British Catholic writer and artist Caryll Houselander lovingly explores Mary’s intimately human side, depicting Our Lady as a musical instrument who makes divine love known to the world. This refreshed edition is rich and rewarding reading for all Christians who wonder what Mary was really like.While the Second Vatican Council led to a renewed interest in the theology and person of Mary, Caryll Houselander offered a simple yet profound reflection on the Mother of God almost fifteen years before the council began.Confronting the static, surreal “Madonna of the Christmas card,” Houselander provides instead an intuitive, warmly human, and approachable image of the Mother of God. Through the central image of a reed that is played for music, Houselander demonstrates how Mary chose to make herself an instrument for the divine plan, giving her inmost being to the proclamation of God’s greatness. In sharing her distinctive vision of Mary, Houselander offers the Mother of God as a model for all people seeking to be instruments of the Divine.The essays and poems in The Reed of God also reflect on the mysteries of Mary’s life and her impact on salvation history. In the book’s four parts, Houselander explores key events of Mary’s life, including her fiat, finding Jesus in the Temple, and the Assumption, as well as the themes of fruitful emptiness and the eternal search for union with God.

    

    A brilliant female archaeologist. An unknown world underneath the Vatican.In 1939, a team of workers beneath the Vatican unearthed an early Christian grave. This surprising discovery launched a secret quest that would last decades — a quest to discover the long-lost burial place of the Apostle Peter.From earliest times, Christian tradition held that Peter — a lowly fisherman from Galilee, whom Christ made leader of his Church — was executed in Rome by Emperor Nero and buried on Vatican Hill. But his tomb had been lost to history. Now, funded anonymously by a wealthy American, a small army of workers embarked on the dig of a lifetime.The incredible, sometimes shocking, story of the 75-year search and its key players has never been fully told — until now. The quest would pit one of the 20th century’s most talented archaeologists — a woman — against top Vatican insiders. The Fisherman’s Tomb is a story of the triumph of faith and genius against all odds. ABOUT THE AUTHOR John O’Neill is a lawyer and #1 New York Times bestselling author. He has spent much of his life visiting and researching early Christian sites. He is a 1967 graduate of the Naval Academy, a former law clerk to Supreme Court Chief Justice William Rehnquist, and senior partner at a large international law firm.

    The life and spiritual teachings of the Catholic Church's greatest classical theologian as seen through the eyes of a contemporary theologian. Robert Barron examines the life and work of Catholicism's premier scholar and discovers a saintly deep in love with Jesus Christ.

    Here are ways to make the key virtues that lead you to God a permanent part of your character.

    It is at least every bit as good as his True Devotion to Mary! Small but powerful--seems almost divinely inspired!

    Therese of Lisieux, the "Little Flower." Growing up in Lisieux, France was occasionally painful but usually delightful for Therese and her four sisters. For practical Marie, studious Pauline, hot-tempered Leonie, mischievous Celine, and beautiful, lovable Therese, growing up meant growing closer to God. The Little Flower found her pathway to holiness right in her own back yard.With their disagreements, secrets, visits to the convent, school adventures, and romances, these five girls are an enjoyable handful for their kindly, widowed father. But Therese, because she loves her family, discovers that one of her sisters might unwittingly prevent her dearest wish from coming true.In this Vision book, Helen Walker Homan, who writes in the tradition of Louisa Mae Alcott, has created another classic of delightful family life among five sisters, one of whom became a saint.

    Anthony DeStefano, author of the bestselling" A Travel Guide to Heaven, " knew there had to be an answer to this mystery, so he set out on a quest to find prayers that God says yes to" all the time." The result is an extraordinary new book that has the ability to dramatically change the lives of readers of all faiths.Each short, powerful prayer in "Ten Prayers God Always Says Yes To" addresses a particular problem people commonly face in life--from accepting the existence of God to trying to make ends meet; from getting through terrible suffering to coping with everyday stress; from overcoming fear to finding your God-given destiny. Presented with a certainty and vigor that are sure to pique the interest of even those who are not spiritually inclined, these prayers will help readers find solutions to life's most difficult situations and provide meaningful and inspiring answers to the vexing questions we have about the purpose of our time on earth.In a world awash with superficial self-help books and deceptive gimmicks, "Ten Prayers God Always Says Yes To" is the real thing. Using hundreds of scriptural references to support his claims, DeStefano writes in a simple, straightforward, and uplifting manner that makes the most profound theological matters understandable to all. In the words of the author, "This is a spiritual treasure chest that is available to everyone....This book is about prayers that work--really, truly work."

    Catholics tend to think of them as different from the rest of us. They’re cast in plaster or simpering on a holy card, performing miracles with superhero strength, or playing a harp in highest heaven. Yet they are very near to us in every way. In this lively book, Scott Hahn dispels the false notions and urban legends people use to keep the saints at a safe distance. The truth is that Jesus Christ has united heaven and earth in a close communion. Drawing deeply from Scripture, Dr. Hahn shows that the hosts of heaven surround the earthly Church as a "great cloud of witnesses." The martyrs cry out from heaven’s altar begging for justice on the earth. The prayers of the saints and angels rise to God, in the Book of Revelation, like the sweet aroma of incense.Dr. Hahn tells the stories of several saints (and several angels too) in a way that’s fresh and new. The saints are spiritual giants but with flesh-and-blood reality. They have strong, holy ambitions—and powerful temptations and opposition that must be overcome. Their stories are amazing and yet familiar enough to motivate us to live more beautiful lives. In this telling of their story, the saints are neither otherworldly nor this-worldly. They exemplify the integrated life that every Christian is called to live.Still, their lives are as different from one another as human lives can be. Dr. Hahn shows the heavenly Church in all its kaleidoscopic diversity—from Moses to Mary, Augustine to Therese, and the first century to the last century.Only saints will live in heaven. We need to be more like the saints if we want to live in heaven someday. Dr. Hahn shows us that our heavenly life can begin now. It must.

    Benedict, the father of Western monasticism, who played such a major role in the Christianization and civilization of post-Roman Europe in the sixth century. De Wohl weaves an intricate tapestry of love, violence and piety to recount with historical accuracy the story of St. Benedict and the tempestuous era in which he lived. Since there are no contemporary biographies of this major saint of history and the Church, de Wohl's inspired account is of significant importance on the subject of saint's lives for today's spiritual seekers. Having lived in an era of great immorality and vice, not unlike our world today, Benedict's story has a strong message for modern Christians who seek, as he did, to turn away from the wickedness of the world to find Christ in prayer, study and solitude.

    This amazing narrative will stir your heart and soul while it chronicles the experience of a simple Polish nun.

    Her life has been revealed through her own writings as well as the work of historians, theologians, and academics. What has been missing until now is a more personal account from the point of view of someone who knew her well. Dorothy Day: The World Will Be Saved by Beauty is a frank and reflective, heartfelt and humorous portrayal as written by her granddaughter, Kate Hennessy. Dorothy Day: The World Will Be Saved by Beauty challenges ideas of plaster saints and of saintly women. Day is an unusual candidate for sainthood. Before her conversion, she lived what she called a “disorderly life,” during which she had an abortion and then gave birth to a child out of wedlock. After her conversion, she was both an obedient servant and a rigorous challenger of the Church. She was a prolific writer whose books are still in print and widely read. While tenderly rendered, this account will show her as driven to do good but dogmatic, loving but judgmental, in particular with regards to her only daughter, Tamar. She was also full of humor and laughter, and could light up any room she entered. An undisputed radical heroine, called “a saint for the occupy era” by The New Yorker, Day’s story unfolds against a backdrop of New York City from the 1910s to the 1980s and world events spanning from World War I to Vietnam. This thoroughly researched and intimate biography provides a valuable and nuanced portrait of an undersung and provocative American woman.

    In this powerul two-tape audiocassette program, Christians are told they must learn to breathe underwater to survive the tidal wave of compulsive behavior and addiction.

    Follow in the saints footsteps, learn from their example, and become the spark of authentic social justice that sets the world on fire.

    She interprets the techniques in a contemporary way suitable for lay persons who are serious about the spiritual life.>