Maybe you've heard of Pope John Paul II's theology of the body and wondered, vaguely, what it's all about. Maybe you've never heard of it until now and are asking, theology of the what? Maybe you're already familiar with the basics and are ready to incorporate this teaching on sex, love and marriage into your own life.
Whatever your level of understanding, you're probably ready for some good news about sex in a culture littered with the bad news of divorce, adultery, sexually transmitted disease, heartache and loneliness. Servant Books, Fall 2005 This guide is designed to help you appropriate the Pope's astonishing message: True, lasting love—that which humanity enjoyed in the beginning, before the Fall—is possible here and now. In nine straightforward lessons, Men and Women Are from Eden introduces the reader to the pope's warm, deeply biblical understanding of God's original plan for men and women, a plan that brings with it healing of mind in regard to sexuality and the body. Quantity
Listening is an essential skill worth every effort to learn and to master. Listening takes us out of our tendency toward self-absorption and self-protection. It opens us to the world around us and to the persons who matter most to us. When we listen, we learn, we grow, and we are nourished.
Why do we often feel cut off when speaking to the people closest to us? What is it that keeps so many of us from really listening? Practicing psychotherapists, Donoghue and Siegel answer these questions and more in this thoughtful, witty, and helpful look at the reasons why people don't listen. Filled with vivid examples that clearly demonstrate easy-to-learn listening techniques, Are You Really Listening? is a guide to the secrets and joys of listening and being listened to. Ave MAria Press Fall 2005. Paperback 224 Pages.
A not so typical cookbook from a not so typical nun! Karol Jackowski's thirty-eight years as a nun and twenty-five years as a food enthusiast come together in Good Cooking Habits. Sr. Karol's warmth, sense of humor, and love of good food jump off the page as she complements over 100 recipes with Catholic nostalgia, childhood memories, and humorous stories and anecdotes from her early years as a Sister. Ave Maria Press Fall 2005, Paperback 128 Pages.
The extraordinary saga of Mother Angelica, founder of the multimillion-dollar Eternal Word Television Network and “the most influential Catholic woman in America” according to Time magazine.
In 1981, the year after Ted Turner founded CNN, a simple nun, using merely her entrepreneurial instincts and $200, launched what would become the world’s largest religious media empire in the garage of a Birmingham, Alabama, monastery. Under her guidance, the Eternal Word Television Network grew at a staggering pace, both in viewership and in influence, to where it now reaches over a hundred million viewers in hundreds of countries around the globe.
Born Rita Rizzo in Canton, Ohio, in 1923, Mother Angelica was abandoned by her father and raised in poverty by a mother who suffered from suicidal depressions. As a young woman, Rita developed severe abdominal pain that doctors dismissed as a “nervous condition,” but when she sought the prayers of a local mystic, her symptoms disappeared. Awakened to the power of prayer, she vowed to dedicate her life to God and became a cloistered nun, expecting to spend her life hidden from the world. But Rita’s faith soon compelled her to unlikely endeavors, from establishing a monastery in Alabama to starting the world’s first Catholic cable network. Relying solely on “God’s providence,” Mother Angelica built an empire without concern for budgets or fund-raising campaigns, achieving what even the highest levels of the Catholic Church had been unable to do.
Raymond Arroyo combines his journalist’s objectivity and eye for detail with more than five years of exclusive interviews with Mother Angelica. He traces Mother Angelica’s tortured rise to success and exposes for the first time the fierce opposition she faced, both inside and outside of her church. It is an inspiring story of survival and proof that one woman’s faith can move more than mountains. Doubleday Books, Hardcover Fall 2005
Jesus Christ is as popular as ever. Films, books, and news articles ask,"Who was Jesus Christ?" Even outside of Christianity he continues to appeal to people. And yet for so many, the popular Jesus is not the Jesus of Christianity. The popular Jesus makes no demands and never challenges people. He accepts everyone and everything under all circumstances.
On the Way to Jesus Christ is a series of meditations that Pope Benedict XVI wrote while he was Prefect for the Congregation of the Doctrine of the Faith. The true Jesus, he writes, is the Jesus of the Gospels, who "is quite different, demanding, bold. The Jesus who makes everything OK for everyone is a phantom, a dream, not a real figure. The Jesus of the Gospels is certainly not convenient for us. But it is precisely in this way that he answers the deepest question of our existence, which--whether we want to or not--keeps us on the lookout for God, for a gratification that is limitless, for the infinite. We must again set out on the way to this real Jesus."
This book also examines whether Jesus Christ is the only savior, and the Church's responsibility to evangelize. It concludes with reflections on Jesus' Presence in the Holy Eucharist, and the Catechism of the Catholic Church's presentation of the Christian mystery as seen through the Catechism's dynamic view of Sacred Scripture.
On the Way to Jesus Christ is for anyone--believer or unbeliever-who wants better to understand the true Jesus, the Jesus of the Gospels, the Christ of Christianity. by Ignatius Press Fall 2005. Hardcover.
This collection of writings reveals the Holy Father's beliefs on religious truth and freedom, Church and culture, the Eucharist, Christian unity, and ministry and service. These words display Benedict's zeal and provide hope for the church. 128 page Hardcover Ligouri Publications. Quantity
In this ground-breaking book, Colleen Hammond challenges today’s fashions and provides you the information you need to protect yourself and your loved ones from the onslaught of tasteless, immodest clothing. Colleen Hammond shares real-life examples of how women can accentuate the grace and beauty of their femininity, and she shows that “modest” definitely does not mean frumpy!! DRESSING WITH DIGNITY covers it all . . . • The history and forces behind the changes in fashion. • How to talk to teenagers about the privilege of femininity so they will want to dress with dignity. • How to awaken chivalry in men and be treated with respect. • How to regain and teach the lost charm of interior and exterior femininity! • How to dress in an attractive, dignified, classy manner! • Specific documents about manners of dress from the Magisterium, the Popes and the Saints. • Comprehensive guidelines for choosing tasteful attire. • Resources on where to find beautiful, modest clothing. • And much, much more! TAN Books & Publishers Fall 2005.
From the author of Conclave and All the Pope’s Men comes the story of Pope John Paul II’s last days, the behind-the-scenes dynamics within the College of Cardinals that led to the choice of Joseph Ratzinger as Pope Benedict XVI, and where the new pope is likely to lead the Catholic Church.
On April 18, 2005, the College of Cardinals of the Roman Catholic Church gathered to elect a successor to Pope John Paul II. Faced with several potential candidates, the cardinals made a bold choice, entrusting the Keys of the Kingdom to 78-year-old Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger of Germany, a man whose views on the challenges facing the Church and the broader culture could not be more unambiguous, or controversial.
Questions arose as the world watched while Ratzinger was installed as Pope Benedict XVI, the 266th pontiff of the Catholic Church. Why Ratzinger? Why someone so clearly identified with the previous pope? Why not a “compromise” choice? Why a Cardinal from Western Europe and not from Africa or Latin America? What would this mean for the future of the Catholic Church?
No one can tell the story of exactly what took place during the closed doors meeting, known as the conclave, when Cardinals from around the world cast their votes for the next pope, better than John L. Allen, Jr. As a correspondent for National Catholic Reporter and a Vatican analyst for CNN and National Public Radio, Allen has spent years covering Vatican politics and personalities, and his unique access to Roman halls of power has enabled him to write the ultimate behind-the-scenes account of the election of Pope Benedict XVI. The Rise of Benedict XVI is based on extensive research and exclusive interviews with eight cardinals representing five nationalities, guaranteeing readers an intimate glimpse into this monumental decision.
But Allen’s insight also means that he is in a unique position to evaluate the accomplishments and legacy of the man now known as Pope Benedict XVI, and to provide some analysis of the direction he will take the Catholic Church in the coming years. Ratzinger’s long career as a major Vatican insider, force of influence, and occasionally polarizing figure, has ensured that his pontificate will be one of the most fascinating in the history of the Catholic Church. Benedict XVI will certainly have a major impact on the lives of the faithful around the world, and John Allen’s riveting new book is the definitive work on this turning point in history. Doubleday, Hardcover | June 2005.
Though he was a familiar Church leader for many years before becoming pope, there has been little awareness of the spiritual side of Benedict XVI. Now for the first time readers are given a brilliant overview of the Pope’s most inspirational teachings in Let God’s Light Shine Forth. Editor Robert Moynihan offers a brief introduction to the life and work of Pope Benedict XVI and then presents an absorbing collection of his most persuasive words.
Within these pages, Pope Benedict XVI introduces a God who is good, beautiful, and true, the fountain of all life. The most important thing for each person, in Benedict’s view, is to discover and develop a loving relationship with God, because this is the way to the deepest and most lasting happiness that human beings can experience. Even in our darkest moments, he teaches, we can have hope that all things will ultimately work out in a wonderful way to show God’s glory and bring blessedness to individual men and women.
Many of these selections deal specifically with questions such as: Who is God? How we can know him? What does he wants us to do and to be? Having spent his entire life thinking, studying, and praying about such questions, Benedict has become perhaps the leading contemporary theologian (the word literally means “knower of God”) in the Roman Catholic Church. From his earliest work as a teacher to his first words as leader of the Catholic Church, Pope Benedict’s vision of hope is powerfully summarized in Let God’s Light Shine Forth. Doubleday | Hardcover | June 2005
This book is the only existing biography of Pope Benedict XVI, born Joseph Aloysius Ratzinger on April 16, 1927, in southern Bavaria. Comprehensive in scope and intimate in content, it provides a vivid blow-by-blow of the controversies that have wracked the Catholic Church during the past twenty years: Liberation theology, birth control, women's ordination, inclusive language, "radical feminism," homosexuality, religious pluralism, human rights in the church, and the roles of bishops and theologians. One man has stood at the dead center of all these controversial issues: Joseph Ratzinger. A teenage American POW as the Third Reich crumbled and a progressive wunderkind at the Second Vatican Council, Ratzinger, for twenty years, has been head of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith (until 1908 known as the Sacred Congregation of the Roman and Universal Inquisition, or Holy Office). The book goes a long way toward explaining the central enigma surrounding Ratzinger: How did this erstwhile liberal end up as the chief architect of the third great wave of repression in Catholic theology in the twentieth century? Based on extensive interviews with Ratzinger's students and colleagues, as well as research in archives in both Bavaria and the United States, Allen's account shows that Ratzinger's deep suspicion of "the world," his preoccupation with human sinfulness, and his demand for rock-solid loyalty to the church run deep. They reach into his childhood "in the shadow of the Nazis" and reflect his formative theological influences: Augustine, Bonaventure, and Martin Luther rather than the world-affirming Thomas Aquinas. In his words, Ratzinger affirms that “What the church needs today as always are not adulators to extol the status quo, but men whose humility and obedience are not less than their passion for the truth; . . .men who love the church more than the ease and the unruffled course of their personal destiny."-Joseph Ratzinger (1962) Hardcover 352 Pages Fall 2005
Long before his election to the papacy as Pope Benedict XVI, Joseph Ratzinger was a professor of theology, having taught at the universities of Freising, Bonn, Münster, Tübingen, and Regensburg. He first achieved international notice through his contributions to the work of the Second Vatican Council (1962-1965). His appointment as prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith gave him a different kind of prominence—as the principal doctrinal guardian of the Roman Curia. From reform to conservation: Is this change of role a volte-face in theological direction, or is it, rather, the pursuit of the “extreme center” by changing means? What is the significance of Ratzinger’s thought and its development over time for the future of the church? This important and illuminating book gets to the very heart of these crucial questions by focusing on Ratzinger’s status as one of the preeminent Catholic theologians of the 20th century. Aidan Nichols provides a full-scale investigation of his theology as it develops from the 1950s onward. The book presents a chronological account of the development of Ratzinger’s writing which reflects a wide range of historical and theoretical interests such as: Augustine’s ecclesiology, early Franciscanism and the idea of salvation history, Christian brotherhood, the unfolding of the Second Vatican Council the Apostle’s Creed, explorations of the concept of the Church, preaching, liturgy and Church music, eschatology, the foundations of dogmatic and moral theology, and the problem of pluralism. The Thought of Pope Benedict XVI is a comprehensive introduction to a major theologian in his own right, quite apart from his significance in the politics of the Church. For those attempting to chart the future of the Catholic faith as it struggles with the role of religion in war, women’s reproductive rights, inter-religious dialogue, homosexuality, the roles of bishops and theologians, and international human rights issues, Nichol’s work is indispensable as both a compass and an oracle. Paperback 352 Pages Fall 2005
Here's not only the "best of Ball" -- material from her immensely popular Catholic Traditions in Cooking, Catholic Traditions in Crafts, and Catholic Traditions in the Garden -- but even more original recipes, projects, and activities -- something for every day of the year.
If you're not a four-star chef, a master gardener, an arts-and-crafts guru, and a catechist with a graduate degree in theology, Catholic Traditions in the Home and Classroom is the book for you! Here -- in clear language with easy-to-follow, step-by-step instructions -- are simple ways to cook, celebrate nature, and craft fun as you discover more about the rich heritage of the Catholic Faith.
Here are blueprints for building solid Catholic identity for home or class. Paperback 352 pages Our Sunday Visitor Fall 2005 Quantity
Fortitude enables us to conquer our fears, even the fear of death, in the name of our beliefs.
Francis' love of God and his faith in the spiritual life gave him the strength, or fortitude, to follow God even when his parents abandoned him. Francis remains a spiritual and human example of the importance in standing firm in your beliefs--even in situations that may seem unpleasant or possibly deadly. The prayers and service activities demonstrate to students that they have the strength to stand behind their beliefs and shows how they can integrate the virtue of fortitude into their own lives. Ave Maria Press, Paperback, 64 Pages, Oct 2005.
We long for connections in the midst of disconnected lives--connections to ourselves, to others, to the world we live in. Most of all we yearn to connect with the sacred. In The Circle of Life Joyce Rupp and Macrina Wiederkehr invite us to listen carefully and closely to the wisdom of each season. Using reflections, poems, prayers, and meditations, they explore the relationship between the seasons of the earth and the seasons of our lives. The Circle of Life encourages readers to connect their experience of the unfolding seasons with inner spiritual growth and movement, and to know that the presence of God is within and around us all. Ave Maria Press Paperback, 288 Pages, Fall 2005.
In His Footsteps is a journey into the heart of Francis of Assisi and his spiritual vision. Guided by the insights of his followers, the reader prays and reflects on the cornerstones of Franciscan spirituality--prayer, poverty, and peace. Kirvan leads readers to understand more deeply the power of Francis' spiritual way and how it can be lived today.
Kirvan shows how, like Francis, contemporary Christians are called to become pray-ers, to live and love poverty, and to cultivate inner peace and become peacemakers. Ave Maria Press Fall 2005 Paperback 224 Pages.
Discover why readers are saying: "I laughed, I cried. . . ", "My sides split," and "The funniest thing I've ever read!" In the midst of the challenges of parenting there's always a chance to smile and recognize the miracle of the young life that is yours to care for. With self-effacing humor and a playful sense of fun, Tim Bete helps you to smile, relax, and enjoy parenting a little more and worry a little less. Permeated by a sense of faith but never preachy, Bete opens your eyes to the little miracles of daily life. Paperback 192 Pages, Ave Maria Press Fall 2005. Quantity
When it comes to sin, no one's an innocent bystander. But do we really need to bring those sins to a priest in the sacrament of penance? Why? And what do priests think of the sacrament? Are they bored in the confessional? Distracted? Shocked by what they hear? Servant Books, Fall 2005 As The Untapped Power of the Sacrament of Penance makes clear, priests cherish the sacrament of reconciliation as a powerful movement of God's healing love. If you have abandoned the confessional out of fear or apathy or the conviction that you don't have any "real" sins to confess—or if you are merely a once- or twice-a-year penitent—this book will put you back on track. There's no time like the present to return to this remarkable source of God's mercy and grace.
In the last few years, the priesthood has been challenged by crisis and tension. Addressing this crisis, licensed psychologist and director of the Saint Luke Institute, Fr. Stephen Rossetti stresses that psychology can be effective in enriching the lives of priests, and the priesthood itself, if it works with a basis of spirituality. Rossetti invites priests to recognize the dignity of their calling through honest and psychologically based self-assessment because happiness in the priesthood flows from both wholeness and holiness.
Rossetti also highlights the need for systemic changes to coincide with personal conversions. He calls for a change in the culture of clerical life; emphasizes the need for greater accountability, openness and honesty on all levels; demands stronger relationships between bishops and priests; and suggests changes in seminary formation that will address the personal challenges faced by priests. Paperback 224 Pages Ave Maria Press Fall 2005.
Nothing but the truth. That's what Jesus promised when he told his apostles that after his death the Spirit of Truth would come upon them. Twenty-one centuries later, we might ask: What happened next? Did the Spirit descend? Did the Spirit stay? Is the Spirit with us today? If so, how does the Spirit guide the Church? Guide individual members of the Church? Guide the teaching authority of the Church? Will the Spirit ever leave the Church?
Fr. Apostoli, with pastoral sensitivity, helps the reader grasp the truth about the Spirit of Truth who leads the Church and each of us into the freedom won for us by Christ. Servant Books Fall 2005.
Advent and Christmas Wisdom is ideal for those who want to enter more deeply into the mystery of Christ's Incarnation as they prepare room in their hearts for his birth. During this joyous season readers can experience the special closeness to God that Padre Pio felt. 112-page paperback, Ligouri Publications, Fall 2005 Quantity
