by Louise Kirk
Yesterday I received an email from a lovely teacher with whom I am working. She said that her latest prayer of offering had been to forgive three boys in her Year 9 class who had stuck her head on the body of a porn star and circulated it among their pals. It had been shared 139 times before she had managed to get it taken down.
I don’t tell you this to shock you, but to show you how important the virtue of Holy Purity is, the topic of this talk, and why we need to spread it to others.
Holy Purity was one of the virtues especially loved by St Josemaría Escrivá, Founder of Opus Dei. He used to call it the Little Sister of charity. The two go together, and he would insist that without charity purity itself is barren.
“Charity is the seed that will grow and yield rich fruit under the fertile rain of purity.” (The Way, no. 119)
Put it the other way around, and charity without purity becomes sterile.
How does this virtue fit in? We are composite beings, made of body and soul. It follows that if we are to love God in a fully human way we need to love him completely, through our souls and bodies operating in unison.
The sad effect of original sin which lives in us is that our bodies revolt against the dominion of our spirits.
The Ninth Commandment addresses this: “Thou shalt not covet thy neighbour’s wife”. In Catholic catechetical tradition, this forbids carnal concupiscence, or, as the Catechism puts it:
“The movement of the sensitive appetite contrary to the operation of the human reason.”
This is not sin in itself, but inclines us towards sin.
The Catechism goes on to say that the heart is the seat of moral personality. Out of the heart comes love, but also evil thoughts: murder, adultery, fornication.
The struggle against carnal covetousness entails purifying the heart, and practising temperance.
(You know how direct St Josemaría could be: he says of the latter, bluntly, “Overeating is the forerunner of impurity.” (The Way, 126))
It is, as we know, the pure in heart who shall see God. That is what we are aiming at. The “pure in heart” are those who have attuned their intellects and wills to the demands of God’s holiness chiefly in three areas:
- Charity
- Chastity
- Love of truth and orthodoxy of faith.
This last one may surprise you. I will be coming back to it later.
The three interplay with each other:
- Charity without chastity swiftly becomes self-love.
- Chastity without charity: pride.
- Chastity and charity without truth: we cut ourselves loose from God Himself, who is Truth.
By contrast, those who are both loving and chaste have their eyes opened to believe, and to understand what they believe. Part of this is seeing the human body as the Temple of the Holy Spirit, and respecting it accordingly.
There is another important point to take in: we don’t acquire Holy Purity just by our own efforts. Purity is a gift “which God will give us if we ask for it with humility” (The Way, 118). We do the groundwork, and God does the giving.
I have given you the rich background to the gift of Holy Purity in the hope that you will be tempted to read the Catechism for yourselves (2514-2533). We need to understand this gift well if we are to spread it to others.
Purity is a gift which grows. We don’t just “have it”. Sometimes we will fall down, because it will be a struggle for the rest of our lives, and we can expect the devil to attack us, and our families. He hates purity. If this should happen, we say sorry to God, mention it in Confession, and start again. Thoughts of an unruly nature can also come unbidden. The more we try to push them away, the more they can come. These are not sinful, but it can be helpful to get rid of them by mentioning them to the priest.
Turning specifically to chastity, I like this definition, which I picked up from Dawn Eden’s book The Thrill of the Chaste:
“Chastity is the virtue that enables us to love fully and completely in every relationship, in the manner that is appropriate to that relationship.”
I love the positive approach. You’ll notice that we’re not talking about “not doing things” but about ensuring that the way we treat other people is consonant with truth. This is a logic which anyone can understand. Body language is important. It can be even more important than the words we say.
Women have a special temptation against chastity which is different from a man’s. While a man has a stronger sensual drive, a woman has a thirst for male affirmation and emotional fulfilment, often driven by loneliness. Outside marriage, this can weaken her resistance to a man’s sexual advances and demolish her role as gatekeeper to the relationship. It can also encourage her to tempt a man, by the way she behaves and dresses, giving her a sense of control. Now often people today, especially the young, behave like this just because they are following fashion or the crowd. They aren’t consciously doing these things, but it doesn’t stop their behaviour being damaging both to themselves and the men they taunt.
Inside marriage, the problem can reverse itself, with the woman losing interest in sex, and failing to make the effort to court her husband. An obvious ingredient of this can be the way she looks. Does she still make the effort to please him? Now men vary. Not every husband takes full notice of the way we dress – my own doesn’t like me in trousers, but it means nothing to him if I put on makeup or not. What is important is that we discover what it is that makes our man feel drawn to us, and what makes him feel loved. Just as important is that we appreciate his ways of loving us. This is more complicated than it sounds because everybody feels loved in different ways – for one, it may be the gift of flowers, for another, mending the tap, for another being listened to. Women on average talk about twice as much as men, and that can be a source of love, or of friction. It’s so easy to judge our marriages by the little things that make us happy, rather than taking the effort to perceive our spouse.
Nicky and Sila Lee in their Marriage Course have a whole page of possible desires that we may each have and suggest that husbands and wives go through it together every so often to pick out their priorities. The list includes things like: affirmation, approval, companionship, conversation, physical affection, practical help, presents, time together, undivided attention.
But the gift of purity is for everybody, regardless of position in life. I have already mentioned Dawn Eden. In her book The Thrill of the Chaste Dawn recounts how she lived a life of Riley before discovering the attractions of chastity. It’s God’s gift for anybody, for those with same-sex attractions, single parents, the divorced, the separated, the widowed. Otherwise, we could be in danger of saying, with the Irishman: “If I were you, I wouldn’t start from here.”
In more complicated situations it can be easiest to start with the third category of purity mentioned in the Catechism: Love of truth and orthodoxy of faith.
Here we can help our friends and the people we meet see the beauty of the Church’s teaching so that they live it themselves and pass it on to their children.
I shall end by citing an email I opened not yesterday, but today. It comes from Pat Fagan, whom you may remember is going to be giving a talk in Manchester in June. I hope that it will tempt you to want to come to hear him.
He has sent me a piece of his research which isn’t yet published. I’m going to read it to you:
“Adolescents who worshipped weekly performed best academically. (We’re talking about things like their Maths and English.) Those who worshipped a few times per month did next best, followed by those who worshipped a couple of times a year. The worst were those who never worshipped. This is a snapshot of American teenagers! The more that social scientists analyse the data on religious practice the more powerful it reveals itself to be.
It can be seriously contended from review of the literature that religious practice has more impact for good than anything else in the social sciences. Some parents have no choice about being a non-intact family, but every parent can choose to worship God weekly. Single, black, inner-city welfare mothers who bring their children to church each week give them much of the same benefits as if they moved into a middle-class neighbourhood and sent them to middle-class schools.
Weekly worship improves virtually every outcome measured in the US federal survey system. The only interesting question for the social scientist is not “if” but “how much“ benefit weekly worship delivers. Thus, every newly-conceived child can say to his parents:
‘To reach my potential I need your worship of God, for without it I will not become the person I am capable of becoming. The choice is yours. The result is mine.’”
Not every parent can alter the situation they may find themselves in with regard to marital condition, but every parent can bring a child to church. When we hear so much about the difficulties faced by children living without both father and mother at home, it is worth remembering that just taking them to church could make such a difference.
As I said at the beginning of this talk, charity and chastity belong together. May the Lord give us the grace of Holy Purity and help us to spread it to others with joy.
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You Can Understand the Bible
A Practical and Illuminating Guide to Each Book in the Bible
Many people are often understandably intimidated or overwhelmed by the sheer size and complexity of the Bible. Peter Kreeft has written a clear road map of the Bible, focusing his keen insight and engaging wit on the core message of each book. It won’t take long for you to understand why his guide to scripture has become a best-seller! Sparkling with intelligence and Kreeft’s trademark humor, You Can Understand the Bible will transform dry study into spiritually satisfying adventures in God’s Word.
AUTHOR: Dr Peter Kreeft
DETAILS: 328 pages, paperback
ISBN: 978-1586170455
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You Can Understand the Bible
A Practical and Illuminating Guide to Each Book in the Bible
Many people are often understandably intimidated or overwhelmed by the sheer size and complexity of the Bible. Peter Kreeft has written a clear road map of the Bible, focusing his keen insight and engaging wit on the core message of each book. It won’t take long for you to understand why his guide to scripture has become a best-seller! Sparkling with intelligence and Kreeft’s trademark humor, You Can Understand the Bible will transform dry study into spiritually satisfying adventures in God’s Word.
AUTHOR: Dr Peter Kreeft
DETAILS: 328 pages, paperback
ISBN: 978-1586170455
£15.50Add to cart
Confessions of a Traditional Catholic
Matthew Arnold. Forward by Dr Scott Hahn Describing Arnold’s personal witness and spiritual journey, this book documents the centurylong movement to reform the liturgy, exposing the spiritual peril at the heart of radical Traditionalism while remaining compassionate towards the legitimate aspirations of Traditional Catholics.
AUTHOR: Matthew Arnold. Forward by Dr Scott Hahn
DETAILS: 125 pages, paperback
ISBN: 978-1621641551
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£12.50Add to cart
Confessions of a Traditional Catholic
Matthew Arnold. Forward by Dr Scott Hahn Describing Arnold’s personal witness and spiritual journey, this book documents the centurylong movement to reform the liturgy, exposing the spiritual peril at the heart of radical Traditionalism while remaining compassionate towards the legitimate aspirations of Traditional Catholics.
AUTHOR: Matthew Arnold. Forward by Dr Scott Hahn
DETAILS: 125 pages, paperback
ISBN: 978-1621641551
£12.50Add to cart
The Biblical Roots of the Mass
In this profoundly insightful and highly readable book, Thomas Nash brilliantly refutes the common charge that the Mass is “unbiblical.” As you’ll discover in these pages, the story of the Mass goes deeper than the Last Supper and Christ’s Passion and Death. Indeed, it’s part of an unbroken story that begins in the Garden of Eden and continues today in your local parish. Working systematically through Scripture, Nash offers an authoritative explanation of salvation history, showing how the Old Testament prefigures – and the New Testament wondrously records – Jesus’s one self-sacrifice of Calvary which is mysteriously made present at each and every Mass. Nash’s meticulous, Scripture-packed analysis relies on hundreds of Bible passages to show that the story of the Mass is inextricably linked with the story of the Bible.
AUTHOR: Thomas J Nash
DETAILS: 271 pages, paperback
ISBN: 978-1622822591
-
£15.95Add to cart
The Biblical Roots of the Mass
In this profoundly insightful and highly readable book, Thomas Nash brilliantly refutes the common charge that the Mass is “unbiblical.” As you’ll discover in these pages, the story of the Mass goes deeper than the Last Supper and Christ’s Passion and Death. Indeed, it’s part of an unbroken story that begins in the Garden of Eden and continues today in your local parish. Working systematically through Scripture, Nash offers an authoritative explanation of salvation history, showing how the Old Testament prefigures – and the New Testament wondrously records – Jesus’s one self-sacrifice of Calvary which is mysteriously made present at each and every Mass. Nash’s meticulous, Scripture-packed analysis relies on hundreds of Bible passages to show that the story of the Mass is inextricably linked with the story of the Bible.
AUTHOR: Thomas J Nash
DETAILS: 271 pages, paperback
ISBN: 978-1622822591
£15.95Add to cart
Proving the Catholic Faith Is Biblical
In these pages, veteran apologist Dave Armstrong carefully walks you through the key teachings of the Church, revealing how each is rooted in Scripture. All told, he offers here 80 powerful essays that make sense of so many Catholic beliefs and practices including purgatory and penance, the ritualism of the Holy Mass, the Rosary, the Communion of Saints, Mary as Queen of Heaven, papal infallibility, annulments, contraception, the necessity of Hell, and even the development of Church doctrine.
Read this book, and you’ll come to see that not only is the Catholic Faith thoroughly biblical, it is the only Christian religion in full conformity with Scripture.
AUTHOR: Dave Armstrong
DETAILS: 290 pages, paperback
ISBN: 978-1622822638
-
£16.50Add to cart
Proving the Catholic Faith Is Biblical
In these pages, veteran apologist Dave Armstrong carefully walks you through the key teachings of the Church, revealing how each is rooted in Scripture. All told, he offers here 80 powerful essays that make sense of so many Catholic beliefs and practices including purgatory and penance, the ritualism of the Holy Mass, the Rosary, the Communion of Saints, Mary as Queen of Heaven, papal infallibility, annulments, contraception, the necessity of Hell, and even the development of Church doctrine.
Read this book, and you’ll come to see that not only is the Catholic Faith thoroughly biblical, it is the only Christian religion in full conformity with Scripture.
AUTHOR: Dave Armstrong
DETAILS: 290 pages, paperback
ISBN: 978-1622822638
£16.50Add to cart
Who Am I To Judge?
Responding to Relativism with Logic and Love
“Don’t be so judgemental!” “Why are Christians so intolerant?” “Why can’t we just coexist?” In an age in which preference has replaced morality, many people find it difficult to speak the truth, afraid of the reactions they will receive if they say something is right or wrong. Using engaging stories and personal experience, Edward Sri helps us understand the classical view of morality and equips us to engage relativism, appealing to both the head and the heart. Learn how Catholic morality is all about love, and why making a judgement is not judging a person’s soul.
AUTHOR: Edward Sri
DETAILS: 177 pages, paperback
ISBN: 978-1621641650
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£13.95Add to cart
Who Am I To Judge?
Responding to Relativism with Logic and Love
“Don’t be so judgemental!” “Why are Christians so intolerant?” “Why can’t we just coexist?” In an age in which preference has replaced morality, many people find it difficult to speak the truth, afraid of the reactions they will receive if they say something is right or wrong. Using engaging stories and personal experience, Edward Sri helps us understand the classical view of morality and equips us to engage relativism, appealing to both the head and the heart. Learn how Catholic morality is all about love, and why making a judgement is not judging a person’s soul.
AUTHOR: Edward Sri
DETAILS: 177 pages, paperback
ISBN: 978-1621641650
£13.95Add to cart
Lost Art of Sacrifice
A Spiritual Guide for Denying Yourself, Embracing the Cross, and Finding Joy
In these powerful pages, author Vicki Burbach contrasts – as Jesus did – our selfish worldly culture with the way Christians are called to live, illuminating the essential role that sacrifice must play in every worthy human life. Not content with explaining the importance of sacrifice and singing its praises, Burbach ends each chapter with practical, down-to-earth suggestions to help readers cultivate the art of sacrifice in their lives, so that each may find a way to follow Christ as He commands us. She shows that not only is it critical that we each undertake ever more sacrifices, large and small, as we go about our daily lives but that doing so is the path to joy: great joy today and immeasurably greater joy hereafter.
AUTHOR: Vicki Burbach
DETAILS: 224 pages, paperback
ISBN: 978-1622826360
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£15.50Add to cart
Lost Art of Sacrifice
A Spiritual Guide for Denying Yourself, Embracing the Cross, and Finding Joy
In these powerful pages, author Vicki Burbach contrasts – as Jesus did – our selfish worldly culture with the way Christians are called to live, illuminating the essential role that sacrifice must play in every worthy human life. Not content with explaining the importance of sacrifice and singing its praises, Burbach ends each chapter with practical, down-to-earth suggestions to help readers cultivate the art of sacrifice in their lives, so that each may find a way to follow Christ as He commands us. She shows that not only is it critical that we each undertake ever more sacrifices, large and small, as we go about our daily lives but that doing so is the path to joy: great joy today and immeasurably greater joy hereafter.
AUTHOR: Vicki Burbach
DETAILS: 224 pages, paperback
ISBN: 978-1622826360
£15.50Add to cart
The Radiance of Her Face
These meditations on the Immaculate Conception will teach you to look at and love Our Lady as God sees and loves her. Alive to the role of material beauty in strengthening our perception of the invisible, Dom Perrin uses the visual language of the “Triptych” to assist us in our understanding of Mary’s role in the divine plan. Those who already rejoice in fervent devotion to Mary will find their love for her here nourished, stirred, refreshed, confirmed, given new impetus. For those who have lacked the confidence to turn to Mary, who feel they do not really understand how we can pray to her, or relate to her, these pages may prove truly liberating, inviting entry into a prayer life that is deeper, more confident, and more effective. A contemplative gaze at Mary Immaculate has the power to change us, to convert us, to soften our hard hearts, to open us up to the transforming power of the Holy Spirit. Here then is a book to be savoured, to be read slowly and repeatedly, to be passed on to others. May it be a blessing for all who encounter it.
AUTHOR: Dom Xavier Perrin, OSB
DETAILS: 106 pages, paperback
ISBN: 978-1621383062
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£10.50Add to cart
The Radiance of Her Face
These meditations on the Immaculate Conception will teach you to look at and love Our Lady as God sees and loves her. Alive to the role of material beauty in strengthening our perception of the invisible, Dom Perrin uses the visual language of the “Triptych” to assist us in our understanding of Mary’s role in the divine plan. Those who already rejoice in fervent devotion to Mary will find their love for her here nourished, stirred, refreshed, confirmed, given new impetus. For those who have lacked the confidence to turn to Mary, who feel they do not really understand how we can pray to her, or relate to her, these pages may prove truly liberating, inviting entry into a prayer life that is deeper, more confident, and more effective. A contemplative gaze at Mary Immaculate has the power to change us, to convert us, to soften our hard hearts, to open us up to the transforming power of the Holy Spirit. Here then is a book to be savoured, to be read slowly and repeatedly, to be passed on to others. May it be a blessing for all who encounter it.
AUTHOR: Dom Xavier Perrin, OSB
DETAILS: 106 pages, paperback
ISBN: 978-1621383062
£10.50Add to cart
Scripture Wars
About a century after Jesus died, a battle began for the Old Testament. Large numbers of faithful Christians fought about its contents and even about its right to be called a Christian book! This book chronicles the Scripture Wars that ensued and introduces readers to one of early Christianity’s greatest defenders: St. Justin Martyr.
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£15.50Add to cart
Scripture Wars
About a century after Jesus died, a battle began for the Old Testament. Large numbers of faithful Christians fought about its contents and even about its right to be called a Christian book! This book chronicles the Scripture Wars that ensued and introduces readers to one of early Christianity’s greatest defenders: St. Justin Martyr.
£15.50Add to cart
The Creed
Scott Hahn In The Creed: Professing the Faith Through the Ages, Dr Scott Hahn recovers and conveys the creed’s revolutionary character. The Creed tells the story of how the very profession of our belief in Christ fashions us for heavenly life as we live out our earthly days.
AUTHOR: Dr Scott Hahn
DETAILS: 208 pages, paperback
ISBN: 978-0232533439
-
£12.95Add to cart
The Creed
Scott Hahn In The Creed: Professing the Faith Through the Ages, Dr Scott Hahn recovers and conveys the creed’s revolutionary character. The Creed tells the story of how the very profession of our belief in Christ fashions us for heavenly life as we live out our earthly days.
AUTHOR: Dr Scott Hahn
DETAILS: 208 pages, paperback
ISBN: 978-0232533439
£12.95Add to cart
Into His Likeness
Be Transformed as a Disciple of Christ
Edward Sri In Into His Likeness, Dr Edward Sri provides an approachable but in-depth exploration of what it means to be a disciple of Christ. He offers for consideration the four habits of a disciple: prayer, the breaking of bread, fellowship and the teaching of the Apostles.
AUTHOR: Edward Sri
DETAILS: 150 pages, paperback
ISBN: 978-0999375655
-
£13.95Add to cart
Into His Likeness
Be Transformed as a Disciple of Christ
Edward Sri In Into His Likeness, Dr Edward Sri provides an approachable but in-depth exploration of what it means to be a disciple of Christ. He offers for consideration the four habits of a disciple: prayer, the breaking of bread, fellowship and the teaching of the Apostles.
AUTHOR: Edward Sri
DETAILS: 150 pages, paperback
ISBN: 978-0999375655
£13.95Add to cart
Apologetics and Catholic Doctrine
Almost 500,000 copies of this classic high school text were printed, which was used to teach the Faith to generations of English-speaking Catholics around the world for more than four decades. Its outstanding clarity, persuasiveness and comprehensiveness are
totally unique. This book gave many young Catholics the support and knowledge to sustain their Faith throughout their lifetime. They knew the Catholic Religion, and they knew the reasons for it. The structure and sequence of the argument of Sheehan’s Apologetics have a unique clarity and logical force. The exposition of the deposit of faith in Catholic Doctrine is clear and thorough. Objections are faced openly and honestly. Dr Sheehan’s whole text breathes a loving confi dence in the truth of the Faith
founded on Him to Whom all honour and glory is due: Jesus Christ, the same, yesterday, today and forever.
AUTHOR: Archbishop Michael Sheehan, Edited by Fr Peter Joseph
DETAILS: 686 pages, hardcover
ISBN: 978-1905574667
-
£23.95Add to cart
Apologetics and Catholic Doctrine
Almost 500,000 copies of this classic high school text were printed, which was used to teach the Faith to generations of English-speaking Catholics around the world for more than four decades. Its outstanding clarity, persuasiveness and comprehensiveness are
totally unique. This book gave many young Catholics the support and knowledge to sustain their Faith throughout their lifetime. They knew the Catholic Religion, and they knew the reasons for it. The structure and sequence of the argument of Sheehan’s Apologetics have a unique clarity and logical force. The exposition of the deposit of faith in Catholic Doctrine is clear and thorough. Objections are faced openly and honestly. Dr Sheehan’s whole text breathes a loving confi dence in the truth of the Faith
founded on Him to Whom all honour and glory is due: Jesus Christ, the same, yesterday, today and forever.
AUTHOR: Archbishop Michael Sheehan, Edited by Fr Peter Joseph
DETAILS: 686 pages, hardcover
ISBN: 978-1905574667
£23.95Add to cart
Ignatius Bible (paperback)
RSV Catholic Edition
A completely new design and typeset edition of the popular Ignatius Revised Standard Version-Catholic Edition Bible, with minor revisions to some of the archaic language used in the first edition. This revised version is a contemporary English translation without dumbing-down the text. This second edition of the RSV doesn’t put the biblical text through a filter to make it acceptable to current tastes and prejudices, and it retains the beauty of the RSV language that has made it such a joy to read and reflect on the Word of God.
DETAILS: 1096 pages, paperback
ISBN: 978-1586177706
-
£19.95Add to cart
Ignatius Bible (paperback)
RSV Catholic Edition
A completely new design and typeset edition of the popular Ignatius Revised Standard Version-Catholic Edition Bible, with minor revisions to some of the archaic language used in the first edition. This revised version is a contemporary English translation without dumbing-down the text. This second edition of the RSV doesn’t put the biblical text through a filter to make it acceptable to current tastes and prejudices, and it retains the beauty of the RSV language that has made it such a joy to read and reflect on the Word of God.
DETAILS: 1096 pages, paperback
ISBN: 978-1586177706
£19.95Add to cart
Go to Heaven
A Spiritual Road Map to Eternity
Archbishop Fulton J. Sheen Why it is that one hears so often the expression “Go to hell!” And almost never the expression “Go to heaven!” Here, is Bishop Sheen with his answer. This is a book that breathes new meaning into the truths about heaven and hell, and new life into the concepts of faith, tolerance, love, prayer, suffering, and death.
AUTHOR: Archbishop Fulton J. Sheen
DETAILS: 258 pages, paperback
ISBN: 978-1621641544
-
£14.95Add to cart
Go to Heaven
A Spiritual Road Map to Eternity
Archbishop Fulton J. Sheen Why it is that one hears so often the expression “Go to hell!” And almost never the expression “Go to heaven!” Here, is Bishop Sheen with his answer. This is a book that breathes new meaning into the truths about heaven and hell, and new life into the concepts of faith, tolerance, love, prayer, suffering, and death.
AUTHOR: Archbishop Fulton J. Sheen
DETAILS: 258 pages, paperback
ISBN: 978-1621641544
£14.95Add to cart
A Devotional Journey into the Mass
A church destroyed. A congregation silenced. A relationship shattered. Yet even in life’s darkest valleys, a small flame can light the way toward healing and hope. A deadly fire rips through St. James Church, devastating the congregation and Pastor Dave. Adjoining Hadleigh University uses the tragedy to kick the congregation off campus. The escalating controversy creates a dilemma for the small church – can Christians fight for their rights and be the light for Christ at the same time? Facing a court case and his own struggle to see Christ’s light in heartbreak, Dave asks for help from Pearce, his estranged brother – a big-city lawyer and an atheist – to fight for the church’s right to exist.
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£12.50Add to cart
A Devotional Journey into the Mass
A church destroyed. A congregation silenced. A relationship shattered. Yet even in life’s darkest valleys, a small flame can light the way toward healing and hope. A deadly fire rips through St. James Church, devastating the congregation and Pastor Dave. Adjoining Hadleigh University uses the tragedy to kick the congregation off campus. The escalating controversy creates a dilemma for the small church – can Christians fight for their rights and be the light for Christ at the same time? Facing a court case and his own struggle to see Christ’s light in heartbreak, Dave asks for help from Pearce, his estranged brother – a big-city lawyer and an atheist – to fight for the church’s right to exist.
£12.50Add to cart
Relics From the Crucifixion
Where They Went and How They Got There
The Jews usually burned the crosses used by the Romans after executions, but following Jesus’ crucifixion they quickly threw the Cross in a ditch to get it out of sight before the feast of Passover. That preserved the True Cross, and memory of the events preserved its location. Disgusted with continued Christian veneration of the spot, pagan Roman Emperor Hadrian erected on the Cross’s burial site a statue to Venus, hoping thereby to obliterate their memory. It didn’t work.
Indeed, because of the statue, when the Empire became Christian, St. Helena knew the exact spot where she would find the very Cross on which Christ died. All relics from Christ’s crucifixion have a similarly fascinating story, all of which are told here in this 1910 work by the enterprising Catholic investigator Charles Wall.
AUTHOR: J Charles Wall
DETAILS: 138 pages, paperback
ISBN: 978-1622823277
-
£12.50Add to cart
Relics From the Crucifixion
Where They Went and How They Got There
The Jews usually burned the crosses used by the Romans after executions, but following Jesus’ crucifixion they quickly threw the Cross in a ditch to get it out of sight before the feast of Passover. That preserved the True Cross, and memory of the events preserved its location. Disgusted with continued Christian veneration of the spot, pagan Roman Emperor Hadrian erected on the Cross’s burial site a statue to Venus, hoping thereby to obliterate their memory. It didn’t work.
Indeed, because of the statue, when the Empire became Christian, St. Helena knew the exact spot where she would find the very Cross on which Christ died. All relics from Christ’s crucifixion have a similarly fascinating story, all of which are told here in this 1910 work by the enterprising Catholic investigator Charles Wall.
AUTHOR: J Charles Wall
DETAILS: 138 pages, paperback
ISBN: 978-1622823277
£12.50Add to cart
How St John Bosco Punished
Punishing a child is a serious affair! It is the most delicate responsibility of all! How should we go about inflicting a punishment? What moment should we pick? What tone should we adopt? What kind of punishment should we prefer? How should we measure it out? These are the main questions raised by this right which often imposes itself as a duty. What teacher, what leader, what father or mother, what educator has not asked themselves these questions and tried to answer them? One day, a saint had the courage to meditate on this essential chapter of every educational method. The answer he gave us was his forty-five years’ experience. Who was this saint? His name was Don Bosco.
AUTHOR: Fr Augustin Auffray
DETAILS: 108 pages, paperback
ISBN: 978-1916316430
How St John Bosco Punished
Punishing a child is a serious affair! It is the most delicate responsibility of all! How should we go about inflicting a punishment? What moment should we pick? What tone should we adopt? What kind of punishment should we prefer? How should we measure it out? These are the main questions raised by this right which often imposes itself as a duty. What teacher, what leader, what father or mother, what educator has not asked themselves these questions and tried to answer them? One day, a saint had the courage to meditate on this essential chapter of every educational method. The answer he gave us was his forty-five years’ experience. Who was this saint? His name was Don Bosco.
AUTHOR: Fr Augustin Auffray
DETAILS: 108 pages, paperback
ISBN: 978-1916316430
£7.95Add to cart
Catena Aurea
4 Volume Set
St. Thomas Aquinas’ Catena Aurea is a masterpiece anthology of Patristic commentary on the Gospels – it includes the work of over eighty Church Fathers. For each of the four Gospel writers, the Catena Aurea starts by indicating the verses to be analyzed, then phrase-by-phrase, provides the early Fathers’ insights into the passage. The Catena Aurea, compiled by one of the Catholic Church’s greatest minds, is of immeasurable use to priests writing homilies, lay people engaged in private or family study or of the Gospels and religious instructors will find it an invaluable help in preparing lessons. It is the perfect companion to study the Scriptures in detail and receive the wisdom of St. Thomas on particular passages.
AUTHOR: St Thomas Aquinas
DETAILS: 2832 pages, 4 volumes, leatherbound
ISBN: 978-1905574506
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£119.95Add to cart
Catena Aurea
4 Volume Set
St. Thomas Aquinas’ Catena Aurea is a masterpiece anthology of Patristic commentary on the Gospels – it includes the work of over eighty Church Fathers. For each of the four Gospel writers, the Catena Aurea starts by indicating the verses to be analyzed, then phrase-by-phrase, provides the early Fathers’ insights into the passage. The Catena Aurea, compiled by one of the Catholic Church’s greatest minds, is of immeasurable use to priests writing homilies, lay people engaged in private or family study or of the Gospels and religious instructors will find it an invaluable help in preparing lessons. It is the perfect companion to study the Scriptures in detail and receive the wisdom of St. Thomas on particular passages.
AUTHOR: St Thomas Aquinas
DETAILS: 2832 pages, 4 volumes, leatherbound
ISBN: 978-1905574506
£119.95Add to cart
Fundamentals of Catholic Dogma
Fundamentals of Catholic Dogma has been considered as the definitive single volume summary of Catholic dogmatic theology ever since its original publication in German in 1952. This great work by Ludwig Ott presents a comprehensive yet concise outline of the entire system of Catholic doctrine, laying out its sources in Scripture and Tradition as taught by the Magisterium of the Church. The level of authority behind each doctrinal point is indicated and there are frequent references to the teachings of Fathers, Doctors and numerous Saints of the Church. This definitive work of dogmatics is presented in a language that is both academically rigorous and accessible to laymen. Whilst written for study purposes it is suitable to anyone who wants to go beyond the basics in understanding the faith.
AUTHOR: Dr Ludwig Ott
DETAILS: 568 pages, leatherbound
ISBN: 978-1905574650
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£48.95Add to cart
Fundamentals of Catholic Dogma
Fundamentals of Catholic Dogma has been considered as the definitive single volume summary of Catholic dogmatic theology ever since its original publication in German in 1952. This great work by Ludwig Ott presents a comprehensive yet concise outline of the entire system of Catholic doctrine, laying out its sources in Scripture and Tradition as taught by the Magisterium of the Church. The level of authority behind each doctrinal point is indicated and there are frequent references to the teachings of Fathers, Doctors and numerous Saints of the Church. This definitive work of dogmatics is presented in a language that is both academically rigorous and accessible to laymen. Whilst written for study purposes it is suitable to anyone who wants to go beyond the basics in understanding the faith.
AUTHOR: Dr Ludwig Ott
DETAILS: 568 pages, leatherbound
ISBN: 978-1905574650
£48.95Add to cart
Popes, Emperors and Elephants
The First Thousand Years of Christian Culture
Roy Peachey takes us on a wide-ranging and sometimes surprising journey through the first thousand years of Christian culture. Starting in Athens, Rome, and Jerusalem, we travel as far as China, Ethiopia, and Iraq, meeting saints, sailors, popes, emperors, and the occasional elephant as we go. Written in an accessible style, this book can be enjoyed by children and adults alike. It is a book that tells familiar stories in an unfamiliar way, introduces us to many forgotten aspects of Christian civilization, and brings some of the historical greats to life. It is a book that explores intriguing questions such as “What did the past sound like?” “When did the Roman Empire really end?” and “Were the barbarians barbarians?”
AUTHOR: Roy Peachey
DETAILS: 224 pages, paperback
ISBN: 978-1621386995
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£14.50Add to cart
Popes, Emperors and Elephants
The First Thousand Years of Christian Culture
Roy Peachey takes us on a wide-ranging and sometimes surprising journey through the first thousand years of Christian culture. Starting in Athens, Rome, and Jerusalem, we travel as far as China, Ethiopia, and Iraq, meeting saints, sailors, popes, emperors, and the occasional elephant as we go. Written in an accessible style, this book can be enjoyed by children and adults alike. It is a book that tells familiar stories in an unfamiliar way, introduces us to many forgotten aspects of Christian civilization, and brings some of the historical greats to life. It is a book that explores intriguing questions such as “What did the past sound like?” “When did the Roman Empire really end?” and “Were the barbarians barbarians?”
AUTHOR: Roy Peachey
DETAILS: 224 pages, paperback
ISBN: 978-1621386995
£14.50Add to cart
Five Proofs of the Existence of God
Edward Feser This book provides a detailed, updated exposition and defence of five of the historically most important philosophical proofs of God’s existence. It also offers a thorough treatment of each of the key divine attributes, showing that they must be possessed by God.
AUTHOR: Edward Feser
DETAILS: 208 pages, paperback
ISBN: 978-1621641339
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£16.50Add to cart
Five Proofs of the Existence of God
Edward Feser This book provides a detailed, updated exposition and defence of five of the historically most important philosophical proofs of God’s existence. It also offers a thorough treatment of each of the key divine attributes, showing that they must be possessed by God.
AUTHOR: Edward Feser
DETAILS: 208 pages, paperback
ISBN: 978-1621641339
£16.50Add to cart
How to Do Apologetics
Making the Case for Our Faith
Patrick Madrid Veteran apologist Patrick Madrid presents his latest book on apologetics. Drawing on his own extensive experience, Madrid explains how you can use arguments and evidence to engage with other viewpoints, including atheism and Protestantism, and how you can defend the Faith effectively.
AUTHOR: Patrick Madrid
DETAILS: 208 pages, paperback
ISBN: 978-1612785837
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£13.95Add to cart
How to Do Apologetics
Making the Case for Our Faith
Patrick Madrid Veteran apologist Patrick Madrid presents his latest book on apologetics. Drawing on his own extensive experience, Madrid explains how you can use arguments and evidence to engage with other viewpoints, including atheism and Protestantism, and how you can defend the Faith effectively.
AUTHOR: Patrick Madrid
DETAILS: 208 pages, paperback
ISBN: 978-1612785837
£13.95Add to cart
Tolkien
Man and Myth
This major new study of his life, his character, and his work reveals the facts and confronts the myths. It explores the man’s background and the culture in which he wrote.
AUTHOR: Joseph Pearce
DETAILS: 257 pages, paperback
ISBN: 978-0898708257
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£13.95Add to cart
Tolkien
Man and Myth
This major new study of his life, his character, and his work reveals the facts and confronts the myths. It explores the man’s background and the culture in which he wrote.
AUTHOR: Joseph Pearce
DETAILS: 257 pages, paperback
ISBN: 978-0898708257
£13.95Add to cart
A Time to Die
Behind monastery walls, men of God spend their lives preparing for the passage of death. Best-selling French author Nicolas Diat sets out to find what their deaths can reveal about the greatest mystery faced by everyone – the end of life.
How to die? How to respond to our fear of death? To answer these and other questions, Diat travelled to eight European monasteries. Through extraordinary interviews with monks, he learned that their death experiences are varied and unique, with elements of peace, pain, humility, sorrow, and joy. These monks have the same fears, torments, and sorrows as everyone else, Diat discovered. What is exemplary about them is their humility and simplicity. When death approaches, and its hand reveals its strength, they are like happy and naïve children who wait with impatience to open a gift. They have complete confidence in the mercy of God.
AUTHOR: Nicolas Diat
DETAILS: 180 pages, paperback
ISBN: 978-1621642749
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£14.95Add to cart
A Time to Die
Behind monastery walls, men of God spend their lives preparing for the passage of death. Best-selling French author Nicolas Diat sets out to find what their deaths can reveal about the greatest mystery faced by everyone – the end of life.
How to die? How to respond to our fear of death? To answer these and other questions, Diat travelled to eight European monasteries. Through extraordinary interviews with monks, he learned that their death experiences are varied and unique, with elements of peace, pain, humility, sorrow, and joy. These monks have the same fears, torments, and sorrows as everyone else, Diat discovered. What is exemplary about them is their humility and simplicity. When death approaches, and its hand reveals its strength, they are like happy and naïve children who wait with impatience to open a gift. They have complete confidence in the mercy of God.
AUTHOR: Nicolas Diat
DETAILS: 180 pages, paperback
ISBN: 978-1621642749
£14.95Add to cart
Fruits of Fatima
A Century of Signs and Wonders
This riveting account of true-life Fatima events of the past hundred years demonstrates that Our Lady’s messages are more vital today than ever before. Here, author Joseph Pronechen reports on scores of post-Fatima incidents that reveal the wide-reaching influence the apparitions have had throughout this past century on the lives of ordinary people, popes, saints — and even unbelievers! You’ll learn of many amazing but little-known Fatima-related occurrences through the past century.
AUTHOR: Joseph Pronechan
DETAILS: 256 pages, paperback
ISBN: 978-1622828142
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£12.50Add to cart
Fruits of Fatima
A Century of Signs and Wonders
This riveting account of true-life Fatima events of the past hundred years demonstrates that Our Lady’s messages are more vital today than ever before. Here, author Joseph Pronechen reports on scores of post-Fatima incidents that reveal the wide-reaching influence the apparitions have had throughout this past century on the lives of ordinary people, popes, saints — and even unbelievers! You’ll learn of many amazing but little-known Fatima-related occurrences through the past century.
AUTHOR: Joseph Pronechan
DETAILS: 256 pages, paperback
ISBN: 978-1622828142
£12.50Add to cart
Saint Therese of Lisieux
Her Family, Her God, Her Message
Fr Bernard Bro Fr Bernard Bro decided to set forth the aspects of St Therese of Lisieux’s life, personality, and writing that do indeed mark her as one of the truly great exponents of Catholic doctrine. What she offers in her life and in her writing, he claims, is “one of the most certain and simplest evangelical shortcuts ever proposed.”
AUTHOR: Fr Bernard Bro
DETAILS: 253 pages, paperback
ISBN: 978-0898708424
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£13.95Add to cart
Saint Therese of Lisieux
Her Family, Her God, Her Message
Fr Bernard Bro Fr Bernard Bro decided to set forth the aspects of St Therese of Lisieux’s life, personality, and writing that do indeed mark her as one of the truly great exponents of Catholic doctrine. What she offers in her life and in her writing, he claims, is “one of the most certain and simplest evangelical shortcuts ever proposed.”
AUTHOR: Fr Bernard Bro
DETAILS: 253 pages, paperback
ISBN: 978-0898708424
£13.95Add to cart
That Nothing May Be Lost
Rev Paul D Scalia Fr Paul Scalia reveals a scholar’s mind and a pastor’s heart in these inspiring reflections on a wide range of Catholic teachings and practices. Rooted in Scripture, these insights place the reader on a path to a deeper, more meaningful relationship with God.
AUTHOR: Rev Paul D Scalia
DETAILS: 190 pages, paperback
ISBN: 978-1621641506
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£14.95Add to cart
That Nothing May Be Lost
Rev Paul D Scalia Fr Paul Scalia reveals a scholar’s mind and a pastor’s heart in these inspiring reflections on a wide range of Catholic teachings and practices. Rooted in Scripture, these insights place the reader on a path to a deeper, more meaningful relationship with God.
AUTHOR: Rev Paul D Scalia
DETAILS: 190 pages, paperback
ISBN: 978-1621641506
£14.95Add to cart
Jesus and the Jewish Roots of Mary
Unveiling the Mother of the Messiah
Dr Brant Pitre In Jesus and the Jewish Roots of Mary, Dr Pitre uses the Old Testament and ancient Judaism to unlock how the Bible itself teaches that Mary is in fact the new Eve, the Mother of God, the Queen of Heaven and Earth, and the new Ark of the Covenant.
AUTHOR: Dr Brant Pitre
DETAILS: 240 pages, hardcover
ISBN: 978-0525572732
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£24.00Add to cart
Jesus and the Jewish Roots of Mary
Unveiling the Mother of the Messiah
Dr Brant Pitre In Jesus and the Jewish Roots of Mary, Dr Pitre uses the Old Testament and ancient Judaism to unlock how the Bible itself teaches that Mary is in fact the new Eve, the Mother of God, the Queen of Heaven and Earth, and the new Ark of the Covenant.
AUTHOR: Dr Brant Pitre
DETAILS: 240 pages, hardcover
ISBN: 978-0525572732
£24.00Add to cart
Who Designed the Designer?
A Rediscovered Path to God’s Existence
Michael Augros Described by Peter Kreeft as the best book he has read on the question of whether God exists, this superb book tackles the New Atheism head on. Along the way, the author introduces the reader to the arguments of Plato, Aristotle, and Aquinas, all in a style which is interesting and engaging.
AUTHOR: Michael Augros
DETAILS: 244 pages, paperback
ISBN: 978-1586179694
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£14.95Add to cart
Who Designed the Designer?
A Rediscovered Path to God’s Existence
Michael Augros Described by Peter Kreeft as the best book he has read on the question of whether God exists, this superb book tackles the New Atheism head on. Along the way, the author introduces the reader to the arguments of Plato, Aristotle, and Aquinas, all in a style which is interesting and engaging.
AUTHOR: Michael Augros
DETAILS: 244 pages, paperback
ISBN: 978-1586179694
£14.95Add to cart
Conversion
Spiritual Insights into an Essential Encounter with God
Fr Donald Haggerty This book discusses the essential elements of a soul’s return to God, including the repercussions of sin, the proper understanding of mercy, and the importance of a more radical response to God’s will.
AUTHOR: Fr Donald Haggerty
DETAILS: 243 pages, paperback
ISBN: 978-1621642114
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£14.95Add to cart
Conversion
Spiritual Insights into an Essential Encounter with God
Fr Donald Haggerty This book discusses the essential elements of a soul’s return to God, including the repercussions of sin, the proper understanding of mercy, and the importance of a more radical response to God’s will.
AUTHOR: Fr Donald Haggerty
DETAILS: 243 pages, paperback
ISBN: 978-1621642114
£14.95Add to cart
Spiritual Warfare
And the Discernment of Spirits
An indispensable, practical field guide for engaging in daily battle with the Adversary – combat that is both inevitable and winnable. Burke will help you recognise the ebbs and flows of consolation and desolation, and distinguish between the voices of God and of Satan.
The battle for our souls is unavoidable. The saints won theirs by learning how to be spiritual warriors and by recognising that we become stronger through battle and grow weaker from avoidance.
AUTHOR: Dan Burke
DETAILS: 120 pages, paperback
ISBN: 978-1644132579
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£12.50Add to cart
Spiritual Warfare
And the Discernment of Spirits
An indispensable, practical field guide for engaging in daily battle with the Adversary – combat that is both inevitable and winnable. Burke will help you recognise the ebbs and flows of consolation and desolation, and distinguish between the voices of God and of Satan.
The battle for our souls is unavoidable. The saints won theirs by learning how to be spiritual warriors and by recognising that we become stronger through battle and grow weaker from avoidance.
AUTHOR: Dan Burke
DETAILS: 120 pages, paperback
ISBN: 978-1644132579
£12.50Add to cart
Meet The Witnesses
What witness would not believe in the Miracle? Skeptical reporters were there, in force, to expose what they were sure was a fraud.
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£7.95£5.95Add to cart
Meet The Witnesses
What witness would not believe in the Miracle? Skeptical reporters were there, in force, to expose what they were sure was a fraud.
£7.95 £5.95Add to cart
Catena Aurea
St. Thomas Aquinas’ Catena Aurea is a masterpiece anthology of Patristic commentary on the Gospels – it includes the work of over eighty Church Fathers. For each of the four Gospel writers, the Catena Aurea starts by indicating the verses to be analyzed, then phrase-by-phrase, provides the early Fathers’ insights into the passage. The Catena Aurea, compiled by one of the Catholic Church’s greatest minds, is of immeasurable use to priests writing homilies, lay people engaged in private or family study or of the Gospels and religious instructors will find it an invaluable help in preparing lessons. It is the perfect companion to study the Scriptures in detail and receive the wisdom of St. Thomas on particular passages.
-
£119.95Add to cart
Catena Aurea
St. Thomas Aquinas’ Catena Aurea is a masterpiece anthology of Patristic commentary on the Gospels – it includes the work of over eighty Church Fathers. For each of the four Gospel writers, the Catena Aurea starts by indicating the verses to be analyzed, then phrase-by-phrase, provides the early Fathers’ insights into the passage. The Catena Aurea, compiled by one of the Catholic Church’s greatest minds, is of immeasurable use to priests writing homilies, lay people engaged in private or family study or of the Gospels and religious instructors will find it an invaluable help in preparing lessons. It is the perfect companion to study the Scriptures in detail and receive the wisdom of St. Thomas on particular passages.
£119.95Add to cart
Forty Reasons I am a Catholic
Peter Kreeft My title explains itself. But it’s misleading. There are more than 40 reasons. Each of my reasons is an independent point, so I have not organized this book by a succession of chapters or headings. Which takes me back to my main point: “Why are you a Catholic?” is a good question. A good question deserves a good answer.
AUTHOR: Dr Peter Kreeft
DETAILS: 144 pages, paperback
ISBN: 978-1622826148
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£12.50Add to cart
Forty Reasons I am a Catholic
Peter Kreeft My title explains itself. But it’s misleading. There are more than 40 reasons. Each of my reasons is an independent point, so I have not organized this book by a succession of chapters or headings. Which takes me back to my main point: “Why are you a Catholic?” is a good question. A good question deserves a good answer.
AUTHOR: Dr Peter Kreeft
DETAILS: 144 pages, paperback
ISBN: 978-1622826148
£12.50Add to cart
An Exorcist Explains How to Heal the Possessed
Leaning heavily on Scripture and the teachings of the Church, as well as on his own extensive experiences as an exorcist, Fr Paolo Carlin here unveils Satan’s plan of attack while giving you the telltale signs that the Evil One is at work in your life or in the life of others. You’ll learn the special conditions that facilitate the work of the devil – particularly ones that appeal to the youngest and most defenceless among us.
Armed with knowledge of the antics of Satan, Fr. Carlin also enumerates the many spiritual weapons that Our Lord has placed at our disposal. Best of all, you’ll learn to employ each one effectively to keep the devil and his army of fallen angels at bay.
Finally, Father will show you how to distinguish between mental illnesses and diabolical attacks, as well as how to determine when you must turn away from amateur efforts and urgently seek the expert help of an official exorcist.
AUTHOR: Fr Paolo Carlin
DETAILS: 160 pages, paperback
ISBN: 978-1622825202
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£12.50Add to cart
An Exorcist Explains How to Heal the Possessed
Leaning heavily on Scripture and the teachings of the Church, as well as on his own extensive experiences as an exorcist, Fr Paolo Carlin here unveils Satan’s plan of attack while giving you the telltale signs that the Evil One is at work in your life or in the life of others. You’ll learn the special conditions that facilitate the work of the devil – particularly ones that appeal to the youngest and most defenceless among us.
Armed with knowledge of the antics of Satan, Fr. Carlin also enumerates the many spiritual weapons that Our Lord has placed at our disposal. Best of all, you’ll learn to employ each one effectively to keep the devil and his army of fallen angels at bay.
Finally, Father will show you how to distinguish between mental illnesses and diabolical attacks, as well as how to determine when you must turn away from amateur efforts and urgently seek the expert help of an official exorcist.
AUTHOR: Fr Paolo Carlin
DETAILS: 160 pages, paperback
ISBN: 978-1622825202
£12.50Add to cart
Dominic Barberi
An introduction to one of the least known yet most influential apostles to the English. Famously, Blessed Dominic Barberi (1792–1849) received Saint John Henry Newman into the Catholic Church, yet even the most renowned Newman scholars hardly pause to consider the significance of the man at whose feet Newman knelt to make his confession on a stormy night in October 1845. Blessed Dominic had longed to minister in England for most of his adult life. He was a gifted theologian, though he may not have known what a prodigious author he was, or of his extraordinary spiritual gifts – his ecstasies and visions, his prophetic insight and ability to read souls – and almost constant experience of the ‘dark night’ of the soul, spiritual agonies constantly offered up for the conversion of England.
AUTHOR: Fr Gerard Skinner
DETAILS: 192 pages, paperback
ISBN: 978-0852449776
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£12.95Add to cart
Dominic Barberi
An introduction to one of the least known yet most influential apostles to the English. Famously, Blessed Dominic Barberi (1792–1849) received Saint John Henry Newman into the Catholic Church, yet even the most renowned Newman scholars hardly pause to consider the significance of the man at whose feet Newman knelt to make his confession on a stormy night in October 1845. Blessed Dominic had longed to minister in England for most of his adult life. He was a gifted theologian, though he may not have known what a prodigious author he was, or of his extraordinary spiritual gifts – his ecstasies and visions, his prophetic insight and ability to read souls – and almost constant experience of the ‘dark night’ of the soul, spiritual agonies constantly offered up for the conversion of England.
AUTHOR: Fr Gerard Skinner
DETAILS: 192 pages, paperback
ISBN: 978-0852449776
£12.95Add to cart
50 Questions on the Natural Law
What It Is And Why We Need It
Rice shows how the natural law works and how it is rooted in the nature of the human person whose Creator provided this law as a sure and knowable guide for man to achieve his end of eternal happiness. This book presents the teachings of the Catholic Church in her role as arbiter of the applications of the natural law on issues involving the right to live, bioethics, the family and the economy. Charles Rice has produced a firmly grounded and accessible handbook which touches on the most important topics regarding natural law that will benefit readers of all backgrounds.
AUTHOR: Charles Rice
DETAILS: 411 pages, paperback
ISBN: 978-0898707502
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£16.50Add to cart
50 Questions on the Natural Law
What It Is And Why We Need It
Rice shows how the natural law works and how it is rooted in the nature of the human person whose Creator provided this law as a sure and knowable guide for man to achieve his end of eternal happiness. This book presents the teachings of the Catholic Church in her role as arbiter of the applications of the natural law on issues involving the right to live, bioethics, the family and the economy. Charles Rice has produced a firmly grounded and accessible handbook which touches on the most important topics regarding natural law that will benefit readers of all backgrounds.
AUTHOR: Charles Rice
DETAILS: 411 pages, paperback
ISBN: 978-0898707502
£16.50Add to cart
The Greatest Philosopher Who Ever Lived
In 2019, Peter Kreeft published Socrates’ Children, a four-volume series on the hundred greatest philosophers of all time, spanning from ancient Greece to contemporary Germany. But he made a terrible mistake: he somehow left out women, and with this, he overlooked the greatest mind of them all. He forgot her—a mysterious housewife from a desert village—because he had forgotten what “philosophy” means. “Philosophy is not the cultivation of cleverness,” Kreeft explains, “or the sophistications of scholarship, or the analysis of analysis, or the refutation of refutations, or the deconstruction of deconstructions.” No, “philosophy is a romance, a love affair—the love of wisdom.”
This book is a one-of-a-kind study on Mary of Nazareth, the mother of Jesus. If Jesus Christ is wisdom incarnate, and if Mary loved Him more than anyone else ever did, then it holds that Mary is the greatest philosopher, the greatest wisdom-lover. With precision and humor, Kreeft not only unpacks the thought and spirit of Mary as we know her through Scripture and Church doctrine, but offers a heartfelt crash course in the basics of philosophy—methodology, epistemology, logic, metaphysics, cosmology, ethics, politics, aesthetics, and more—all through the lens of the Mother of God.
AUTHOR: Dr Peter Kreeft
DETAILS: 288 pages, paperback
ISBN: 978-1621644798
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£15.50Add to cart
The Greatest Philosopher Who Ever Lived
In 2019, Peter Kreeft published Socrates’ Children, a four-volume series on the hundred greatest philosophers of all time, spanning from ancient Greece to contemporary Germany. But he made a terrible mistake: he somehow left out women, and with this, he overlooked the greatest mind of them all. He forgot her—a mysterious housewife from a desert village—because he had forgotten what “philosophy” means. “Philosophy is not the cultivation of cleverness,” Kreeft explains, “or the sophistications of scholarship, or the analysis of analysis, or the refutation of refutations, or the deconstruction of deconstructions.” No, “philosophy is a romance, a love affair—the love of wisdom.”
This book is a one-of-a-kind study on Mary of Nazareth, the mother of Jesus. If Jesus Christ is wisdom incarnate, and if Mary loved Him more than anyone else ever did, then it holds that Mary is the greatest philosopher, the greatest wisdom-lover. With precision and humor, Kreeft not only unpacks the thought and spirit of Mary as we know her through Scripture and Church doctrine, but offers a heartfelt crash course in the basics of philosophy—methodology, epistemology, logic, metaphysics, cosmology, ethics, politics, aesthetics, and more—all through the lens of the Mother of God.
AUTHOR: Dr Peter Kreeft
DETAILS: 288 pages, paperback
ISBN: 978-1621644798
£15.50Add to cart
The Twelve
The Lives of the Apostles After Calvary
C. Bernard Ruffin Who were the Apostles really? What happened to them after the end of the Gospel story? You’ll be surprised by the wealth of detail Ruffin has dug up for each apostle – even Judas Iscariot. Weaving together Scripture, Tradition, and historical accounts, Ruffin re-creates and outlines the lives of each of the Apostles.
AUTHOR: C. Bernard Ruffin
DETAILS: 192 pages, paperback
ISBN: 978-0879739263
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£10.95Add to cart
The Twelve
The Lives of the Apostles After Calvary
C. Bernard Ruffin Who were the Apostles really? What happened to them after the end of the Gospel story? You’ll be surprised by the wealth of detail Ruffin has dug up for each apostle – even Judas Iscariot. Weaving together Scripture, Tradition, and historical accounts, Ruffin re-creates and outlines the lives of each of the Apostles.
AUTHOR: C. Bernard Ruffin
DETAILS: 192 pages, paperback
ISBN: 978-0879739263
£10.95Add to cart
My First Holy Communion
This book is a completely unique presentation of the Catholic faith for children preparing for First Holy Communion. It is a rare combination of gifted writing, wonderful vibrant illustration, and exquisite design. Through stories from the Bible, bits of the Church’s history, and descriptions of the sacraments, this book leads young people and their parents or grandparents into the mystery of the Eucharist. The heart of the Church and her sacraments is presented as the life of Jesus himself.First published in Ireland under the guidance of renowned theologian Father Vincent Twomey, SVD. A glorious volume with gorgeous full color illustrations on every page. Provides thorough sacramental preparation, and includes parent pages with important in-depth explanations.
AUTHOR: Deidre Ascough, Illustrated by Lisa E Brown
DETAILS: 72 pages, hardcover
ISBN: 978-0956319609
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£15.95Add to cart
My First Holy Communion
This book is a completely unique presentation of the Catholic faith for children preparing for First Holy Communion. It is a rare combination of gifted writing, wonderful vibrant illustration, and exquisite design. Through stories from the Bible, bits of the Church’s history, and descriptions of the sacraments, this book leads young people and their parents or grandparents into the mystery of the Eucharist. The heart of the Church and her sacraments is presented as the life of Jesus himself.First published in Ireland under the guidance of renowned theologian Father Vincent Twomey, SVD. A glorious volume with gorgeous full color illustrations on every page. Provides thorough sacramental preparation, and includes parent pages with important in-depth explanations.
AUTHOR: Deidre Ascough, Illustrated by Lisa E Brown
DETAILS: 72 pages, hardcover
ISBN: 978-0956319609
£15.95Add to cart
Catholics and Protestants
What can we Learn from Each Other?
Peter Kreeft Popular author and philosopher Peter Kreeft presents a unique book about the important beliefs that Catholics and Protestants share in common. Whilst he acknowledges that there are still significant differences, he emphasizes that they agree on the single most important issue: justification.
AUTHOR: Dr Peter Kreeft
DETAILS: 204 pages, paperback
ISBN: 978-1621641018
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£13.95Add to cart
Catholics and Protestants
What can we Learn from Each Other?
Peter Kreeft Popular author and philosopher Peter Kreeft presents a unique book about the important beliefs that Catholics and Protestants share in common. Whilst he acknowledges that there are still significant differences, he emphasizes that they agree on the single most important issue: justification.
AUTHOR: Dr Peter Kreeft
DETAILS: 204 pages, paperback
ISBN: 978-1621641018
£13.95Add to cart
Padre Pio’s Words of Hope
Edited by Eileen Dunn Bertanzetti With beautiful illustrations and topics ranging from queries about the role of angels to the cry of a soul seeking to understand the meaning of suffering, these meditations use the words of this holy priest to answer your most intimate questions and reveal God’s own messages of encouragement, exhortation, inspiration, and blessing.
AUTHOR: Edited by Eileen Dunn Bertanzetti
DETAILS: 178 pages, paperback
ISBN: 978-0879736941
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£10.95Add to cart
Padre Pio’s Words of Hope
Edited by Eileen Dunn Bertanzetti With beautiful illustrations and topics ranging from queries about the role of angels to the cry of a soul seeking to understand the meaning of suffering, these meditations use the words of this holy priest to answer your most intimate questions and reveal God’s own messages of encouragement, exhortation, inspiration, and blessing.
AUTHOR: Edited by Eileen Dunn Bertanzetti
DETAILS: 178 pages, paperback
ISBN: 978-0879736941
£10.95Add to cart
Canon Law Explained
A Handbook for Laymen
Fr Spiteri offers brief, but lucid explanations of the origins and meanings of the fascinating canons that lay out the Church’s official principles and procedures governing matters as various as abbots and annulments, scandals and Sacraments, homeschoolers, Councils, impotence, imprimaturs, and, even marriages to the person who murdered your spouse! If you want to know the Church for who She is – and to love Her more – Canon Law Explained is the book for you.
AUTHOR: Mgr Laurence J Spiteri
DETAILS: 293 pages, paperback
ISBN: 978-1622821785
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£16.50Add to cart
Canon Law Explained
A Handbook for Laymen
Fr Spiteri offers brief, but lucid explanations of the origins and meanings of the fascinating canons that lay out the Church’s official principles and procedures governing matters as various as abbots and annulments, scandals and Sacraments, homeschoolers, Councils, impotence, imprimaturs, and, even marriages to the person who murdered your spouse! If you want to know the Church for who She is – and to love Her more – Canon Law Explained is the book for you.
AUTHOR: Mgr Laurence J Spiteri
DETAILS: 293 pages, paperback
ISBN: 978-1622821785
£16.50Add to cart
Fathers of the Church
An Introduction to the First Christian Teachers
We hear the voices of the early Church Fathers even today. Their teachings, their guidance, their insights, and their sacrifice shaped the Catholic Church. They defined the canon of Scripture. They developed our creeds and forms of worship. They defined Christianity’s distinctive moral sense. But who were they? What can we learn from their ancient teachings? What can the Fathers teach the 21st century – about holiness, culture, faith, and the Gospel?
AUTHOR: Mike Aquilina
DETAILS: 352 pages, paperback
ISBN: 978-1612785615
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£16.50Add to cart
Fathers of the Church
An Introduction to the First Christian Teachers
We hear the voices of the early Church Fathers even today. Their teachings, their guidance, their insights, and their sacrifice shaped the Catholic Church. They defined the canon of Scripture. They developed our creeds and forms of worship. They defined Christianity’s distinctive moral sense. But who were they? What can we learn from their ancient teachings? What can the Fathers teach the 21st century – about holiness, culture, faith, and the Gospel?
AUTHOR: Mike Aquilina
DETAILS: 352 pages, paperback
ISBN: 978-1612785615
£16.50Add to cart
The Vulnerary of Christ
The Mysterious Emblems of the Wounds in the Body and Heart of Jesus Christ
Finally published for the first time more than 70 years after its author’s death, this book contains exceptional findings by French Catholic archaeologist and symbologist Louis Charbonneau-Lassay (1871–1946) on the five wounds of Christ: their symbolism, representations, and meaning in Christian art. From 1903 to 1925, he published articles on prehistory, Celtic and Gallo-Roman archaeology. When contributing to the Catholic periodical Regnabit, he refocused his research on wide-ranging aspects of the Sacred Heart, with the purpose of showing its universal dimension.
AUTHOR: Louis Charbonneau-Lassay
DETAILS: 554 pages, paperback
ISBN: 978-1621386766
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£22.00Add to cart
The Vulnerary of Christ
The Mysterious Emblems of the Wounds in the Body and Heart of Jesus Christ
Finally published for the first time more than 70 years after its author’s death, this book contains exceptional findings by French Catholic archaeologist and symbologist Louis Charbonneau-Lassay (1871–1946) on the five wounds of Christ: their symbolism, representations, and meaning in Christian art. From 1903 to 1925, he published articles on prehistory, Celtic and Gallo-Roman archaeology. When contributing to the Catholic periodical Regnabit, he refocused his research on wide-ranging aspects of the Sacred Heart, with the purpose of showing its universal dimension.
AUTHOR: Louis Charbonneau-Lassay
DETAILS: 554 pages, paperback
ISBN: 978-1621386766
£22.00Add to cart
Epic Saints
Wild, Wonderful & Weird Stories of God’s Heroes
The saints are not myths or legends, they were people just like us who lived lives of epic virtue. If the saints have never made you laugh or drop your jaw, they will in this book. Best selling author Shaun McAfee and guest writers illustrate how the saints were not just stone-faced old men. Some of them had quirky habits, outrageous personalities, and did breathtaking deeds… but they all had epic faith. Their lives were filled with events that push our understanding of charity with intrepid virtue, but at certain points, they lacked common sense and were uproariously funny, too.
AUTHOR: Shaun McAfee
DETAILS: 220 pages, paperback
ISBN: 978-1505115123
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£17.95Add to cart
Epic Saints
Wild, Wonderful & Weird Stories of God’s Heroes
The saints are not myths or legends, they were people just like us who lived lives of epic virtue. If the saints have never made you laugh or drop your jaw, they will in this book. Best selling author Shaun McAfee and guest writers illustrate how the saints were not just stone-faced old men. Some of them had quirky habits, outrageous personalities, and did breathtaking deeds… but they all had epic faith. Their lives were filled with events that push our understanding of charity with intrepid virtue, but at certain points, they lacked common sense and were uproariously funny, too.
AUTHOR: Shaun McAfee
DETAILS: 220 pages, paperback
ISBN: 978-1505115123
£17.95Add to cart
Heroism and Genius
How Catholic Priests help to build – and can help rebuild – Western Civilisation
William J Slattery The Catholic Church built a new and original civilization, embodying the Christian vision of God and man. During this period, Catholic priests, became the pioneers and irreplaceable builders of Christian culture. Heroism and Genius presents some of these formidable men…
AUTHOR: William J Slattery
DETAILS: 300 pages, paperback
ISBN: 978-1621640141
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£19.95Add to cart
Heroism and Genius
How Catholic Priests help to build – and can help rebuild – Western Civilisation
William J Slattery The Catholic Church built a new and original civilization, embodying the Christian vision of God and man. During this period, Catholic priests, became the pioneers and irreplaceable builders of Christian culture. Heroism and Genius presents some of these formidable men…
AUTHOR: William J Slattery
DETAILS: 300 pages, paperback
ISBN: 978-1621640141
£19.95Add to cart
Salvation
What Every Catholic Should Know
At every Sunday Mass, Catholics confess that Jesus came down from heaven “for us men and for our salvation.” But what does “salvation” mean? In this robust and accessible book, Scripture scholar and theologian Michael Patrick Barber provides a thorough, deeply Catholic, and deeply biblical, answer. He deftly tackles this complex topic, unpacking what the New Testament teaches about salvation in Christ, detailing what exactly salvation is, and what it is not. In easy and readable prose, he explains what the Cross, the Church, and the Trinity have to do with salvation. While intellectually stimulating, Salvation: What Every Catholic Should Know is deeply spiritual, and at its core is the salvific message that God is love, and his love is one of transformation and redemption.
AUTHOR: Michael Patrick Barber
DETAILS: 189 pages, paperback
ISBN: 978-1733522182
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£13.95Add to cart
Salvation
What Every Catholic Should Know
At every Sunday Mass, Catholics confess that Jesus came down from heaven “for us men and for our salvation.” But what does “salvation” mean? In this robust and accessible book, Scripture scholar and theologian Michael Patrick Barber provides a thorough, deeply Catholic, and deeply biblical, answer. He deftly tackles this complex topic, unpacking what the New Testament teaches about salvation in Christ, detailing what exactly salvation is, and what it is not. In easy and readable prose, he explains what the Cross, the Church, and the Trinity have to do with salvation. While intellectually stimulating, Salvation: What Every Catholic Should Know is deeply spiritual, and at its core is the salvific message that God is love, and his love is one of transformation and redemption.
AUTHOR: Michael Patrick Barber
DETAILS: 189 pages, paperback
ISBN: 978-1733522182
£13.95Add to cart
Lord Teach Us To Pray
A Guide To The Spiritual Life And Christian Discipleship
Echoing the petition of the disciples, Lord, teach us to pray, this book guides the reader through the challenges of discipleship and the various stages of prayer. Fr. Kirby lovingly and expertly examines this crucial petition, shedding light on its three parts: the call to follow the Lord, to live virtuously, and to pray, while laying out a course for growing in discipleship and strengthening the interior life.
AUTHOR: Fr Jeffrey Kirby
DETAILS: 164 pages, paperback
ISBN: 978-1618906144
Lord Teach Us To Pray
A Guide To The Spiritual Life And Christian Discipleship
Echoing the petition of the disciples, Lord, teach us to pray, this book guides the reader through the challenges of discipleship and the various stages of prayer. Fr. Kirby lovingly and expertly examines this crucial petition, shedding light on its three parts: the call to follow the Lord, to live virtuously, and to pray, while laying out a course for growing in discipleship and strengthening the interior life.
AUTHOR: Fr Jeffrey Kirby
DETAILS: 164 pages, paperback
ISBN: 978-1618906144
£8.95Add to cart
The Day is Now Far Spent
Robert Cardinal Sarah calls The Day Is Now Far Spent his most important book. He analyses the spiritual, moral, and political collapse of the Western world and concludes that “the decadence of our time has all the faces of mortal peril”.
A cultural identity crisis, he writes, is at the root of the problems facing Western societies. “The West no longer knows who it is, because it no longer knows and does not want to know who made it, who established it, as it was and as it is. Many countries today ignore their own history. This self-suffocation naturally leads to a decadence that opens the path to new, barbaric civilizations.”
While making clear the gravity of the present situation, the cardinal demonstrates that it is possible to avoid the hell of a world without God, a world without hope. He calls for a renewal of devotion to Christ through prayer and the practice of virtue.
AUTHOR: Robert Cardinal Sarah
DETAILS: 349 pages, paperback
ISBN: 978-1621643241
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£16.50Add to cart
The Day is Now Far Spent
Robert Cardinal Sarah calls The Day Is Now Far Spent his most important book. He analyses the spiritual, moral, and political collapse of the Western world and concludes that “the decadence of our time has all the faces of mortal peril”.
A cultural identity crisis, he writes, is at the root of the problems facing Western societies. “The West no longer knows who it is, because it no longer knows and does not want to know who made it, who established it, as it was and as it is. Many countries today ignore their own history. This self-suffocation naturally leads to a decadence that opens the path to new, barbaric civilizations.”
While making clear the gravity of the present situation, the cardinal demonstrates that it is possible to avoid the hell of a world without God, a world without hope. He calls for a renewal of devotion to Christ through prayer and the practice of virtue.
AUTHOR: Robert Cardinal Sarah
DETAILS: 349 pages, paperback
ISBN: 978-1621643241
£16.50Add to cart
The Way of Divine Love
The Way of Divine Love is the definitive record of Sister Menéndez’s life and the heavenly messages that she received. It is one of the most complete chronicles of an individual’s extraordinary mystical experiences in the history of the Church. Despite many trials in her daily life, she recorded everything that she received from heaven as faithfully as possible, including her incredibly detailed visions of the Passion of Christ. Everything in Josefa’s life is grace giving and profoundly moving. Her writings and her life confirm each other, as evidence that all that took place in her was divine in origin. Even the most extraordinary happenings have an aim and significance. There are no unessential details, no record of revelations that do not bring out in clearer light and force some dogmatic truth, giving us deeper insight into the Heart of Our Lord, His love, the value of souls, the happiness of heaven, the irreparable loss of the damned.
AUTHOR: Sr Josepha Menendez
DETAILS: 548 pages, leatherbound
ISBN: 978-1905574742
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£23.95Add to cart
The Way of Divine Love
The Way of Divine Love is the definitive record of Sister Menéndez’s life and the heavenly messages that she received. It is one of the most complete chronicles of an individual’s extraordinary mystical experiences in the history of the Church. Despite many trials in her daily life, she recorded everything that she received from heaven as faithfully as possible, including her incredibly detailed visions of the Passion of Christ. Everything in Josefa’s life is grace giving and profoundly moving. Her writings and her life confirm each other, as evidence that all that took place in her was divine in origin. Even the most extraordinary happenings have an aim and significance. There are no unessential details, no record of revelations that do not bring out in clearer light and force some dogmatic truth, giving us deeper insight into the Heart of Our Lord, His love, the value of souls, the happiness of heaven, the irreparable loss of the damned.
AUTHOR: Sr Josepha Menendez
DETAILS: 548 pages, leatherbound
ISBN: 978-1905574742
£23.95Add to cart