Memoir Religion

In Life's Work, an outspoken Christian reproductive justice advocate and abortion provider (one of the few doctors to provide such services to women in Mississippi and Alabama) pulls from his personal and professional journeys as well as the scientific training he received as a doctor to reveal how he came to believe, unequivocally, that helping women in need, without judgment, is precisely the Christian thing to do.

Society is structured on fear, but this memoir shows what the possibilities are if that belief system all falls away. The truth of what reality can be becomes stranger than fiction and insofar as even a little controversial. Welcome to When A Witch Arrives.

On an ordinary September day, 12-year-old Jack is swept away in a freak neighborhood flood. His parents and younger sister are left to wrestle with the awful questions: How could God let this happen? Can we ever be happy again? They each fall into the abyss of grief in different ways. And in the days and months to come, they each find their faltering way toward peace. In Rare Bird, Anna Whiston-Donaldson unfolds a mother's story of loss that leads, in time, to enduring hope.

When their only child was diagnosed with cystic fibrosis (CF) at the age of two, Maryanne O'Hara and her husband were told that Caitlin could live a long life or be dead in a matter of months. Thirty-one years later, Caitlin lost her battle with this devastating disease following an excruciating two-year wait on the transplant list and a last-minute race to locate a pair of healthy lungs. The sudden spiral of events left Maryanne in an existential crisis, searching to find an answer to the eternal question: Why we are here?

In this cuttingly poignant memoir, Susan Isaacs chronicles her rocky relationship with the Almighty - from early childhood to midlife crisis - and all the churches where she and God tried to make a home: Pentecostals, Slackers for Jesus, and the über-intellectuals who turned everything, including the weekly church announcements, into a three-point sermon. Casting herself as the neglected spouse, Susan faces her inner nag and the ridiculous expectations she put on God.

Krishnanand catapulted to the other side when he was hit in the face by a full-size SUV. While he remained in a Stage 3 Glasgow coma for nine days, he remained fully conscious in a celestial dimension he now calls The Portal—what Tibetan Buddhists call The Bardo and what Vedic/Sanskrit philosophy calls The Akashic Records. Listeners will viscerally travel to the other side with him and learn how his lifelong commitment to spiritual studies and practices enhanced his NDE with unprecedented insights.

This inspiring, insightful, and often humorous look at the life of Father Stuart Long is told by his close friend, Father Bart Tolleson. After their relationship began and almost ended with a practical joke, the two men were ordained together and forged a strong, lasting friendship. As the exuberant, edgy Father Stu confronted a rare degenerative disease, the former brawler and professional boxer used every ounce of his declining strength to fight the good fight for souls.

The 12th-century Christian mystic Hildegard of Bingen has been described as "...a visionary, scientist, diplomat, and poet." Created by Dr. Nancy Fierro, CSJ, Hildegard of Bingen and Her Vision of the Feminine transports us through space and time to the medieval cloisters where Hildegard struggled to express her spirituality. How she succeeded in a world open only to men holds lessons for every woman in every age.

I wrote about the most difficult time of my life as it was happening and posted it on a blog. I’d been confronted with a chain of strange events that seemed impossible to understand. I tried to dismiss what was happening, but all the clues pointed to one thing, and I was forced to ask myself, “Am I a UFO abductee?

You have potential, even if it’s hidden. You have talent, even if you’re afraid to use it. Your dreams just might change the world if you only believe the truth: I’m possible. Internationally known celebrity photographer and philanthropist Jeremy Cowart shares his powerful story of transcending the traditional, following his ideas into a life lived in the fullness of possibility.

Baron Giulio Cesare Andrea Evola, known to the English-speaking world as Julius Evola (1898-1974), was an Italian philosopher, magician, painter, occultist, Orientalist, linguist, and champion mountain climber. Often considered a pillar of Neo-Fascist thought, Evola opposed Fascism and called himself a “radical traditionalist”.

Alice von Hildebrand is a household name to millions who know her from her countless appearances on EWTN, her many important books, and her voluminous articles and essays. But little known is the story of her life, notably the 37 years she spent at Hunter College in New York City. There, despite unceasing opposition that might have defeated even the strongest of souls, she endured with grace and devotion, leaving a mark on a generation of students through her defense of truth through persuasion, wit, and love.

Do you desire to no longer be alone? Do you yearn for understanding and hope? Do you wish for a closer walk with Jesus? When a relationship ends, whether through divorce or death, it leaves us with heartache and sadness. Fear of loneliness overwhelms our soul. Anger at God consumes us. We are suddenly thrust into unknown territory, lost and bewildered. In 30 Days: A Devotional Memoir author D. M. Webb shares her three-year spiritual journey through this collection of 30 devotions.

At a time when we are all more rudderless than ever, we look for the very best teachers and mentors to guide us. In Fully Alive, an unusual and gripping memoir, Timothy Shriver shows how his teachers have been the world's most forgotten minority: people with intellectual disabilities. In these pages we meet the individuals who helped him come of age and find a deeper and more meaningful way to see the world.

The Book of Queer Prophets contains modern-day epistles from some of our most important thinkers, writers and activists: Jeanette Winterson tackles religious dogma, Amrou Al-Kadhi writes about trying to make it as a Muslim drag queen in London, John Bell writes about his decision to come out later in life, Tamsin Omond remembers getting married in the middle of a protest and Kate Bottley explains her journey to becoming an LGBT ally.

John Calvin (1509-1564) was one of the most important religious figures of the last millennium and is an instantly recognizable name across the globe. An influential French theologian and pastor during the Protestant Reformation, the period when he was most active (namely during the 1530s and 1540s) was marked by increased complexity and the diffusion of the Reformation into several branches. Alongside Martin Luther, Calvin was one of the central Reformers.

What They Meant for Evil is the account of that unimaginable journey. With the candor and purity of a child, Rebecca recalls how she endured fleeing from gunfire, suffering through hunger and strength-sapping illnesses, dodging life-threatening predators - lions, snakes, crocodiles, and soldiers alike - that dogged her footsteps, and grappling with a war that stole her childhood. Her story is a lyrical, captivating portrait of a child hurled into wartime, and how through divine intervention, she came to America and found a new life full of joy, hope, and redemption.

Quadriplegics simply do not walk again - yet millions watched as Chris Norton defied incredible odds and took step by impossible step across his graduation stage. With his fiancée, Emily, by his side, those unbelievable steps became the start of an extraordinary journey for them both. Told from both of their unique perspectives, this moving story invites you to find, as Chris and Emily have, that God can transform our lowest points into life's greatest gifts.

For a long time, Edie thought she had escaped. It started in an Appalachian trailer park, where a young girl dreamed of becoming a doctor. But every day Edie woke up to her reality: a poverty-stricken world full of alcohol and violence, where getting out seemed impossible. She taught herself to drive a stick shift truck at 12 years old so she could get her drunk daddy home from the bar. She spent Saturdays at Brushy Mountain prison visiting her incarcerated cousin. She watched adults eat while her stomach gnawed.

Richard Coles narrates this witty account of life as a parish priest and Radio 4 broadcaster. After a life of sex and drugs and the Communards - brilliantly recounted in the highly acclaimed first volume of his memoirs Fathomless Riches - the Reverend Richard Coles went on to devote his life to God and Christianity. He is also a much-loved broadcaster, presenting Saturday Live on Radio 4 and giving us regular reason to Pause for Thought on Radio 2.