One of Cardinal Ratzinger's most important and widely read books, this volume is a revised second edition with an improved translation and an in-depth preface by the Cardinal. As he states in the preface, since this book was first published over 30 years ago, many changes and significant events have occurred in the world, and in the Church. But even so, he says he is firmly convinced that his fundamental approach in this book is still very timely and crucial for the spiritual needs of modern man.

Prayer is essential to the life of faith. In this superb book, based on Pope Benedict's weekly teaching, he examines the foundational principles of the life of prayer. Believers of various backgrounds and experience in prayer-from beginners to spiritually advanced-will be enriched by this spiritual masterpiece.

In this book, Joseph Ratzinger (Pope Benedict XVI) gives us profound meditations on what our life in Christ should be like as it is lived through the various Seasons and Feasts of the liturgical year. This book also includes thoughts on other spiritual and secular themes such as the true nature of peace, why it is difficult for so many to experience joy, the relationship between spirit and matter, vacation and rest, etc.

Considered by Joseph Ratzinger devotees as his greatest work on the liturgy, this profound and beautifully written treatment of the "great prayer of the Church" will help listeners to deepen their understanding of the rites of the Church. The cardinal discusses fundamental misunderstandings of the Second Vatican Council's intentions for liturgical renewal, especially about the priest's orientation of prayer to the Father, the placement of the tabernacle in churches, and the posture of kneeling.

Since Pope Benedict XV1 died he has had a remarkably good press. Indeed many have argued that there is a natural evolution between Pope Benedict`s mission and that of his successor Pope Francis. Here for the first time are assembled a collection of Pope Benedict`s most important public speeches and addresses. Dubbed and dismissed by many as an unrepentant traditionalist, we now see a man of profound intelligence and wisdom on matters relating not just to religion but to what is not termed ` The Common Good`.

Based on Pope Benedict XVI's weekly teaching on the relationship between Christ and the Church, this book tells the drama of Jesus' first disciples—his Apostles and their associates—and how they spread Jesus' message throughout the ancient world. Far from distorting the truth about Jesus of Nazareth, insists Pope Benedict, the early disciples remained faithful to it, even at the cost of their lives.

Pope Benedict XVI's second encyclical, Saved in Hope, ("Spe Salvi" in Latin) takes its title from St. Paul, who wrote, "In hope we have been saved." In this audiobook, the Holy Father continues a line of thought he began with his first encyclical, God Is Love. Love and Hope are closely related in the spiritual life. Love of God involves hope or trust in God. According to the Catechism of the Catholic Church, "The virtue of hope responds to the aspiration to happiness which God has placed in the heart of every man."

Since resigning from the papacy in 2013, the first pope in more than 700 years to do so, Pope Benedict has lived quietly in a convent in the Vatican gardens in Rome. He has devoted himself to a life of prayer and study and has vowed to remain silent, until now. So much controversy still surrounds Pope Benedict’s time in office - in this book, written with best-selling German author Peter Seewald, he addresses the issues of his papacy and reveals how, at his late age, governing and reforming the Church was beyond him.

In his first Encyclical, Pope Benedict helps to clarify the meaning of love. He examines the nature of various kinds of love—human love and divine love, eros, friendship, and charity. He writes beautifully and inspirationally of how man was made for love by the God who is love, the God who became one of us out of love—Jesus Christ.

After the Bible, The Imitation of Christ by Thomas Kempis is the favorite book of Catholics throughout the world and has been the spiritual guide of the saints since it first appeared in 1418. And of the English editions, none can equal this inspiring translation of Bishop Richard Challoner. This book speaks to the soul of every true Christian, reminding him of the fleeting nature of earthly joy as opposed to the eternity of happiness with God.

Most Christians are familiar with the Apostle Paul's teaching that Christ is the "Bridegroom" and the Church is the "Bride." But what does this really mean? And what would ever possess Paul to compare the death of Christ to the love of a husband for his wife? If you would have been at the Crucifixion, with Jesus hanging there dying, is that how you would have described it? How could a first-century Jew like Paul, who knew how brutal Roman crucifixions were, have ever compared the execution of Jesus to a wedding?

The Story of a Soul conveys St. Therese of Lisieux's "Little Way" of spiritual childhood - her "elevator" to Heaven, as she called it. This method was approved by Pope Pius XI as a way for all to grow in holiness through unfailing confidence and childlike delight in God's merciful love. Again and again in this audiobook, St. Therese shows us how her "Little Way" of love and trust comes straight from Sacred Scripture.

In recent years, Christians everywhere are rediscovering the Jewish roots of their faith. Every year at Easter time, many believers now celebrate Passover meals (known as Seders) seeking to understand exactly what happened at Jesus' final Passover, the night before he was crucified. Jesus and the Jewish Roots of the Eucharist shines fresh light on the Last Supper by looking at it through Jewish eyes.

The City of God is one of the most important works of Christian history and philosophy ever written. The writings of St. Augustine are as intriguing to the casual reader as it is to Christian researchers. St. Augustine's work provides insight into Western thought and the development of Western civilizations. The City of God provides the reader with an artful contrast between earthy cities and those in heaven as a representation of the eternal struggle between good and evil. The City of God was originally penned in the early 5th century as a response to the prevalent belief that Christianity was to blame for the fall of Rome. St. Augustine is known as one of the most influential Fathers of the Catholic Church. Born November 13, 354, Augustine would eventually be recognized as a Saint by the Catholic Church, the Eastern Christian Church, and the Anglican Communion.

A story of spiritual awakening, St. Augustine's Confessions is a fascinating look at the life of an eminent Christian thinker. Widely seen as one of the first Western autobiographies ever written, it chronicles the life and religious struggles of Augustine of Hippo, from his days as a self-confessed sinner to his acceptance of Christianity as an older adult.