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What have you read?

Discussion in 'Free-For-All Archives' started by Carson Weber, May 20, 2003.

  1. Carson Weber

    Carson Weber <img src="http://www.boerne.com/temp/bb_pic2.jpg">

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    What books have you read so far this year?

    Please give at least the Author, Title, and a brief description.

    The following is a quote from a book I'm in the middle of at present:

    "'I'm ready to accept Jesus as a great moral teacher, but I don't accept His claim to be God.' That is the one thing we must not say. A man who was merely a man and said the sort of things Jesus said would not be a great moral teacher. He would either be a lunatic - on a level with the man who says he is a poached egg - or else he would be the Devil of Hell. You must make your choice. Either this man was, and is, the Son of God: or else a madman or something worse. You can shut Him up for a fool, you can spit at Him and kill Him as a demon; or you can fall at His feet and call Him Lord and God. But let us not come with any patronising nonsense about His being a great human teacher. He has not left that open to us. He did not intend to." (C.S. Lewis, Mere Christianity)
     
  2. TP

    TP Guest

    Greetings,

    I am reading or have recently read:

    "The Lord" by Romano Guardini---EXCELLENT. Theological/Scriptural reflections on the life of Christ

    "Transformation in Christ" by Dietrich von Hildebrand. Very good work on practical Spiritual theology.

    "Christian Holiness" by Gustave Thils. I found this at a used book store and so far is my favorite book on Spiritual theology. copywrite 1961. I would recommend it in a second.

    "The meaning of grace" by Charles Journet. This is part of the Catholic Insight Series. Again, it is very good. I have enjoyed it.

    "Spiritual Theology" by Jordan Aumann. Anything by him is excellent. He did a series on spirituality for EWTN years ago, but you can still listen in their audio library.

    "Theology and Sanity" by Frank Sheed. Very practical, down to earth theology book.

    Those are the books at the side of my bed and depending on my mood will determine which ones I read. This summer I am planning on doing Catholic Fiction: I have 4 books by George Bernanos, and "Silence" by a Japanese Catholic named Endo. I am also thinking of rereading "Canticle of Liebowitz" which is my favorite Catholic Science Fiction.

    peace
     
  3. GraceSaves

    GraceSaves New Member

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    Heya everyone,

    I've finally had some free time between school terms to get some pleasure reading done. I've read two books in the last two weeks, both of which kept me glued to them.

    "God Underneath: Spiritual Memoirs of a Catholic Priest" by Edward L. Beck
    This one surprised me. My friend kept telling me how good it was, and it took several months for me to crack down and read it. It's just what the title says: the life (from childhood to present) of a Passionist priest (a priest whose charism is to focus on those who are suffering). His incites into his life and priesthood were hartwarming, honest, and very real. If interested in what it's like to be a priest in a religious order that focuses on outreach, this is a must. I don't agree with all of his personal views (which he left as his personal beliefs, and nothing more), but I appreciated his candor. Great book.

    "The Bones of St. Peter" by John Evangelist Walsh
    Anyone who wishes to keep saying that Peter never went to Rome...wow, you need to read this one. This book goes into complete detail of the archaeological dig under the high alter at St. Peter's at the Vatican, and the uncovering of St. Peter's remains. It is EXTREMELY thorough and tedious, but keeps an edge of suspense to keep you always interested. I got it for $1 at a library book sale and it was certainly worth it!

    Right now I'm starting "Reading the Old Testament: An Introduction" by Lawrence Boadt, C.S.P.
    This was my textbook last semester, but wasn't really used in class. However, what we did read was great and detailed, so I want to read the whole thing and soak up as much as possible. I'm also starting "The Hobbit," by J.R.R. Tolkien, which I unfortunately have never read (nor any of the Lord of the Rings books...yet).

    God bless everyone!

    Grant
     
  4. LaRae

    LaRae Guest

    My favorite topic....books!

    Here's my list:

    The 6 books in the "Don Camillo" series written by Giovannino Guareschi ....if you haven't read it it's a must read! It's about a Catholic Priest in occupied Italy...and his experiences with his flock and the local communists....very very funny at times.

    Several books by Louis De Wohl, has written many books about the lives of individual saints. One of my favorites is about St Catherine of Sienna.

    The Glorious Folly....forgot who the author is, and the book is loaned out to a friend! It's about what happened AFTER Jesus was ressurected...covering some of the Disciples and the soldier who stabbed Jesus in the side....my mind is blank right now as to his name...but you all know who I mean.


    Ok that's my list for now.


    LaRae
     
  5. Carson Weber

    Carson Weber <img src="http://www.boerne.com/temp/bb_pic2.jpg">

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    Father TP,

    "The Lord" by Romano Guardini---EXCELLENT.

    I am waiting for the chance to read this one. I've only heard good reviews.

    "Transformation in Christ" by Dietrich von Hildebrand. Very good work on practical Spiritual theology.

    Oh how I want to read this one as well! I have yet to finish Trojan Horse in the City of God and Liturgy & Personality first, though.

    "The meaning of grace" by Charles Journet. This is part of the Catholic Insight Series. Again, it is very good. I have enjoyed it.

    Journet.. great author!

    "Theology and Sanity" by Frank Sheed. Very practical, down to earth theology book.

    What a long, yet fulfilling read! This was my "before I go to bed" reading material last year - and I finally just sat down and finished the last hundred pages one day. I still find it hard to understand how Sheed was able to synthesize the faith in the way that he did. He is absolutely a brilliant catechist!
     
  6. neal4christ

    neal4christ New Member

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    These are the ones so far this year:

    Postmodern Times by Gene Edward Veith, Jr. - A look at contemporary times and ideology.

    Reasonable Faith by William Lane Craig - Demonstrates the reasonableness of the Christian faith and looks some at apologetics.

    A Handbook For Christian Philosophy by L. Russ Bush - Introductory book to philosophy and looks at it from a Christian viewpoint.

    Most of Philosophy and the Christian Faith by Colin Brown - Brief history of philosophical thought with relation to the Christian faith.

    Rome Sweet Home by Scott Hahn - His personal journey to the Catholic faith.

    Four Views on Hell edited by William Crockett - Four essays on the nature of hell.

    About half of Counted Righteous in Christ by John Piper - A look at the doctrine of the imputation of Chirst's righteousness.

    Some of two introductory books to the OT.

    I have many, many I want to read though! Escape From Reason, Five Views on Apologetics, and I really want to read a book I have coming in the mail, Ancient Christian Commentary on Scripture, which I believe covers Colossians, I & II Thess., I & II Timothy, Titus, and Philemon. And many others as well. I just have to find the time. :rolleyes:

    Neal
     
  7. MikeS

    MikeS New Member

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    Carson,

    I don't know how much C.S. Lewis you've read, but let me chime in and recommend "Surprised by Joy" (his spiritual autobiography from birth through acceptance of Christianity), "The Pilgrim's Regress" (the same story, a-la Bunyan), and "Till We Have Faces" (Can't even describe this in one sentence!). When I came back to the Church last year it was "Surprised by Joy" and my wife's choir that rescued me. I love C.S. Lewis! [​IMG] (Maybe we should have fun here someday and start a "Would C.S. Lewis be a Catholic today?" thread!)

    Lately I've been reading up on Intelligent Design, including "Darwin's Black Box" by Behe, "Modern Physics and Ancient Faith" by Barr, and "The Anthropic Cosmological Principle" by Barrow. Hmmm, many B's surround me!

    On top of that, I've just gotten Dante's "Inferno" by Hollander, which is supposed to be a fabulous new translation.
     
  8. D28guy

    D28guy New Member

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    "The Complete Green Letters"

    Miles Stanford

    A most excellant book. This is probably my 4th or 5th time reading it.

    Other than that, recently, "The Scriptures."

    Author: God.

    Peace,

    Mike
     
  9. Jude

    Jude <img src=/scott3.jpg>

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    Reluctant Saint: The Life of Francis of Assisi
    Donald Spoto
    Francis of Assisi Adrian House
    St Francis of Assisi Omer Engelbert
    Francis of Assisi and his world Mark Galli
    A Glimpse of Jesus Brennan Manning
     
  10. Frank

    Frank New Member

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    I am currently reading," What Is The Church?" by Eddie Cloer.
    The book is an examination of the church in the light of the new testament. The theme is what the church is, and is not.
     
  11. thessalonian

    thessalonian New Member

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    Upon This Rock by Steve Ray.

    After you read Grants book on the bones of St. Peter, delve in to this one and the rest of the myths about the Papacy that you have been taught will be gone. Then you'll have a real problem. What to do with the truth? Guaranteed.

    Blessings [​IMG]
     
  12. Ps104_33

    Ps104_33 New Member

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    Been plowing through History of the Christian Church by Schaff. Halfway through the second volume.


    Also reading Institutes of the Christian Religion by Calvin.

    And from a secular perspective I'm reading "American Beyond our Greatest Notions" By Chris Matthews

    Re: Mere Christianity by Lewis, Its one of my favorites. Read it about five times.

    Another good and very unusal book by Lewis that I have read is "The Great Divorce" Anyone read that one?
     
  13. Carson Weber

    Carson Weber <img src="http://www.boerne.com/temp/bb_pic2.jpg">

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    Here's what I've been reading..

    From Death to Life: The Christian Journey by Christoph Cardinal Schonborn

    Schonborn examines Christian deification, the hope of eternal life and viewing this life with an eternal perspective, the Church as the Kingdom of God, and other fascinating Christian views that the early Christians wrote and preached on.

    Catholic For a Reason: Scripture and the Mystery of the Family of God edited by Scott Hahn & Leon J. Suprenant

    This is composed of essays from various former students of Dr. Hahn's as well as one from his wife, Kimberly on Baptism. These essays cover such topics as the Eucharist, Purgatory, Priest as a Spiritual Father, Justification, and many more. This was the second time I read it, and this time through, I understood much more of it due to my education, and to say the least, I was very impressed again with its breadth and depth of the topics.

    Knowing the Love of Christ: An Introduction to the Theology of St. Thomas Aquinas by Michael Dauphinais and Matthew Levering

    Dauphinais & Levering - who are theology professors at Ave Maria College in Ann Arbor, MI - present an excellent synthesis of the theology of Aquinas. This is one of the best books I've read yet on the Christian faith; they synthesize Aquinas' thought and system superbly, and I would recommend this text to anyone who wishes to do theology: fides quaerens intellectum - faith seeking understanding.

    Life-Giving Love : Embracing God's Beautiful Design for Marriage by Kimberly Hahn

    Kimberly shows God's wonderful plan for marriages and families, and how we can live the joy of family life in the grace of Christ. She shows the theology behind the marriage covenant and the theological underpinnings of family life, explaining both in connection with the Eucharist, the Trinity, and Christ's bridal relationship with the Church. She also explains the prohibition on birth control with precision and depth, which reminds me of the exposition given by the Protestants who wrote Open Embrace: A Protestant Couple Rethinks Contraception

    Splendor of the Church by Henri Cardinal de Lubac

    In his amazing process of resourcement, Lubac analyzes key ecclesiological points by stringing together quotes from throughout the Early Church Fathers. This is a very difficult read - as is most of Lubac - because of his scholarship, but well worth the probing.

    First Comes Love: Finding Your Family in the Church and the Trinity by Scott Hahn

    I read this in its manuscript form before Hahn had it published through Doubleday, and I read it again this semester. He uses the family to explain the Trinity, and the Trinity to explain family. This is called the "social analogy" of Trinitarian theology; he shows that salvation is a family ordeal, which helps shine light on the ecclesia Dei as the familia Dei.

    A Father Who Keeps His Promises: God's Covenant Love in Scripture by Scott Hahn

    This is one of my favorite Christian books; I've read it four times now - once before coming to Franciscan. Once for my OT class. Once for the NT class. And now a fourth time for my Theological Foundations class. Hahn shows Salvation History in light of the covenant - he's able to unravel much of the mystery of the Old Testament through a covenantal lens. It's the Bible in a book. A must read!

    Loving the Church: Spiritual Exercises Preached in the Presence of Pope John Paul II by Christoph Cardinal Schonborn

    A series of meditations given for the pope and his staff on a Lenten retreat, this archbishop cardinal of Vienna, Austria shows that the Church is fundamentally a mystery founded in the mystery of Christ - fully God and fully man. He explores the communion of saints, our radical filiation in Jesus Christ, and the preparation for the Church throughout the various stages of history, including creation.

    The Nature and Mission of Theology: Essays to Orient Theology in Today's Debates by Joseph Cardinal Ratzinger

    Cardinal Ratzinger examines the relationship and integration of faith and reason, truth as the basis and measure of human freedom, the ecclesial character of conversion and theology, necessary and appropriate pluralism within the Church, the role of the Magisterium, and the significance of the seminary.

    Many Religions, One Covenant: Israel, the Church, and the World by Joseph Cardinal Ratzinger

    Ratzinger shows how the New Covenant fulfills and doesn't abolish the Old Covenant, which brings about the necessity and appropriateness of converting the Jews while respecting and recognizing the full import of our heritage as Christians in the Old Covenant. He examines the relationship between Law & Gospel - the fulfillment of Torah in the Gospel, Jesus' interpretation of the Law, the scandal of the Cross, and God's friendship with us through covenant.

    Gospel, Catechesis, Catechism: Sidelights on the Catechism of the Catholic Church by Joseph Cardinal Ratzinger

    Ratzinger analyzes the significance of the terms Gospel and Evangelize in the light of the Bible and the Catechism. He shows the didactic structure of the Catechism and its Christological centricity as well as its Biblical foundation and basis.

    The Rise of Christianity : How to obscure, Marginal Jesus Movement Became the Dominant Religious Force in the Western World in a Few Centuries by Rodney Stark

    This was recommended to me personally by Mike Aquilina, author of The Mass of the Early Christians. Rodney Stark, a sociologist at the University of Washington, shows the sociological reasons and environment for and around the rise of Christianity in the Roman Empire. He shows how it is entirely feasible and reasonable for this rise - as well as some of the main reasons for its spread and acceptance. What amazed me was to find that there were 1 million Catholics in 250 AD (2% of the pop), 6 million Catholics in 300 (10% of the pop) AD, and 33 million Catholics in 350 AD. (56% of the pop), and that the rate of this rise is almost identical to the rise of the LDS Church in our contemporary world at a constatnt 40% growth rate.

    Meet Padre Pio: Beloved Mystic, Miracle Worker, and Spiritual Guide by Patricia Treece

    Treece gives a synthesis of the life of St. Padre Pio, which is wonderful for anyone seeking to introduce themselves to the life of this 20th century mystic and saint. I thoroughly enjoyed it because I've always had an affinity towards this Franciscan Friar and sigmatist.

    St. Francis of Assisi by G.K. Chesterton

    More poetry than prose, this work is classic of Chesterton's writing style, which is so enjoyable! Chesterton gets behind the saint, focusing on several major aspects of St. Francis' life - and attempts to translate Francis for the secular reader of our age. This is a great introduction to anyone wishing to study St. Francis for the first time.

    Crossing the Threshold of Hope by Pope John Paul II

    John Paul II answers striking and broad-ranging questions by a journalist in simple, down-to-earth terms. I thought this text was a bit too simple for my taste because it is geared towards more of a seeker/secular audience. I would recommend it to a non-Catholic who is looking at the Church and/or Christianity from the outside.

    Mere Christianity by C.S. Lewis

    This is the text I'm on right now - I read the first 92 pages yesterday, and I couldn't put it down! In his usual addicting writing style, C.S. Lewis draws his audience in through a rational and systematic presentation/defence of what he calls Mere Christianity, that is, Christianity at its core apart from the differences behind different confessions - though, he does implicitly reject certain novel doctrines we see today such as annihilation (SDA) and a de-spiritualized baptism & lord's supper.

    I've been wanting to read more of the popular texts of Christian writing lately, so this is why I'm on Mere Christianity. Next, I hope to start Orthodoxy and The Everlasting Man by G.K. Chesterton before I read through The Case for Christ by Lee Strobel
     
  14. MikeS

    MikeS New Member

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    Yep, a very interesting book. I always recall the line: "I never said it wouldn't hurt you. I said it wouldn't kill you."

    Lewis also pays tribute in this book to George MacDonald, so maybe it's worth mentioning two of MacDonalds books, "Lilith" and "Phantastes." I've got them both, but haven't gotten around to either yet.
     
  15. MikeS

    MikeS New Member

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    You might want to read "Heretics" first, since "Orthodoxy" was written in some sense as a followup to the former.
     
  16. Carson Weber

    Carson Weber <img src="http://www.boerne.com/temp/bb_pic2.jpg">

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    I don't know how much C.S. Lewis you've read, but let me chime in and recommend..

    Sadly, I've read very little of him, but I've become a fan. I just returned from barbecuing over at the house of some girl friends of mine (http://www.emilystimpson.blogspot.com) and Emily - who is Dr. Hahn's new assistant - is an avid C.S. Lewis reader (she's read everything she could purchase of his that is published). In fact, this evening, I just went through her collection, thumbing through these books that you recommended, and I'm making a purchase list at present.

    You might want to read "Heretics" first, since "Orthodoxy" was written in some sense as a followup to the former.

    That's what I've been told. Thanks for the advice Mike. I'll make sure to put in an order for Heretics soon. I need more of them in my house. [​IMG] Which is funny, because my roommate next year will be coming up from Bob Jones University and his family has been attending Church of the Nazarene; he's very open to Catholicism.

    Upon This Rock by Steve Ray.

    thess, I read this text when driving around the southern United States with the vocations director for the diocese of Austin, TX and four other guys on what we call "Seminary Sprint" - visiting various seminaries and monasteries. It took me a while to finish due to the extensive footnotes, and it was a good read - well worth the time.

    Another good and very unusal book by Lewis that I have read is "The Great Divorce" Anyone read that one?

    Psalm, no, but I want to very much. This is on my "wish list". I've also heard from numerous individuals that the doctrine of purgatory is central to this text.
     
  17. Carson Weber

    Carson Weber <img src="http://www.boerne.com/temp/bb_pic2.jpg">

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    Well I was very impressed with Mere Christianity, and I have four more titles of C.S. Lewis being shipped at present from Amazon.com:

    Surprised by Joy
    The Four Loves
    The Great Divorce
    The Weight of Glory


    "Now the whole offer which Christianity makes is this: that we can, if we let God have His way, come to share in the life of Christ. If we do, we shall then be sharing a life which was begotten, not made, which always has existed and always will exist. Christ is the Son of God. If we share in this kind of life we also shall be sons of God. We shall love the Father as He does and the Holy Ghost will arise in us. He came to this world and became a man in order to spread to other men the kind of life He has - by what I call good infection. Every Christian is to become a little Christ. The whole purpose of becoming a Christian is simply nothing else."
    (C.S. Lewis, Mere Christianity; Bk 4, Ch 4)
     
  18. MikeS

    MikeS New Member

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    I had some good news on the C.S. Lewis front last night. I went to a talk by author Joseph Pearce ("Literary Converts" and bios of Chesterton, Belloc, Tolkien, Solzhenitsyn, etc) and he mentioned that his new book, coming out in September, will be titled "C.S. Lewis and the Catholic Church." Sounds intriguing!

    Pearce is a very interesting figure himself. He's English, and was a National Front skinhead in his youth. He spent 18 months in prison for editing one of their magazines, and there discovered the Catholic Church in the writings of Chesterton. He converted a few years later and has been channeling his energies in much more positive directions since!
     
  19. Carson Weber

    Carson Weber <img src="http://www.boerne.com/temp/bb_pic2.jpg">

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  20. Ps104_33

    Ps104_33 New Member

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    Nice try Carson. But I dont think so. Do Anglicans believe in purgatory? They may. They are nothing but Roman Catholics without the papacy. And even that is doubtful these days. Most Anglican priests today are atheists.
     
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