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<DIV>Why would an all-loving God allow suffering? Are not suffering and love opposed to one another? Does suffering have any meaning or benefit? Is there any objective evidence for God, for a soul that will survive bodily death, for the resurrection of Jesus? Who is God anyway – benevolent and loving, or angry and retributive?Fr. Robert Spitzer, S.J., gives a comprehensive response to these questions and many others, explaining the contemporary evidence for God, the soul, and the resurrection. He discusses how God uses suffering to lead us to compassion for others and eternal life. He also shows how the Holy Spirit guides us through times of suffering toward our salvation, explaining the signs and the interior movements that reveal the Spirit's actions.Fr. Spitzer not only addresses the perplexing questions associated with suffering but teaches us how to suffer well. He points out some of the most common mistakes people make when trying to interpret God's motives for allowing or alleviating suffering. He demonstrates why suffering – in combination with love – is one of the most powerful motivating agents for personal, cultural, and societal development.</DIV>

The Light Shines On in the Darkness: Transforming Suffering through Faith

From the days of the apostles, the Church&#39;s pastors and teachers have met, when necessary, to defend and explain the Catholic faith. From the &quot;Council of Jerusalem&quot; in the Acts of the Apostles, through the Councils of Nicaea, Constantinople, Trent, and Vatican II, these meetings of the world&#39;s bishops are some of the most important events in the life of the Church and the most profound expressions of the Church&#39;s teaching authority.More than a history of the twenty-one ecumenical councils, this question-and-answer book provides a practical and theological explanation of them. It provides the historical context that led to each council, the reasons it was convened, the major events that happened during the council, and the impact of its teachings, then and now.While surveying some of the most important issues and controversies in the history of the Church, the author also explains and defends the teaching authority of the bishops as successors to the apostles, particularly when teaching together as a single, united body, in union with the pope.

Church Councils: 100 Questions and Answers

<DIV>Introduction by Joseph Ratzinger (Pope Benedict XVI)Turning towards the Lord presents an historical and theological argument for the traditional, common direction of liturgical prayer, known as "facing east", and is meant as a contribution to the contemporary debate about the Catholic liturgy. Lang, a member of the London Oratory, studies the direction of liturgical prayer from an historical, theological, and pastoral point of view. At a propitious moment, this book resumes a debate that, despite appearances to the contrary, has never really gone away, not even after the Second Vatican Council. Historical research has made the controversy less partisan, and among the faithful there is an increasing sense of the problems inherent in an arrangement that hardly shows the liturgy to be open to the things that are above and to the world to come. In this situation, Lang's delightfully objective and wholly unpolemical book is a valuable guide. Without claiming to offer major new insights, Lang carefully presents the results of recent research and provides the material necessary for making an informed judgment. It is from such historical evidence that the author elicits the theological answers that he proposes. </DIV>

Turning Toward the Lord: Orientation in Liturgical Prayer

<DIV>Chene Heady was a believing Catholic whose daily concerns were shaped primarily by forces other than his faith--career demands, financial decisions, scheduling conflicts, etc. He worked long hours and had limited regular interaction with his wife, also a busy professional, and his young daughter. He was the typical overextended and anonymous modern Catholic man.Then he tried an experiment that dramatically rearranged his life. After reading about the importance of the Church's liturgical year, Heady took up the challenge to live as though the Church's calendar, not the secular one, stood at the center of his life. Every day for a year, he observed the Church's seasons and feasts, and meditated on the Church's daily readings. As he did so, he found that his life, and his relationships, became more meaningful and fruitful.Numbering My Days tells the story of one man's renewal, and it offers an authentic model of spiritual development for anyone.</DIV>

Numbering My Days: How the Liturgical Calendar Rearranged My Life

This historical novel for young people is about the heroic life of Father Willie Doyle, S.J., an Irish Jesuit priest who sacrificed his life serving wounded soldiers in World War I. Father Doyle enjoyed a happy, privileged Victorian childhood in Ireland. Growing up in a loving, faithful Catholic family, he heard the call to serve God as a priest from a very young age. Shortly after his ordination, the First World War broke out, and Father Willie volunteered to serve as a chaplain to the thousands of Irish soldiers fighting in France. This joyful, holy, brave, and compassionate priest left the country he loved and ministered to soldiers in the hell of the trenches, dodging bullets and bombs to ensure that dying soldiers could receive the sacraments. By the time he was killed trying to help a wounded soldier, Father Willie had become greatly loved and esteemed by both Catholics and Protestants fighting in the war. The cause for the canonization of Father Willie Doyle has recently been opened in Rome.

Courage Under Fire: Father Willie Doyle, S.J., Priest and Hero of the First World War

<DIV>In this final volume of his great work, von Balthasar reflects on the New Testament vision of God's revelation of his glory in Christ. This divine 'appearing' is grounded in the self-emptying of the eternal logos in the incarnation, cross and descent into hell. Christ is the man who represents God and is also God; he is a symbol of the worls and is also the world. he dies, but in dying rises into the eternal life of God. It is in Christ's incarnatin and resurrection that the Christian vision is truly expressed and the joining of God and the world in the new and eternal convenant is realised. </DIV>

The Glory of the Lord: A Theological Aesthetics

Nearly a century after his death, G. K. Chesterton comes out with a new book . . . about himself!Renowned Chesterton scholar Dale Ahlquist presents a unique retelling of Chesterton's life in Chesterton’s own words, drawn from hundreds of sources—including material that has not been seen for over a hundred years—and edited into a narrative. Ahlquist has used bits and pieces, sentences and paragraphs, even poems, to allow the Prince of Paradox, while talking about something else, to give many revealing glimpses of himself. Although Chesterton penned an autobiography at the end of his life, he mostly wrote about other people. Here, finally, is the person he neglected to tell us about: G. K. Chesterton.Ahlquist’s careful compilation yields a new, intimate look at the most interesting character in Chesterton’s story: the man holding the pen. We learn about his youth, his beginnings as a writer, his rise as a literary star, his family and friends and foes, his travels, his struggles and temptations, his controversies, his sorting out the mystery of life, and his conversion to the Catholic faith.&#160;For many readers, even those familiar with Chesterton, much of the material in this book will be completely new. Ahlquist also provides an extensive timeline of Chesterton's life, which is itself a compact biography.&#160;&#160;&#160;

I Also Had My Hour: An Alternative Autobiography of G.K. Chesterton

<DIV>Best-selling author Peter Kreeft presents a series of brilliant essays about many of the issues that increasingly divide our Western civilization and culture. He states that "these essays are not new proposals or solutions to today's problems. They are old. They have been tried, and have worked. They have made people happy and good. That is what makes them so radical and so unusual today. The most uncommon thing today is common sense."Kreeft says that one thing we can all do to help save our culture is to gather wisdom as data to preserve and remember, like the monks in the Dark Ages. Data is important and necessary; they are the premises for our conclusions. He presents relevant, philosophical data that can guide us, divided into 7 categories: epistemological, theological, metaphysical, anthropological, ethical, political, and historical. He then explores these categories with classic Kreeft insights, presenting 40 pithy points on how we can implement the data from these categories to help save civilization &ndash; and more importantly, save souls.He emphasizes the single most necessary thing we can do to save our civilization is to have children. If you don't have children your civilization will cease to exist. Before you can be good or evil, you must exist. Having children is heroic because it demands sacrificial love and commitment. Cherishing children is the single most generous and unselfish act that a society can perform for itself.He discusses the "unmentionable elephant in the room". It's sex. Religious liberty is being attacked in the name of "sexual liberty". Our culture war today is fundamentally about abortion, and abortion is about sex. Today we hear astonishing, selfish reasons people give to justify not having children, or killing children through abortion. So let's fight our culture war, which is truly a holy war, with joy and confidence. And with the one weapon that will infallibly win the future: children.</DIV>

How to Destroy Western Civilization and Other Ideas from the Cultural Abyss

<DIV>The Ballad of the White Horse is one of the last great epic poems in the English language. On the one hand it describes King Alfredಙs battle against the Danes in 878. On the other hand it is a timeless allegory about the ongoing battle between Christianity and the forces of nihilistic heathenism. Filled with colorful characters, thrilling battles and mystical visions, it is as lively as it is profound.Chesterton incorporates brilliant imagination, atmosphere, moral concern, chronological continuity, wisdom and fancy. He makes his stanzas reverberate with sound, and hurries his readers into the heart of the battle.This deluxe volume is the definitive edition of the poem. It exactly reproduces the 1928 edition with Robert Austinಙs beautiful woodcuts, and includes a thorough introduction and wonderful endnotes by Sister Bernadette Sheridan, from her 60 years researching the poem. Illustrated.</DIV>

The Ballad of the White Horse

<DIV>This book is a collection of popularly written profiles of some of the leading figures in American Catholic history. The group includes Archbishop John Carroll, Saint Elizabeth Ann Seton, Orestes Brownson, Cardinal James Gibbons, Al Smith, Dorothy Day, Cardinal Francis Spellman, President John F. Kennedy, and others.Collectively, these individuals tell the story of the building and the shaping of the largest religious body in the United States. But this book is more than a historical survey of prominent personalities. Catholics in America explores the ongoing, often controversial, effort of Catholics to work out their identity in a secular, and sometimes hostile, society.Taken together, the chapters pose a fundamental challenge to the conventional wisdom of Catholic Americanist historiography, which takes cultural assimilation for granted. The oldest question in the history of the Catholic Church in the United States may be this: "Is it possible to be a good Catholic and a good American?" This book documents the variety of answers that have been given to date and demonstrates that the question is timelier now than ever before.</DIV>

Catholics in America: Religious Identity and Cultural Assimilation from John Carroll to Flannery O'Connor

<DIV>This is the first archaeological and historical biography of the most fascinating and revered woman in history, the Mother of Christ. Millions of faithful around the world invoke her as their Queen, Protectress and Advocate. But who was this extraordinary woman chosen by God to give birth to the Savior? Michael Hesemann searched for her traces in Italy, Israel, Turkey and Egypt. Based on biblical traditions, legends and archaeological discoveries, he reconstructs the life of Mary of Nazareth, the Mother of the Messiah.From the most ancient icon of Christianity to the Holy House in Loreto, from the Grotto of Nazareth to the refuge of the Holy Family in Egypt, from Mary's residence in Ephesus, Turkey, to Mount Zion and her empty tomb in Jerusalem, this is a journey of discovery, full of surprising insights that deepen our faith in the great mystery of the Mother of God.</DIV>

Mary of Nazareth: History, Archaeology, Legends

Opening credits

Introductory Message

Introduction

Chapter 1꞉ "The Very Worst Scandal of Our Times"

Chapter 2꞉ "Monstrous Doctrines and Prodigious Errors"

Chapter 3꞉ Media Matters

Chapter 4꞉ All in the Family?

Chapter 5꞉ A Case for Openness

Chapter 6꞉ The Church with Nothing to Hide

Closing credits

<div>
Shaw, widely known Catholic writer, speaker and former communications director for the U S Bishops, discusses the abuse of secrecy in the Church, the scandals it has caused and the serious problem of mistrust that exists in the credibility of the Church. Not concerned with the legitimate secrecy that is necessary to protect confidentiality and people&rsquo;s reputations, Shaw is rather concerned here with the stifling, deadening misuse of secrecy that has done immense harm to communion and community in the Church in America.
Shaw shows the secrecy issue is a theological as well as practical problem that raises such questions as: What kind of Church do we want our Church to be, open or closed? What kind of Church should it be? And how much secrecy is compatible with having such a Church? As Pope Benedict XVI has stated, &ldquo;The consequence is clear: we cannot communicate with the Lord if we do not communicate with one another.&rdquo;
The Church is a communion, not a political democracy, and thus openness and accountability are even more crucial for the life of the Church than they are in a democracy. In a talk he gave many years before he became the current Pope, Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger had this to say about the reality of ecclesial communion: &ldquo;Fellowship in the Body of Christ and receiving the Body of Christ means fellowship with one another. This of its very nature includes mutual acceptance, giving and receiving on both sides, and readiness to share one&rsquo;s goods . . . In this sense, the social question is given quite a central place in the theological heart of the concept of communion.&rdquo;
This is a beautiful vision of the Church. Shaw&rsquo;s aim in his book is to make a contribution to realizing this vision in the concrete circumstances of the present day, by helping to end the culture of secrecy, especially within American Catholicism, and replacing the destructive culture with an open, accountable community of faith.
"Throughout his career, Russell Shaw has served admirably Mother Church through his balanced, reasonable, informed, accessible, and forthright writings. Understanding that there are legitimate applications for the use of secrecy in both everyday religious life and secular society, he now addresses the unfortunate and long standing consequences of unnecessary secrecy and the lack of open and effective communication within the Catholic Church. Inhibiting the promotion of truth, knowledge, and accountability and increasing the chances of corruption, the author notes how unnecessary secrecy in the Church also weakens community/"communio;" maintains a second class status for the laity, furthers its "clericalization" and lessens its influence in worldly affairs; creates suspicion both internally and in the outside world; and impedes the speedy and effective just resolution of any number of crises affecting the religious institution today, most conspicuously, the recent sexual scandal. Let's hope the Bishops and other Church insiders recognize this important message of reform on the part of someone so committed to the Catholic faith. - Joseph A. Varacalli, author, The Catholic Experience in America
Russell Shaw has long been a unique -- and uniquely valuable -- voice in American Catholicism. He was for many years the US Bishops' official spokesman, and he has the perspective and insights of an "insider". But Shaw is not an apologist for the hierarchy. He is at once a devout and loyal (and orthodox) member of the faithful, and a sharp critic of the cult of secrecy which so many bishops have cultivated. In this sobering but much-needed book, Shaw shows how some shepherds abused secrecy, and in doing so compounded the sex misconduct crisis with a broader crisis of trust in clerical leadership. But this is not a book about sex-abuse. I
</div>
&nbsp;

Nothing to Hide: Secrecy, Communication and Communion in the Catholic Church (Audiobook)

<DIV>In his missionary journeys, St. Paul spoke in a number of cities in the Greek peninsula including Athens, renowned for its philosophical heritage. He addressed to them the message of the One, Unknown God (Acts 17:22ff). Among those present in the Areopagus (the open city center of Athens) on that day was a certain Denys (Dionysios) who eventually became a disciple of Paul. Centuries later, a corpus of writings appeared bearing the name of the Denys the Areopagite. These texts were considered to be the writings of the first century disciple of the Apostle Paul and thus achieved almost immediate prominence, strongly influencing the lives of St. Maximus the Confessor (d. 662) and St. John Damascene (d.749) in the East and Eriugena (d. 877), St. Bede (d. 735), St. Bernard (d.1153) St. Thomas Aquinas (d. 1272) Nicholas of Cusa (d. 1464), St. John of the Cross (d. 1591), and many other great minds in the West. Later historical studies of Denysಙ texts, especially during the 19th century, showed conclusively that the writings are of a later date (5th century) than had generally been thought. Hence, the appending of ಜPseudo-ಝ before the name of Denys (Pseudo-Denys, Pseudo-Dionysius) became common place. The extraordinary brilliance of the texts themselves, however, has been in no way dimmed. The late Holy Father John Paul II in his monumental encyclical Fides et Ratio warns insistently against an approach to Revelation that shuns metaphysics. The texts of Denys provide a majestic and profound metaphysical perspective. Deeply formed by the Divine Liturgy and the Sacred Scriptures, this mysterious author uses the great insights of Plato and his later disciples, expressing the deepest profundities of the faith in stunningly beautiful writings. In Denys, readers past, present, and future find a penetrating contemplative vision into the Mystery of the Trinity and its creation. This book is a focused exposition of Denysಙ theological understanding with particular attention to the illuminating metaphysical depth of his insight. Care has been taken to prepare a text that is readable for the serious laymen accompanied with footnotes to provide a more detailed background for the scholar. To befriend the saints is to learn how to be the friend of God. In this beautifully written book, William Riordan offers a model of scholarly theology that strives not merely to get the concepts right, but to get the friendship right. Inspired by Denys, Riordan teaches us how to re-think our reductionist understanding of the world, so as to discover afresh the cosmic, liturgical, and Christological path by which God makes us his friends (what the Greek Fathers called "divinization"). By exploring Denys's contemplative wisdom in an manner that restores Denys to us as a great friend in Christ, this much-needed book exemplifies Newman's motto, "Heart speaks to heart." - Matthew Levering, Associate Professor of Theology, Ave Maria University ಜThe figure of Dionysius (Denys) the Areopagite continues to be surrounded in controversy and misunderstanding. In Divine Light William Riordan offers us a reasoned and passionate defense of Denyಙs Christian orthodoxy, and shows how important Denyಙs theology of beauty and divinization is for us today. This study persuasively demonstrates that Denyಙs theology is not Neo-Platonism dressed up in Christian clothing, but rather that Denys makes use of categories drawn from Neo-Platonism to express a truly biblical and liturgical Christian theology. Divine Light is more than just a scholarly study of a noted theologian. It is a work of spiritual theology itself,</DIV>

Divine Light: The Theology of Denys The Areopagite

Book I꞉ Why are questions good?

Book II꞉ Why do I exist?

Book III꞉ Why is faith reasonable?

Book IV꞉ How can you prove that God is real?

Book V꞉ Why believe the Bible?

Book VI꞉ Why is Jesus different?

Book VII꞉ Why be a Catholic?

Book VIII꞉ Why go to Church?

Book IX꞉ Why be moral?

Book X꞉ Why is sex so confusing?

Book XI꞉ Why do we have families?

Book XII꞉ Why are there virtues and vices?

Book XIII꞉ Why pray?

Book XIV꞉ Why aren't we happy?

Book XV꞉ Why is there evil?

Book XVI꞉ Why must we die?

Conclusion

<div>
Atheistic and agnostic writers are aggressively attacking traditional religious beliefs. Philosopher and prolific writer Peter Kreeft is up to the challenge in this work of popular apologetics aimed at both teens and adults. The masterful Kreeft tackles sixteen crucial issues about the deeper meaning of life. The questions that Kreeft explores range from, &ldquo;Is faith reasonable?,&rdquo; Can you prove there is a God?&rdquo;, and &ldquo;Why is Jesus different?,&rdquo; to &ldquo;Why is sex so confusing?,&rdquo; &ldquo;Why is there evil?&rdquo;, and &ldquo;Why must we die?&rdquo;
Kreeft provides thoughtful, lucid, and persuasive answers for believers, unbelievers, and seekers to consider. As always, Kreeft is insightful, inspiring, and entertaining. This book is ideal for those exploring faith for the first time, as well as for confirmation and religious education classes. It&rsquo;s an intellectual and spiritual feast! This is vintage Kreeft.
&ldquo;The good news of the Gospel is as exciting as a murder mystery. For at its heart there is a murder: the murder of God two thousand years ago in Jerusalem. And this God is the greatest of mysteries: who He is and why He put us here, and why He came here and what His plans are for us. The story is literally a matter of life or death &ndash; eternal life or death.&rdquo; &mdash; Peter Kreeft
&ldquo;Be ready to give a reason for the hope that is in you.&rdquo; &mdash; 1 Peter 3:15
</div>

Because God Is Real: Sixteen Questions, One Answer (Audiobook)

The Dynamics of the Liturgy is a constructive critique of the post&ndash;Vatican II liturgical reform through the lens of Joseph Ratzinger&#39;s liturgical and sacramental theology&mdash;written by a former student of the great pope emeritus. For Ratzinger, liturgy is the oxygen of the sacraments, and his sacramental theology, still largely unknown, is the key to understanding his theology of liturgy.This work highlights the specifically ritual dimension of liturgy, and the significance this has for Pope Benedict XVI&#39;s proposed &quot;reform of the reform&quot;. Father Vincent Twomey warns that the Ordinary and Extraordinary Forms of the Roman Rite&mdash;which Pope Benedict XVI had promoted to enrich liturgical practice&mdash;are dangerously drifting apart rather than, as the pope emeritus intended, complementing each other as part of an authentic renewal of the liturgy.

The Dynamics of the Liturgy: Joseph Ratzinger's Theology of Liturgy

Originally commissioned by Exodus 90, the pioneering men’s app, these brief but stirring reflections by acclaimed writer Joseph Pearce show how great literature—including poetry—can help every Catholic man striving for virtue and holiness.&#160;Drawing on luminaries such as Homer, Dante, St. John Henry Newman, Chesterton, Tolkien, and C. S. Lewis, Pearce shows that literature, far from being a dead relic of the past, tackles crucial questions which are directly relevant to modern men. Among the many great books he reflects on for the benefit&#160;of men include The Odyssey, The Aeneid, Beowulf, The Divine Comedy, Hamlet, Brideshead Revisited, The Hobbit, Chronicles of Narnia, The Ball and Cross. Some of the classic works&#160;of poetry he comments on for men's inspiration include The Hound of Heaven, God's Grandeur, Twelfth&#160;Night, The Tiger and If.What does Shakespeare say about the dangers of lust? How does God pursue the sinner like a “Hound of Heaven”? What does it mean to be soldiers of Christ on active duty in the Church Militant? What sort of men do we want our sons to become? What does a great poet-saint teach us about the power of the sign of the cross to exorcise demons? How can we nurture a faith which is fearless?&#160;In a culture that fosters toxic masculinity on the one hand and effeminacy on the other, the literary giants of the past offer an inspiring alternative vision of true manhood, one that Catholic men are called to embrace as they “work out [their] salvation with fear and trembling” (Phil 2:12).

Great Books for Good Men: Reflections on Literature and Manhood

<DIV>Thomas Howard shows us that every room of your house-the living room, the kitchen, the bedroom, and even the bathroom-is a holy place where God's grace awaits you, if only you know how to recognize His presence there. With a rich awareness of God's all-encompassing love, Howard takes you on a spiritual tour through your own home and shows you how everything in it can lead you closer to God.In each room, Howard shows you the surprising ways you can meet God there. With wonderful insights, he reveals how, even in your daily activities you can meet the same God who came to Israel in the terror, smoke and fire in the Tabernacle, and the God who died for us on Cross. But they're by no means confined to a lofty spiritual plane: Howard sees chances to love and serve God, and sees His gentle hand, in the most seemingly dull and ordinary of places and actions.So take up this book to find out how cooking and cleaning, having family dinners together, and all the other commonplace actions that make up the fabric of your daily life can actually disclose God's presence to you. Your daily life as well as your devotional life will be forever transformed by this unusual look at how lovingly God awaits us even in the smallest things.</DIV>

Hallowed Be This House: Finding Signs of Heaven in Your Home

Foreword

Preface

Introduction꞉ Do We Hold These Truths?

1 The Legacies of Athens, Jerusalem, and Rome

1 The Legacies of Athens, Jerusalem, and Rome (Part 2)

2 The Medieval Roots of Constitutionalism

3 The Loss of Reason and Nature

4 Enter꞉ Martin Luther—Exit꞉ Christendom

5 Richard Hooker꞉ Restoring Natural Law

6 Thomas Hobbes and the Rise of Secular Absolutism

7 The Divine Right of Kings and Its Enemies

8 John Locke꞉ Problem or Solution?

9 A Restorative Founding on Reason

10 The Antipodes꞉ The American Revolution versus the French Revolution

11 Critiquing the Critics꞉ Why They Go Wrong about What Was Right

12 Is Slavery the Founding's Fault?

Epilogue꞉ If the Founding Was Good, Why Did Things Go Bad?

The Founding of the American Republic is on trial. Critics say it was a poison pill with a time-release formula; we are its victims. Its principles are responsible for the country's moral and social disintegration because they were based on the Enlightenment falsehood of radical individual autonomy.
In this well-researched book, Robert Reilly declares: not guilty. To prove his case, he traces the lineage of the ideas that made the United States, and its ordered liberty, possible. These concepts were extraordinary when they first burst upon the ancient world: the Judaic oneness of God, who creates ex nihilo and imprints his image on man; the Greek rational order of the world based upon the Reason behind it; and the Christian arrival of that Reason (Logos) incarnate in Christ. These may seem a long way from the American Founding, but Reilly argues that they are, in fact, its bedrock. Combined, they mandated the exercise of both freedom and reason.
These concepts were further developed by thinkers in the Middle Ages, who formulated the basic principles of constitutional rule. Why were they later rejected by those claiming the right to absolute rule, then reclaimed by the American Founders, only to be rejected again today? Reilly reveals the underlying drama: the conflict of might makes right versus right makes might. America's decline, he claims, is not to be discovered in the Founding principles, but in their disavowal.
This expanded edition of America on Trial includes a new chapter on the American founding and slavery.

America on Trial, Expanded Edition: A Defense of the Founding (Audiobook)

<DIV>Acclaimed spiritual writer Fr. Wilfrid Stinissen presents insightful reflections on the Holy Spirit, the third Person of the Holy Trinity, emphasizing the importance of the Spirit in the life of a Christian. He illustrates that the Holy Spirit desires to live in us so that we can love God and others with God's own love. As the Holy Spirit descended upon the early Church at Pentecost to set the world ablaze with the fire of divine love, so He wants to do with us.God, who is One, also desires the Church to be one, Fr. Stinissen writes. The Lord wants to unify all Christians in one holy Church, and all people in one body. The Holy Spirit is the great unifier, he says, for it is he who makes the Father and the Son one God. If Christians let him live within them, they will grow in unity.</DIV>

The Holy Spirit, Fire of Divine Love

<DIV>Joseph Ratzinger, now Pope Benedict XVI, has been the most visible member of the Catholic clergy in the world second only to Pope John Paul II. His status as the head of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith made him one of the most discussed churchmen in recent history.On the occasion of Ratzingers's seventy-fifth birthday, his former students selected essays, lectures, letters, and conferences that Ratzinger has written in recent years- writing that they feel best represents his position on issues of theology, the modern world, secularism, non-Christian religious, and other key topics of the Catholic Church. This book, characterized by Ratzinger's concisely reasoned style, is an invaluable resource to those who wish to understand the modern Church and the thinking of Pope Benedict XVI, as well as a treasured volume for those who are students of Ratzinger's theology. </DIV>

Pilgrim Fellowship of Faith: The Church as Communion

Opening Credits

1. Receiving the Gift

2. Living His Life

3. Establishing Contact

4. Reading The Signs

5. Offering It Up

6. Feeding Our Souls

7. Becoming The Body

8. Keep Showing Up

Closing Credits

The Eucharist is no mere symbol. It is the key to life. More specifically, it is the key to your very identity.
When we look carefully at the Blessed Sacrament, under the signs of bread and wine, we discover that we were made not simply to receive God, to be nourished by his gifts, or to draw close to him. In fact, &ldquo;we were made to become Him.&rdquo; In Your Eucharistic Identity, Father Gregory Pine shows that Christ, through the Sacrament, divinizes us in our whole being.
But the Eucharist is not magic. We have to receive the gift of his Eucharistic presence, and preparing for such a great banquet requires time, work, and attention. To become like Christ, we must be ready to be given to others, in a free, radical gift of love.
Father Pine&rsquo;s sacramental guide to the fullness of life&mdash;at once thought-provoking and practical, ancient and new&mdash;offers Christians a simple, clear guide for their path.

Your Eucharistic Identity: A Sacramental Guide to the Fullness of Life (Audiobook)

<DIV>This work features the most discussed topics of the life of the Church, treated with unique frankness and depth by the Church's spiritual and theological leader. In this collection of essays, theologian Joseph Ratzinger, now Benedict XVI, tackles three major issues in the Church today-the nature of the Church, the pursuit of Christian unity, and the relationship of Christianity to the secular/political power. The first part of the book explores Vatican II's teaching on the Church, what it means to call the Church "the People of God", the role of the Pope, and the Synod of Bishops. In part two, Ratzinger frankly assesses the ecumenical movement-its achievements, problems, and principles for authentic progress toward Christian unity. In the third part of the work, Ratzinger discusses both fundamental questions and particular issues concerning the Church, the state and human fulfillment in the Age to come. What does the Bible say about faith and politics? How should the Church work in pluralistics societies? What are the problems with Liberation Theology? How should we understand freedom in the Church and in society? Beneath a penetrating analysis on these important topics by this brilliant teacher and writer, both concise and also surprising, is revealed the passion of a great spiritual leader. The result is an exciting and stimulating work, which can be provoking, but never boring. </DIV>

Church, Ecumenism and Politics: New Endeavors in Ecclesiology

<DIV>Since Jesus told us to be perfect, and Vatican Council II emphasized a universal call to holiness for all Christians, how do we learn to do that? One great way is to learn from and pray with the saints of the Catholic Church. We can follow in the footsteps of the ordinary Catholic men and women who fought the good fight to be holy until the end of their lives &ndash; and won that fight.The saints have been the inspiration of faithful Catholics for hundreds of years because they show us what it looks like to follow Jesus Christ despite countless challenges and obstacles. This unique book contains short biographies of multiple saints for every day of the year, including an intercessory prayer to each saint. This helps the reader to learn about, and pray with, the numerous saints of the Church, "the communion of saints" whose personalities and challenges often resonate with our own.This collection also provides wonderful resource information to learn more about individual saints, inspiring quotes from saints, and detailed explanations of Catholic terms that often befuddle us.The saints in this collection come from every period in his- tory, countries, age ranges, and vocations. They show us that holiness truly is a path open to all who seek to follow Jesus Christ. By reading about the lives of the saints each day, we can learn how to apply their life lessons to our own daily challenges. By praying daily for their help, we can ask for their spiritual help and wisdom &ndash; and point ourselves toward Heaven, where we hope to spend eternity with God.</DIV>

Saints: Becoming an Image of Christ Every Day of the Year

<DIV>Sister Faustina Kowalska, the Polish nun who had mystical encounters with the merciful Christ in the early 20th century, was canonized a saint by Pope John Paul II. The Pope also declared the first Sunday after Easter to be Divine Mercy Sunday, and it was during the vigil Mass of this feast that the Holy Father received his last Holy Communion and drew his last breath. The message of Divine Mercy as communicated through Sister Faustina is both a starting point and a recurring theme for Cardinal Schönborn's discussion of God's merciful love. The Archbishop of Vienna explores the presence of God's great mercy in the Scriptures, Tradition, the life of Christ, and the sacraments and works of the Church, while raising important questions along the way, such as, "What is the relationship between mercy and justice?" "Mercy is the central nucleus of the Gospel message. In our time humanity needs a strong proclamation and witness of God's mercy . . . Go forth and be witnesses of God's mercy, a source of hope for every person and for the whole world." - Pope Benedict XVI</DIV>

We Have Found Mercy: The Mystery of God's Merciful Love

Foreword by Most Rev. Charles J. Chaput, O.F.M. Cap., Archbishop of Philadelphia

Chapter One꞉ “You Brought the Imam with You”

Chapter Two꞉ Sorrows and Afflictions

Chapter Three꞉ Of God and Djinn

Chapter Four꞉ Resident Alien

Chapter Five꞉ The Road from Zarathustra

Chapter Six꞉ Divine Condescension

Chapter Seven꞉ Borderlands

Chapter Eight꞉ Three Feasts

Chapter Nine꞉ Et Incarnatus Est

Chapter Ten꞉ The House on the Cape of Olives

Chapter Eleven꞉ From Fire, by Water

Acknowledgments

Sohrab Ahmari was a teenager living under the Iranian ayatollahs when he decided that there is no God. Nearly two decades later, he would be received into the Roman Catholic Church.
In From Fire, by Water, he recounts this unlikely passage, from the strident Marxism and atheism of a youth misspent on both sides of the Atlantic to a moral and spiritual awakening prompted by the Mass. At once a young intellectual's finely crafted self-portrait and a life story at the intersection of the great ideas and events of our time, the book marks the debut of a compelling new Catholic voice.
&nbsp;

From Fire, by Water: My Journey to the Catholic Faith (Audiobook)

Hans Urs von Balthasar (1905&ndash;1988), a prolific Catholic theologian from Switzerland, has been called a &quot;new Father of the Church&quot;. His work&mdash;shaped not only by traditional theology and philosophy, but by literature, art, and music&mdash;made an impact on both Saint John Paul II and Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI. Aidan Nichols, O.P., describes Balthasar&#39;s fifteen-volume masterwork, the Trilogy, as &quot;perhaps the high-point of twentieth-century Catholic theology&quot;.Yet for all Balthasar&#39;s brilliance, the core of his theology is extraordinarily simple:&#160;love&mdash;for God is love. Love lies at the center of life, indeed, at the center of being itself. For Balthasar, the answers to all of man&#39;s big, existential questions revolve around love.The Meaning of the World Is Love, compiled by psychologist Richard Clements, brings Balthasar&#39;s meditations to a wider audience, using brief excerpts from the theologian to walk readers through the landscape of divine love, which is our home. The path of love is the path of self-gift&mdash;as well as of truth, goodness, and beauty&mdash;and it is the only way to genuine fulfillment. Balthasar, as Clements shows, can point us to the very heart of reality: God, who gives himself to us without reserve.

The Meaning of the World Is Love: Selected Texts from Hans Urs von Balthasar with Commentary

<DIV>In the spiritual life, we need a central idea: something so basic and comprehensive that it encompasses everything else. According to Carmelite Father Wilfrid Stinissen, surrender to God, abandonment to the One who loves us completely, is that central reality. The life of Jesus shows us the centrality of abandonment, for it is truly the beginning and the end of his mission on earth. In this simple but profound book, Father Stinissen distinguishes three degrees or stages in abandonment. The first stage consists of accepting and assenting to God's will as it manifests itself in all circumstances of life. The second is actively doing God's will at every moment of one's life. In the third stage, abandonment to God is so complete that one has become a tool in God's hands. At this stage it is no longer I who do God's will, but God who accomplishes his will through me.</DIV>

Into Your Hands, Father: Abandoning Ourselves to the God Who Loves Us

<DIV>The renowned novelist De Wohl, with his usual crisp language and descriptive narrative, as well as irony and humor, presents the colorful and tumultuous times of the early Christian era in this story of intrigue, romance and power politics revolving around Helena, the devoted and saintly mother of Constantine, the first Christian emperor. This historical novel tells the story of the quest for the True Cross through fifty years of the most exciting events in Roman and Christian history. The narrative begins when the Tribune Constantius, a Roman officer stationed in Britain, meets and wins Helena, only daughter of the mystical and oracular King Coel of Britain. Through the course of their early lives together, and during their ten-year separation when Constantius returns to Britian as a conquering Caesar and Helena has become a rejected wife, devoted mother, and militant Christian, there is a sure and convincing portrayal of character growth and personal conflict. Helena's fierce determination to raise Constantine as a warrior son and her gradual discovery and dramatic acceptance of Christianity prepare her for the final miracle of her life discovery of the True Cross, the Living Wood on Calvary. The Living Wood is a chapter from the turbulent half-forgotten pages of early Christian history and legend in which the religious conflicts and problems are handled with moving simplicity. It is also an action-packed novel of those times-with a lesson for us today-that captures with equal skill and tumult and the shouting of the battlefield and the devious plots and counter-plots of the court. </DIV>

The Living Wood: A Novel about Saint Helena and the Emperor Constantine

Dedication

Part One

1.1 The Unity and Divsrsity of Religions

Interlude

1.2 Faith, Religion and Culture

1.2.1 Inclusivism and Pluralism

1.2.2 Is Christianity a European Religion?

1.2.3 Hellenization?

1.2.4 Abraham and Melchizedek

1.2.5 Distinguishing What is Christian

1.2.6 Multireligious and Interreligious Prayer

Part Two

2.1 The New Questions that Arose in the Nineties

2.2.1 The Truth of Christianity? Faith Between Reason and Feeling

2.2.2 Christianity—The True Religion?

2.2.3 Faith, Truth, and Culture

2.3.1 Truth—Tolerance—Freedom. Faith—Truth—Tolerance

2.3.2 Freedom and Truth

<DIV>Is truth knowable? If we know the truth, must we hide it in the name of tolerance? Cardinal Ratzinger engages the problem of truth, tolerance, religion and culture in the modern world. Describing the vast array of world religions, Ratzinger embraces the difficult challenge of meeting diverse understandings of spiritual truth while defending the Catholic teaching of salvation through Jesus Christ. "But what if it is true?" is the question that he poses to cultures that decry the Christian position on man's redemption. Upholding the notion of religious truth while asserting the right of religious freedom, Cardinal Ratzinger outlines the timeless teaching of the Magisterium in language that resonates with our embattled culture. A work of extreme sensitivity, understanding, and spiritual maturity, this book is an invaluable asset to those who struggle to hear the voice of truth in the modern religious world."Beyond all particular questions, the real problem lies in the question about truth. Can truth be recognized? Or, is the question about truth simply inappropriate in the realm of religion and belief? But what meaning does belief then have, what positive meaning does religion have, if it cannot be connected with truth?"&#160; &mdash;Joseph Cardinal Ratzinger From the Preface</DIV>

Truth and Tolerance: Christian Belief and World Religions (Audiobook)

<DIV>Having given the evidence for William Shakespeare's Catholicism in two previous books, literary biographer Joseph Pearce turns his attention in this work to the Bard's most famous play, Romeo and Juliet."Star-crossed" Romeo and Juliet are Shakespeare's most famous lovers and perhaps the most well-known lovers in literary history. Though the young pair has been held up as a romantic ideal, the play is a tragedy, ending in death. What then, asks Pearce, is Shakespeare saying about his protagonists? Are they the hapless victims of fate, or are they partly to blame for their deaths? Is their love the "real thing", or is it self-indulgent passion? And what about the adults in their lives? Did they give the young people the example and guidance that they needed?The Catholic understanding of sexual desire, and its need to be ruled by reason, is on display in Romeo and Juliet, argues Pearce. The play is not a paean to romance but a cautionary tale about the naïveté and folly of youthful infatuation and the disastrous consequences of poor parenting. The well-known characters and their oft-quoted lines are rich in symbolic meaning that points us in the direction of the age-old wisdom of the Church.Although such a reading of Romeo and Juliet is countercultural in an age that glorifies the heedless and headless heart of young love, Pearce makes his case through a meticulous engagement with Shakespeare and his age and with the text of the play itself.</DIV>

Shakespeare on Love: Seeing the Catholic Presence in Romeo and Juliet

<DIV>This book is the 6th book in a series of Socratic explorations of some of the Great Books. The books in this series are intended to be short, clear, and non-technical, thus fully understandable by beginners. Through such Socratic dialogues, Peter Kreeft introduces (or reviews) the basic questions in the fundamental divisions of philosophy: metaphysics, epistemology, anthropology, ethics, logic, and method. In Socrates Meets Hume, Kreeft presents a Socratic examination of enquiry concerning human understanding in relation to the skepticism of Hume, posing questions that challenge the concepts that Hume proposed. Kreeft states that Hume is the "most formidable, serious, difficult-to-refute skeptic in the history of human thought." Kreeft invites you to take part in the process of refuting Hume's skeptical arguments, with the aid of Socrates. Based on an imaginary dialogue between Socrates and Hume that takes place in the afterlife, this profound and witty book makes an entertaining and informative exploration of modern philosophy. </DIV>

Socrates Meets Hume: The Father of Philosophy Meets the Father of Modern Skepticism

<DIV>Distinctiveness of Christianity is an important read for Catholics in such precarious times. Though he begins by examining how and why there is such hostility towards the Church in our society and culture, Father Schall is careful that his analysis of Christianity in current society does not discourage. He encouragingly illustrates the fundamental doctrines and institutions that distinguish and uphold the Church, and suggests ways we can all move towards a Distinctive Spirituality that will strengthen the Church and inspire the world. </DIV>

The Distinctiveness of Christianity: Can We Be Sure of the Things That Matter Most to Us?

<DIV>God is to be found in the simplest of our daily activities and especially through total surrender to whatever is His will for each of us. That is the message of this 18th-century inspirational classic by Jean-Pierre de Caussade. Its encouragement to ""live in the present moment,"" accepting everyday obstacles with faith, humility and love, has guided generations of believers to holiness and spiritual peace. This special volume of the famous spiritual treatise also includes the many insightful letters of Father de Caussade on the practice of self-abandonment. These numerous letters provide a great additional source of wisdom and practical guidance for how to grow in abandonment and to deepen our union with God in our daily lives. De Caussade shows that this practice of self-abandonment to God's will is the key to attaining true peace and virtue, and that it is readily available to all people - from beginners to those well advanced in the spiritual life. He also shows how to determine what God's will is for us. He reveals that it is not extraordinary feats that God expects for our growth in holiness, but rather heroic attention to every detail in our lives and humble acceptance of our daily lot in life as coming from His hand. The rich spiritual lessons in this book have stood the test of time, offering real and practical assistance to all people because its message is simple and clear, one that the reader will find to be a rare treasure of inspiration and direction to be referred to again and again. </DIV>

Abandonment to Divine Providence: With Letters of Father de Caussade on the Practice of Self-Abandonment

Opening Quote and Dedication

Prologue

Chapter 1: The Visit

Chapter 2: The Beginning

Chapter 3: Darkness

Chapter 4: Moving Nowhere

Chapter 5: The Hermitage in the Desert

Chapter 6: Light Blinks On

Chapter 7: The Meeting

Chapter 8: Home and Far Afield

Chapter 9: Velocity

Chapter 10: Pressing Down

Chapter 11: The Chariot That Carried Us Away

Chapter 12: Tethering Man to God

Chapter 13: The Priest Who Stayed

Chapter 14: Darkness and Light

Afterword

In his raw and tender memoir, biographer Kevin Wells pulls readers into the unforgettable story of a parish priest turned hermit, Father Martin Flum, who orchestrated the slow resurrection of his wife, Krista, from the nightmare of her deep wounds and addiction. In gripping fashion, Kevin tells the story of his family&rsquo;s own long suffering, which culminated in the dark spring of 2020, as a strange fear pressed down upon the world and his wife spent most nights drinking away long-held shame. When a near-universal chorus of politicians, medical professionals, and Catholic clergy megaphoned the command to &ldquo;isolate,&rdquo; Kevin couldn&rsquo;t imagine a more dooming word for his family, his marriage, and the life of his wife.&#160; Yet God had other plans. Wells&rsquo; honest tale of inner crisis and hope-filled resurrection takes readers on a spiritual rollercoaster, offering a penetrating exploration of the sacramental grace of marriage and the mysterious movement of God in dry, lonely places. In the journey from darkness to light, three lives&mdash;Krista, Kevin, and Father Flum&mdash;became forever entwined. It is a deeper kind of love story. The chapters on the fits and starts of renewal unfold like the piecemeal opening of a tomb.&#160;The Hermit&#160;is a true account of marital survival, a holy priest, redemption, and even the miraculous, where imprisoned shame and sin are transformed into the joy of freedom.

The Hermit: The Priest Who Saved a Soul, a Marriage, and a Family (Audiobook)