What's in your "spiritual library"?

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Ghoti

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I have no idea if this is in the most appropriate forum, so if I am wrong…moderators, shepherd the sheep! 😃

I’ve recently (i.e. since I’ve come to CAF) started adding more religious and spiritual books to my library.

This is what I have so far:
  • The Jerusalem Bible - Reader’s Ed.
  • The New Jerusalem Bible - Reader’s Ed.
  • The New Testament - RSV-CE
  • The Douai-Rheims Bible - Challoneer Ed.
  • The NAB - Fireside Ed.
  • The KJV
  • The New Testament & Psalms - Good News Ed (Cdn Bible Society)
  • The New English Bible
  • The New Greek/English Interlinear New Testament (NRSV)
  • The New Testament & Other Early Christian Writings (NT Apocrypha/Pseudepigrapha)
  • Cathedral Daily Missal (EF)
  • St Joseph Daily Missal (1960s)
  • McBrien - The Pocket Guide to The Saints
  • McBrien - The Pocket Guide to The Popes
  • Pray Always (Children’s prayer book, pre-VII)
  • Come, My Jesus (Children’s TLM “missal” - I actually had this as a wee lad – 'cept that by that time the vernacular OF was firmly entrenched)
  • de Montfort - The Secret of Mary (booklet)
  • Thos. a Kempis - Of the Imitation of Christ
  • St. John of the Cross - Living Flame of Love
What do you folks have in your libraries? What would you recommend for me? Note, I haven’t started reading Kempis or St John – I haven’t done a lot of reading lately, thanks to my meds – I just happened to see them at a used bookstore, so I decided to get them (IIRC, I got them, along with the RSV-CE and a light-up model of St Peter’s, at the Salvation Army Thrift Store – God bless Sally Ann!). I’m still a bit of a tyro in a way, I’ve only recently started looking more closely/seriously at my faith, and with a (hopefully) more mature eye.

I almost bought two books from a “philosophers series” – *Aquinas *and Augustine. I remember opening one, trying to read a bit, and having part of my brain melt. Maybe I need to start in the literary shallow end, and work my way out from there.:o
 
I love a good story, so I tend to lean towards the lives of the Saints, as well as their writings. Here’s a few from my library:
  • Autobiography of St. Teresa of Avila
  • Interior Castle by St. Teresa of Avila (it’s on my “must get” list, but I don’t have it yet)
  • Story of a Soul (autobiography of St. Therese of Lisieux) – a bit flowery, but she was a Victorian-age girl after all
  • the recently released writings of Blessed Mother Teresa of Calcutta (can’t remember the title)
  • several other books about Blessed Mother Teresa
[bet you can’t guess my middle name 😃 ]
  • The Thrill of the Chaste (by Dawn Eden)
  • Antiphonale Monasticum (Divine Office in Latin, with chants)
  • Little Office of the Blessed Virgin Mary
  • Catechism of the Catholic Church (you really MUST get this, a most beautiful work, a love letter!)
…and others on a variety of subjects.

If you’re looking for the “shallow end” I would always recommend reading some of the lives of the saints, written by faithful **Catholic **authors. I’ve stumbled across some works on female Saints written by non-Catholic women trying to use our Saints to back ideas completely against Catholic teaching (everything from pro-choice to female priests). :eek: So be careful about the authors.

God bless you as you strive to grow in your knowledge and faith 👍

Gertie
 
Three Bibles: Revised Standard Version, New Jerusalem and New American
Catechism of the Church
James Martin,S.J. My Life with the Saints (One of my favorites)
Scott Hahn The Lamb’s Supper
George Weigle: The Courage to be Catholic
Aquinas: The Summa Theologica
Augustine: The City of God
Pope JPII: Crossing the Threshold of Hope, The Theology of the Body
Piers Paul Reed: Hell and Other Destinations (a British version of Karl Keating–CAFers should check him out)
Karl Keating: Catholics and Fundamentalism, The Usual Suspects
Pope BXVI: God and the World, Jesus of Nazareth
Thomas Merton: The Seven Story Mountain
James Schall, S.J.The Order of Things (a fellow polisciprof)
Kathleen Norris: A Cloister Walk
Paul Johnson: The Quest for God
and about two and a half bookshelves of Church history, the state of the Church today, theology, commentaries, etc., etc.
 
I always give away my books so I have never had a library!!

Two of my favourite books where:

The Dogma of Hell

and

Purgatory Explained
both my Fr. F.X. Shouppe. (I think I misspelled his last name)

I am also going to add this:

baroniuspress.com/book.php?wid=56&bid=50
 
I’m getting started too so I’m always adding more.

Catechism of the Catholic Church
George Weigel: Witness to Hope, God’s Choice
Pope JPII: Crossing The Threshold of Hope, Gift and Mystery, Rise Let Us Be On Our Way
Scott Hahn: The Lamb’s Supper, Rome Sweet Home
Fr. Groeschel: The Rosary: Chain of Hope, The Virtue Driven Life
St. Louis de Montfort: The Secret of the Rosary
Fr. Thomas Dubay: Deep Conversion/Deep Prayer
Baronius Press 1962 Roman Missal
Vinny Flynn: Seven Secrets of the Eucharist
Raymond Arroyo: Mother Angelica, Mother Angelica’s Little Book of Life Lessons and Everyday Spirituality
Praying With Catherine of Siena
Michael Dubruiel: The How-to Book of the Mass
Henri Daniel-Rops: This Is The Mass (illustrated with photographs of Bishop Fulton Sheen as taken by Yousuf Karsh)
Ralph Martin: The Fulfilment of all Desire
Adoremus Hymnal
And on a lighter note, Zmirak/Marychowiak: The Bad Catholic’s Guide to Good Living
 
Ghoti said:
I almost bought two books from a “philosophers series” – *Aquinas *and Augustine. I remember opening one, trying to read a bit, and having part of my brain melt. Maybe I need to start in the literary shallow end, and work my way out from there.:o
Click to expand...
You might try Augustine’s Confessions rather than The City of God and Thomas’ Summa Contra Gentiles rather than the Summa Theologica. Both are on line. I don’t know what you mean by “philosophers series” since many commentaries and anthologies are harder than the original texts.Frederick Copleston’s 11 volume History of Philosophy is a reliable Catholic interpretation and is worth a try.
 
After Sacred Scripture, The Catechism of the Catholic Church is a must read for all, not just Catholics. It is amazingly easy to read and clearly explains the Teachings of the Church that Jesus Christ founded.

Augustine’s Confessions is also easy to read and incredibly insightful as well.

Jesus of Nazareth by Papa Benedictus XVI is amazing. I can only read a page or so at a time, it is so profound.

All of the others mentioned are excellent as well.

Sancta Maria, Mater Dei, Ora Pro Nobis Peccatoribus.

Mark
 
My list is purdy short-
  • Mere Christianity by C.S. Lewis
  • The Virtue Driven Life by Fr. Benedict J Groeschel, C.F.R.
  • Yes or No by Peter Kreeft
  • The Thrill of the Chaste by Dawn Eden
  • Truth and Tolerance by Cardinal Ratzinger, now Papa Benny
  • TOTB for teens
and the CCC & a bible.
 
Just about anything from Peter Kreeft is good
Silence by Endo
 
Thanks for the suggestions, all.

I have one that I left at my folks’ house, called “Teeth in the Devil’s Hide”…anyone here familiar with it?
 
Theology for Beginners and Theology and Sanity by Francis Sheed.
I think someone already mentioned Seven Storey Mountain.
Myth of Hitlers Pope (to answer challenges about the papacy in general and Pius XII in specific)
Catholicism and Fundamentalism by Karl Keating
Ratzinger Report by Cardinal Ratzinger
John Paul II’s Book of Mary
 
Mark77 said:
After Sacred Scripture, The Catechism of the Catholic Church is a must read for all, not just Catholics. It is amazingly easy to read and clearly explains the Teachings of the Church that Jesus Christ founded.

Jesus of Nazareth by Papa Benedictus XVI is amazing. I can only read a page or so at a time, it is so profound.
Click to expand...
CCC is awesome, I am not yet Catholic but it helps to know the rules!

Jesus of Nazareth is great, if you like it you should try God and the World also by Benedict XVI

Bryan
 
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