5 Catholic Books to Take You Deeper
This year and beyond...
I've never been one to write book reviews. Honestly I've always had a bit of an aversion to the idea.
I think it stems back to when I started blogging1. Book reviews were the easy-win posts then. Just review the latest popular book in your niche and/or genre then start raking in the clicks. Not to mention affiliate programmes. You didn't even need to be that original most of the time. Lest to say, I wasn't a fan of the trend. Most of them were so recycled even I avoided opening them.2
That all said, I have always liked book recommendation posts. Short, quick write-ups with lists of blurbs about books you might like if you enjoy such and such a publication or writer.
I also think if you're someone who enjoys reading what I write here then you probably have a mild interest in Catholic spirituality, and maybe theology. In this case, I thought it'd be fun and possibly fruitful to provide a small diving board for those of us who want to go a bit deeper in our faith-lives but aren't sure quite where to begin.
So without further ado, and in no particular order, here's five Catholic books to take you deeper for the rest of the year.
1. Habits for Holiness by Fr. Mark-Mary Ames, CFR
I must admit that while I've even touched on this book in an article from a bit ago, it's still been a pleasant surprise lately as I finish my second read of it.
It's practical, striking, and very achievable to implement the steps it provides in various areas. Either in regard to the spiritual life or lived experience.
I would also describe it as a truly mendicant book, for it's contemplative and active balance Fr. Mark-Mary strikes within. If you're someone that wants to see how the theology of the Church can be lived out practically day-to-day, Habits for Holiness is a good place to look.
2. Church Fathers: From Clement of Rome to Augustine, by Pope Benedict XVI
Perhaps you're interested in growing in saintly devotion, but are unsure of a good place to start reading about some prominent saints you may hear mentioned by clergy or theologians. Or, maybe, you want to get a good overview of the Church Fathers and early Christian thinkers, to grow in understanding of their lives and topic-matters.
Either way, Church Father: From Clement of Rome to Augustine is a very good, portioned primer on some notable early Christian thinkers and saints.
Taken mostly from general audiences of the late Pope Benedict XVI, the book makes for good daily reading on people who likely knew the apostles, such as Clement of Rome and Ignatius of Antioch, to more controversial early Christian writers like Tertullian or Eusebius of Ceserea.
As former head of the Dicastery of the Doctrine of the Faith (DDF),3 this is Pope Benedict in his element in a lot of ways. Still, though, it doesn't cross the line of too wooden and academic for any casual lay reader. A worthwhile pick-up should you have the chance
3. Poustinia, by Catherine Doherty
Another one we've previously looked at on here, Poustinia is a great resources for those who want to go deeper in prayer and contemplation, but aren't quite sure how to go about it.
I don't want to give too much away upfront, as with most of these books. It should suffice to say, however, that Servant of God Catherine Doherty's inside-out approach to the whole concept of Poustinia is a great catechetical measure. That, combined with the author's honest and at times vulnerable, makes this one of my favourite recommendations for people who want to take their prayer life a bit more seriously.
If you're curious about how Eastern Christian spirituality can look in dialogue with it's Latin counterpart, this is a very worthwhile read given that Doherty was a convert from Russian Orthodoxy.
4. Apologia Pro Vita Sua, by St. John Henry Newman
This one may seem to stick out a bit compared to the others on this list. But allow me to explain.
There's a lot of wrong ways you can read Newman's defence of his journey to the Catholic Church. Certainly I made the mistake as treating the work mostly as an autobiography when I first started with it.4 But in reality the book does what it says on the tin, it's a defence. At this point in his life Newman has left the Anglican Communion and become Catholic, much to the ire of critics and other scholars. Thus, In the Apologia, the future Saint sets out to rebut some claims made about him by giving account of what led him ultimately to cross the Tiber.
It's definitely one of the harder reads on the list, but one well worth it for English Catholics I think.
Not only does it provide an insight into the life and struggles of one of the most influential Catholic thinker of recent history, it also shows well some of the back-and-forth modern converts to the Church have to struggle with socially, and ideologically, on the various roads to Rome.
Add it to your shelf should you have the chance, I'd say.
5. The Great Divorce, by C.S. Lewis
Okay, this one might be considered cheating. Yes, C.S. Lewis wasn't Catholic. But this book is where we get the whole name for this publication, so I'd be amiss not to mention it.
This short, fictional think-piece by Lewis really drives home the struggle for virtue and against vice on our pilgrimage towards the Heavenly city. It's a fairly engaging read, all the same. The situations and people the reader encounters on the journey are written with empathy, while still showing the more obvious ways that some of the given circumstances can be resolved to the better of those involved.
To say more on the content would be to give away too much, but I will say that this book absolutely wrecked me the first time I read it.5
Epilogue
So, there you have it. Five more excuses to buy some good books, and perhaps deepen your faith all the while. If you enjoy any of these books, I'm sure you'll enjoy some more of what's been written here on the Feet of Shadows.
Also, stay tuned for some upcoming changes I'd like to discuss coming to my approach to working on this little venture soon. I think it'd be worth your time.
That'd be over ten years ago now, yikes...
I was so repelled by the pattern I even avoided reviews from writers I liked.
Formerly known as the CDF.
Which really made the first half a bit of a challenge to get through.
I'm also definitely overdue a reread of it at some point this year.
A good list! I’ve never actually read anything by Newman - he’s very much on the, “I really need to get around to that” list. (Unfortunately it’s a big list!)