Showing titles in Biographies

Thomas Merton was one of the greatest spiritual writers and social critics of the past century. For thousands of men and women, he remains a guide and model for contemplative living, interreligious dialogue, and intellectual exploration. While many have encountered Merton through his best-selling books on spirituality and contemplation, few are familiar with his powerful - and often prescient - insights about vital social and cultural issues of his day.

St. Augustine of Hippo (354 - 430) is unquestionably one of the most influential figures in Western civilization. This audio course will bring you to the heart of St. Augustine’s works, revealing how his words speak to us across the centuries. According to his rival and contemporary St. Jerome, Augustine “established anew the ancient faith”.

To many who have discovered his books, C. S. Lewis is more than simply a writer; he has been a spiritual mentor. Here, over 50 Christians share how meeting the mind and imagination of Lewis in his books sparked the beginning or changed the course of their spiritual journey. These inspiring reflections have been shared by ordinary laypeople as well as many well-known leaders and writers.

Few Christian thinkers have brought such an array of intellectual, scientific, spiritual, and religious resources to bear on faith and society as Bernard Lonergan (1904-1984). A Jesuit philosopher and theologian, Lonergan worked to integrate faith with the promotion of justice. Taught by one of the world’s leading experts on Lonergan, this 12-lecture course introduces you to the breadth of Lonergan’s thought. You will focus on his method of better knowing yourself through your web of natural, social, and religious “ecologies”.

On February 29, 1948, Romanian secret police abducted Richard Wurmbrand off the streets of Bucharest because of his bold Christian witness. Despite the torture and great suffering he endured in a Communist prison, he loved and encouraged both his cellmates and his oppressors through the hope he had in Christ. In his book In God's Underground, Richard shares his story of triumphant faith amid deep anguish.

After an Eden’s upbringing in eastern Pennsylvania, 12-year-old Tom Zuniga’s world suddenly gave root to an alien existence of struggle. Initiated by an 800-mile move from the only home he’d ever known, he started warring in unforeseen ways: isolation at a Southern Baptist church and bullying at a Christian high school, all the while fiercely determined to conceal sexual secrets spanning his entire childhood. It wasn’t until after college with a fresh start in a new state and two pivotal summer excursions that a foreign thread of redemption started spinning among the struggle.

As young adults, John and Kara—father and daughter—had much in common. Avid sports lovers. Life of the party. Abiding faith in God. And a diagnosis that blindsided and benched them: aggressive, terminal cancer. John and Kara battled their diseases with cutting-edge medical treatments. Both had countless prayers lifted on their behalf. Both believed in a powerful, loving God who could heal. Yet one lived and one died. How can we accept both endings as from the hand of God? Did one person have greater favor? Deeper faith?

2005 wurde der deutsche Kardinal Joseph Ratzinger zum Papst gewählt. Doch wer ist der Mensch, der als Benedikt XVI. auf dem Stuhl Petri saß? Der Journalist und Buchautor Peter Seewald hat in ausführlichen Gesprächen mit ihm hinter die Kulissen geschaut und präsentiert in dieser Biografie die bisher weniger bekannten Seiten in Benedikts Lebensgeschichte, inklusive seiner Jugendzeit. Seewald ist dem Oberhaupt der katholischen Kirche dabei so nah gekommen wie nur wenige andere und liefert spannende Einblicke in die biografischen Stationen, Ansichten und Positionen Benedikts XVI.

Wie müsste sie aussehen - eine Kirche, in der sich möglichst viele Menschen wirklich wohlfühlen? Christopher Schlicht und Maximilian Bode, zwei junge Pastoren, probieren es einfach. Als Pastor nicht zu heilig daherzukommen, das ist beiden wichtig. Deshalb tragen Pastor Max und Pastor Chris im Gottesdienst keinen Talar, sondern Jeansjacke oder Flanellhemd. Nur am Kollar, dem Priesterkragen, sind sie während des Gottesdienstes zu erkennen.

What happens after we die? Do we actually cross into another life? Does a spiritual world actually exist? While you are breathing, learn about the experience of “crossing” and what you will endure if you pass to hell after your death. Become aware (by even realizing signs that may have occurred within your own environment), that a spiritual world does in fact exist. The author provides a colorfully written and true story about the author’s unexpected crossing into an experience of the terror of hell, and describes the Lord’s thereafter comforting appearance.

Ever worried that you don't live up to God's standards? Ever felt that you don't measure up as a person of faith? Do spiritual teachings leave you feeling condemned? Then take heart! You are a "slave to righteousness" - in other words, someone naturally aligned with the will of God. The author awakened to these and other truths when struggling with an eating disorder, and came to realize that we are not subject to compulsive behaviors because the addict died with Christ on the Cross. Drawing on a rich vein of wisdom throughout the ages, this book anchors you in immortal love.

Ever felt guilty about how much you eat? Or, what you eat? Or, when you eat? Let this book dispel your guilt! A former journalist and religion correspondent, the author describes his own recovery from an eating disorder, and using principles from the Bible and great thinkers, he shows why diets and "low fat" foods are a path to condemnation and doomed to fail.

In this groundbreaking work of rigorous Bible-centered analysis, the author spells out the full extent of Christ's liberation in our lives, from how we think, feel, and act to what we do with our bodies and with whom.

With brilliant analysis and lively wit, this book takes a deep dive into Biblical truth, while drawing on great thinkers of the ages, among them Shakespeare, Benjamin Franklin, Oscar Wilde, Tolkien, and even Monty Python. It also identifies Satan's servants in our earthly institutions of power and calls out their abuses of that power.

Founder of the Jesuits. The life story of Saint Ignatius of Loyola. Bob and Penny traveled to Spain, France, and Italy for the materials for this minibook.

Sweeter than honey is this revelation of Grace, the "unmerited favor of God", he who is gracious and compassionate, slow to anger, and abounding in love. In this three-book testament, the author sets you free in every aspect of life, while chronicling his former struggles with an eating disorder, along with condemning church messages that prompted his quest to reclaim forgotten truths.

In Following the Red Bird, Kate Rademacher describes how she came to embrace a relationship with God after maintaining a pick-and-choose approach to spirituality for many years. Part memoir and part meditation on Christian teachings, Following the Red Bird: First Steps into a Life of Faith explores not only the why of Christianity, but also the how. The image from the title becomes a metaphor for the ways Rademacher slowly discovers answers to these questions as she stumbles into a new life in the church.

Meticulously researched and brilliantly taught, this course is a rare opportunity to learn about Pope Francis from a leading Church historian. On March 13, 2013, the world watched as white smoke billowed from the chimney of the Sistine Chapel and the words habemus Papam rang through St. Peter's Square. The crowd was taken aback as Cardinal Jorge Bergoglio became the leader of the world's largest religious community and took the name of Francis - a name that no other pope had ever chosen before.

This nonfiction audiobook will tell the story behind the upcoming film All Saints. The movie is inspired by the true story of salesman-turned-pastor Michael Spurlock, the tiny church he was ordered to shut down, and a group of refugees from Southeast Asia. Together, they risk everything to plant seeds for a future that might just save them all. Michael's first assignment as their new pastor is to close down All Saints, a dilapidated country church with a dozen devoted members and a mortgage well beyond its means.

John Paul II: How to Understand His Life, Faith and Legacy takes you on a behind-the-scenes look at the pope's life, powerful writings, and ideas of faith, both specifically for Roman Catholicism and the world at large. The first non-Italian pope in hundreds of years, John Paul II was also the first truly global pope, capturing the hearts of the faithful worldwide during his long reign.