Holy Childhood of Jesus Catholic Church

A Philadelphia Catholic in King James's Court

 by Martin de Porres Kennedy  February 2008

This book gives a taste of the depth and richness of Catholic thinking.  In a very entertaining story, our most deeply-held beliefs are confirmed.  It's not always easy to defend the claims of the Catholic Church against scripture-quoting fundamentalists.  The book is chock-full of insights about how people fall into error and portrays the mindset of Bible-Belt Christians with uncanny accuracy.  Young Michael O'Shea, the main character of the novel, is a wonderful example of charity and patience. 

After the tragic death of his father, he travels to rural Kentucky for a summer with his uncle and cousins.  After hearing what they believe about Catholics, he finds himself compelled to explain and justify the Catholic faith, using only the King James version of the Bible -- the only source they will believe.  The Amish-style farmstead, and the summer work Michael participates in with his cousin Eli, create an unusual and beguiling setting for Michael's discovery of the depth of the Bible as he explores the scriptural basis for the Church's teaching about the papacy, the Eucharist, and devotion to Mary.  Young Catholic readers will be inspired and instructed by Michael's spirited and engaging defense of our Faith.  Older readers will wish this book had come out years ago. What a welcome contribution to the return of the Catholic novel!

Death Comes For the Archbishop

 by Willa Cather  January 2008

This beautifully written novel about the pioneer Catholic priests in the Southwest in the 1800's reads softly, with lovely descriptions of place and people.  What we are at our best, as people of the risen Christ, is in this book, and Cather is at her most matter-of-fact and, as a consequence, her most powerful.

Fiction based on the true-life story of Bishop Jean Baptiste L'Amy—she calls him Father Latour—the French-born Ohio cleric who was assigned by the church to rebuild the faith in New Mexico after the territory was annexed by the U.S. in 1831, this book is written in a strange unemphatic style.  With an old friend, Father Vaillant, Latour sets out for Santa Fe.  He finds the church there to be fragmented and corrupt, with priests taking wives and charging exorbitant fees to perform marriages.  Latour embarks on a decades-long effort to reform and reinvigorate the diocese. 

 Cather's serene language, with its immemorial simplicity, gives the story a weight mere drama could never provide. Marvelous, in a way larger than life and yet deeply personal and intricate!

 Sea of Glory

 by Ken Wales  November 2007

 In 1943 a torpedo from a German sub ripped through the U.S.A.T.  Dorchester.  Four chaplains on board -- a Catholic priest, a Jewish rabbi, and two Protestant ministers -- directed many soldiers to safety.  When the life vests ran out, they selflessly gave their own to the soldiers.  They spent their last moments singing hymns and praying as the ship sank.

 Surrender : the sequel to Arms of Love

 by Carmen Marcoux  September 2007

Surrender will keep you captivated as it takes you into Brandon and Joanie Vaughn's new life together and as you follow the unpredictable paths of Maggie and Amie Collins to know God's will ... in a whole new story of discernment and responding to God's call.  A great way of promoting family life, the sacrament of marriage, Theology of the Body, courtship, chastity and our Catholic faith. 

Messages From Our Heavenly Mother to Her Children 

by Ray Doiron   August  2007

Covering his visions and the messages of the Blessed Mother from 1993 to 2003,  Mr. Doiron shares what he sees and feels during these visions.  He still leads the Rosary and other prayers to the Blessed Mother on the 13th of every month in the Chapel at the Shrine of Our Lady of the Snows.  Sometimes he also receives visions during these prayer sessions.  The Roman Catholic Church has not officially approved these events.   

Left to Tell: Discovering God Amidst the Rwandan Holocaust 
by Immaculee Ilibagiza  June 2007

Immaculee Ilibagiza incredibly survived the 1994 Rwanda genocide slaughter as her family was brutally murdered along with nearly a million Rwandans. For 91 days, she and seven other women huddled silently together in the cramped bathroom of a local pastor while hundreds of machete-wielding killers hunted for them. 

It was during those endless hours of unspeakable terror that Immaculee discovered the power of prayer, eventually shedding her fear of death and forging a profound and lasting relationship with God. The triumphant story of this remarkable young woman’s journey through the darkness of genocide will inspire anyone whose life has been touched by fear, suffering, and loss.

An Affair of The Mind : One Woman's Courageous Battle to Salvage Her Family from the Devastation of Pornography
by Laurie Hall  May 2007

Laurie Hall's true story reveals pornography's subversive side and offers comfort, encouragement, insight, and a plan of action to women whose husbands are addicted to it.

The Red Tent 
by Anita Diamant April 2007

Skillfully interweaving biblical tales with events and characters of her own invention, Diamant's (Living a Jewish Life, HarperCollins, 1991) sweeping first novel re-creates the life of Dinah, daughter of Leah and Jacob, from her birth and happy childhood in Mesopotamia through her years in Canaan and death in Egypt. When Dinah reaches puberty and enters the Red Tent (the place women visit to give birth or have their monthly periods), her mother and Jacob's three other wives initiate her into the religious and sexual practices of the tribe. Diamant sympathetically describes Dinah's doomed relationship with Shalem, son of a ruler of Shechem, and his brutal death at the hands of her brothers. Following the events in Canaan, a pregnant Dinah travels to Egypt, where she becomes a noted midwife. Diamant has written a thoroughly enjoyable and illuminating portrait of a fascinating woman and the life she might have lived.

Christ the Lord: Out of Egypt
by Anne Rice February 2007

Rice departs from her usual subject matter to pen this curious portrait of a seven-year-old Jesus, who departs Egypt with his family to return home to Nazareth. Rice's painstaking historical research is obvious throughout, whether she's showing the differences among first-century Jewish groups (Pharisees, Essenes and Sadducees all play a part), imagining a Passover pilgrimage to Jerusalem or depicting the regular but violent rebellions by Jews chafing under Roman rule. The book succeeds in capturing Jesus' profound Jewishness, with some of the best scenes reflecting his Torah education and immersion in the oral traditions of the Hebrew Bible. As fiction, though, the book's first half is slow going. Since it is told from Jesus' perspective, the childlike language can be simplistic, though as readers persevere they will discover the riches of the sparse prose Rice adopts. The emotional heart of the story—Jesus' gradual discovery of the miraculous birth his parents have never discussed with him—picks up steam as well, as he begins to understand why he can heal the sick and raise the dead. Rice provides a moving afterword, in which she describes her recent return to the Catholic faith and evaluates, often in an amusingly strident fashion, the state of biblical studies today.

Surprised by Truth: 11 Converts Give the Biblical and Historical Reasons for Becoming Catholic
by Patrick Madrid (editor) January 2007

Powerful testimonies of Evangelicals who became Catholic These eleven personal conversion accounts are unlike any you've ever read. They're packed with biblical, theological, and historical proofs for Catholicism. Each year thousands of atheists, Evangelicals, Mormons, Fundamentalists, and Pentecostals are being surprised by Catholic truth and these converts tell you why.

The Story of a Soul - The Autobiography of St. Therese of Lisieux November 2006

St. Therese of Lisieux, the Little Flower of Jesus, gave the world a precious gift in putting her life and mission to paper. It doesn't matter where you are in life - this little saint, a sheltered nun in her mere twenties, will touch your very heart and soul with her simplicity and honesty. As she pours out her innermost thoughts and longings on the pages, you will find your own heart opening in the same way to Jesus - just like a flower.

The spiritual depth of Therese's work is astounding. Her inspiring autobiography brought the greatest of popes to their knees. Such is the power of God working through even the humblest of vessels. This book will change you for the better, as it has thousands of other souls since its publication!

An Exorcist Tells His Story
by Fr. Gabriele Amorth, translator Nicoletta V. Mackenzie October 2006
Rome’s chief exorcist tells of his experiences doing battle with Satan, allowing the reader to witness what an exorcist sees and does.  He shows how real the devil is, and the great power of evil that Satan has, and how that evil is conquered only by Christ.  This is the most thorough work available on exorcism. 

The Tattered Tapestry – A Family’s Search for Peace with Bipolar Disorder
by Tom Smith with Kevin and Karla Smith - September 2006
The Tattered Tapestry tells the tragic but true story of one family’s journey with bipolar disorder.  Along with the pain, confusion, and tragedy, The Tattered Tapestry also records Karla’s struggle for acceptance and peace.  Told from a number of perspectives by different family members, this compelling story bravely exposes the love shared within the family even in trying times.

Arms of Love
by Carmen Marcoux - July 2006
He had the “perfect” single’s life, filled with pleasures, void of faith, commitment and love… Then she came along and turned his world upside down.  The novel is a moving experience you will never forget.  A true example of holy romance, sacrificial love and Christ’s sanctifying grace.

The Hiding Place
by Corrie Ten Boom - June 2006
Corrie and her older sister Betsie, had been sent to a concentration camp for helping the Jews.  Christ’s spirit and words were their guide; it was His persecuted people they tried to save—at the risk of their own lives; it was His strength that sustained them through times of profound horror.  Here is a book aglow with the glory of God and the courage of a quiet Christian spinster whose life was transformed by it.  A story of Christ’s message, and the courageous woman who listened and lived to pass it along—with joy and triumph.

Night by Elie Wiesel
***Book Club Book - went along with The Hiding Place***
A terrifying account of the Nazi death camp horror that turns a young Jewish boy into an agonized witness to the death of his family…the death of his innocence…and the death of his God.  Penetrating and powerful, as personal as the The Diary of Anne Frank, Night awakens the shocking memory of evil at its absolute and carries with it the unforgettable message that this horror must never be allowed to happen again.

Decoding  Da Vinci Code: The Facts Behind the Fiction of The Da Vinci Code by Amy Welborn  - May 2006
Here is a book that addresses the many issues raised by the best selling novel The Da Vinci Code.  The only book that uses a clean and easy to read style as it honestly and objectively lays out the facts about ancient Christian teaching and history.  Plus points out the many surprising errors about religion, history, and art contained in The Da Vinci Code.

The Da Vinci Code
by Dan Brown - April 2006
Readers of the novel are wondering if what author Dan Brown says is really true.  Here is a book that addresses the many issues raised by the best-selling novel The Da Vinci Code.  The book uses a clear and easy-to read style as it honestly and objectively lays out the facts about ancient Christian teaching and history, and points out the many surprising errors about religion, history, and art contained in The Da Vinci Code.  

A Travel Guide to Heaven
by Anthony DeStefano - March 2006
“Most Americans believe that there is a heaven, but many have difficulty conjuring up images beyond angels in flowing robes with harps and halos.  Anthony DeStefano knew there had to be a more complete, meaningful vision of what heaven is like.  Using the Bible as his guide, along with an extraordinary sense of logic, fun, and adventure, DeStefano set out to look for clues about the place called heaven.  He learned that this highly spiritual place is actually very physical, a place more exquisite than a Hawaiian beach at sunset, more thrilling than Alpine skiing, and more fun than an exhilarating game of tennis."   

      
        Last modified: 07/17/08