Great Catholic Books

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I am currently reading *Theology for Beginners * by Frank Sheed (well, just finished it), re-reading *Apologia Pro Vita Sua * by John Henry Newman, and S-L-O-W-L-Y reading the Navarre translation of the *Book of Luke * (FABULOUS commentary!).

My 13-year-old son is finishing up C.S. Lewis’s *That Hideous Strength * (part three of his Space Trilogy – OK, not a Catholic author, but pretty darned close!) and the Navarre translation of the Book of Revelation.

'thann
 
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DominvsVobiscvm:
Kreeft’s a good writer, but not all of his stuff is exactly solid.

For example, in his book Catholic Christianity, he makes a distinction between Christ’s visible Body, the Catholic Church, and his Mystical Body, which embraces all men of goodwill.

Such a distinction is a heretical one, most recently condemned by Pope Pius XII.

I think this and other errors are due more to ignorance than an inent to be heretical. After all, he is a convert.
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Converts that I have seen are at times better educated and better motivated than cradle Catholics, in general, so let’s not pick on the converts, k?

😉
 
I am reading St Therese’s autobiography, The Story of a Soul
 
Currently (for the third Time) 🙂 …“The Story of A Family” The Home of St. Therese of Lisieux. by Fr. Stephane-Joseph Piat, O.F.M. - Tan Books.
 
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thann:
Navarre translation of the *Book of Luke * (FABULOUS commentary!).
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I’ve been using the latest of the Navarre series to learn more about Psalms. Very rich.
 
I am reading *Forty Dreams of St.JOhn Bosco * and Maurice and Therese. I just finished A Man of the Beatitudes, Pier Giorgio Frassati.

I also try to read a little of the Bible everyday and a chapter of *The Imitation of Christ * everyday…
 
Something of a traditionalist here. I still like Chesterton’s THE EVERLASTING MAN, which deeply influenced C.S. Lewis. Also Lewis’ THE SCREWTAPE LETTERS.
 
“The Seven Storey Mountain” - Thomas Merton
“The Sign of the Cross” - Bert Ghezzi
“How the Reformation Happened” - Hilaire Belloc
Poems of Gerard Manley Hopkins
“Triumph” - H.W. Crocker

And for Catholics with a sense of humor, who can laugh at themselves:

“A Confederacy of Dunces” - John Kennedy Toole

There are so many more:

Augustine, Aquinas, St. Faustina, St. John of the Cross, more Belloc, Chesterton…
 
As an addendum, I am particularly interested in anyone who can recommend good Catholic fiction or poetry, specifically by an English speaking author, from any period.
 
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Brian:
As an addendum, I am particularly interested in anyone who can recommend good Catholic fiction or poetry, specifically by an English speaking author, from any period.
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G.K. Chesterton is wonderful – for fiction try The Man Who Was Thursday, although he write a lot of great books (including the Father Brown mystery series).

I love Flannery O’Connor, but her stories and books are quite quirky – maybe you’d like them anyway. I have her Collected Works, which includes all of her letters, and the letters themselves are rich in apologetics.

Pope John Paul II recently published a book of poetry called Roman Tryptich. I like it. (He is coming out with an autobiography, and I am looking forward to reading it.)

'thann
 
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Brian:
As an addendum, I am particularly interested in anyone who can recommend good Catholic fiction or poetry, specifically by an English speaking author, from any period.
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Brian, the Liturgy of The Hours (4 volume set) has a section of poetry.Good place for classic Catholic poetry.
 
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Carl:
Something of a traditionalist here. I still like Chesterton’s THE EVERLASTING MAN, which deeply influenced C.S. Lewis. Also Lewis’ THE SCREWTAPE LETTERS.
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Chesterton is great, and Orthodoxy is a classic as well.
 
I am currently reading Professor Robert P George’s The Clash of Orthodoxies
From the cover–
“Secular liberals typically assume that their own positions on morally charged issues of public policy are the fruit of pure reason while those of their morally conservative opponents reflect an irrational religious faith. In The Clash of Orthodoxies: Law, Religion, and Morality in Crisis, Princeton political theorist Robert P George shows that this supposition is wrong on both accounts. Challenging liberalism’s claim to represent the triumph of reason, George argues that on controversial issues like embryonic stem cell research, abortion, euthanasia, homosexuality, and same-sex marriage, traditional Judeo-Christian beliefs are actually rationally superior to seculat liberal alternatives.”
George is a Catholic and one of the few conservatives left on Princeton’s faculty. The book is gem. I feel much more secure in the inevitable clashes that present themselves in modern secular society. The sections on gay marriage alone are worth the cover price to help with difficult arguments that play on one’s sense of civil rights vs society’s right to regulate its members.
 
I’ve just gotten done reading A History and Theology of Grace, by John A. Hardon, S.J… It is incredibly thorough. However, I think I’m going to go back and brush up on my Aristotle, then try it again. It is not really written for laymen, IMHO.

Justin
 
I am reading Peter Kreeft’s Catholic Christianity. I am also reading Prayer and Community by Columba Stewart, OSB. I am also wading my way through The Origins of the Christina Mystical Tradition: From Plato to Denys, by Andrew Louth. I am also on my dozenth or so reading of the Holy Rule of St Benedict.

As an aid to my Bible reading, I use How to read the Bible every day: a guide for catholics, by a certain Carmen Rojas. It is three complete reading schedules that allow for the reading of the Bible in either 1, 2, or 3 years. It also has supplementaryb reading schedules for major liturgical seasons like Lent and Advent.
 
My favorite book so far is “The Collected Works of St. John of the Cross.” Included in The Collected Works are St. John’s poetry, The Ascent of Mount Carmel, The Dark Night, The Spiritual Canticle, and The Living Flame of Love, as well as his letters and other counsels.
 
I got done recently with Scott Hahn’s Rome Sweet Home and Loved it! I would recomend that to anyone. Right now I am taking on Unabridged Christianity by Fr. Mario P. Romero, great compliation of Biblical answers to common questions about the Faith. Recomended to me by one of my Catholic buddies at the University of Washington. Its good, real good.
 
The Catechism of the Catholic Church. Invaluable. Irreplacable. Authoritative. Short of Sacred Scripture, as official as it gets.

The Documents of the Second Vatican Council. You do have a copy, don’t you?

Fundamentals of Catholic Dogma, by Ludwig Ott. Gives you a concise summary of everything, including rankings by theological grades of certainty. If you don’t believe me, ask Ichthus. 😛

Justin
 
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DominvsVobiscvm:
Lest we scandlize our Protestant brethren, I’m sure I speak for us all when I say that the greatest of the “Great Catholic Books” is the Holy Bible!

I know nothing else that compares.
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Darn, you beat me to the punch. :cool: -Greg
 
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