Religious Life

Monastic life and its counter-cultural wisdom come alive in the stories and lessons of Br. Paul Quenon, OCSO, during his more than five decades as a Trappist at the Abbey of Gethsemani. He served as a novice under Thomas Merton, and he also welcomed some of the monastery's more well-known visitors to Merton's hermitage. In Praise of the Useless Life includes Quenon's quiet reflections on what it means to live each day with careful attentiveness. The humble peace and simplicity of the monastery and of Quenon's daily life are beautifully portrayed in this memoir.

“We can do extraordinary things when we lead with love,” Barbara Becker reminds us in her debut memoir Heartwood. When her earliest childhood friend is diagnosed with a terminal illness, Becker sets off on a quest to immerse herself in what it means to be mortal. Can we live our lives more...

Today, there is more science-based evidence for God, the soul, and life after death than ever before. Then why are scores of people turning to unbelief because of “science”? The answer is simple: they do not know the science. Science at the Doorstep to God presents in depth the latest evidence to turn the rising tide of unbelief. Father Robert Spitzer, S.J., synthesizes eight recent studies confirming an intelligent creator of physical reality as well as a transphysical soul capable of surviving bodily death.

"The world is too small," Saint Frances Cabrini (1850–1917) once declared. "I would like to embrace it all, to reach every corner." This compelling, authoritative biography chronicles the astounding life of a petite Italian-born religious sister who, with the heart of a missionary, conquered all odds to become the first American citizen canonized a saint.

As Elsie Dinsmore grows up and becomes a young woman, her family undergoes major changes. Her father, Horace Dinsmore, falls in love and marries sweet Rose Allison, whom Elsie has loved since childhood. Soon two new members, Horace Jr. and Rosebud, join the happy family.

We admire these men for their greatness, but the truth is Augustine grappled with sexual passions, Martin Luther struggled to control his tongue, and John Calvin fought the battle of faith with worldly weapons. Yet each of these men will always be remembered for the messages they declared - messages that still resound today. John Piper explores these men's lives, integrating Augustine's delight in God with Luther's emphasis on the Word and Calvin's exposition of scripture. Through their strengths and struggles, we can learn how to live better today.

Most people encounter disability at some point in their lives, either in their own bodies or through a friend or loved one. Faith leaders, sacred texts, and members of religious communities frequently offer religious teachings and metaphors as explanation for the presence of disability, but rarely do we hear the voices of people living with disabilities reflecting on their experiences of God, faith, or religious life.

To understand the continued and far-reaching ministry of A. W. Tozer, it is important to know who he was, including his relationship with God. In The Life of A. W. Tozer, James Snyder lets us in on the life and times of a deep thinker who was not afraid to "tell it like it is" and never compromised his beliefs. Tozer's spiritual legacy continues today as his writings challenge audiences to a deeper relationship and worship of God in reverence and adoration. Here is Tozer's life story.

Three years after giving birth to twin daughters, Kate and Jon Gosselin became pregnant again - with sextuplets. Kate's candid and emotionally-charged book chronicles the exhausting challenges she and Jon faced from the time the babies were conceived through the first two years of their lives, and the faith it took to get through each day.

Ian Buruma explores the life and death of Baruch Spinoza, the Enlightenment thinker whose belief in freedom of thought and speech resonates in our own time

What would you do for twenty-four hours if the only criteria were to pursue your deepest joy? Dan Allender's lyrical book about the Sabbath expels the myriad myths about this "day of rest," starting with the one that paints the Sabbath as a day of forced quiet, spiritual exercises, and religious...

Buying and moving into the run-down Jewel Motor Inn in upstate New York wasn't 11-year-old Miriam Brockman's dream, but at least its an adventure. Miriam befriends Kate, whose grandmother owns the diner next door, and finds comfort in the company of Maria, the motel's housekeeper, and her Uncle Mordy, who comes to help out for the summer. She spends her free time helping Kate's grandmother make her famous grape pies and begins to face her fears by taking swimming lessons in the motels pool.

Entrepreneurs, businessmen, and investors are constantly looking for principles and rules that will pave the way for success. Usually, those at the forefront are successful entrepreneurs from Silicon Valley or legendary Wall Street investors. But the principles of economic growth, wealth creation, and preservation were written long before the rise of the modern market economy and its heroes.

St. Dominic Savio (1842-1857) was an Italian adolescent student of St. John Bosco. He was studying to become a priest when, at 14, he became ill and died. He was noted for his piety and devotion to the Catholic faith. St. John regarded Savio very highly and wrote this biography of his young student. This book, along with other accounts of him, assess the critical factors into his cause for sainthood.

Hafiz's Little Book of Life is a lush collection of more than 250 selections from his lifework (his divan). Alongside a Quran, a copy of his divan can be found in average homes in Iran—where stars can be heard singing his poetry on the radio, and lines from his poems are quoted on the street. His poetry is sure to strike a chord in the hearts of readers everywhere. This vital collection of mystical poetry focuses on the issues we encounter in everyday life. Each brief poem may be savored as an oasis of clarity in the hurried literacy of our time, or the entire book enjoyed in one sitting.

Nura longs for the simple pleasure of many things—to wear a beautiful red dupatta or to bite into a sweet gulab. But with her mom hard at work in a run-down sweatshop and three younger siblings to feed, Nura must spend her days earning money by mica mining. But it’s not just the extra rupees in her pocket Nura is after. Local rumor says there’s buried treasure in the mine, and Nura knows that finding it could change the course of her family’s life forever. Her plan backfires when the mines collapse and four kids, including her best friend, Faisal, are claimed dead.

Bob Cornuke should be considered one of the eight wonders of the world, which is saying something considering my late husband, Jim Irwin, was the eighth man to walk on the moon. Bob, Jim, and, at times, myself, experienced some astonishing adventures together. Once we were even placed under house arrest in Turkey while searching for Noah’s Ark on Mount Ararat. These two men shared some wild exploits and were so much alike, you couldn’t help but love them.

When Joseph was a baby, his grandfather made him a wonderful blanket. But as Joseph grows older, the blanket becomes tattered and worn. Throw it out! cries Joseph's mother. Luckily, Grandpa is an extraordinary tailor. He can fix anything! And so with a snip! snip! here, and a few stiches there, Grandpa transforms the treasured blanket into a jacket, a vest, a Sabbath tie, a handkerchief, and finally, a beautiful button. But when the button is lost, even Grandpa can't help. After all, how can you make something from nothing?

In this captivating, insightful book, acclaimed physicists Alan Lightman and Martin Rees illuminate the life and work of numerous scientists in order to demystify the scientific process and show that scientists are concerned citizens, just like the rest of us. “Remarkable. . . . Illuminating...

En este nuevo audiolibro, realizado en colaboración con los maestros ascendidos Arten y Pursah, Gary Renard expone los principios y la actitud del no dualismo puro, posiblemente el sistema más cercano a la verdad espiritual que se puede expresar con palabras. Se trata de una obra de madurez en la que Gary introduce detalles y explicaciones que ayudarán al estudiante comprometido a descubrir nuevos sentidos; que abrirán ventanas a nuevas comprensiones y a un conocimiento más profundo de Un curso de milagros.