Book Recommendations....

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Truth_Faith13

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Hi all,

Its been a while since I have been on these forums, however I now have a beautiful 4.5month old little boy! 😃

With pregnancy/birth etc…my research into Catholicism and church in general slowed to an almost stop! I need to reread many of the books I already have such as The Protestants Dilemma and Rome sweet Home however are there any books you would recommend for a non catholic looking into Catholicism?

It would be a great help if you could recommend books that deal with the moral issues of the church (birth control etc) and also why the church has “disciplines” which aren’t “doctrine” eg celibacy of priests - I understand this is a discipline and can change, however I don’t understand if it wasn’t a commandment (ie a never changing law/rule etc), why the church asks for celibacy.

Thank-you 🙂
 
There are many great books from Peter Kreeft.
Everything form Apologetics to Heaven.
Happy shopping!
 
Jesus and the Jewish Roots of the Eucharist fixed in my Protestant/skeptic mind the paramount importance of the Eucharist. It’s not as short as Scott Hahn’s books, but it’s not huge either.
 
Potter said:
Jesus and the Jewish Roots of the Eucharist fixed in my Protestant/skeptic mind the paramount importance of the Eucharist. It’s not as short as Scott Hahn’s books, but it’s not huge either.
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I hadn’t heard of this book until now. Thank you for the recommendation. I’ve been looking at it on Amazon.com and I’ve put it on my wish list.

I have a much older book, *The Eucharistic Words of Jesus *by Joachim Jeremias, published a half-century ago in 1966. Does Pitre mention Jeremias’s book, by any chance, in Jesus and the Jewish Roots of the Eucharist? It would be interesting to know his opinion of it.

Thanks
Bart
 
I might recommend something like The Joy of the Gospel (Apostolic Exhortation by Pope Francis) in order to encourage enthusiasm for Christianity in general, as well as Catholicism.

For the intellectual side, I’d take Frank Sheed’s Theology for Beginners which has made a big impact on me and my way of thinking. I think it’s especially excellent.

For me, my faith was established on St. Joan of Arc. Without her, I would hardly have given the Church chance enough to discover that She is the Church Our Lord founded. Joan of Arc: By Herself and Her Witnesses is by excellent historian Regine Pernoud, and is largely excerpts of St. Joan’s trials (condemnation and nullification) woven into a narrative by the author. I simply cannot doubt God, because He has proven Himself through her, and we don’t even have to rely on hear-say… it’s all in the trial paperwork which still exists.

For moral sexuality, it’s so… entangled with everything, it’s so interconnected, that to really begin to understand it (and once you do… you are overwhelmed not with “laws and burdens” but with beauty and sadness for the world), you’d want to learn at least a few things.
Try finding Dr. Brant Pitre’s Jesus the Bridegroom, a summarized version of Pope St. John Paul II’s “Theology of the Body,” Pope Bl. Paul VI’s Humanae Vitae, and do a little digging on the relationship between celibacy and marriage (it shouldn’t be too hard to find something good).
 
Ooh ooh ooh, and for audio, please listen to Archbishop Ven. Fulton Sheen!

bishopsheentoday.com/school-of-bishop-sheen-2/the-sheen-catechism/

Go through the list (they’re about 28 mins each) or pick and choose based on what occurs to you… but he was truly blessed by God above most any of modern men. His insights are incredible, his stories are wonderful, and he makes the issues make sense.
 
Truth_Faith13 said:
Hi all,

Its been a while since I have been on these forums, however I now have a beautiful 4.5month old little boy! 😃

With pregnancy/birth etc…my research into Catholicism and church in general slowed to an almost stop! I need to reread many of the books I already have such as The Protestants Dilemma and Rome sweet Home however are there any books you would recommend for a non catholic looking into Catholicism?

It would be a great help if you could recommend books that deal with the moral issues of the church (birth control etc) and also why the church has “disciplines” which aren’t “doctrine” eg celibacy of priests - I understand this is a discipline and can change, however I don’t understand if it wasn’t a commandment (ie a never changing law/rule etc), why the church asks for celibacy.

Thank-you 🙂
Click to expand...
The best book you could start on would be the Catechism of the Catholic Church. If the current one is too daunting, there is the compendium of the catechism. Also there is the classic Baltimore catechism that is in a very simple format to learn the faith. Also, maybe consider attending a good local RCIA course to get questions answered

Read any of the Catholic history books published by Ignatius press. They have great stuff.

Also books by Scott Hahn, primarily Signs of Life
 
Indissolubility of marriage:

smile.amazon.com/Remaining-Truth-Christ-Marriage-Communion/dp/1586179950/

Clerical celibacy (even if you disagree with some of his historical conclusions, it should show you that celibacy is not a medieval novelty):

smile.amazon.com/Apostolic-Origins-Priestly-Celibacy-Christian/dp/0898709512/

I don’t have any book recommendations on contraception off the top of my head, so I will just suggest you might find Pope Paul VI’s encyclical “Humanae Vitae” to be interesting.

w2.vatican.va/content/paul-vi/en/encyclicals/documents/hf_p-vi_enc_25071968_humanae-vitae.html
 
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