Spirituality Catholicism

The Politically Incorrect Guide to Catholicism refutes misrepresentations and misconceptions about the Catholic Church and separates rumor from truth when it comes to Catholic traditions, faith, and controversial leaders.

The past few years have been extremely challenging, but even in dark times, the light of joy can shine bright. True joy, says Pope Francis, is not a fleeting sentiment or a short-term solution to suffering; it springs from a solid hope that nothing and no one can take away. A Gift of Joy and Hope is an invitation to embrace authentic beauty and a reminder to be open to encountering God, even in the midst of challenges. In this inspiring collection, Pope Francis encourages listeners to change attitudes that exclude others.

A gifted storyteller and spiritual director, Father James Martin, SJ, invites listeners to experience the stories of the Gospels in a completely new, vivid, and exciting way to gain a deeper understanding of Jesus. Moving sequentially through the Gospels, considering not only familiar passages but also the "hidden life" of Jesus, the book offers a bold retelling of the life of Christ, faithful to the Christian tradition, while meditating on parts of the narrative that have often escaped notice.

On the day after the Orlando nightclub shooting, James Martin SJ posted a video on Facebook in which he called for solidarity with our LGBT brothers and sisters. "The largest mass shooting in US history took place at a gay club, and the LGBT community has been profoundly affected," he began. He then implored his fellow Catholics - and people everywhere - to "stand not only with the people of Orlando but also with their LGBT brothers and sisters."

At its heart, Ignatian spirituality is practical and experiential, offering modern audiences a structure for pursuing inner growth that results in transformed action. While it is a deeply contemplative practice, Ignatian spirituality appeals to many of us who are looking for purpose and meaning, and who are wondering how to live out that purpose in a way that addresses the brokenness of our world. At the heart of this thoughtful introduction to Ignatian spirituality are the Spiritual Exercises, developed by St. Ignatius of Loyola of Spain

Glory to God for the men of old who endured the persecutions of this world with joy and faith. Much can be learned from those who have looked death in the face and yet remained true to the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world.

The Two Babylons is a religious pamphlet published in 1853 by the Presbyterian Free Church of Scotland theologian Alexander Hislop. The author argues that the Catholic Church is the Babylon of the Apocalypse which is described in the Bible. The work examines the symbolism of the Book of Revelation in detail.

True Devotion to the Blessed Virgin is one of the greatest and most celebrated books ever written about Our Lady. Unpublished during the saint's lifetime, it was discovered in 1842. The author views Mary as the essential key to the heart of Jesus and "consecration to Jesus in Mary" as a special path to being united with and consecrated to Christ.

Easily the most popular and best-loved Way of the Cross ever. The Stabat Mater in Latin and in English.

St. Teresa's (1515 - 1582) book of her foundations, is a historical account of the birth and development of her monastic order. Written by the saint herself, she gives her first-hand account of the trials and successes she had in spreading Catholic monasticism throughout Spain. The book is in a sense a sequel to her autobiographical, The Life which tells of her internal struggles to grow spiritually. A classic of Catholic literature, this book gives a rare first-hand glimpse of the labors of one of Spain's most revered saints.

Who is God? If we want to love God and make him the center of our lives, we would do well to settle this question at least in some small way. This audiobook serves as a starting point for understanding what Christians mean when they say ''God", and to whom they are referring when they use this name. This audiobook addresses three major concepts - the nature of God, the Trinity, and the Incarnation - so that we may strengthen our faith and our ability to communicate it to other people.

As human beings we are constantly engaging and disengaging in everything we do. We engage and disengage at work, in marriage, as parents, in our quest for health and well-being, in personal finances, environmentally, politically, and, of course, we engage or disengage spiritually.

When he was elected pope in the fall of 1978, few people had ever heard of the charismatic Karol Wojty³a. But in a very short time he would ignite a revolution of conscience in his native Poland that would ultimately lead to the collapse of European communism and death of the Soviet Union. What even fewer people knew was that the KGB, the Polish Secret Police, and the East German Stasi had been waging a dangerous, decades-long war against Wojty³a and the Vatican itself.

What mountain is threatening you? It's time to talk to your mountains. We talk to ourselves and each other about our problems all day long when we should be talking to our problems. Jesus said, "Say to this mountain." He has given us authority and power over fear, worry, and every negative stronghold oppressing us.

Born Helena Kowalska on a clear August day in 1905, to a poor Polish family, she was the third of 10 children. When Helena turned 19, she felt called by Jesus to go to Warsaw and enter a convent. After arriving, she was turned down by convent after convent, until finally, one accepted her. She took the name Faustina and stayed in the convent until her death in 1938.

What if we were able to gain profound insight into the unique design, creative drive, and potential destiny of the people in our lives? The bold promise of this book is that we can. This ability carries an awesome responsibility: We must all be mentors and midwives to the personal vocations of others. Unrepeatable is about the urgent need for each of us to cultivate the vocations of others and the steps we should take to do it well. As we enter into the stories of others' lives, we enter into the story of God's love. There is no greater adventure. Unrepeatable invites you to be a part of it.

Clare of Assisi is generally known as “the female friend” of Saint Francis of Assisi and for centuries her legacy has remained obscured by his shadow. Yet Clare’s life and story ought to shine in its own light and on its own terms (her name, after all, means “light”). She is a figure of true heroism, tenacity, beatitude and grit who plotted her improbable course in the context of the raucous and explosive period of the Middle Ages.

The Vatican's silence in the face of Nazi atrocities remains one of the great controversies of our time. History has accused wartime pontiff Pius the Twelfth of complicity in the Holocaust and dubbed him "Hitler's Pope". But a key part of the story has remained untold. Pius ran the world's largest church, smallest state, and oldest spy service. Saintly but secretive, he skimmed from church charities to pay covert couriers, and surreptitiously tape-recorded his meetings with top Nazis.

In this remarkable exploration of the Catholic world, prominent Catholic author and papal biographer George Weigel offers a luminous collection of letters to young Catholics, not-so-young Catholics, and curious souls who wonder what it means to be Catholic today. Weigel takes readers on an epistolary tour of Catholic landmarks - from Chartres Cathedral to St. Mary's Church in Greenville, South Carolina; from the Holy Sepulcher in Jerusalem to G.K. Chesterton's favorite pub in Oxford; and from the grave of a modern martyr in Warsaw to the Sistine Chapel.

"Francis, go and build up my house, which thou seest, is falling into ruin." To fulfill this command of Our Lord, St. Francis of Assisi (1181-1226) began by restoring physical churches and continued by building up the spiritual church in souls. Francis' humility, purity, and true joy inspired many to conversion and a deeper faith.