Catholic reading list

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cessnawag

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Hello. I’m wondering a good list of books to be studying so that I can be of good use to the church in the future. I hope to retire in 10-15 years and volunteer for the church more. I know that the catechism and the Bible are on the list but I’m wondering about social work books or teaching books or human psychology etc. I don’t really care how I’m helping I just want to be useful. Thank you.
 
cessnawag said:
Hello. I’m wondering a good list of books to be studying so that I can be of good use to the church in the future. I hope to retire in 10-15 years and volunteer for the church more. I know that the catechism and the Bible are on the list but I’m wondering about social work books or teaching books or human psychology etc. I don’t really care how I’m helping I just want to be useful. Thank you.
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It’s a novel, but G.K. Chesterton’s “The Ball and the Cross” is an excellent theological work.
 
I am taking a Biblical Studies Class at the seminary and I was introduced to the Synopsis of the Gospels. I really love the book. I had no idea how different and how similar the Gospels really are.
 
cessnawag said:
Hello. I’m wondering a good list of books to be studying so that I can be of good use to the church in the future. I hope to retire in 10-15 years and volunteer for the church more. I know that the catechism and the Bible are on the list but I’m wondering about social work books or teaching books or human psychology etc. I don’t really care how I’m helping I just want to be useful. Thank you.
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100 essential Catholic books from Fr. John McClosky…

uscg.mil/ccs/ch/docs/Catholic_Lifetime_Reading_Plan.pdf

Catholic Answers reading list…

catholic.com/tracts/apologists-bookshelf

A free ebook by Brandon Vogt called The Saints’ Favorite Books…

saintsfavoritebooks.com/download-saints-book
 
No Greater Love, by Mother Theresa

Answers, Not Promises by Mother Angelica

Introduction to the Devout Life by St Francis de Dales

Dark Night of the Soul by St John of the Cross

Victory over Vice by Fulton Sheen

You by Fulton Sheen
 
Books by Peter Kreeft Jesus Shock

Documents of Vatican II

5-Volume Commentary on the Torah, Jewish Publication Society

3-Volume Jesus of Nazareth, Pope Benedict XVI

Resisting Happiness, Matthew Kelly (a motivational speaker - nothing will make you happy except Jesus)

Mass of the Early Christians by Mike Aquilina

Books by Dr. Scott Hahn

look at the apologist books in the ‘store’ on this website (Catholic Answers)

Fr. John Riccardo’s list of 100 (plus) books to read (in no particular order after No. 1):
  1. The Bible (Revised Standard Version translation)
  2. The Lord. Romano Guardini
  3. To Know Christ Jesus. Frank Sheed
  4. The Life of Christ. Fulton Sheen
  5. Jesus of Nazareth. Joseph Ratzinger
  6. The Four Cardinal Virtues. Josef Pieper
  7. What Happens at Mass. Jeremy Driscoll
  8. The Confessions. Augustine
  9. Fire of Mercy, Heart of the Word. Erasmo Leiva Merikakis (2 Volumes)
  10. Fundamentals of the Faith. Peter Kreeft
  11. Mere Christianity. C.S. Lewis
  12. The Screwtape Letters. C.S. Lewis
  13. The Essential Pope Benedict. John Thornton and Susan Varenne, eds
  14. The Theology of the Body. Pope John Paul II
  15. The Fulfillment of All Desire. Ralph Martin
  16. A Key to the Doctrine of the Eucharist. Abbot Vonier
  17. I Believe in Love. D’Elbee
  18. Heart of the World. Hans Urs von Balthasar
  19. The Birth of the Church: John: Volume IV. Adrienne von Speyr
  20. Crossing the Threshold of Love. Pope John Paul II
  21. Life on the Lordship of Christ. Raniero Cantalamessa
  22. The Eucharist: Our Sanctification. Raniero Cantalamessa
  23. On Being Catholic. Thomas Howard
  24. By What Authority? Mark Shea
  25. Born Fundamentalist, Born Again Catholic. David Currie
  26. Crossing the Tiber: Stephen Ray
  27. The Handbook of Christian Apologetics. Peter Kreeft and Ronald Tacelli.
  28. The Lord of the Rings. J.R.R. Tolkien
  29. The Cost of Discipleship. Dietrich Bonhoeffer
  30. Where We Got the Bible. Henry Graham
  31. Called to Communion. Joseph Ratzinger
  32. The Spirit of the Liturgy. Joseph Ratzinger
  33. The Seven Storey Mountain. Thomas Merton
  34. The Dialogues. Catherine of Siena
  35. The Lamb’s Supper. Scott Hahn
  36. The Handmaid of the Lord. Adrienne von Speyr
  37. The World’s First Love. Fulton Sheen
  38. Love and Responsibility. Karol Wojtyla
  39. The Splendor of Love. Walter Schu
  40. Witness to Hope: George Weigel
  41. The Feminist Question. Francis Martin
  42. Healing the Original Wound. Benedict Groeschel
  43. A Refutation of Moral Relativism. Peter Kreeft
  44. In Search of Wisdom. Leon Kass
  45. The Problem of Pain. C.S. Lewis
  46. The Great Divorce. C.S. Lewis
  47. Making Sense Out of Suffering. Peter Kreeft
  48. God Is Near Us. Joseph Ratzinger
  49. Confession. Adrienne von Speyr
  50. Parochial and Plain Sermons. John Henry Newman
  51. Triumph. David Crocker III
  52. The Evidential Power of Beauty. Thomas Dubay
  53. Prayer. Romano Guardini
  54. Saints for Sinners. Alban Goodier
  55. Love’s Sacred Order. Erasmo Leiva Merikakis
  56. The Four Loves. C.S. Lewis
  57. The Weight of Glory. C.S. Lewis
  58. Flannery O’Connor. Collected Works
  59. The Return of the Prodigal Son. Henri Nouwen
  60. The Ecumenical Jihad. Peter Kreeft
  61. The Unseriousness of Human Affairs. Lames Schall
  62. Evangelium Vitae. Pope John Paul II
  63. Fides et Ratio. Pope John Paul II
  64. Women in the Church. Louis Bouyer, ed
  65. Catholic Bio-Ethics and the Gift of Human life. William E. May
  66. Marriage: The Bedrock on Which Civilization Is Built. William E. May
  67. The Clash of Orthodoxies. Robert George
  68. Letters to a Young Catholic. George Weigel
  69. Death on a Friday Afternoon. Richard John Neuhaus
  70. Why Humanae Vitae Was Right. Janet Smith, ed
  71. 20th Century Martyrs. Robert Royal
  72. Testimony to Hope. Xavier Nguyen
  73. The Divine Comedy. Dante (Sayers translation)
  74. Arise From This Darkness. Benedict Groeschel
  75. Orthodoxy. G.K. Chesterton
  76. Thomas Aquinas. G.K. Chesterton
  77. Saint Francis. G.K. Chesterton
  78. Edmund Campion. Evelyn Waugh
  79. Brideshead Revisited. Evelyn Waugh
  80. A Simple Path. Mother Teresa
  81. The Rise of Christianity. Rodney Stark
  82. The Manuel of Prayer
  83. Fire Within. Thomas Dubay
  84. Architects of the Culture of Death. Donald Demarco and Benjamin Wiker
  85. Transformation in Christ. Dietrich von Hildebrand
  86. The Hidden Manna. James O’Connor
  87. Introduction to the Devout Life. Francis DeSales
  88. Perelandra. C.S. Lewis
  89. The Chronicles of Narnia. C.S. Lewis
  90. Back to Virtue. Peter Kreeft
  91. The Crisis of Islam. Bernard Lewis
  92. What Went Wrong? Bernard Lewis
  93. The Bible and the Quran. Jacques Jomier
  94. What Difference Does Jesus Make? Frank Sheed
  95. Coming Soon. Michael Barber
  96. The Resurrection of the Son of God. N.T. Wright
  97. Eucharistic Presence: A Study in the Theology of Disclosure. Robert Sokolowski
  98. The Diary of Divine Mercy. St. Faustina
  99. Catholicism: The Common Destiny of Man. Henri De Lubac
  100. The Drama of Atheistic Humanism. Henri De Lubac
  101. Strong Fathers, Strong Daughters. Meg Meeker
  102. Unprotected. Anonymous
  103. How Now Shall We Live? Charles Colson and Nancy Pearcey
  104. That Man Is You. Louis Evely
  105. Loving the Church. Christoph Schonborn
  106. The Power of the Cross. Raniero Cantalamessa
    Essential Catholic Reference Books:
  107. The Bible (Revised Standard Version)
  108. The Catechism of the Catholic Church
  109. The Documents of Vatican II
  110. The Faith of the Early Fathers. William Jurgens, ed (3 Volumes)
  111. The Oxford Dictionary of the Christian Church
  112. Butler’s Lives of the Saints (4 Volumes)
  113. United States Catholic Catechism for Adults
  114. The Encyclicals of Pope John Paul II
 
cessnawag said:
Hello. I’m wondering a good list of books to be studying so that I can be of good use to the church in the future. I hope to retire in 10-15 years and volunteer for the church more. I know that the catechism and the Bible are on the list but I’m wondering about social work books or teaching books or human psychology etc. I don’t really care how I’m helping I just want to be useful. Thank you.
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As you can see there are many possible books. And much studying the Bible says is wearisome. Perhaps you should seek discernment in prayer and with your pastor what you could do to help the church. That way you could Taylor your study to what interests you and what you feel called to do. For instance if you had a gift of prayer ministry for healing and felt called to pray over people you might want to research that area. It really depends on what you are going to be doing. But, i am no expert. You might want to talk to someone who is retired and volunteers.

Also, I found this list on discernment
catholicvolunteernetwork.org/recommended-reading-books-discernment
 
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