The Catholic Summer Reading Program

This summer, why not take some time to discover the rich treasure of Catholic literature?

Aquinas and More Catholic Goods, the official sponsor of the Catholic summer reading program, would like to invite you to join in a book discussion at your parish, local Catholic store or online at CatholicBookDiscussion.com. Kids can also get involved by downloading our Catholic Kids Reading Path and filling it in as they read Catholic books during the summer.

We Have Our Winners!

The voters in the 2009 election have spoken and the winners are:

1) The Confessions of St. Augustine
2) Fulfillment of All Desire
3) The Angels and Their Missions

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The truth about angels —
according to the Fathers of the Church

From St. Augustine to John Henry Newman, the greatest among the saints and men of God have lived on familiar terms with the angels; and the Church has always accorded them a very large place in her theology.

Recent theologians have dwelt on dry questions about the nature of the angels, but the early Fathers of the Church, with the memory of Jesus fresh in their minds (and of the angels of whom He spoke often) were fascinated with the energetic action of the angels among men and the ways in which the angels have carried out that mission from the instant of Creation through the time of Jesus; and how they will continue their work even unto the end of time.

From the works of these early Fathers of the Church, the late French Cardinal Jean Daniélou has drawn forth threads of knowledge and wisdom which he has here woven into a lucid and bright tapestry that shows us who the ministering angels really are, and how—in every instant and in every way—they are working for your salvation and mine.

Here you’ll find no sentimental cherubs: the Fathers knew that majesty and power cloak actual angels, which is why God gave them the formidable tasks of shepherding not only souls, but entire nations, and the motions of the entire material universe itself.

Open these pages to meet the glorious angels as they were known by the Church’s greatest saints and theologians: Origen and Eusebius, and Sts. Basil, Ambrose, Methodius, Gregory of Nyssa, Clement of Alexandria, and John Chrysostom (among others).

Soon you, too, will find yourself on familiar terms with the angels, and they’ll begin to play in your life the larger role that God intends them to play.

The greatest spiritual autobiography of all time, this classic work is a literary and theological masterpiece. Although written 1500 years ago, it reads fresh and new to this very day. John K. Ryan's masterful translation brings out the luster of Augustine's unmatched tale of his soul's journey to God.

In the late nineteenth century, Father Charles Arminjon, a priest from the mountains of southeastern France, assembled his flock in the town cathedral to preach a series of conferences to help them turn their thoughts away from this life’s mean material affairs—and toward the next life’s glorious spiritual reward. His wise and uncompromising words deepened in them the spirit of recollection that all Christians must have: the abiding conviction that heavenly aims, not temporal enthusiasms, must guide everything we think, say, and do.

When Father Arminjon’s conferences were later published in a book, many others were able to reap the same benefit—including fourteen-year-old Thérèse Martin, then on the cusp of entering the Carmelite convent in Lisieux. Reading it, she says, “plunged my soul into a happiness not of this earth.” Young Thérèse, filled with a sense of “what God reserves for those who love him, and seeing that the eternal rewards had no proportion to the light sacrifices of life,” copied out numerous passages and memorized them, "repeating unceasingly the words of love burning in my heart."

Ralph Martin, drawing upon the teaching of seven acknowledged "Spiritual Doctors" of the Church, presents an in-depth study of the journey to God. This book provides encouragement and direction for the pilgrim who desires to know, love, and serve our Lord. Whether the reader is beginning the spiritual journey or has been traveling the road for many years, he will find a treasure of wisdom in The Fulfillment of All Desire. It is destined to be a modern classic on the spiritual life.

Fr. Benedict Groeschel, C.F.R., founder of Friars of the Renewal and author of many books on the spiritual life, including Spiritual Passages and The Journey to God praised this latest book from Ralph Martin: "This is a book to keep at your place of prayer for years to come. Ralph Martin has given us the fruit of years of study of the spiritual life in the great Catholic tradition. It is a treasure chest of quotations of the greatest writers on the journey to God. Careful reading and rereading will be a source of powerful inspiration for all those on the spiritual journey."

As the beautiful daughter of a Roman senator, Junia enjoyed the best that life had to offer in first century Rome. She was grateful and anxious to please her family, a dutiful and obedient young woman of privilege. That is, until a chance friendship and its abrupt end sparks an interest in a new religion that will lead to a destiny she never imagined.

Junia is a fictional exploration of life at the very beginning of Christianity from a very personal point of view. It shows how the attractions of the new religion were accompanied by social struggle, family division, and the risk of a disgraceful death to those courageous enough to embrace it.

One of the most popular of Shakespeare's plays, King Lear is also one of the most thought-provoking. The play turns on the practical ramifications of the words of Christ that we should render unto Caesar that which is Caesar's and unto God that which is God's. When confronted with the demand that she should render unto Caesar that which is God's, Cordelia chooses to "love and be silent". As the play unfolds each of the principal characters learns wisdom through suffering. This edition includes new critical essays by some of the leading lights in contemporary literary scholarship.

The Ignatius Critical Editions represent a tradition-oriented alternative to popular textbook series such as the Norton Critical Editions or Oxford World Classics, and are designed to concentrate on traditional readings of the Classics of world literature. While many modern critical editions have succumbed to the fads of modernism and post-modernism, this series will concentrate on tradition-oriented criticism of these great works.

Beginning in 1914 and ending on the eve of World War II, this epic story follows the coming of age and early manhood of the Prussian aristocrat, Max von Hofmannswaldau. From the idyllic surroundings of his ancestral home to the streets of cosmopolitan Breslau menaced by the Nazi SS, Hofmannswaldau uncovers the truth about his own identity and confronts the modern ideologies that threaten the annihilation of millions of people.

A Postcard from the Volcano opens with the outbreak of World War I and the Prussian pride and patriotism that blind the noble von Hofmannswaldau family to the destruction that lies ahead for their country. The well-researched narrative follows the young count as he leaves home to finish his education and ends up a stranger in the land of his birth.

Both intelligent and sensitive, Beckett’s prose explores the complex philosophical and political questions that led Europe into a second world war, while never losing sight of a man whose life is shaped by his times. A deeply moving historical novel that shows the horrific impact that two world wars had on whole countries, and how individuals struggled to deal with the incredible challenges presented by such devastation.

Dame Muriel Spark's classic novel, originally published in 1961.

At the staid Marcia Blaine School for Girls, in Edinburgh, Scotland, teacher extraordinaire Miss Jean Brodie is unmistakably, and outspokenly, in her prime. She is passionate in the application of her unorthodox teaching methods, in her attraction to the married art master, Teddy Lloyd, in her affair with the bachelor music master, Gordon Lowther, and--most important--in her dedication to "her girls," the students she selects to be her creme de la creme. Fanatically devoted, each member of the Brodie set--Eunice, Jenny, Mary, Monica, Rose, and Sandy--is "famous for something," and Miss Brodie strives to bring out the best in each one. Determined to instill in them independence, passion, and ambition, Miss Brodie advises her girls, "Safety does not come first. Goodness, Truth, and Beauty come first. Follow me."

And they do. But one of them will betray her.

Quo Vadis, the record-breaking international bestseller for which Henryk Sienkiewicz won the fifth Nobel Prize for Literature, is as compelling today as the moment it was written. An epic saga of love, courage, and devotion in the last days of the Roman Empire, it portrays the corruption and debauchery of Nero's rule alongside the agony and glory of early Christianity.

Written over a century ago and translated into over 40 languages, Quo Vadis has been the greatest best-selling novel in the history of literature. "Sienkiewicz wrote Quo Vadis for the entire world and the world took it to its heart," commented James Michener.

Now, in a sparkling new translation which restores the original glory and splendor of this masterpiece, W.S. Kuniczak, the most acclaimed translator of Sienkiewicz in this century, combines his special knowledge of Sienkiewicz's fiction with his own considerable talents as a American novelist.

Set at a turning point in history (A.D. 54-68), as Christianity replaces the era of corruption and gluttony that marked Nero's Rome, Quo Vadis brims with life.

Gertrud von Len Fort wrote The Song at the Scaffold in 1931 five years after converting to the Catholic Faith and at that time was considered Germany's most influential Catholic poet and novelist. The Song at the Scaffold is a novelette set in the time of the French Revolution, an epoch that vividly demonstrated man's capacity for both heroism and brutality. It is a very intense story dealing primarily with the Carmelite Convent at Compiegne but also encompassing the Paris mob - the Reign of Terror - Women Revolutionists, etc. - climaxing in the martyrdom of sixteen Carmelite nuns. Excellent reading for both students and adults.