Her husband, Enrico, found the courage to ask her a question that he had been holding back. Thinking of Jesus's phrase, my yoke is sweet and my burden is light, he asked: "Is this yoke, this cross, really sweet, as Jesus said?"A smile came across Chiara's face. She turned to her husband and said in a weak voice: "Yes, Enrico, it is very sweet."At 28 years old, Chiara passed away, her body ravaged by cancer. The emotional, physical, and spiritual trials of this young Italian mother are not uncommon. It was her joyful and loving response to each that led one cardinal to call her a saint for our times.Chiara entrusted her first baby to the blessed Virgin, but felt as though this child was not hers to keep. Soon, it was revealed her daughter had life-threatening abnormalities. Despite universal pressure to abort, Chiara gave birth to a beautiful girl who died within the hour. A year later, the death of her second child came even more quickly.Yet God was preparing their hearts for more more sorrow and more grace.While pregnant a third time, Chiara developed a malignant tumor, but refused the treatment that would save her treatment that would have risked the life of her unborn son.Almost immediately after giving birth to Francesco, Chiara's tumor became terminal and caused her to lose the use of her right eye. Her body was tested, and so was her soul as she suffered through terrible dark nights.She said yes to everything God sent her way, becoming a true child of God. And as her days on earth came to an end, Enrico looked down on his wife and said, "If she is going to be with Someone who loves her more than I, why should I be upset?"Each saint has a special charisma, a particular facet of God that is reflected through her. Chiara's was to be a witness to joy in the face of great adversity, the kind which makes love overflow despite the sorrow from loss and death.

    Benedict has for centuries been the guide of religious communities. St. Benedict's rules of obedience, humility, and contemplation are not only prerequisites for formal religious societies, they also provide an invaluable model for anyone desiring to live more simply. While they presuppose a certain detachment from the world, they provide guidance and inspiration for anyone seeking peace and fulfillment in their home and work communities. As prepared by the Benedictine monk and priest Timothy Fry, this translation of The Rule of St. Benedict can be a life-transforming book. With a new Preface by Thomas Moore, author of The Care of the Soul."God is our home but many of us have strayed from our native land. The venerable authors of these Spiritual Classics are expert guides--may we follow their directions home."--Archbishop Desmond Tutu

    He shows you how to let go of the anxiety-producing areas of life in order to find the lasting peace that comes from trusting God. During the season of Lent, Catholics and other Christians frequently give up something they enjoy as a measure of penance or self-discipline—and often fall back into old habits at the first “Alleluia!” In Give Up Worry for Lent!, Zimak offers fellow worriers practical, scripture-centered advice on how to relinquish the need to control the uncontrollable—not just for Lent but for good—and how to find peace in Christ. From Ash Wednesday to Easter Sunday, Zimak guides you to ponder a scripture passage and to apply it to your own life by following four simple steps: read reflect respond pray As you continue to meditate on scripture and practice the simple action steps at the end of each reflection, you will find it easier to replace old worries with new messages of hope and to change your life forever.

    Biographies will only take you so far. It's impossible to truly understand Francis of Assisi without reading his own words. A scholar and lover of Francis, Sweeney has added six writings to his bestselling compilation, additional texts that we're most certain came from Francis himself. Now, short writings such as "The Form of Life He Wished for Clare," "The Sermon to the Birds," and "The Source of True Joy," combine with Francis's Rules, letters, messages, songs, praises, canticles, and final spiritual Testament in a most ideal introduction to the saint. An expanded introduction and notes add historical and theological context.

    Through these 'showings', Christ's sufferings were revealed to her with extraordinary intensity, but she also received assurance of God's unwavering love for man and his infinite capacity for forgiveness. Written in a vigorous English vernacular, the Revelations are one of the most original works of medieval mysticism and have had a lasting influence on Christian thought. This edition of the Revelations contains both the short text, which is mainly an account of the 'showings' themselves and Julian's initial interpretation of their meaning, and the long text, completed some twenty years later, which moves from vision to a daringly speculative theology. Elizabeth Spearing's translation preserves Julian's directness of expression and the rich complexity of her thought. An introduction, notes and appendices help to place the works in context for modern readers.

    Winner of the Gold Medallion Book Award and twice nominated for the Christian Book of the Year Award. The Case For Faith is the anticipated sequel to Lee Strobel's best-selling The Case for Christ finds the author investigating the nettlesome issues and doubts of the heart that threaten faith. Eight major topics are addressed including doubt, the problem of pain, and the existence of evil.

    Taken from his sermons as well as his writings, these beautiful meditations by the acclaimed spiritual teacher, writer and now Pontiff, give his usual fresh insights into the deeper meaning of this most wondrous event, and show the Pope to be a man who knows how to address both the mind and the heart. Includes many Illustrations. "Christmas is the most profoundly human feast of faith, because it allows us to feel most deeply the humanity of God. The cirb has a unique power to show us what it means to say that God wished to be "Immanuel" - a "God with us," a God we may address in intimate language, because he encounters us as a child. This makes Christmas a feast that invites us in a special way to meditation, to an internal act of looking at the Word. It awakens in us a deeper perception of the truth of the words from Scripture, "The goodness and loving kindness of God our Savior has appeared.'"

    This book provides encouragement and direction for the pilgrim who desires to know, love, and serve our Lord. Whether the reader is beginning the spiritual journey or has been traveling the road for many years, he will find a treasure of wisdom in The Fulfillment of All Desire. It is destined to be a modern classic on the spiritual life.

    Pieper shows that the Greeks understood and valued leisure, as did the medieval Europeans. He points out that religion can be born only in leisure - a leisure that allows time for the contemplation of the nature of God. Leisure has been, and always will be, the first foundation of any culture.He maintains that our bourgeois world of total labor has vanquished leisure, and issues a startling warning: Unless we regain the art of silence and insight, the ability for nonactivity, unless we substitute true leisure for our hectic amusements, we will destroy our culture - and ourselves.These astonishing essays contradict all our pragmatic and puritanical conceptions about labor and leisure; Josef Pieper demolishes the twentieth-century cult of "work" as he predicts its destructive consequences.

    He then describes the Church's developing self-awareness of its dual elements of the human and divine. Concerned with verifying the Church's claim to embody Christ, Giussani situates the locus of verification in human experience, arguing that a different type of life is born in those who try to live the life of the Church. Why the Church? is a seminal study that will engage both the scholar and the general reader.

    The idea of our own “righteous anger” is a myth. It is the number one problem in our societies today and, as Dallas Willard says, Christians have not been taught out of it. But what if Christians were the most unoffendable people on the planet?In Unoffendable you will find concrete, practical ways to live life with less stress, including: Adjusting your expectations to fit human natureReplacing perpetual anger with refreshing humility and gratitudeEmbracing forgiveness and beginning to love others in unexpected waysIn a humorous and conversational style, Unoffendable seeks to lift religious burdens from our backs and allow us to experience the joy of gratitude, perhaps for the first time, every single day of our lives—flourishing the way God intended.

    "...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...

     Each day of the week, a different way to experience and live the Extraordinary Jubilee of Mercy: - Poetry that helps you contemplate the miracle of mercy (Sundays) - Meditations from saints and spiritual masters who share their profound insights into this divine gift (Mondays) - Profiles of saints whose lives exemplify extraordinary witness to mercy (Tuesdays) - Teachings of the Catholic Church that explain and highlight this virtue (Wednesdays) - Stories and testimonies of people who have chosen the path of mercy, including non-canonized faithful, literary figures, and victims of tragedy (Thursdays) - Reflections on essential Scripture passages that reveal God’s merciful nature (Fridays) - Devotions and prayers that draw us closer to God’s merciful heart (Saturdays) A practical way for individuals, families, and parishes to walk with the Church in this year-long celebration. An excellent resource to encourage ongoing conversion and fruitful discussions at home, in parish groups, in schools, and in RCIA.

    "Everything starts with one person . . . I don't care if you're 5 or 105, God from all eternity chose you to be where you are, at this time in history, to change the world.""If you are following God, He never shows you the end. It's always a walk of faith.""Faith is one foot on the ground, one foot in the air, and a queasy feeling in the stomach." --Mother AngelicaAre you unsure of your purpose in life? Stuck in the past and worried about the future? Hamstrung by fear, failure, or trials? Mother is here to help.For more than twenty-five years, Mother Angelica has dispensed spiritual wisdom and practical advice to millions around the globe through her lively broadcasts on EWTN. Now she shares with you her personal life lessons and hilarious counsel as never before. Raymond Arroyo, author of the bestselling biography of Mother Angelica, has assembled an inspiring collection of her powerful insights, comic musings, and no-nonsense guidance for everyday living. Culled from never-before-seen interviews, private conversations, and recorded lessons not heard in over thirty years, to which Arroyo had exclusive access, these selections capture Mother Angelica's spunky spirit and profound wisdom at their zenith.In Mother Angelica's Little Book of Life Lessons and Everyday Spirituality, the beloved nun is your personal mentor. Together you'll discover:How to find God's Will in your lifeHow to pursue inspirations fearlesslyHow to make sense of pain and sufferingHow to spiritually overcome personal faults and trialsCreated in cooperation with Our Lady of the Angels Monastery, this devotional treasury is accompanied by original prayers from Mother Angelica's private collection. Within are the meditations, personal beliefs, and pithy life lessons that transformed a disabled child of divorce into Mother Angelica, founder and CEO of the world's largest religious media empire. Packed with real-world hope, this little book is sure to transform your life in a big way.A portion of the proceeds of this book goes to support the work of Our Lady of the Angels Monastery

    This sincere testimony of the power and invitation of Christ is indeed a great guide to a truly uplifting spiritual life in today’s world.