Religion Catholicism

It’s never too late to grow. The secret to living a meaningful life is to strip away everything that is meaningless. Strip away anything that is trivial or unnecessary, and everything left will be meaningful. You’re not done growing yet, either!

Raised Congregationalist in New England, Mairs is a convert to Catholicism. She is also liberal, feminist, and outspokenly activist - and all that in an increasingly conservative church that scorns her brand of progressive iconoclasm. A Dynamic God explores through beautifully written personal essays the question of why and how Mairs became and remains a Catholic ("despite all odds"); what she finds to love in that tradition; and more broadly, as she writes, how she experiences the holy in her life and in the world.

Music is the most effective delivery system for feelings - love, joy, sadness, glory. The early church fathers knew that music also has power over minds, and they used that power to maximum effect, writing hymns through which the early Christians would learn, retain, and spread the Gospel message. In How the Choir Converted the World, best-selling author Mike Aquilina demonstrates how the earliest Christians used music to transform a world that desperately needed transforming. As Aquilina suggests, "If we did it once, we can do it again".

Following a string of three New York Times best sellers comes the most powerful work of Mother Angelica, who shares publicly for the first time her most private thoughts and prayers. More powerful and intimate than any of her previous books, this is the book that her millions of admirers have been waiting for. In this special work, listeners are brought inside her spiritual life through her private prayers and reflections.

What is "the one great thing to love on earth", according to J. R. R. Tolkien, the author of The Lord of the Rings? The Eucharist! Tolkien made sure his one great love was woven throughout his books. It's easy to find if you know where to look. In Smith's new book, find Tolkien's hidden Eucharist!

With heart-warming reassurance, Friar Jack reminds us that God's goodness is reflected in the whole family of creation. We can be confident that our beloved animal companions will be waiting for us at the pearly gates with wagging tails, soft purrs, and enthusiastic welcomes.

From the man who became Pope Francis: Jorge Mario Bergoglio shares his thoughts on religion, reason, and the challenges the world faces in the 21st century with Abraham Skorka, a rabbi and biophysicist. This book brings together a series of these conversations, in which both men talked about various theological and worldly issues, including God, fundamentalism, atheism, abortion, homosexuality, euthanasia, same-sex marriage, and globalization.

Against the backdrop of a catastrophic pandemic that has spared nothing and altered everything, this remarkable document is a cry from the heart of a pastor to all peoples to see beyond their differences and to grow together to build a new and peaceful world. Pope Francis addresses his renewed call to universal fraternity to all people of good will, regardless of their religious convictions.

In this beautiful spiritual travelogue, New York Times best-selling author George Weigel leads listeners through the historic streets of Kraków, Poland, introducing one of the world's great cities through the life of one of the most influential Catholic leaders of all time.

As faith-filled Catholics, we are called to go out and spread the good news of the Gospel, build up the Church, and fuel its mission. We are supernaturally empowered by God to do this through the charisms we receive at baptism. Learn about each charism, what they are, and how discipleship unleashes these powerful gifts to produce fruit that lasts.

Prophetess of Germany, visionary, mystic, doctor of the Church. Come with us as we travel to Bingen, Germany, and the area of the beautiful Rhine River which is where St. Hildegard lived and had her visions. It was also here where she wrote her books on her visions and many other things, like a morality play put to music, which she also wrote. She wrote a book on herbal medicine, which is used to this day in that area of Germany.

As a boy, he played a priest saying Mass. Fast forward to the '70s—long hair and rock-n-roll—a time for enjoying a new freedom as a budding young journalist at the Vancouver Sun. But after a chance trip to a rectory in Seattle, his life changed in an instant. Because when God calls, you answer. Father Rick thrived in the Second Vatican Council Reformation. He helped build communities and opened minds and hearts through his humor, passion, and understanding. Father Rick, Roamin' Catholic is a memoir shining a light on religion and the little-known life of priests.

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.

Plus l'Humanité se raffine et se complique, plus les chances de désordre se multiplient et leur gravité s'accentue ; car on n'élève pas de montagne sans creuser des abîmes, et toute énergie est également puissance pour le bien et pour le mal. Tout ce qui devient souffre et pèche. La vérité sur notre attitude en ce monde, c'est que nous y sommes en croix.

Miscarriage, stillbirth, and infant loss happen more often than we realize, leaving many to suffer in isolation. This unique companion will help those grieving from child loss as they search for comfort and meaning. Couples will encounter the experiences of holy people who suffered loss, such as Sts. Louis and Zélie Martin, St. Gianna Molla, and Servant of God Chiara Corbella Petrillo. Parents will also receive hope and consolation from firsthand stories of modern-day parents who have experienced similar losses.

How would your life change if you were certain of your identity? If you could know that Someone loves you, sees you, and wants to be close to you - just as you are? In this weekly devotional for women, you're invited to soak in God's word to embrace your identity as a beloved woman made in God's image.

The Celestial Country is a classic poem by St. Bernard of Cluny. Bernard, a monk of the celebrated Monastery of Cluny, under the Abbot Peter the Venerable, was born of English parents at the old seaport of Morlaix, in Brittany, and lived in the 12th century.

Father Jonathan Morris has seen firsthand how our day-to-day lives are consumed with anxiety and stress as we focus on our failures and troubles while peace feels unattainable. When he rediscovered the Serenity Prayer, he realized that this little prayer can be a powerful road map for our spiritual journey toward God. As he began to share this prayer with others, he saw that living these simple lines became a source of profound peace and happiness.

In February 2013, the arch-conservative Pope Benedict XVI made a startling announcement: He would resign, making him the first pope to willingly vacate his office in over 700 years. Reeling from the news, the College of Cardinals rushed to Rome to congregate in the Sistine Chapel to pick his successor. Their unlikely choice? Francis, the first non-European pope in 1,200 years, a one-time tango-club bouncer, a passionate soccer fan, a man with the common touch. Why did Benedict walk away at the height of power, knowing his successor might be someone whose views might undo his legacy?

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.