As a journalist and then as a diplomat in Berlin, Tippett was enthralled by the promise of political solutions to divisive issues. When politics did not provide worthy answers, Tippett attended Yale Divinity School to pursue larger questions about what makes a meaningful life. In her quest for faith’s illumination of life’s complexities, passions, and frailties, she developed a compelling style of discourse—a “life of conversation”—that she now shares with millions of people every week. Tippett’s unique, in-depth conversations with theologians, scientists, ethicists, and seekers who share their experiences, combined with her engaging style, are revolutionizing the way many think and speak of faith in their families and communities and in the larger world. Speaking of Faith is the story of this conversational journey and what it yields. Tippett draws on her life experiences and her studies, as well as on conversations with Elie Wiesel, Karen Armstrong, Thich Nhat Hanh, and other renowned figures, to explore such complex subjects as justice, science, fundamentalism, evil, love, and mystery, all within the context of spirituality. In the tradition of Kathleen Norris and Anne Lamott, Krista Tippett here shares a life of conversation that anyone, secular or religious, will find thought provoking about what faith does— and can—mean to us today. BACKCOVER: Praise for Krista Tippett and her public radio program Speaking of Faith: “The brilliance of Krista Tippett’s idea is to trust people to use the first person singular, to commit themselves with passion and clarity as they enlarge our urgent national conversation.” —Martin Marty, Emeritus Professor of American Religious History, University of Chicago “Speaking of Faith isn’t just a good idea and a welcome concept for a muchneeded forum on religion, belief and spirituality in contemporary life—it already is that forum.” —Patricia Hampl, Poet, memoirist, and MacArthur “Genius” Grant recipient

    But the language of The Rule by Saint Benedict is medieval, and its most passionate advocates are cloistered monks and nuns. How then does this ancient wisdom translate into advice for ordinary people?With candor, humor, and a unique approach to classical art, Father Augustine, a high school teacher and coach, breaks down Saint Benedict's method into twelve pithy steps for finding inner peace in a way that can be applied to anyone's life.Drawing upon his own life experiences, both before and after becoming a Benedictine monk, the author explains every step, illustrating each chapter with color reproductions of sacred art that he has embellished with comic flourishes. The winsome combination is sure to keep readers from taking themselves too seriously—which is already a first step on the path to humility.

    The beautiful story of how one young woman learned to live in God's will, without fear.

    —Our Sunday Visitor A Modern Classic "The joy and excitement of theological knowledge is like the joy and excitement of any other love." —From Chapter One Clear, precise and inspiring, Theology for Beginners has been acclaimed as one of the outstanding modern introductions to theology. More than a compendium of the central doctrines of Catholicism, however, the book is designed to equip you with the information you need to understand key doctrines and to explain them to others. Along the way, you will find yourself falling more deeply in love with your faith and more confident of your ability to bring healing and hope to what Frank Sheed called "a society that is losing contact with God." Theology for Beginners will help bring the truth to life in your soul. Doctrines discussed: The Trinity • Creation • The Nature of Man • The Fall • Sin • Redemption • The Incarnation • Grace • Christ's Death • The Resurrection • The Kingdom • Mary • The Holy Spirit • The Sacraments • The Eucharist • Baptism • The Second Coming Theology for Beginners has been acclaimed as one of the outstanding modern introductions to theology. It is a clear, precise, and inspiring compendium of the central doctrines of the Christian faith. Frank Sheed makes the profound truths of theology not only understandable but exciting reading for the Catholic layman. A Servant Book.

    These two trends define life in Western society today. We are increasingly addicted to habits―and devices―that distract and "buffer" us from substantive reflection and deep engagement with the world. And we live in what Canadian philosopher Charles Taylor calls "a secular age"―an age in which all beliefs are equally viable and real transcendence is less and less plausible. Drawing on Taylor's work, Alan Noble describes how these realities shape our thinking and affect our daily lives. Too often Christians have acquiesced to these trends, and the result has been a church that struggles to disrupt the ingrained patterns of people's lives. But the gospel of Jesus is inherently disruptive: like a plow, it breaks up the hardened surface to expose the fertile earth below. In this book Noble lays out individual, ecclesial, and cultural practices that disrupt our society's deep-rooted assumptions and point beyond them to the transcendent grace and beauty of Jesus. Disruptive Witness casts a new vision for the evangelical imagination, calling us away from abstraction and cliché to a more faithful embodiment of the gospel for our day.

    Two long essays: “The Idea of a Christian Society” (on the direction of religious thought toward criticism of political and economic systems) and “Notes towards the Definition of Culture” (on culture, its meaning, and the dangers threatening the legacy of the Western world).

    "...Therefore, the most important and most profound question of the Christian faith must be, how and from where did death arise, and why has it become stronger than life? Why has death become so powerful that the world itself has become a kind of global cemetery, a place where a collection of people condemned to death live either in fear or terror, or, in their efforts to forget about death, find themselves rushing around one great big burial plot?"- Alexander Schmemann, Radio Liberty Broadcast In this brief collection, Father Alexander Schmemann does not have the luxury for platitudes and pleasantries on the most difficult of life's ultimate questions. Taking us to the heart of Christian revelation and anthropology, he leads us unequivocally and directly, as only he can, to discole why the apostle Paul calls death the "last enemy" (1 Cor. 15:26) and Christ's decisive answer to this enemy. Father Alexander Schmemann (†1983) was a prolific writer, brilliant lecturer, and dedicated pastor.I: I Believe...

    . . . If the very thought of seeing stars dance piques your curiosity at some deep level of your soul, then pay attention to what follows, for the walk to the Field of Stars, to Santiago de Compostela, is a journey that has the power to change lives forever.” -- from the introduction “Pilgrimage” is a strange notion to our modern, practical minds. How many of us have walked to a distant holy place in order to draw nearer to God? Yet the pilgrimage experience is growing these days in various parts of the world. Seeking to take stock of his life, Kevin Codd set out in July 2003 on a pilgrimage that would profoundly change his life. To the Field of Stars tells the fascinating story of his unusual spiritual and physical journey on foot across Spain to Santiago de Compostela, the traditional burial place of the apostle James the Greater. Each brief chapter chronicling Codd's thirty-five-day trek is dedicated to one or two days on the road. Codd shares tales of other pilgrims, his own changes of perspective, and his challenges and triumphs along the way -- all told with a disarming candor. Seen through the eyes of a Catholic priest who honors the religious worldview that originally gave rise to these medieval odysseys, “pilgrimage” comes to life and takes on new meaning in these pages.

    This evocative book by an influential Christian thinker explores the pattern of mutual indwelling that characterizes the creation at every level. Traces of the Trinity appear in myriad ways in everyday life, from our relations with the world and our relationships with others to sexuality, time, language, music, ethics, and logic. This small book with a big idea—the Trinity as the Christian theory of everything—changes the way we view and think about the world and places demands on the way we live together in community.

    Even as a teenager, experimenting in his own laboratory, he was impressed by the logic and materiality of the universe, which is governed by a small number of disembodied forces and laws. Those laws decree that all things in the world are material and impermanent. But one summer evening, while looking at the stars from a small boat at sea, Lightman was overcome by the overwhelming sensation that he was merging with something larger than himself--a grand and eternal unity, a hint of something absolute and immaterial. Searching for Stars on an Island in Maine is the result of these seemingly contradictory impulses, written as an extended meditation on an island in Maine, where Lightman and his wife spend their summers. Framing the dialogue between religion and science as a contrast between absolutes and relatives, Lightman explores our human quest for truth and meaning and the different methods of religion and science in that quest. Along the way, he draws from sources ranging from St. Augustine's conception of absolute truth to Einstein's relativity, from a belief in the divine and eternal nature of stars to their discovered materiality and mortality, from the unity of the once indivisible atom to the multiplicity of subatomic particles and the recent notion of multiple universes. What emerges is not only an understanding of the encounter between science and religion but also a profound exploration of the complexity of human existence.

    Louis de Montfort's Act of Total Consecration give a beautiful expression to the fundamental thrust of his spirituality: Christianity that is fully alive is nothing less than a radical act of total self-surrender and self-gift to the Lord Jesus Christ who, in his redemptive Incarnation, has first given himself totally over to us, and for us.Recognizing that the Lord has first consecrated, completely given, himself to us, Fr. de Montfort rightly recognizes that one truly receives this gift in its fullness only by fully giving, that is consecrating, himself to its saving power. The great Apostle of Our Lady proposed on his masterwork, True Devotion to the Blessed Virgin Mary, an outline of a process by means of which one might prepare himself to make just such a total self-gift to Jesus through Mary.This book, which has been prepared by the Company of Mary, the religious community founded by Fr. de Montfort himself, is both an introduction to his spirituality of total consecration and a guide for those who would prepare themselves to make his Act of Total Consecration to Jesus Christ through Mary. It is also the fruit of this same Act of Total Consecration lived out in years of missionary service of Our Lord and Our Lady in the Roman Catholic Church which we joyfully make available to the people of God.

    Popular blogger Kathryn Whitaker is a Dr Pepper super fan, Aggie-loving, type A mom of six with a personality the size of her native Texas. The stressful premature birth of her fifth child threw her orderly world into chaos and ultimately led her to rethink her priorities. In Live Big, Love Bigger, Whitaker shares her journey and challenges readers to understand that they, too, can live a life of authenticity with joy-filled purpose, love, and faith. Along the way, she’ll help readers see that choosing to say no is the only way they’ll be able to say yes to what matters most—Jesus.It’s not every family who would plan a week-long Texas barbecue pilgrimage for a family of eight, much less expand the idea to a multi-month quest to experience the state, eat amazing food, and visit some awesome religious sites along the way. But Whitaker did it—when she decided imperfect family road trips trumped a vacation at a luxury resort. “Barbecue encouraged us to hit the road, while Jesus met us at every single stop along the way—proof that he loves brisket as much as we do, right?”Ditching the fancy vacation was one way Whitaker learned to give up control and say no to perfectionism and over-achievement in order to live a new, more intentional life and discover what God truly has in store for her family.Whitaker’s sassy authenticity will make readers laugh—and cry—while encouraging them to be honest about mistakes in every area of their life, embrace them, and find a way to let God redeem it all.

    Each year thousands of atheists, Evangelicals, Fundamentalists, and Pentecostals are being surprised by Catholic truth – and these converts tell you why.

    "When someone tells me yet another horror story about the church, I respond, 'Oh, it's even worse than that. Let me tell you my story.'I have spent most of my life in recovery from the church."Yancey acknowledges that many spiritual seekers find few answers and little solace in the institutional church. "I have met many people, and heard from many more, who have gone through a similar process of mining truth from their religious past: Roman Catholics who flinch whenever they see a nun or priest, former Seventh Day Adventists who cannot drink a cup of coffee without a stab of guilt, Mennonites who worry whether wedding rings give evidence of worldliness."How did Yancey manage to survive spiritually despite early encounters with a racist, legalistic church that he now views as almost cultic? In this, his most soul-searching book yet, he probes that very question. He tells the story of his own struggle to reclaim belief, interwoven with inspiring portraits of notable people from all walks of life, whom he calls his spiritual directors. Soul Survivor is his tribute to thirteen remarkable individuals, mentors who transformed his life and work.Besides recalling their effect on him, Yancey also provides fresh glimpses of the lives and faith journeys of each one. From the scatterbrained journalist G. K. Chesterton to the tortured novelists Tolstoy and Dostoevsky, to contemporaries such as Martin Luther King, Jr., Annie Dillard, and Robert Coles, Yancey gives inspiring portraits of those who modeled for him a life-enhancing rather than a life-constricting faith."I became a writer, I now believe, to sort out and reclaim words used and misused by the Christians of my youth," Yancey says. "These are the people who ushered me into the Kingdom. In many ways they are why I remain a Christian today, and I want to introduce them to other spiritual seekers."Soul Survivor offers illuminating insights that will enrich the lives of veteran believers and cautious seekers alike. Yancey's own story, unveiled here as never before, is a beacon for those who seek to rejuvenate their faith, and for those who are still longing for something to have faith in.

    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