Which Book Increased Your Faith

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The One True Church by Fr. Arnold Damen SJ
The Blessed Eucharist Our Greatest Treasure by Fr. Michael Müller, C.S.S.R
Divine Mercy in my Soul by St. Maria Faustina
The Spiritual Combat by Dom Lorenzo Scupoli
Mary Our Life and Sweetness by St. Alphonsus Liguori
 
Another 14th-century classic that should be better known, The Book of Privy Counsel. This helped me move deeper into contemplative prayer.

Collected Works of Edith Stein

Ida Gorres’ biography The Hidden Face: A Study of Thérèse of Lisieux, written during WWII and reissued a few years ago.
 
Thank you everyone for adding to my Amazon wishlist ALL the books I want to read…
(It’s already a few hundred pages long!!)

For me, it is a long out of print biography of St John of the Cross, EVERYTHING by
J. Girzone especially; Story of a Soul, some works of Julian of Norwich, (the complete works are on my wishlist…) and The Case for Christ by Lee Strobel.
 
Many books over the years, but the one that stands out is Merton’s Seven Story Mountain.
This was an important stepping stone for me.Another book of lasting importance is Thomas a Kempis Imitation of Christ. The one I have just discovered and reading now is Who moved the stone.
 
The book that really increased my faith, and I know is not a book book, which you read from cover to cover, but more of a go to the part which interests you, is mr. Akin’s book, The Church Fathers.

I am currently reading the Youcat, I have Rome sweet home after and then the catechism of the Catholic Church.
 
Theology and Sanity by Frank Sheed really made Catholicism open up for me.

Introduction to the devout life by Francis De Sales really changed the way I pray, and saw the world. A little deep sometimes but really good. So many gems of wisdom in there!!!
 
Ah yes, I read Francis de Sales in my 20s and that book helped me so much too – he was a great spiritual director and after reading his Introduction to the Devout Life, I also found the Spiritual Letters of Dom Chapman and his advice on prayer.
 
Mary_LA said:
Ah yes, I read Francis de Sales in my 20s and that book helped me so much too – he was a great spiritual director and after reading his Introduction to the Devout Life, I also found the Spiritual Letters of Dom Chapman and his advice on prayer.
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So many good books! Not enough hours in my life! Lol
 
There are a number of books that have made a difference in my life. In addition to ones already mentioned, here is my longer list of titles:

C.S. Lewis - Mere Christianity.
G. K. Chesterton - Orthodoxy
Josemaria Escriva - The way
Peter Kreeft - Catholic Christianity (and his other books)
John Paul II - Crossing the threshold of hope

George Weigel - Evangelical Catholicism.
The last item is a very recent publication. It is a book about the future of the church. Well worth reading and debating in church groups. It is bound to be influential as it establishes some baselines for discussing the future of the church.
 
Random selections from the Church Fathers showed me that Catholicism is the True Faith when I was 17, St. Francis de Sales’ Introduction to the Devout Life showed me what sanctity looks like when I was in college, and reading the footnotes of the 1962 missal a couple of years ago showed me how to get there.
 
ajecphotos said:
So many good books! Not enough hours in my life! Lol
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Right there with you! I have like ten or fifteen books lined up on my bookshelf that I’ve been meaning to get to for like ever. But I keep on buying more and more, and the list just keeps growing!!.:eek:😃
 
“Story of a Soul” St Therese of Lisieux.

This book has lead me to a number of other books and writer’s. For instance the writings of St Teresa of Avila.
 
“The Imitation of Christ” is a very good book and of course the list of good faith building apologetic type books would be almost endless. However, my favorite book of all is "Our Lady of Fatima" - by William Thomas Walsh. This book is not deep in terms of theological or philosophical matters, or as instructive as the catechism and apologetic materials but it is as moving and faith inspiring as it is simple. The language is simple, and yet the author paints the scene so well that you feel as though you are there watching the events unfold. The author traveled to Fatima before the 1950s and interviewed Sr Lucia herself, as well as living witnesses and relatives. He includes the short interview with Sr Lucia at the end of the book.

Reading about the faith of the Children is truly inspiring and hearing the accounts of the agony and suffering of little Jacinta and how she offered her suffering for sinners is moving. Our Lay told her that she would die alone in hospital. She accepted this and offered her sufferings to our Lord. The faith of the Children relayed in the book would put the most pious soul to shame. The book really moves one to examine their own life an increase in faith and devotion. I highly recommend it:

amazon.com/Our-Lady-Fatima-William-Walsh/dp/0385028695

Also, Blessed Margaret of Castello would not forgive me if I neglected to mention: “The Life of Blessed Margaret of Castello” by Fr Bonniwell - a very moving and faith inspiring account of her holy life. I cannot even begin to count the amount of miracles and mini miracles that her novena (at the back of the book) has worked for me and my family.
 
ajecphotos said:
Besides the Bible, which book/s, that you have read have really made an impact on you and your faith?

For me its St Faustina Diary and books on St Padre Pio.
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The Catechism, The Faith of the Early Church Fathers, Fundamentals of Catholic Dogma, conciliar decrees and docs, St Teresa of Avila, anything by Augustine.
 
Despite him being a non-Catholic, I loved Lee Strobel’s “The Case for a Creator”. He makes some pretty good arguments for the existence of God and talks briefly about how he left atheism. Pretty interesting read.
 
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