And in response to God's work in our lives, what part can we play in recreating the world for his good plan? In this powerful book, Fr. John Riccardo helps us to see the world through God's lens, with a clear vision of the future.

    Here is the whole remarkable story of the appearance of the Blessed Virgin Mary to three simple children at an obscure Portuguese village in 1917. Her prophecies of World War II and the rise of communism, her plea to humanity to do penance, her promise that world peace and the conversion of Russia would take place if her messages were heeded -- these are some of the dramatic events in this fascinating account of a modern miracle.Our Lady of Fatima is a magnificent re-creation of an event whose effects are still reverberating throughout the world -- the appearance in person of the Mother of God with a "peace plan from heaven."

    Teresa Benedicta of the Cross O.C.D.) 2d ed., revised (1996), translated by Freda Mary Oben, Ph.D. Eight essays on the theme of woman and her vocation, with index.  With reason Edith Stein has been called "the most significant German woman of this century." Her writings on woman are the fruit of both reflection and debate with other leaders of the Catholic feminist movement in German-speaking countries between the World Wars.      This second revised edition of Essays on Woman includes textual corrections, important new supplementary data, and previously unavailable material on the spirituality of the lay and religious woman. These essays crystallize long hours of experience teaching in the classroom and on the speaker's platform in the pursuit of fulfilling roles for women in all walks of life. Reviews      "Every page of these essays reveals a mind, never doctrinaire or ruffled, but rather serene, graceful, wide-ranging, fearless, and deeply dedicated to a search for truth." - Keith J. Egan, Horizons      "This newly revised edition…is a valuable text." - Review of Metaphysics      "One would hope that these essays will be read widely and carefully by both men and women." - The Thomist

    It is also a classic work in the theology of the Church. Indeed, de Lubac's profound insights significantly contributed to Vatican II's Dogmatic Constitution on the Church, Lumen Gentium, especially in its treatment on the Church as mystery and as the Sacrament of Christ.

    Basil Pennington, the late priest, retreat master, and prominent lecturer in the Centering Prayer movement. This ancient Christian practice requires faith, humility, openness, and fidelity. Father Pennington sets the process of praying the Scriptures in the context of meditation, contemplation, compassion, and action. He calls it "a way of friendship" wherein we pay attention to "the love letters from the Lord." Lectio, as a satisfying mental and emotional experience, can be enhanced by reading different translations of the Bible, using commentaries, participating in Bible study groups, and using the resources of Scripture-oriented websites.

    Patrick is far more inspiring than the myths. In St. Patrick of Ireland, Philip Freeman brings the historic Patrick and his world vividly to life. Patrick speaks in his own voice in two remarkable letters he wrote about himself and his beliefs, new translations of which are included here and which are still astonishing for their passion and eloquence. Born late in the fourth century to an aristocratic British family, Patrick’s life was changed forever when he was abducted and taken to Ireland just before his sixteenth birthday. He spent six grueling years there as a slave, but the ordeal turned him from an atheist into a true believer. After a vision in which God told him he would go home, Patrick escaped captivity and, following a perilous journey, returned safely to Britain to the amazement of his family. But even more amazing to them was his announcement that he intended to go back to Ireland to spend the rest of his life ministering to the people who had once enslaved him. Set against the turbulent backdrop of the British Isles during the last years of the Roman Empire, St. Patrick of Ireland brilliantly brings to life the real Patrick, a man whose deep spiritual conviction and devotion helped to transform a country.

    Beautiful, bold commissioned woodcuts by Annika Nelson and her mother Gertrud Mueller Nelson help us meditate on the passion and death of Christ and to see how Christ is among us—often in unexpected places. Also available in Spanish, the booklet is ideal for personal or parish-wide use during the Lenten observance of the Stations of the Cross.

    A pretty teenager from Brandon, Manitoba, named Erin Chorney steps out for coffee, tells her mom she’ll be back in an hour. . . and never returns. Rumours about Erin’s fate begin to fly. Psychics with bizarre theories and suggestions. Shocking accusations and denials. Cryptic diary entries. Disturbing anonymous letters. Search warrants and surveillance. But she doesn’t turn up. Nearly two years later, when all hope seems lost — a last—ditch plan straight out of Hollywood.The RCMP take aim at the prime suspect in Erin’s disappearance through a unique undercover sting operation, and the result is a wild, four—month ride into a dark criminal underworld filled with cunning mind games, shadowy figures, daring twists and Academy—award winning acting performances. And an explosive ending that nobody saw coming.

    It is written as history ought to be, especially for nonspecialist readers."—Richard A. Kauffman, Christian Century In this eloquent introduction to early Christian thought, eminent religious historian Robert Louis Wilken examines the tradition that such figures as St. Augustine, Gregory of Nyssa, and others set in place. These early thinkers constructed a new intellectual and spiritual world, Wilken shows, and they can still be heard as living voices in the modern world. In chapters on topics including early Christian worship, Christian poetry and the spiritual life, the Trinity, Christ, the Bible, and icons, Wilken shows that the energy and vitality of early Christianity arose from within the life of the Church. While early Christian thinkers drew on the philosophical and rhetorical traditions of the ancient world, it was the versatile vocabulary of the Bible that loosened their tongues and minds and allowed them to construct the world anew, intellectually and spiritually. These thinkers were not seeking to invent a world of ideas, Wilken shows, but rather to win the hearts of men and women and to change their lives. Early Christian thinkers set in place a foundation that has endured. Their writings are an irreplaceable inheritance, and Wilken shows that they can still be heard as living voices within contemporary culture.

    Joseph Cardinal Bernardin's gentle leadership throughout his life of ministerial service had made him an internationally beloved figure, but the words he left behind about his final journey would change the lives of many more people from all faiths, from all backgrounds, and from all over the world.In the last two months of his life, Joseph Cardinal Bernardin made it his ultimate mission to share his personal reflections and insights as a legacy to those he left behind.  The Gift of Peace reveals the Cardinal's spiritual growth amid a string of traumatic events: a false accusation of sexual abuse; reconciliation a year later with his accuser, who had earlier recanted the charges; a diagnosis of pancreatic cancer and surgery; the return of cancer, now in his liver; his decision to discontinue chemotherapy and live his remaining days as fully as possible.  In these pages, Bernardin tells his story openly and honestly, and shares the profound peace he came to at the end of his life.  He accepted his peace as a gift from God, and he in turn now shares that gift with the world.

    The Amazing Secret of the Souls in Purgatory is such a book. Maria Simma, lived humbly in the mountains of Austria. When shew as twenty-five, Maria was graced with a very special charism - the charism of being visited by the many souls in Purgatory - and being able to communicate with them! In her words, Maria shares with us some amazing secrets about the souls in Purgatory. She answers questions such as:What is Purgatory?How do souls get there?Who decides if a soul goes to Purgatory?What are the sins that most lead to Purgatory?How can we help get a soul released from Purgatory?Are there religions which are bad for the soul?Are there children in Purgatory?How can I avoid Purgatory?This is a remarkable interview on after-death realities, a true revelation for those who have lost a dear one!

    The Life You Save May Be Your Own is their story - a vivid and enthralling account of great writers and their power over us.Thomas Merton was a Trappist monk in Kentucky; Dorothy Day the founder of the Catholic Worker in New York; Flannery O'Connor a "Christ-haunted" literary prodigy in Georgia; Walker Percy a doctor in New Orleans who quit medicine to write fiction and philosophy. A friend came up with a name for them - the School of the Holy Ghost - and for three decades they exchanged letters, ardently read one another's books, and grappled with what one of them called a "predicament shared in common."A pilgrimage is a journey taken in light of a story; and in The Life You Save May Be Your Own Paul Elie tells these writers' story as a pilgrimage from the God-obsessed literary past of Dante and Dostoevsky out into the thrilling chaos of postwar American life. It is a story of how the Catholic faith, in their vision of things, took on forms the faithful could not have anticipated. And it is a story about the ways we look to great books and writers to help us make sense of our experience, about the power of literature to change - to save - our lives.

    Revisions in the 11th edition include: new introductory article, "Religion in America" reorganization of church "family" groupings, with expanded treatment of Catholic, Fundamentalist, Holiness, and Pentecostal churches, among others updated and standardized statistical information thoroughly revised directory of denominational offices new appendices, including information on membership in the National Association of Evangelicals and the National Council of the Churches of Christ chart showing the historical relationships of church bodies to one another revised bibliography

    For more than four-hundred years, Introduction to the Devout Life by Doctor of the Church St. Francis de Sales has been regarded as the essential guide to holiness and loving God. This spiritual classic takes on new life in Lift Up Your Heart, where Rev. John Burns has interpreted ten meditations for the modern reader and distilled them into a ten-day mini-retreat that can easily be completed in the midst of a busy life. This practical book goes right to the heart of helping you kick the habit of floating along on your spiritual journey to start actively pursuing holiness and devotion to God. During the course of the retreat, you'll learn the basics of forming a daily prayer routine, including how to offer yourself to God, meditate on his love, and maintain peace in the face of suffering and clarity in the midst of temptation. The meditations will help you:Adopt gratitude as a daily prayer practice.Examine and reorder your priorities and relationships to better reflect your love for God.Discern between good and evil in your life.Desire to love and serve as Jesus did.In a very real sense, Burns helps you take St. Francis de Sales as your spiritual director for ten days. As you do so, you’ll feel God’s fatherly love and restart your faith life, equipped with the tools to connect with God and live for heaven now.

    They are a selection from a group known as the Apostolic Fathers, so-called because several of the authors were most likely disciples of the Apostles themselves. Like much of the New Testament, their writings take the form of letters, and for the most part deal with practical problems of the life of the early Church, as it struggled in the face of persecution to establish itself in the Roman world. They give us a picture of Christianity still drawing on the theology and traditions of its parent religion, Judaism.