October BOTM - Voting

[John]

I am about half finished with Literary Converts and enjoying it a great deal - as I hope everyone else is, but it is time to consider and vote for our October BOTM.

You may vote for two of the books listed below. Enter your votes by replying in this thread. Voting will end at or about 5 PM, Central time on September 18. A book will be randomly selected for elimination from the nominations list from those that don't receive any votes. The Cardinal and Letters from the Desert are exempted from the randomizer as this is their first month on the list. The nominations are:

The Biblical Basis For Purgatory, by John Salza
Jesus taught us about it, and for centuries the Church has faithfully defined and defended it. Protestants deny it even exists, while many Catholics fundamentally misunderstand it. It is Purgatory: that place of purifying penance where souls saved by Christ are made perfect and acceptable to spend life eternal in heaven. In The Biblical Basis For Purgatory, author and apologist John Salza (Why Catholics Cannot Be Masons) offers the definitive scriptural explanation of this distinctively Catholic doctrine. Building on the teachings of Christ and St. Paul, he shows how the existence of a place of temporal punishment after death is not only a logical extension of what we know about the reality of sin and God's justice, but is also a supreme expression of God's love and mercy. Although Purgatory is a place of mercy, its pains are real, and they are severe. This book does more than defend and explain Purgatory it provides a solid plan, drawn from the Church's perennial wisdom for conquering our sins by God's grace, while still on earth.

The Cardinal, by Henry Morton Robinson
On its first publication, The Cardinal was an immediate bestseller. A selection of the Literary Guild, it was published in more than a dozen languages and sold over two million copies. Later made into an Academy Award-nominated film directed by Otto Preminger and starring John Huston, the book tells a story that captured the nation's attention: a working-class American's rise to become a cardinal of the Catholic Church. The daily trials and triumphs of Stephen Fermoyle, from the working-class suburbs of Boston, drive him to become first a parish priest, then secretary to a cardinal, later a bishop, and finally a wearer of the Red Hat. An essential work of American fiction that is newly relevant with the ordination of New York's Timothy Dolan as cardinal, Henry Morton Robinson's novel is back in print by popular demand.

Cleansed by Fire, by James R. Callan
Churches are burning and a man is murdered, plunging a small Texas town into a state of fear. Father Frank DeLuca, pastor of Prince of Peace Church, is thrust into an impossible dilemma when he hears that another church will be burned. But the disturbing information comes to him via the confessional, and church law forbids him from telling anyone—even the police.
He doesn’t know which church, when, or by whom. Still, he can’t sit idly by, and no law prevents him from looking into the matter himself.

Introduction to the Devout Life, by Francis de Sales
Written for Christians in every walk of life and for every age, St. Francis De Sales' classic work transcends secular lines and provides a unique handbook of spiritual reflection for people in every avenue of life.

Letters from the Desert, by Carlo Carretto
Shows that a life of prayer, a passion for justice and the spirit of solidarity cannot be separated.

A Martyr for the Truth: Jerzy Popieuszko, by Grazyna Sikorska

On the God of the Christians:, by Rémi Brague -
[The book description on GR is in French. The following is excerpted from Amazon, which indicates it is from the back cover of the book.]
On the God of the Christians tries to explain how Christians conceive of the God whom they worship. No proof for His existence is offered, but simply a description of the Christian image of God.

The Spiritual Combat, by Dom Lorenzo Scupuli -
The Combat is a practical manual of living. 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.

Teresa of Avila: The Progress of a Soul, by Cathleen Medwick -
A refreshingly modern reconsideration of Saint Teresa (1515-1582), one of the greatest mystics and reformers to emerge within the sixteenth-century Catholic Church, whose writings are a keystone of modern mystical thought.

Way of the Ascetics: The Ancient Tradition of Discipline and Inner Growth, by Tito Colliander -
Written for lay persons living in the world, this is an excellent resource for daily meditation, spiritual guidance and a revitalized religious life.

[Linda]

Teresa of Avila

[Jill]

Introduction to the Devout Life
Martyr for Truth

[Leslie]

Introduction to the Devout Life
The Cardinal

[Fonch]

The only novel that i have read is The Cardinal. I vote for this perfect image of the Catholic American Church at the begining of the 20th century :-).

[Manuel]

Introduction to the Devout Life

[Nicole]

Introduction to the Devout Life

[John]

Way of the Ascetics
On the God of the Christians

[John]

Sarah wrote: "Cleansed by Fire and The Biblical Basis for Purgatory.

John, I suggested the novel The Perfect Blindside to be nominated, but I haven't seen it.

Did I propose it in the right place? I just want..."

Hi Sarah, no bother at all. Yes, it's in the right place. But there were quite a few nominations in front of that. It should be on next month's voting list.

[Celia]

The Cardinal

[Kelly]

Introduction to devout life, Teresa of Avila, spiritual combat

[JivkoIgnominious]

Introduction to the Devout Life,Spiritual combat.

[John]

Kelly wrote: "Introduction to devout life, Teresa of Avila, spiritual combat"

Only two votes count, Kelly. I will count the first two.

[John]

Voting is over. Results to be posted shortly.