Inspiration

Here is the book you need to discover and develop the twelve virtues that St. John Baptist de La Salle (1651-1719) - patron of teachers, education reformer, and founder of the congregation of the Brothers of the Christian Schools - determined were most important for teachers.

Br. Luke Grande, F.S.C., fleshes out the essence of each virtue as it relates to teaching and how educators can cooperate with God's grace to actualize the potentialities of students in their charge.

In page after page, you will be inspired by practical advice and reflections, including:

You will also learn how to provide an example by how you pray and how you do "ordinary things greatly," and how "playing the part" and reflecting the poise of a mature teacher will earn you the respect of your students.

Moreover, you will see how to be a real, practical example of piety, understanding, and respect for your duties toward God without scrupulosity or sentimentality. Best of all, you will learn to teach with genuine compassion and a magnanimous spirit toward every student and to cultivate within them a zeal for learning.

St. Jean-Baptiste de La Salle encouraged his teachers to have "the firmness of a father and the gentleness of a mother," treating each student with the dignity of a child of God. This classic, desperately needed in this time of educational decline, will help you to see the extent to which you influence students as a teacher and your sacred duty to imitate Christ the Teacher.

The word family brings to mind thoughts of joy, sacrifice, affection, hardship, and humor. Yet it is love that defines what it means to be a family, and it is this same love that gives a family their purpose. In bearing witness to the mystery of the love of Christ, the family becomes the domestic sanctuary of the Church. Amazing Grace for Families contains 101 stories of faith, hope, and inspiration. Some are sorrowful, others are humorous, but all will inspire you and your family to grow in love for each other as you fulfill your roles in the domestic church.

In Amazing Grace for Families, you will meet:

Foreword by Shauna Niequist

In the midst of beauty and mess, chaos and monotony, celebrations and mourning, Jerusalem Greer tells her story of finding redemption in what is rather than what could be, by practicing the presence of God through rediscovering ancient contemplative teachings and practices (solitude, study, work, prayer, and service) and pairing them with domestic arts (baking, gardening, sewing). Jerusalem writes with a raw honesty that reassures readers they are not alone in feeling not good enough, not wise enough, not Christian enough to figure out God's plans. Jerusalem is active on Facebook and Pinterest and regularly posts on her blog 'Slow Living in a Fast World' where she records what she calls her "beautymess" attempts at living a sacramental life.

Through the years and the struggles, when life seemed more about hurt and loss than hope and mercy, God was positioning the Smiths for something extraordinary-the death and resurrection of their son.

When Joyce Smith's fourteen-year-old son John fell through an icy Missouri lake one winter morning, she and her family had seemingly lost everything. At the hospital, John lay lifeless for more than sixty minutes. But Joyce was not ready to give up on her son. She mustered all her faith and strength into one force and cried out to God in a loud voice to save him.

Miraculously, her son's heart immediately started beating again.

In the coming days, John would defy every expert, every case history, and every scientific prediction. Sixteen days after falling through the ice and being clinically dead for an hour, he walked out of the hospital under his own power, completely healed.

The Impossible is about a profound truth: prayer really does work. God uses it to remind us that He is always with us, and when we combine it with unshakable faith, nothing is impossible.

Countless Christians -- including scores of saints -- have suffered profound, pervasive sorrow that modern psychiatrists call "depression." Then, as now, great faith and even fervent spiritual practices have generally failed to ease this wearying desolation of soul.

In these pages, Catholic psychiatrist Aaron Kheriaty reviews the effective ways that have recently been devised to deal with this grave and sometimes deadly affliction -- ways that are not only consistent with the teachings of the Church, but even rooted in many of those teachings.

Extensive clinical experience treating patients with depression has shown Dr. Kheriaty that the confessional can't cure neuroses, nor can the couch forgive sin. Healing comes only when we integrate the legitimate discoveries of modern psychology and pharmacology with spiritual direction and the Sacraments, giving particular attention to the wisdom of the Church Fathers and the saints.

Here, with the expert help of Dr. Kheriaty, you'll learn how to distinguish depression from similarlooking but fundamentally different mental states such as guilt, sloth, the darkness of sin, and the sublime desolation called "dark night of the soul" that is, in fact, a privileged spiritual trial sent to good souls as a special gift from God.

You'll come to know how to identify the various types of depression and come to understand the interplay of their often manifold causes, biological, psychological, behavioral, cultural, and, yes, moral.

Then you'll learn about exciting breakthroughs in pharmacological and other medical treatments, the benefits and limitations of psychotherapy, the critical place that spiritual direction must have in your healing, and the vital role that hope -- Christian hope -- can play in driving out depression.

Making good decisions are among the most difficult challenges in life. In Discernment: The Art of Choosing Well, readers will find a comprehensive guide to making choices, either individually or in groups. It is based on the time-tested spiritual exercises of Saint Ignatius of Loyola, the sixteenth-century founder of the Jesuits who developed a systemic way of considering and making choices.

The author, a renowned teacher of Ignatian spirituality, leads readers on a journey of self-reflection, focusing on the process of discernment rather than on the particular problem at hand.

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Ever notice that common sense isn't so common anymore? Each time we check our news feeds or turn on the TV, it seems the world is getting wackier. Right is wrong, wrong is right, up is down, and the only thing that's unacceptable is refusing to accept that anything and everything under the sun is . . . acceptable.

We desperately need a return to basic common sense, and Rosie Posie, a "street-smart theologian" from Jersey City, is just the person we need to help restore it. In this wise and heartwarming book, Rosie's daughter, syndicated talk-show host Teresa Tomeo, shares her top-ten list of unforgettable "Rosieisms" to help you and your loved ones live a sensible, well-grounded, godly life. As Tomeo notes, these real-life stories are simple, direct, and yes, sometimes very funny, but oh-so applicable to everyday life.

Refreshingly, Rosie speaks her mind and has precious little "tolerance." You will find that her practical advice will help you cultivate virtue in your life. You will learn to "nevva [never] get too big for those britches" and to "awfa [offer] it up" and put things "at the foot of the Crawse [Cross]." You'll come to see how your sacrifices help others in ways you may not have considered. And through Rosie's life and example, you'll come to appreciate the value of your sufferings, big or small, and how they benefit you and your loved ones. You will also learn:

Tomeo's memories provide rollicking humor and Catholic wisdom from the quintessential Italian mother. She also provides spiritual resources for self-reflection from the Catechism, Scripture, and the saints to help you grow in grace-filled living. Best of all, you will see the miracles of God's love in Tomeo's family and the maternal intercession of Our Lady in their lives. In the words of Rosie, "Rememba, the Blessed Mutha is watching you!"

Sometimes discernment seems complicated, and we struggle to "be still" to listen to God's voice. Following the death of his spiritual director, St. Alphonsus Liguori penned timeless advice in a letter to one of his spiritual daughters, and it became the famous work titled Uniformity with God's Will. Now Dan Burke breaks open St. Alphonsus's eighteenth-century classic for you. He intersperses relevant explanations and insights within the text of this great saint and includes reflection questions for each chapter.

St. Alphonsus explains, "We should most confidently abandon ourselves to all the dispositions of divine providence, since they are for our own good." In page after page, Burke shows you how the "wind and waves" can help you ascend to union with God. You will discover:

Liguori intersperses fascinating real-life examples from the saints to assist you in remaining steadfast amid afflictions. He explains three temptations that confront us and how to resist them, along with four practices of uniformity to God's will and a surefire way to unite your sufferings to Christ's sufferings.

You will acquire tips on what to do during periods of aridity or desolation. Above all, you will discover how to enjoy peace of heart in all circumstances and foster loving conversation with God. By learning how to entrust yourself fully to God's holy will, you will experience His divine embrace and the fulfillment of your deepest desires.

A "What Next?" section helps you take practical steps in doing God's will. Burke also provides a summary of the Paradigm of Ascent, which provides often hidden but foundational insights and practices necessary to live out Liguori's wisdom and to know the peace promised by God. In addition, he provides a simple action plan to implement these fruitful practices in your life.

Winner of a 2020 Catholic Press Association book award (second place, gender issues-inclusion in the Church).

Is it possible to be both a Catholic and a feminist? Claire Swinarski, writer and creator of The Catholic Feminist podcast, believes it is: "I'm a feminist for the same reason I'm bold and honest and sometimes ragey: because Jesus was all of those things."

In Girl, Arise!, Swinarski reconciles the two identities by demonstrating the strength and abilities women have to share with the Body of Christ, the importance of women throughout the history of the faith, and how the love you experience through Christ and the Church can change you and the world around you.

In Girl, Arise!: A Catholic Feminist's Invitation to Live Boldly, Love Your Faith, and Change the World Swinarski points out that while both "feminism" and "Catholicism" can mean different things to different people, both feminists and Catholics desire to make the world a better, fairer place. And she shows that by treating women with dignity equal to that of men--by calling them his friends and teaching them--Jesus acted as a feminist as well.

With humor and sass, Swinarski addresses her frustration with the traditional concerns churches ascribe to women, as shown by the many talks directed at women focused on marriage and modesty rather than social justice. But she pinpoints the areas where modern feminism goes too far, arguing against abortion and exploring what it means to serve others rather than focus on our own needs first.

Swinarski also tells the stories of holy women--including Vashti in the book of Esther, Sts. Thérèse of Lisieux and Joan of Arc, Mary Magdalene, and the Blessed Virgin Mary--to show how their faith influenced their actions, even when those actions went against traditional norms and roles of women.

You will be empowered to embrace your God-given abilities as you follow the women who have gone before you in faith who--by announcing Christ to his disciples, believing in God's promises, and being faithful in hardship--changed the world.

First published fifty years ago, How to Raise Good Catholic Children is a rare treat for today's parents: a wise and readable book on child care that derives its wisdom from the Catholic home rather than from psychologists.

Author Mary Reed Newland here draws on her own experiences as the mother of seven to show how the classic Christian principles of sanctity can be translated into terms easily applied to children - even to the very young.

Because it's rooted in experience, not in theory, nothing that Mrs. Newland suggests is impossible or extraordinary. In fact, as you reflect on your experiences with your own children, you'll quickly agree that hers is an excellent commonsense approach to raising good Catholic children.

Let Mrs. Newland show you how to introduce even your littlest ones to God and develop in your growing children virtues such as:

WINNER OF THE ECPA CHRISTIAN BOOK AWARD(R) - "Beautiful, haunting, powerful."--Daniel G. Amen, MD

Dr. W. Lee Warren, a practicing brain surgeon, assumed he knew most outcomes for people with glioblastoma, head injuries, and other health-care problems. Yet even as he tried to give patients hope, his own heart would sink as he realized, I've seen the end of you.

But it became far more personal when the acclaimed doctor experienced an unimaginable family tragedy. That's when he reached the end of himself.

Page-turning medical stories serve as the backdrop for a raw, honest look at how we can remain on solid ground when everything goes wrong and how we can find light in the darkest hours of life.

I've Seen the End of You is the rare book that offers tender empathy and tangible hope for those who are suffering. No matter what you're facing, this doesn't have to be the end. Even when nothing seems to makes sense, God can transform your circumstances and your life. And he can offer a new beginning.

#1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER

What do you do when God's timing seems questionable, his lack of intervention hurtful, and his promises doubtful? Lysa TerKeurst unveils her heart amid shattering circumstances, inviting you to live assured when life doesn't turn out like you expected.

Life often looks so very different than we hoped or expected. Some events may simply catch us off guard for a season, but others shatter us completely. We feel disappointed and disillusioned at best and overwhelmed and hopeless at worst. We quietly start to wonder about the reality of God's goodness and why he allows us to suffer and experience grief and loss.

Lysa TerKeurst understands this deeply. But after many tears, godly counseling, and prayerful seeking, she's also discovered that our disappointments can be the divine appointments our souls need to radically encounter God. In It's Not Supposed to Be This Way, Lysa invites us into her own journey of faith and, with grit, vulnerability, and honest humor, helps us to:

Look for additional biblically based resources and devotionals from Lysa: