Christmas 2007 Gift Ideas

OK, I know I promised this a while ago. I apologize. I just let it slip. But since most of these should be available at a Catholic Book Store within a reasonable distance to most of you, it still isn't too late.

I have focused on books. I have a few DVDs at the end.

For the person who is looking to learn more about the basics of the Catholic faith there is nothing better than a copy of The Catechism of the Catholic Church. This book has a good overview of the Church's teaching. Should you feel that is a bit overwhelming then The Compendium of the Cathechism of the Catholic Church would be a good starter. If the person wants to go deeper into Catholic Social Teaching then there is The Compendium of the Social Doctrine of the Catholic Church.

If you are an Eastern Catholic or looking to learn more about how the Eastern Catholic Churchs present the basic truths of the faith I would like to suggest the Light for Life series put out by the Eastern catholic Bishops of America. The 3 books in the series are The Mystery Believed, The Mystery Celebrated & The Mystery Lived. these books are available from Theological Book Service if you can't find them locally. But they won't be here in time for Christmas.

There are 2 other catechisms worth looking at as additions to your library. The 1st is The Catholic Catechism by John A Hardon SJ. (Image, ISBN-10: 038508045X, ISBN-13: 978-0385080453) This book was originally published in 1975 but is still as fresh today as then. The cause for Fr. Hardon's canonization is in its early stages.

Queenship Publishing has put out 2 versions of a catechism that is indexed to the Catholic Catechism. They are A Scriptural Catechism (ISBN: 1-57918-268-2) & A Scriptural Catechism, Expanded Edition (ISBN: 1-57918-298-4)They give a good overview of the Catholic faith, esp for the younger person.

Earlier this year Raymond Arroyo (The World Over, EWTN) came out with Mother Angelica's Little Book of Life Lessons and Everyday Spirituality (Doubleday ISBN-10: 0385519850, ISBN-13: 978-0385519854). It is a collection of Mother Angelica's teachings that cover a wide variety of subjects. His 1st book, a biography of Mother Angelica, Mother Angelica: The Remarkable Story of a Nun, Her Nerve, and a Network of Miracles is now available in paperback (Image ISBN-10: 0385510934, ISBN-13: 978-0385510936) as well as hardcover (Doubleday ISBN-10: 0385510926, ISBN-13: 978-0385510929). A classic, Mother Angelica's Answers, Not Promises (Ignatius ), is also available.

There has been some controversy about the recent book about Mother Teresa that included a lot of her private writings he asked to have destroyed, Mother Teresa: Come Be My Light (Doubleday ISBN-10: 0385520379, ISBN-13: 978-0385520379) Thank God they weren't. This book is not an easy read. It will challenge you in many ways to more fully live out your faith. But it is also a comforting book. Many of us have had struggles & doubts. This book shows that even the greatest saints have their struggles. & if God can work through them, then there is hope for us.

Another excellent bio is Parish Priest: Father Michael McGivney and American Catholicism (Hardcover, William Morrow ISBN-10: 0060776846, Paper, Harper Perennial ISBN-10: 0060776854, ISBN-13: 978-0060776850). Fr. McGivney started the Knights of Columbus & is up for sainthood.

Papa Benedetto's latest book, Jesus of Nazareth (Doubleday ISBN-10: 0385523416, ISBN-13: 978-0385523417) is well worth getting. This is a book that is best read in small doses so you can meditate on the riches found in it. Ignatius Press has a huge selection of books by Pape Benedetto, many written as Cardinal Ratzinger. 1 of those is An Invitation to Faith: An A to Z Primer on the Thought of Pope Benedict XVI (ISBN: 1586172131).

This year Dinesh D'Souza has come out with 2 excellent books. His latest, which I am currently reading is What's So Great About Christianity (Regnery ISBN-10: 1596985178,ISBN-13: 978-1596985179) This book is an excellent answer to all those recent attacks on Christianity that are out there. For the politcal junkies, he came out with a book earlier this year that looks at a huge area of the conflict with Islam that is often overlooked. The Enemy At Home: The Cultural Left and Its Responsibility for 9/11 (Doubleday ISBN-10: 0385510128, ISBN-13: 978-0385510127) looks at how the left has played a huge role in the hatred that radical Islam feels for us & how the media ignores it because of their complicity in it. I met Mr. D'Souza a few years ago when he spoke at Loras College. He is very knowledgable & always gives you plenty to think about even if you don't fully agree with him.

While we are on politics, another book I am reading is Laura Ingraham's latest, Power to the People (Regnery ISBN-10: 159698516X, ISBN-13: 978-1596985162) The book is a call to take back our country from the elites on the left & right. & while we are on the culture wars, there is Teresa Tomeo's Noise: How Our Media-saturated Culture Dominates Lives and Dismantles Families (Ascension ISBN-10: 1932927948, ISBN-13: 978-1932927948) I've heard her speak on the topic & she not only gives an excellent expose of the problem, she has some very practical solutions.

There are 2 other books that I haven't got yet, but also look promising. 1 is Ann Coulter's latest, If Democrats Had Any Brains, They'd Be Republicans (Crown Forum ISBN-10: 0307353451, ISBN-13: 978-0307353450. I've said it before, sometimes she comes off a little to strident but she does challenge you to think. The other is by Laura Ingraham's former boss, Justice Clarence Thomas, My Grandfather's Son: A Memoir (Harper ISBN-10: 0060565551, ISBN-13: 978-0060565558)

A couple I've highly promoted before that are still worth getting & giving are Thomas Woods Jr's How the Catholic Church Built Western Civilization (Regnery ISBN-10: 0895260387, ISBN-13: 978-0895260383) & Judie Brown's Saving Those Damned Catholics (Xlibris Corporation Paper: ISBN-10: 1425723462, ISBN-13: 978-1425723460 Hardcover ISBN-10: 1425723470, ISBN-13: 978-1425723477)

There are several authors worth looking at. They have a huge selection of books that cover a wide variety of topics. In this list I include C. S. Lewis, Archbishop Fulton Sheen, Fr. Benedict Groeschel & G. K. Chesterton. Depending on the person's interest you could find a book by them that would be perfect as a gift.

C. S. Lewis' Chronicles of Narnia makes an excellent gift for a child as well as adult. Then there is is Sci-Fi Trilogy, Out of the Silent Planet, Perelandra, & That Hideous Strength. Of course there are his other classics, Mere Christianity, The Great Divorce, & The Screwtape Letters. Then there is a collection of daily readings, A Year with C. S. Lewis: Daily Readings from His Classic Works (HarperOne ISBN-10: 0060566167, ISBN-13: 978-0060566166), that gives an excellent overview of his writings.

Not all of Archbishop Sheen's books are in print. But fortunately many of them are. & with the canonization process moving ahead, many more soon will be. Ignatius Press has many of his books. They include Life is Worth Living: First and Second Series and Through the Year with Fulton Sheen. From another publisher there is From the Angel's Blackboard, the Best of Fulton J. Sheen. It is contains selections from his various writings. 1 caveat, the editor decided to be PC & update the language to be inclusive. She claims Archbishop Sheen would approve. I doubt it.

Fr. Benedict Groschel CFR has a wide selection of books worth looking at. 1 that I highly recomend is The Virtue Driven Life. He takes a look at the theological & cardinal virtues. Fellow CFR monk, Fr. Andrew Apostoli, also has many good books.

Then there is G. K. Chesterton. Where do I begin. For the mystery lover there are his Father Brown stories. An interesting novel with some very surprizing twists is The Man Who Was Thursday: A Nightmare. He also wrote 2 biographies, St. Francis of Assisi & St. Thomas Aquinas. There are his classics Orthodoxy & The Everlasting Man. For a good sampling of his works there is Chesterton Day by Day: The Wit and Wisdom of G. K. Chesterton. For more info go to The American Chesterton Society website.

Then there are the spiritual classics. They are always welcome. Thomas à Kempis' Imitation of Christ will challenge both young & old to grow in faith. St. Louis-Marie Grignion de Montfort has 2 excellent books, True Devotion to Mary & The Secret of the Rosary. St. Therese of Lisieux's book, The Story of a Soul, is always welcome. St. John of the Cross & St. Theresa of Avilla's writings are also worth considering. As is The Rule of St. Benedict. I could go on & on here. Just 1 consideration, make sure you get a god translation that doesn't go in for PC or updating. Often those versions do damage to the original thoughts. & watch out for comentaries on their writings unless you are sure the author is orthodox.

Finally, a few DVDs worth considering. The 2003 bio Terese does an excellent job of telling the story of St. Therese of Lisieux. Criterion has a couple of excellent classic biographies of saints; The Passion of Joan of Arc & The Flowers of St. Francis. Then there is always Mel Gibson's classic The Passion of the Christ. Another excellent movie is The Hiding Place, the true story of the ten Boom family & their efforts to hide Jews during WWII in Nazi overrun Netherlands. For the younger viewer there is always The Lion, the Witch & the Wardrobe, the 1st in the new Chronicles of Narnia series being made. (Prince Caspian comes out next April.) Then there is the Lord of the Rings trilogy. (Good news there, Peter Jackson has worked tings out & will be making The Hobbit into 2 movies the same way he did LoR.)

Again, I apologize for the delay. But, as I said at the start, many of these are available locally. & if not there are always birthdays & other events in 2008 for which these would make good gifts.

BUON NATALE!!