Looking for a recommendation

[Kerstin]

This folder is for anyone who is looking for resources on a certain topic, be they books, movies, lecture series, etc.

[Susan]

Yes, I am wondering if anyone knows of a good book on Heaven? There has been a lot of talk lately on whether it can be hoped for that almost everyone gets to Heaven (although that is not what the Bible or visionaries have seemed to say) and the Pope's most recent comments, assuring the little boy that his atheist father was in Heaven...I was wondering if there are degrees of beatitude etc... thank you.

[Galicius]

I don't know if you read Dante's "Paradiso". This was to me the least appealing of the three parts of "Divine Comedy".

[Susan]

Hi Galicius! No, I haven't. I have always wanted to read that but was a little worried as I thought I heard it was poetry? And I am really, really bad at reading poetry.... what was the least appealing about it?

[Manny]

Susan wrote: "Hi Galicius! No, I haven't. I have always wanted to read that but was a little worried as I thought I heard it was poetry? And I am really, really bad at reading poetry.... what was the least appea..."

Plus Susan, The Divine Comedy is a work of art and not Church teaching. I got the impression you were looking for something more theological. I have no suggestions. The nature of after life in my opinion is one of the most specualtive part of our religion.

[Susan]

Manny wrote: "I got the impression you were looking for something more theological. I have no suggestions,"
Hi Manny! I was, but am always interested in all ideas. Thank you for responding.

[Kerstin]

Susan wrote: "Hi Galicius! No, I haven't. I have always wanted to read that but was a little worried as I thought I heard it was poetry? And I am really, really bad at reading poetry.... what was the least appea..."

It is poetry in translation, so it reads more like prose, even if the format is kept. The difficulty with Dante is not comprehending what he writes but making sense of the historical and mythological references. Manny did a great job explaining them. Many of the texts have footnotes as well. So I encourage you, and anyone else who felt a little intimidated, to join us when we return to Dante sometime in July or August.

Now I don't know when it became fashionable to write poetry that's nearly incomprehensible. It seems a modern malady to me, though I'm no expert.

[Susan]

Kerstin wrote: "The difficulty with Dante is not comprehending what he writes but making sense of the historical and mythological references. Manny did a great job explaining them." Thank you. I may still give it a go. I will definitely read, re-read through all the groups posts prior!

[Manny]

Susan wrote: "Kerstin wrote: "The difficulty with Dante is not comprehending what he writes but making sense of the historical and mythological references. Manny did a great job explaining them." Thank you. I ma..."

Susan The Divine Comedy is our long term read, which we break up into sections. We'll be reading the Paradiso within six months. We read the Inferno during the Winter. After the upcoming read we'll be reading Purgatorio, which should be during the summer. Then we break from the long term read and return to it after a couple of books. So sometime in the winter we should be back with Dante and doing Paradisio.

[Galicius]

Kerstin wrote: "Susan wrote: "Hi Galicius! No, I haven't. I have always wanted to read that but was a little worried as I thought I heard it was poetry? And I am really, really bad at reading poetry.... what was t..."

Kerstin wrote: "Susan wrote: "Hi Galicius! No, I haven't. I have always wanted to read that but was a little worried as I thought I heard it was poetry? And I am really, really bad at reading poetry.... what was t..."

There are some 1200 entries in Sinclair’s index at the end of "Paradiso" to names of places and people to the entire "Divine Comedy".

[Manny]

I’m wondering if anyone has read any of the The Cadfael Chronicles mysteries? Are they worth it? And do they have an anti Catholic tone? I’d like to sample one but not if it ridicules our religion.

[Maria]

I read several of the Cadfael books years ago and remember enjoying them. I especially liked the settings and the way the mysteries are solved without any technology, DNA analysis, etc. However, I never finished the series, and, if I remember correctly, I think it was because I didn't care for how some elements were handled, but I wouldn't say they were anti-Catholic. I'm sorry I can't think of any particular examples--it's been a while since I read them.

[Manny]

Maria wrote: "I read several of the Cadfael books years ago and remember enjoying them. I especially liked the settings and the way the mysteries are solved without any technology, DNA analysis, etc. However, I ..."

That’s more than I expected. Thank you much Sister. God bless.

[Manny]

I came across a couple of reviews of Catholic oriented books this morning which thought might interest people here. Let me stipulate, I have not read these books. They just caught my eye and perhaps others might be interested.

First one comes from a review at Sr. Kathleen Glavich's blog, "Catholic Faith Corner." The good sister has written many books herself but apparently she is also an editor and she edited this book she thought was worthy of a read. Here's what she says:

"This summer I edited a unique and fascinating book, Thunder in the Cell by John Ballentine. John has been a prisoner for almost thirty years in the Virginia Correctional System because of drugs. During that time, a provocative dream about his mother prompted him to search for God. He began with the World Almanac and advanced to reading the Church Fathers and writings of the saints. Early on, a Catholic prisoner had invited him to Mass. After stalling for two months, John went and there was converted. Since then he has passionately promoted the Catholic faith. His memoir is anything but dull as he recounts his experiences with wit and humor. "

You can read the rest of her post, here:
http://www.kathleenglavich.org/2018/1...

The book is not in the Goodreads system yet, but you can find it on Amazon.

The other book that caught my eye was reviewed and discussed with the author on Catholic World Report. This is a vampire novel with Catholic themes. From the article:

"Eleanor Bourg Nicholson’s new novel A Bloody Habit puts some new teeth into vampire stories, being a unique tale in which evil is actually evil and sin really is sinful. Nicholson, whose academic studies focused on English literature and anti-Catholicism in the British Victorian period, has been director of religious education at St. Thomas Aquinas University Parish in Charlottesville, Virginia since 2011."

You can read the article and interview here:
https://www.catholicworldreport.com/2...

This book is on Goodreads, here. A Bloody Habit

[Manny]

I haven't read this but Sophia Press sent me an advertisement with all sorts of high profile people who recommended this book by Elizabeth Lev. I put it in my Want To Read shelf.

How Catholic Art Saved the Faith: The Triumph of Beauty and Truth in Counter-Reformation Art

Looks like a good one to me.

[Manny]

Dave Armstrong on his blog "Biblical Evidence for Catholicism" is asked what is the best resource to find all the Catholic doctrines, and he recommends Fundamentals of Catholic Dogma. The post is fascinating as are most of Armstrong's posts:
https://www.patheos.com/blogs/davearm...

Now that link here on Goodreads is of a past edition. Armstrong provides a link of an updated publication which on Amazon is here:
https://www.amazon.com/Fundamentals-C...

Unfortunately it costs $60. Perhaps the price will come down one day. It sounds like a great reference book to own.

[Manny]

Really nice article here on "What is the best edition of the Bible for Catholics?" Good recommendations. Here:

https://aleteia.org/2019/01/07/what-i...

[Manny]

Last week I put in the Book Sale folder here ate our book club the announcement that Ignatius Press put Sohrab Ahmari's conversion story, From Fire, by Water: My Journey to the Catholic Faith. I keep seeing superlative reviews of the book. You might want to red this from the Catholic Herald:
https://catholicherald.co.uk/commenta...

I don't know if it's still on sale. You might want to check it out. The Sale Code is at comment #62 here:
https://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/...

[Manny]

Here's another (See my comment just above this) review of From Fire, by Water: My Journey to the Catholic Faith at Crises Magazine.
https://www.crisismagazine.com/2019/s...

Here's a key paragraph:
"Eventually, after a series of increasingly irresistible divine knockings on his soul, Ahmari realized that both he and Augustine had “waded through the same river of error.” He saw his past for what it was: so much squandered time, lost in dissolute neglect of God and soul. He saw the philosophies of his youth as so many unsatisfying attempts to explain away the sin within him."

I love a good conversion story, when they convert to Catholicism of course. ;)

[Manny]

I'm not sure this is the best folder to put this in. Catholic World Report has a great interview with Abigail Favale who has recently published Into the Deep: An Unlikely Catholic Conversion, her conversion story to Catholicism. She is quite an intellectual and I got a lot out of the interview. Here is the interview:
https://www.catholicworldreport.com/2...

I have put her book on my "To Read" list, though I probably have hundreds of books on that list I will never get to. But the interview is well worth reading.

[Madeleine]

I am looking for a really good book about Jesus on a young adult reading level for a young woman who has resisted religious instruction, is high functioning autistic, addicted to her phone and recently graduated from high school with no plans for her future and is undoubtedly scared and depressed. She does read, but her taste in entertainment unfortunately leans to the dark side. She needs help, and lots of love, but spends most days now in her room.

[Jesús]

Madeleine wrote: "I am looking for a really good book about Jesus on a young adult reading level for a young woman who has resisted religious instruction, is high functioning autistic, addicted to her phone and rece..."

It's difficult to find a good book for a person suffering anxiety and depression. We should consult her own interests. These books could help, they are comforting and moving:
Diary of Saint Maria Faustina Kowalska: Divine Mercy in My Soul
Story of a Soul: The Autobiography of St. Therese of Lisieux

These books talk about the experience of two young nuns with Christ. Among other things, they talk about suffering and how to cope with the daily life and daily tasks. Its environment is a small room of a convent. Great things can happen from the everyday too. From the intimacy of a small room, both open to others and the world. Maybe this girl can feel identified. Maybe this girl can recover herself considering her closest reality. And expand her soul and leave her loneliness.
Good luck!

[Maria]

Madeleine wrote: "I am looking for a really good book about Jesus on a young adult reading level for a young woman who has resisted religious instruction, is high functioning autistic, addicted to her phone and rece..."

Some thoughts I had as I read your description:


The Strangeness of Truth: Vibrant Faith in a Dark World
The cover is intriguing (meant to look kind of like a sci-fi novel that's been sitting on your bookshelf since the 80s). And Fr Ferrance (a Word on Fire Fellow) has a way with words, through stories and systematic treatment of topics like the incarnation, beauty and reason, the human person... It's aimed at young adults.


Remember Your Death devotional. This is on the theme of "memento mori," which is amazingly popular with young adults lately. There's also a prayerbook and journal that go with it.

Maybe graphic novels, which most people easily pick up and read:




This legend of Saint Christopher communicates the power and presence of Jesus. At one point in the story, Christopher goes to serve the devil because he thinks he's the strongest king. But he sees the devil express fear of a cross, so he leaves the devil's service. (The devil tells him he can't leave; it's too late, but Christopher makes a cross symbol to defend himself and goes away.) This one is Korean-style manga, which might encourage her to pick it up. It looks fun and easy to read.

[Christine]

Maybe Leonie Martin: A Difficult Life? She was St Therese of Lisieux sister . I think it is 5.99 on Amazon.

[Madeleine]

Thank you for the suggestions. I think I may go for the graphic novels because they appeal to her. She also is more inclined to dystopian fiction, horror movies, and naughty young people, You Tube videos and TV shows on the dark side. I don't think nuns would appeal to her, nor mystics. But those You Tube videos of St. Faustina's visions might.... In general, there is a huge gap in good Christian books for kids between 14-20. Taylor Marshall's trilogy is excellent, and worked well for my grandson, but he has had some exposure to and interest in Catholicism. I want to interest her in Jacqueline Brown's apocalyptic series too, but I think most importantly, she really needs to study Jesus and discover His importance, and study the Bible, and get over the idea that Church is not for her.