Religion Catholicism

Bernadette Soubirous was born in Lourdes, France in 1844. Between February 11 and July 16, 1858, the Virgin Mary appeared to Bernadette eighteen times at the Grotto in Massabielle. When Bernadette was twenty-two years old, she entered the Sisters of Charity Religious Order in Nevers, France. To this day, Lourdes remains one of the greatest healing centers in the world.

Glory to God for the men of old who endured the persecutions of this world with joy and faith. Much can be learned from those who have looked death in the face and yet remained true to the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world.

Advice and encouragement for lay Catholics pursuing a personal relationship with God from a Doctor of the Church. The first book of the Catholic Classics series, Introduction to the Devout Life is an updated translation of St. Francis de Sales’ original text that makes this key work of Catholic Tradition approachable to modern readers. Written as a letter to St. Francis’ lay cousin, this classic yet relevant text features advice on the questions that members of the Catholic laity often ask themselves, such as:

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.

At its heart, Ignatian spirituality is practical and experiential, offering modern audiences a structure for pursuing inner growth that results in transformed action. While it is a deeply contemplative practice, Ignatian spirituality appeals to many of us who are looking for purpose and meaning, and who are wondering how to live out that purpose in a way that addresses the brokenness of our world. At the heart of this thoughtful introduction to Ignatian spirituality are the Spiritual Exercises, developed by St. Ignatius of Loyola of Spain

Author Stephen Birmingham, who chronicled the rise of Jewish immigrants to extraordinary wealth and success in Our Crowd, now turns his attention to the Irish. Real Lace tells the colorful and fascinating true stories of America’s most renowned Irish-Catholic families. Scions of courageous, driven, and resilient men and women who escaped starvation during Ireland’s terrible potato famine in the mid-19th century, they battled their way out of the slums of Boston and New York, overcoming prejudice and poverty to achieve great wealth, fame, and political power.

St. Teresa stands among the greatest of the mystics. It was her pursuit of Christ, not her pursuit of visions, that set her apart as one of the most notable saints in the history of Christendom. It is her dedication to her Lord, her bridegroom, not her experiences, that render her worthy of imitation.

This work was originally composed by St. Teresa of Avila for her fellow sisters of the Carmelite Order. Although written for nuns it is very much accessible to modern readers. In this classic book she guides her fellow sisters on the way to union with God through prayer and meditation, offering helpful advise for readers to seek self-perfection. Her words are practical and heartfelt, coming from her personal experience. The book is less formal and gives a more clear form of St. Teresa's theological views than her autobiography or her famous book, The Interior Castle.

Louis Lallemant (1578 - 1635) was a French Jesuit who entered the order in 1605. He was ordained and taught philosophy at a number of Jesuit colleges until 1622 when he was made master of novices for four years. He then became professor of theology in Paris. In 1628 he was appointed director of tertians, being responsible for the final year of formation for close to 60 Jesuits. After three years at this post he died. Lallemant expected of others what he did personally.

Though there has been a resurgence in the domestic arts and a desire to live a simpler lifestyle, the role of a homemaker is still unpopular. Viewed as an unfulfilling and even oppressive way of life, many women feel a sense of shame or futility in managing the world of their home. Theology of Home: The Spiritual Art of Homemaking turns this misguided notion on its head, shining new light on the role of a homemaker as it relates the deepest truths of the Faith with an honest and fearless understanding of the modern world.

Rarely has a book had such an impact on so many of us here at Ignatius Press. It is one of the most powerful and moving books we have come across. If you can only buy one book this season, this must be the one. Here is the astonishing true story of the harrowing experiences of a young German seminarian drafted into Hitler’s dreaded SS at the onset of World War II.

In this very short introduction, Tim Bayne introduces the field of philosophy of religion and engages with some of the most burning questions philosophers discuss.

The Roman Catholic Church is the largest religious institution in the world with approx. 1.3 billion Catholics world-wide. Although Roman Catholicism seems to be a single unified belief system, not all Catholics believe the same things or act in the same way. Regardless, all Roman Catholics feel connected to their church's traditions and rituals. Unfortunately, the church of Rome does not hold the Bible as the highest authority or teach that salvation comes by faith alone.

After 2,000 years of flawed history, here at last is a biography of Mary Magdalene that draws her out of the shadows of history and restores her to her rightful place of importance within Christianity. Throughout history, she has been both revered and reviled, a woman who has taken on many forms - witch, whore, the incarnation of the eternal feminine, and the devoted companion (and perhaps even wife) of Jesus. In this brilliant new biography, Bruce Chilton, a renowned biblical scholar, offers the first complete and authoritative portrait of this fascinating woman. His descriptions of who Mary was and what she did challenge the male-dominated history of Christianity familiar to most listeners.

As human beings we are constantly engaging and disengaging in everything we do. We engage and disengage at work, in marriage, as parents, in our quest for health and well-being, in personal finances, environmentally, politically, and, of course, we engage or disengage spiritually.

Saxum - the Latin word means rock - is a term that St. Josemaria Escriva, founder of Opus Dei, sometimes used in letters to Alvaro del Portillo to describe him. Don Alvaro, as he came to be known, was for many years the founder's closest associate as well as his successor and first Prelate of Opus Dei after it became a personal prelature-a foundational rock for this dynamic international Catholic group devoted to promoting sanctity in ordinary life.

In vivid detail, author Jay Lampart lays out several reasons why the Internet pornography crisis Christian males are facing today is so unique and dire. He then presents five very simple but highly effective weapons that are available to us as Christians to combat it.

This TAN Books edition of St. Michael and the Angels features the complete text of the title, along with a supplemental section entitled Catholic Prayers.

The intentional deprivation of one's most physical and carnal needs is a concept that has existed since the beginning of time, more commonly known as "mortification". The Bible makes one of the earliest references to "mortification of the flesh", as seen in Colossians 3:5, which reads, "Mortify therefore your members which are upon the earth; fornication, uncleanness, inordinate affection, evil concupiscence, and covetousness, which is idolatry."

This wonderful piece of literature displays the conversation of Justin Martyr and Trypho the Jew concerning different topics of the Christian faith. Justin marvelously defends the belief in Christ with superb wisdom using the Jewish Scriptures as his foundation. Truly a work of art that will only build one's faith that Jesus is indeed the Christ - the son of God.