Book picks similar to
The Four Last Things: A Catechetical Guide to Death, Judgment, Heaven, and Hell by Fr Wade Menezes
catholicism
catholic
theology
non-fiction
Every Earthly Blessing
Esther de Waal - 1992
De Waal also looks at their understanding of core Christian concepts, such as sin, sorrow, salvation, and the cross. Written accessibly, this book is excellent for parish study as well as individual reading.
Praying with Beads
Nan Lewis Doerr - 2007
Doerr and Owens here show readers how to use what have become known as Anglican or Christian prayer beads. Readers can then use the basic prayer structure provided by the beads to pray their way through each day - morning, noon, and night - and through the church year. These prayers - a thoughtfully chosen combination of quotations from Scripture and gleanings from the Book of Common Prayer - can be enhanced and enriched by the mindful and meditative practice of using beads. Doerr and Owens encourage readers to use beads as "something to hang onto, a lifeline to the Presence that lies, often hidden or forgotten, at the center of our lives." Praying with beads, as outlined and embodied in this little book, has the potential to transform one's prayer life.
Jesus: A Meditation on His Stories and His Relationships with Women
Andrew M. Greeley - 2007
Along the way, Father Greeley touches on provocative topics, such as the significance of Jesus's Jewish roots, his relationship with women, The Da Vinci Code, and The Passion of the Christ.
Expecting to See Jesus: A Wake-Up Call for God's People
Anne Graham Lotz - 2011
And, she wants to make sure you and all other Christians are ready for that moment when your faith becomes sight.Anne knows from personal experience that it's in the busyness of our days, as we're drifting in comfortable complacency, that we most need a wake-up call--a jolt that pushes us to seek out a revival of our passion for Jesus that began as a blazing fire but somehow has died down to an ineffective glow.In Expecting to See Jesus, Anne points out the biblical signs she sees in the world all around us and shows how you can experience an authentic, deeper, richer relationship with God in a life-changing, fire-blazing revival.
Story of a Soul: The Autobiography of St. Thérèse of Lisieux
Thérèse de Lisieux - 1898
John Clarke's acclaimed translation, first published in 1975, is now accepted as the standard throughout the English-speaking world.
Finding God in All Things
William A. Barry - 1991
Barry, S.J., shares his unique understanding of the Spiritual Exercises and demonstrates how they can benefit the ordinary persons relationship with God. "Finding God in All Things" gives new life to the spirituality of St. Ignatius and illuminates the transforming power of the Exercises. With over 50,000 copies sold of the first edition, this timely new edition offers todays readers a clear presentation of the themes and contemporary practice of this classic spiritual retreat.
Tattoos on the Heart: The Power of Boundless Compassion
Gregory Boyle - 2009
Gorgeous and uplifting, Tattoos on the Heart amply demonstrates the impact unconditional love can have on your life. As a pastor working in a neighborhood with the highest concentration of murderous gang activity in Los Angeles, Gregory Boyle created an organization to provide jobs, job training, and encouragement so that young people could work together and learn the mutual respect that comes from collaboration. Tattoos on the Heart is a breathtaking series of parables distilled from his twenty years in the barrio. Arranged by theme and filled with sparkling humor and glowing generosity, these essays offer a stirring look at how full our lives could be if we could find the joy in loving others and in being loved unconditionally. From giant, tattooed Cesar, shopping at JCPenney fresh out of prison, we learn how to feel worthy of God’s love. From ten-year-old Lula we learn the importance of being known and acknowledged. From Pedro we understand the kind of patience necessary to rescue someone from the darkness. In each chapter we benefit from Boyle’s wonderful, hard-earned wisdom. Inspired by faith but applicable to anyone trying to be good, these personal, unflinching stories are full of surprising revelations and observations of the community in which Boyle works and of the many lives he has helped save. Erudite, down-to-earth, and utterly heartening, these essays about universal kinship and redemption are moving examples of the power of unconditional love in difficult times and the importance of fighting despair. With Gregory Boyle’s guidance, we can recognize our own wounds in the broken lives and daunting struggles of the men and women in these parables and learn to find joy in all of the people around us. Tattoos on the Heart reminds us that no life is less valuable than another.
Made for More
Curtis Martin - 2008
Yet many of our youth never get beyond the material distractions of the world. In fact, in a recent survey, teenagers were eight times more desirous of being rich and five times more desirous of being famous than pursuing a life of faith. To be young and Catholic in the modern world is no easy task. Entertained and enticed beyond their ability to cope, millions of Catholic teens and college students are drifting through life living without purpose or meaning. They are searching for their own path, but they are ill-equipped at such an impressionable age to discern the direction that leads to everlasting happiness. In this book, renowned Catholic leader Curtis Martin presents the evidence that we have been made for more than just the intoxications of this world sex, partying, and money. We have been made for greatness and we will only reach such heights when we first come into a personal relationship with Jesus Christ. Made for More makes a compelling case that: We have been made for eternal happiness with God in heaven. The secret of happiness lies in following God's plan for our life. Jesus is the Son of God who preached the good news of salvation. Jesus founded a community of believers, the Church, and that being part of this family of God is how we find our direction and purpose and the surest path to eternal life.
Healing the Orphan Spirit
Leif Hetland - 2013
It is time for us to come into the fullness of who we were created to be, so all of creation will come back to Father God's house. Father God never intended for us to live as orphans without a Father or without a home. As you read this Revised Edition of Healing the Orphan Spirit, receive a revelation of how to live from your identity as a child of Father God. The orphan spirit cannot be cast out; it can only be displaced by love, because perfect love casts out all fear.
Stunned by Scripture: How the Bible Made Me Catholic
John Bergsma - 2018
Bergsma once considered obstacles to ever becoming Catholic himself. Over an eighteen-month spiritual journey, Bergsma was stunned again and again by the biblical support he found for even the stickiest teachings of the Catholic Church.Weaving his personal story into clear explanations of Catholic teachings as found in Scripture, Dr. Bergsma explores seven key Catholic doctrines, including:
The Pope
Devotion to Mary
Confession
The Eucharist
The priesthood
Belief in the Bible alone
Salvation by faith alone theologies
Stunned by Scripture will help Catholics understand, defend, and explain the biblical basis for the Faith and show them how the Bible solidly supports even the most frequently misunderstood Catholic teachings.
Girl, Arise!: A Catholic Feminist's Invitation to Live Boldly, Love Your Faith, and Change the World
Claire Swinarski - 2019
Is it possible to be both a Catholic and a feminist? Claire Swinarski, writer and creator of The Catholic Feminist podcast, believes it is: “I’m a feminist for the same reason I’m bold and honest and sometimes ragey: because Jesus was all of those things.”In Girl, Arise!, Swinarski reconciles the two identities by demonstrating the strength and abilities women have to share with the Body of Christ, the importance of women throughout the history of the faith, and how the love you experience through Christ and the Church can change you and the world around you.In Girl, Arise!:A Catholic Feminist’s Invitation to Live Boldly, Love Your Faith, and Change the World Swinarski points out that while both “feminism” and “Catholicism” can mean different things to different people, both feminists and Catholics desire to make the world a better, fairer place. And she shows that by treating women with dignity equal to that of men—by calling them his friends and teaching them—Jesus acted as a feminist as well.With humor and sass, Swinarski addresses her frustration with the traditional concerns churches ascribe to women, as shown by the many talks directed at women focused on marriage and modesty rather than social justice. But she pinpoints the areas where modern feminism goes too far, arguing against abortion and exploring what it means to serve others rather than focus on our own needs first.Swinarski also tells the stories of holy women—including Vashti in the book of Esther, Sts. Thérèse of Lisieux and Joan of Arc, Mary Magdalene, and the Blessed Virgin Mary—to show how their faith influenced their actions, even when those actions went against traditional norms and roles of women.You will be empowered to embrace your God-given abilities as you follow the women who have gone before you in faith who—by announcing Christ to his disciples, believing in God’s promises, and being faithful in hardship—changed the world.
Navigating the Interior Life: Spiritual Direction and the Journey to God
Daniel Burke - 2012
What is spiritual direction and my spiritual direction? What are my “blind spots” and how can I uncover them? What keeps me from all the spiritual riches Christ has for me? How can I better understand where I am in my spiritual progress? Daniel Burke’s Navigating the Interior Life will give you the tools you need to understand how and why we grow and die in the spiritual life and what we can do about it.
Introverts in the Church: Finding Our Place in an Extroverted Culture
Adam S. McHugh - 2009
But many churches tend to be extroverted places where introverts are marginalized. Some Christians end up feeling like it's not as faithful to be an introvert. Adam McHugh shows how introverts can live and minister in ways consistent with their personalities. He explains how introverts and extroverts process information and approach relationships differently and how introverts can practice Christian spirituality in ways that fit who they are. With practical illustrations from church and parachurch contexts, McHugh offers ways for introverts to serve, lead, worship and even evangelize effectively. Introverts in the Church is essential reading for any introvert who has ever felt out of place, as well as for church leaders who want to make their churches more welcoming to introverts. Discover God's call and empowering to thrive as an introvert, for the sake of the church and kingdom.
The Spiritual Combat
Lorenzo Scupoli
At first it teaches that the sense of life is incessant fighting against egoistic longings and replacing them with sacrifice and charity. The one who does not do this loses, and suffers in Hell; the one who does it, trusting not in his own, but God's power, triumphs and is happy in Heaven. The work of Scupoli analyses various usual situations and advises how to cope with them, preserving a pure conscience and improving virtue. It emphasizes also the boundless goodness of God, which is the cause of all good. What is bad originates from the human who rebels against God.