Religious Books

The modern liturgical movement owes a great debt to Solesmes monk Dom
Eugène Cardine (1905-1988), whose tireless research in the ancient
manuscripts uncovered the elusive secrets of Gregorian Rhythm, thus
revealing some of the original pristine beauty of Gregorian chant. In this
volume, Dom Cardine sums up the origin, decline, and restoration of the
chant, and challenges researchers to continue his work.

This collection offers a sampler of the work of Dr. Clyde Kilby on these themes. He writes reflections under four headings: "Christianity, Art, and Aesthetics"; "The Vocation of the Artist"; "Faith and the Role of the Imagination"; and "Poetry, Literature and the Imagination."

With a unique voice, Kilby writes from a specific literary and philosophical context that relates art and aesthetics with beauty, and all that is embodied in the classics. His work is particularly relevant today as these topics are being embraced by Protestants, Evangelicals, and indeed people of faith from many different traditions. A deeply engaging book for readers who want to look more closely at themes of art, aesthetics, beauty and literature in the context of faith.

She teaches how to deal with thousands of thoughts that people think every day and how to focus the mind the way God thinks. And she shares the trials, tragedies, and ultimate victories from her own marriage, family, and ministry that led her to wondrous, life-transforming truth--and reveals her thoughts and feelings every step of the way.

This special updated edition includes an additional introduction and updated content throughout the book.

For more than 250 years, Abandonment to Divine Providence by Fr. Jean-Pierre de Caussade has offered inspiration and spiritual balm for those plagued with doubt, anxiety, and fear. Motivated by his own life-changing encounter with this spiritual classic and the popular resurgence in practicing Christian mindfulness, bestselling author and retreat leader Rev. Jeffrey Kirby serves up six meditations, rooted in Caussade's work, for today's reader and presents them as a personal retreat. Perfect for anyone looking to renew their trust in God and live freely in the present moment, Be Not Troubled invites you to let go of what you can't control and discover a place of deep serenity in God.

How does the contemporary person who is constantly forced to multitask, is fragmented and torn in different directions, and feels more connection through technology than through face-to-face interaction come to know and experience God's presence?

In Be Not Troubled, Kirby draws on his decades of experience as a popular retreat leader and speaker to offer you the wisdom of Caussade distilled into a six-day personal retreat that equips you to embrace the present moment and shake fear from your mind--all by recognizing the power of God.

This process begins with time-tested tools drawn from the renowned spiritual classic Abandonment to Divine Providence, which presents a series of influential spiritual reflections from Caussade, a beloved eighteenth-century French Jesuit.

In popularizing this classic for today's readers, Be Not Troubled

Practical steps, invitations to practice presence, and reflective prayers guide you through these spiritual habits, which are broken out into six days of brief, accessible meditations that can be completed in the midst of your daily life.

Rather than the future or the past, and rather than in cyberspace or somewhere else, God is found in this moment and in this place. The present moment can be lived and cherished as a sacrament, a visible sign of invisible graces. And it's in this sacrament that we can most know ourselves and encounter the living God.

The women God called to bring his chosen people into the world were ordinary women who struggled with emptiness, oppression, infertility, and loss--yet who found strength and hope in God. In her first book, Sarah Christmyer--codeveloper of The Great Adventure Catholic Bible study program--pairs the stories of key Old Testament women with stories of women she has known to show us how we can hear God, say yes to his call, and share him with the world just as they did.

Breaking open the scriptures to reveal the historical, cultural, and biblical context in which Old Testament women lived, Sarah Christmyer breathes new life into their stories and makes their lives surprisingly relatable. In the process, she shares stories from her own faith journey and the lives of family and friends to show how the same principles that turned ordinary women into heroines of the faith are true for our lives today.

Each chapter of Becoming Women of the Word highlights the spiritual legacy of one or more women in the Old Testament. Their world was vastly different from ours, yet they faced the same questions we do: when we can't feel God's presence, where do we find help? When our world is collapsing, where is God? Why should we trust him? How can we trust him? Christmyer simply and clearly draws from the lives of these women important principles that help us to trust--even as we struggle with doubt. For example:

These unforgettable portraits create a colorful mosaic of faith, encouraging us to mine God's Word for spiritual treasure and to pass on the gift.

In Benedict in the World, Linda Kulzer, O.S.B., and Roberta Bondi have gathered stories of many of the ordinary and extraordinary men and women Benedictine oblates--members of the Benedictine family who live in the world.

Benedict in the World begins with an introductory chapter citing some reasons for an influx of Benedictine oblates into monasteries today. It then presents in detail a collection of the lives of nineteen significant Benedictine oblates who lived from the years 973 to 2000.

Nearly half the contributors are themselves Benedictine oblates and most of the others are professed Benedictine monastics. The combined effort offers support and inspiration to those who have loved their oblate journey and brings to light the lives of these outstanding lay monastics. Among the more well-known oblates included are Dorothy Day, Patrick and Patricia Crowley, Jacques and Raissa Maritain, Walker Percy, H. R. Reinhold, and Elena Cornaro.

Chapters are "Foreword: On Being a Benedictine Oblate," by Roberta Bondi; "Introduction," by Linda Kulzer, OSB, "Monasticism Beyond the Walls," by Linda Kulzer, OSB, "Carolyn Attneave: Catcher of the Light," by Paschal A. Morlino, OSB; "Oblate and Heroine: Elena Lucrezia Scholastica Cornaro Piscopia (1646-1684)," by Ann Kessler, OSB; "Patrick Crowley: Oblate of St. Benedict," by Patty Crowley; "Faith in Action: The Lives of Patrick and Patricia Crowley," by Margaret Colleton; "Evelyn Davie's Dream Deferred," by Mary Ruth Coffman, OSB; "Prayer and Work in the Light of Dorothy Day," by Rita (McClain) Tybor; "Eric Dean: Presbyterian Pilgrim," by Phyllis K. Thompson; "Believing Is Seeing: Frances of Rome, Patron of Benedictine Oblates," by Susan Anderson Kerr; "Rumer Godden: Oblate Novelist," by Catherine Wybourne, OSB; "Edith Gurian, Oblate Peter," by Mary Anthony Wagner, OSB; "Henry II: Monk-King," by Hugh Feiss, OSB; "On the Road to Emmaus: The Spiritual Journey of Joris-Karl Huysmans," by George C. Tunstall; "Emerson Hynes: A Vocation to Conversation," by Owen Lindblad, OSB; "St. Benedict and the Maritains," by Lucie R. Johnson, OBLSB; "Walker Percy: The End of His Beginning," by Edward J. Dupuy; "Faithful to the Very End: Oliver Plunkett, Irish Martyr and Archbishop," by Jem Sullivan; "Denys Prideaux: The Oblate Abbot," by Charles Preble; "H. A. Reinhold: Architect of the Liturgical Movement in America," by Julia Upton, RSM; and "Rita Sorg's Life of Joyful Hope: Remembering the Transfiguration on Tabor," by Donald Raila, OSB

Linda Kulzer, OSB, PhD, is co-editor of Medieval Women Monastics: Wisdom's Wellsprings and Purity of Heart in Early Ascetic and Monastic Literature: Essays in Honor of Juana Raasch, OSB, published by The Liturgical Press.

Roberta Bondi, DPhil., is a Professor of Church History at the Candler School of Theology, Emory University in Atlanta, Georgia, and the author of nine books in the area of spirituality.

The Benedictine Handbook is a lifelong companion for oblates, associates, and friends of the Benedictine communities. Many people who visit communities for retreats and quiet days look for help in integrating into their daily lives some of the things they see and experience. This handbook will help people follow the Rule of Benedict as it explains the essential elements of Benedictine spirituality. It provides information on the spread of the Benedictine movement, its outstanding figures, and the main branches of the Benedictine family today. It also includes a simple version of the Daily Office and a collection of Benedictine devotions. It is a member's handbook that deepens the sense of belonging among those who seek regular contact with a Benedictine community.

The Benedictine Handbook will appeal to a broad range of readers who may or may not be familiar with Benedictine literature. The contributors to The Benedictine Handbook come from Benedictine backgrounds in the United States and Europe.

Chapters and contributors include in Part One: Tools of Benedictine Spirituality *The Work of God, - by Demetrius Dumm; *Lectio Divina, - by Michal Casey; *Prayer, - by Mary Forman; *Work, - by Lauren McTaggart; *Perseverance, - by Kym Harris; *The Vows, - by Richard Yeo; and *Hospitality, - by Kathleen Norris. Part Two: The Benedictine Experience of God includes *A Simple Daily Office, - by Fr. Oswald; *Benedictine Prayers, - by Fr. Anthony; *A Benedictine Who's Who, - by Robert Atwell; and *Benedictine Holy Places, - by ColmanO'Clabaigh. Part Three: Living the Rule includes *In Community, - by Columba Stewart; *In Solitude, - by Maria Boulding; *As Oblates, - by Patrick Phelan; and *In the World, - by Esther de Wall. Part Four: The Benedictine Family includes *A Short History, - by Joe Rippinger; *Benedictine Orders, - by Dominic Milroy; and *The Cistercian Tradition, - by Nivard Kinsella. The contributors to Part Five: A Glossary of Benedictine Terms are Terrence Kardong and Jill Maria Murdy. A Benedictine Handbook also includes *Preface to the Rule, - by Patrick Barry; and *The Rule (Patrick Barry's Version). -