiring them to perform works of charity.

[“The Inspiration of Succession” is available from booksellers such as Amazon.com and in Polish at Ss. Cyril & Methodius (973) 334-0139.]