Book Recommendations and Father Barron’s Catholicism Series
As many readers are probably aware, Father Barron’s long-awaited Catholicism Project Series is now available and will soon be showing around the English-speaking Catholic world. A co-conspirator and I are planning to run the series here in Toronto. I was just thinking that I should very much like to have some books to recommend to people whom the series inspires to look further into their faith. I was going to write Father Barron and ask him which 5 books he would recommend to people who just finished viewing the series and are thirsty for more, and I still might, but he is a busy man and I could not be sure of getting a response.
But, whether I write Father Barron or not, I am interested in hearing your suggestions. What books would you recommend to Catholics or those interested in Catholicism and whose appetite has been whet by Father Barron’s Catholicism? I think it might be good to try spin our gatherings off into a few reading groups to keep the momentum going.
Here are a few off the top of my head:
1. Robert Barron – Eucharist
2. Frank Sheed – Theology and Sanity (or Theology for Beginners)
3. St. Augustine – Confessions
4. Benedict XVI – Introduction to Christianity
5. Josef Pieper – The Four Cardinal Virtues
6. James Alison – Knowing Jesus
Brett Salkeld is a doctoral student in theology at Regis College in Toronto. He is a father of two (so far) and husband of one.
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I suppose that I would want to know more about the content of Fr. Barron’s project before answering this, and what about it has whet the appetite of the viewers.
Check out the link above. There are previews of each of the 10 episodes.
To be perfectly honest, the idea came to me when I watched the episode 10 preview about purgatory and thought of recommending my own little book on purgatory. He doesn’t seem to say anything about sex and dating though. ;)
Fr. Barron will be speaking on Sept 13 at St.Matthew’s Cathedral here in DC. I’m looking forward to it!
How was it MM?
Over on First Things a few weeks ago I remarked that people were always bemoaning how poorly catechized Catholics were, and I suggested somebody make a list of five good, readable, non-scholarly books that would be kind of a remedial course in Catholicism. My close personal friend Elizabeth Scalia said:
I suggested someone devote a web site to discussing the books, and someone with a blog named Bumping Elbows with Christ liked the idea and said he would do it himself. However, nothing has appeared yet.
I saw that you had noted this, but I couldn’t get to the Bumping Elbows website without an account.
I’ve heard good things about YOUCAT as well.
A good Catholic biblical commentary, such as The Collegeville Biblical Commentary (especially the New Testament volumes) would be useful to the person who was interested in Catholicism. Depending on what background they are coming from, they may have preconceived ideas about Catholicism and Scripture. They may be pleasantly surprised to find out that we do indeed take Scripture seriously.
I’m not familiar with the Catholicism Project, so I’m not sure how on the mark this will be in relation to the content, but there is one recent book that I think should be read by all Catholics. The book is ‘Unlearning Protestantism: Sustaining Christian Community in an Unstable Age’ by Gerald Schlabach, who describes himself as a Mennonite who has come into full communion with the Catholic Church (as am I). It’s not exactly what it sounds like: the first thing he says is that it’s not about converting Protestants to Catholicism; it’s really about learning the virtue of stability which Catholics often take for granted, as well as the importance of loyal dissent. Since that especially is so sharply dichotomized among Catholics, I find his perspective particularly helpful in speaking to the competing ideologies within the Catholic world. I think this book would work as an introduction to Catholic ways of thinking, and/or a new angle for cradle Catholics, or whatever one’s level of familiarity is.
I’ve seen this book around and have hoped to read it, perhaps with a Catholic-Evangelical reading group here in TO.
As a Mennonite who is not yet in full communion with the Roman Catholic Church (but is looking into it) I would second Julia’s recommendation. For a quick overview, check out the book review in the Conrad Grebel Review, http://www.grebel.uwaterloo.ca/academic/cgreview/reviews/05-11_sustaining_community.shtml .
(If shilling one’s own book reviews is verboten, or even just tacky, feel free not to approve this post).
Well, you just never know who is going to come out of the woodwork! Ryan, are you familiar with Bridgefolk? It’s been hugely helpful to me especially in showing me that I’m not alone in trying to integrate the two traditions.
http://www.bridgefolk.net/
Hi Julia
I am familiar with Bridgefolk. I know both Susan Kennel-Harrison and Andy Martin. Alas, I have not yet been able to make it to a Bridgefolk conference, but I will at some point. Brett and I are working on similar theological projects from within our respective traditions, which is one of the reasons I pop up here from time-to-time.
Often a convert to a community sees some of the unique aspects of that community more clearly than those who have grown up in it, and I think that’s certainly true of Gerald’s book.
I’d like to get to Bridgefolk one of these days too, as a Roman Catholic with Mennonite tendencies!
Barron’s companion book Catholicism: A Journey to the Heart of the Faith is due out next week. I have a review copy and like it–I’ll be posting a review here soon.
Great. Looking forward to it.
Tim, were you also sent videos of the shows that will be televised? I’d be curious to know how well the books and videos complement each other or stand on their own.
From what I understand, the book is close to being a transcription of the videos.
Two novels by Willa Cather: “Death Comes for the Archbishop” and “Shadows on the Rock”. Beautiful stories of the Catholic faith. Also, try Louis de Wohl.
Ronald Knox, “The Creed in Slow Motion”
Dorothy Day, The Long Loneliness.