This book is intended to give an overview of Joan of Arc's heroic life, her bogus trial and conviction that caused her to be burnt to death at the stake for heresy in 1431. It examines her posthumous vindication in 1456, and her eventual canonization in 1920. At that time, Pope Benedict XV declared Joan of Arc to be a Saint and Virgin of the Church, but the title of Martyr was denied. While researching the life of St. Joan, the author discovered a sermon preached in 1965 by John Cardinal Wright in France. He said that he believed ." . . Joan of Arc died a martyr in the full theological sense of that glorious title. . ." His words inspired the author to focus on why this omission occurred, the reason why it happened, and a new argument to demonstrate the truth of her actual martyrdom.

I Became My Heart is a record of the devotion-and the struggles-of Leo Cocks to live the spiritual life as a disciple of the great Indian teacher and founder of the Self Realization Fellowship, Paramahansa Yogananda. Newly discovered letters and stories of Yogananda make this book, compiled by Leo's long time friend Paul Gorsuch, an important addition to the literature of the great Master and the institution he founded. But I Became My Heart also offers a heartwarming and human account of the Guru-Disciple relationship as it was lived by one of the twentieth century's greatest spiritual leaders and an all-American boy who felt his Master's unconditional love, and with that channel, access to Divine Love. With dozens of previously unpublished photographs and many samples of Yogananda's personal writings, this book will appeal to and inspire spiritual seekers of all faiths.

One part biography, one part prayer book, The Life and Prayers of Saint Padre Pio is an essential for any Christian. The foundation for Padre Pio's work in the world was love. His love of God became intertwined with his love of humanity so that the two became inseparable and unwavering. Padre Pio is notable not for his erudition or even his teachings, per se, but for the man he was and the intercessor he continues to be. Pio gave himself to Christ as a spiritual victim for the souls of sinners. With sweetness, humility, and good cheer, he brought everyone who encountered him closer to Christ. People who met him understood immediately that they were in contact with a Christlike figure. Those who attended his Mass and saw his union with the divine felt as though they had witnessed in person Christ's Passion on the Cross. During his lifetime, Padre Pio brought vast numbers back to devotion to Christ, and, as he himself foretold, in death he has been able to do still more.

This historic work reveals the inner spiritual life of one of the most beloved and important religious figures in history.
During her lifelong service to the poorest of the poor, Mother Teresa became an icon of compassion to people of all religions; her extraordinary contributions to the care of the sick, the dying, and thousands of others nobody else was prepared to look after has been recognized and acclaimed throughout the world. Little is known, however, about her own spiritual heights or her struggles. This collection of her writing and reflections, almost all of which have never been made public before, sheds light on Mother Teresa's interior life in a way that reveals the depth and intensity of her holiness for the first time.
Compiled and presented by Fr. Brian Kolodiejchuk, M.C., who knew Mother Teresa for twenty years and is the postulator for her cause for sainthood and director of the Mother Teresa Center, MOTHER TERESA brings together letters she wrote to her spiritual advisors over decades. A moving chronicle of her spiritual journey--including moments, indeed years, of utter desolation--these letters reveal the secrets she shared only with her closest confidants. She emerges as a classic mystic whose inner life burned with the fire of charity and whose heart was tested and purified by an intense trial of faith, a true dark night of the soul.
Published to coincide with the tenth anniversary of her death, MOTHER TERESA is an intimate portrait of a woman whose life and work continue to be admired by millions of people.

The day in 2006 when the tastefully customized 1990 Harley-Davidson motorcycle arrived in the driveway was one of Carole Stieler's happiest moments. For Carole and her husband, author David Charles Stieler, experiencing life from the seat of a motorcycle offered a perspective that no other form of transportation could provide. This couple from rural Michigan had no way of knowing that the motorcycle's arrival would mark the beginning of the final journey of life as they knew it.

In The Ride, the Rose, and the Resurrection, David narrates their story of how a horrific hit-and-run motorcycle crash tore life out from under this middle-class American family. He tells of both his and Carole's psychological, spiritual, and physical battles to survive their near-death experience, and he communicates the harsh realities of the financial and insurance issues related to such an accident.

This memoir not only offers a true account of the battle between life and death but also shares stories of compassion and suspicion, companionship and abandonment, and religion and faith, in which forgiveness becomes the key to resurrection.

St. Francis of Assisi is one of the best-known and best-loved of all the saints. This classic work puts the him in the context of his historical setting and his spiritual influences. Inspired by a deep and simple love, Francis abandoned his fortune and chose to live simply. His love for Jesus Christ, his love for animals, and his love for nature continue to inspire many to this day.
This version has been redesigned for a modern audience who wish to continue to connect to this simple man of Assisi.

The life story of Sheldon Vanauken is one of adventure, romance, conversion, grief, and recovery. Much of this was chronicled in the autobiographical bestseller, A Severe Mercy.However, a good deal of Vanauken's fascinating life remained shrouded in secrecy ... until now. Through a process of careful historical research, including interviews with Vanauken's many friends, colleagues, and students, Will Vaus reveals to the reader the numerous facets of a complex character.

In this biography we discover: Vanauken the struggling student, the bon-vivant lover, the sailor who witnessed the bombing of Pearl Harbor, the seeker who returned to faith through C. S. Lewis, the beloved professor of English literature and history, the feminist and anti-war activist who participated in the March on the Pentagon, the bestselling author, and Vanauken the convert to Catholicism. What emerges is the portrait of a man relentlessly in search of beauty, love, and truth, a man who believed that, in the end, he found all three.

"A sympathetic, perceptive and well researched study of one of America's most important recent religious writers. Readers of A Severe Mercy are in Will Vaus' debt for such an illuminating and informative study." Alister McGrath, author of C. S. Lewis: A Life

"Van was a character - a very good one as it happens, and Will Vaus catches the actuality of this intriguing man of many parts. Very illuminating reading." Thomas Howard, author of On Being Catholic

"This is a charming biography about a doubly charming man who wrote a triply charming book. It is a great way to meet the man behind A Severe Mercy." Peter Kreeft, author of Jacob's Ladder: Ten Steps to Truth

"Vaus has masterfully captured the spirit of Vanauken, his deep desire for beauty, his mistakes along the way, and eventually his love of God. Reading this biography takes me back to the same deep emotions I have every time I read A Severe Mercy." Jim Belcher, author of Deep Church

"Sheldon Vanauken's story of C. S. Lewis, Oxford, a passionate love, and a tragic loss captured the imagination of Evangelical Christians thirty years ago. Will Vaus' biography of the author of A Severe Mercy captures the same mixture of a flawed romantic quest driven by a longing for truth, goodness and beauty, that culminates in the fullness of the Catholic faith. Vaus' book is a study in divine providence and a captivating biography of a unique and noble soul." Fr. Dwight Longenecker, author of The Quest for the Creed

"Very well written, thoroughly researched, hard to put down despite many tears - Will Vaus captures the essence of Van in this book." Marion, Davy Vanauken's daughter

Will Vaus is a popular speaker and the author of a variety of books including The Hidden Story of Narnia, Speaking of Jack, and Mere Theology.

Elizabeth Prentiss was a remarkable woman who authored a number of notable works in the 19th century. A writing prodigy, she used her sharp abilities to author stories poems, and even hymns despite much tragedy in her life. As she later stated, her purpose in writing, "Much of my experience of life has cost me a great price and I wish to use it for strengthening and comforting other souls." This treasury contains her two most important and influential works, Stepping Heavenward and The Life and Letters of Elizabeth Prentiss

Transcendence can come in many forms. For Mary Rose O'Reilley a year tending sheep seemed a way to seek a spirituality based not on "climbing out of the body" but rather on existing fully in the world, at least if she could overlook some of its earthier aspects.

The Barn at the End of the World follows O'Reilley in her sometimes funny, sometimes moving quest. Though small in stature, she learns to "flip" very large sheep and help them lamb. She also visits a Buddhist monastery in France, where she studies the practice of Mahayana Buddhism, dividing her spare time between meditation and dreaming of French pastries.

" And the Shadows Wore Colors: Reflections of a Spiritualist" strives to explain the difficulties that the members of the Yorubal/Lucumi community - specifically African Americans - have experienced in incorporating the realm of spirit into its ceremonies and teaditions. Throughout her life, Candita C. Gual has encountered many puzzling and troublesome paths. She has been fortunate to have the guidance of experienced mediums with foundations rooted in truth and logic, assuring safe footing for her as she has traveled the road of the unseen and commandeered rituals and solutions for the problems at hand.

Yet she still has questions about what she has learned and what is to come in her continued search for knowledge. "And the Shadows Wore Colors" provides a record of her experiences and conversations that will reveal some answers for those who have questions. In this volume, she examines the stumbling blocks that hinder the spiritual evolution sought by so many people, to perhaps bring some direction and closure to them. She explains her perspective on some of the many facets of the world of spiritualism, divination, and initiation ceremonies based upon her thirty-four years of experience.

"And the Shadows Wore Colors" is a work in progress that will hopefully open the door to m any discussions and books on this topic.

Hinduism is one of the world's oldest and greatest religious traditions. In captivating prose, Shashi Tharoor untangles its origins, its key philosophical concepts and texts. He explores everyday Hindu beliefs and practices, from worship to pilgrimage to caste, and touchingly reflects on his personal beliefs and relationship with the religion. Not one to shy from controversy, Tharoor is unsparing in his criticism of 'Hindutva', an extremist, nationalist Hinduism endorsed by India's current government. He argues urgently and persuasively that it is precisely because of Hinduism's rich diversity that India has survived and thrived as a plural, secular nation. If narrow fundamentalism wins out, Indian democracy itself is in peril.

"Brain Storm" is the story of Bruce and Laura Allen who, when confronted with the immeasurable challenges of brain injury, found courage, determination, and strength from God to forge through the seemingly insurmountable obstacles of Bruce's intense and often heartbreaking recovery. The overwhelming struggles that consumed the next year changed their lives forever. "Brain Storm" views these incredible hurdles through the separate eyes of both the survivor and the caregiver. It recounts how God miraculously led them through each step of the journey. This candid, intimate, and often humorous approach to recovery from brain injury will encourage and inspire readers-especially those who are currently traveling a similar path. You will learn why Bruce decided, "This has been the best year of my life."

""Brain Storm" is not just the story of a man's experience recovering from brain injury, but it is also one of loss, grief, acceptance, and transcendence to find one's purpose in life. This is a true testament to how fragile our lives are and how resilient we can be in the face of adversity. Bruce's story is an inspiration to me, his physician and friend, and will be to you as well." -Darryl L. Kaelin, MD

"Bruce and Laura Allen have allowed us to journey with them in their remarkable, honest, painful, and miraculous story of faith, hope, and love. This is a must-read for anyone walking through extended physical suffering either as a patient, caregiver, or family member. You will laugh, cry, and rejoice-but most of all you will experience God." -Dr. Mark L. Walker

Sheri Rose Shepherd's fascinating personal journey is a remarkable testimony to God's power. She grew up in a divorce-plagued Hollywood home; by her teens Sheri Rose suffered from depression and addiction to food and drugs. Then God intervened -- and today Sheri Rose is a joyful Christian wife and mother, a former Mrs. United States, and a popular author, conference speaker, and media personality. In this contemporary repackage of the bestselling Life Is Not a Dress Rehearsal, Sheri Rose shares her path from misery to victory with the side-splitting humor and active faith that helped sustain her. With passion and poise, she relates how God pursues every person with relentless and life-changing love. An inspirational read!

Rediscovery of the Human Soul is the story of L. Ron Hubbard's philosophic quest and his development of the philosophy of Scientology. The volume answers questions like Why is Scientology a religion. What is Scientology and how did a man with a primarily scientific background step into this field? Various rare essays, selections and discussions from all critical junctures of his philosophic journey are included.

Dean Martin Gessner's priesthood encompassed the history of the American Catholic Church during the latter half of the nineteenth century. Given that the historical consensus defines the nineteenth century, culturally and politically, as lasting from 1815 to 1914, his eight and a half decade life largely was the nineteenth century. Gessner's beginnings were humble. Born into an obscure farming community in Bavaria, he rose to become one of the most significant American parish priests of his era. This book narrates the life of Dean Gessner in light of the nineteenth century Catholic Church. It is as much a biography of him as a history of the American Catholic Church viewed through his eyes. This book will examine parish life in the nineteenth century, explore how pastors and parishioners related, and study the inside politics of the parochial organization. Gessner saw the Church at all levels, from the viewpoint of the parishioner in the pew to the highest levels of the American episcopacy. His two closest friends in the priesthood - Bishop Bernard McQuaid and Archbishop Michael Corrigan - were two of the most influential Catholic bishops in the United States. Dean Gessner saw and participated in so many of these events that his life provides a front row view to the most critical, fascinating, remarkable, formative, and exciting years in American Catholic history.

The Most Amazing Harvest is the continued love story of how a town came together for one of their own. The Most Amazing Harvest went viral because it was a love story. A group of people came together for a fellow farmer, not expecting anything in return. Someone made the comment, "A farmer can ask for no better crop than a bountiful harvest of friends". Pam Bates and Paula Patty continue this feel-good story about a farmer in a small town who gained worldwide recognition. Within The Most Amazing Harvest, they expand on the farmer's struggle battling cancer and how his fellow farmers harvested his crops all in one day. It is the God inspired humble life story of the farmer behind that day. The Most Amazing Harvest discusses who gave the farmer the peace he felt regardless of the struggles he faced and teaches how the miracles in the farmer's life gave him everlasting hope.

Dave Hammer is only five years old when tragedy strikes in the middle of the night on a May long weekend. Horribly burned in a fire, Dave struggles to survive. This is the gripping autobiography of a family s love, and one little boy s determination to live, setting the stage for an epic battle for life. You will experience the highs and lows with Dave as you journey through a story filled with inspiration and hope. In Dave Hammer s memoir, we journey with a young boy wrestling with death, overcoming infections, mastering button holes, arriving eventually to the inner-workings of a man, superficially disfigured, yet solicitous, living with measured humour and seasoned grace. It is a story of hope that surprises and inspires; a testimony to the strength God offers in our supreme weakness. Christina Crook This book was a fantastic read. It brought me to laughter and to tears as I read Dave Hammer s light-hearted yet dramatic memoirs. More importantly, it touched my heart deeply and encouraged me just at a time when I really needed encouragement. If you think you will find a tragic story in these pages, you will be surprised that, on the contrary, this book is filled with hope and triumphant victories. Janet Hazlett

The long-awaited magical autobiography of Gareth Knight covers a long career in pursuit of the Mysteries, from the adventures of New Dimensions magazine to the calling of King Arthur, from the rituals of Sherwood Forest to the Somme, from the wrath of fellow ritual magicians to the shining allure of Faery.

Anyone who has read Patricia St. John's books already knows how her stories come alive, and this account of her own life is no exception. Her powers of description make the story leap from the page and the reader is transported to far off places and times; and the people and the things she describes can almost be touched, smelled and seen. Patricia was not just a gifted story-teller, though; she was also a deeply committed follower of the Lord Jesus Christ, whose spiritual journey began when she was only six years old. 'My name is Patricia, ' she prayed, 'and if You are really calling me I want to come and be Yours. ' Out of that small beginning there issued a river of life and light and blessing that went on increasing right up to the end of her life. Although she always thought of herself as 'an ordinary sort of girl', her life was extraordinary because of her supreme love for Jesus Christ. The life portrayed here is not that of the self-conscious saint, concerned only with her own saintliness. On the contrary these pages offer us an inside view of someone utterly human, prone to mistakes and failures like the rest of us, yet suffused with the love of God and a contagious joy and peace that was like the bubbling up of a perpetual fountain.

Teresa de Santo Domingo, born with the name Chicaba, was a slave captured in the territory known to seventeenth- and eighteenth-century Spanish and Portuguese navigators and slave traffickers as La Mina Baja del Oro, the part of West Africa that extends through present-day eastern Ghana, Togo, Benin, and western Nigeria. Upon the death of her Spanish master, she was freed to enter a convent. The Dominicans of La Penitencia in Salamanca accepted her after she had been rejected by several other monasteries because of her skin color. Even in her own religious community, race put her at a disadvantage in the highly stratified social hierarchy of monastic houses of the era. Her life story is known to us through a document entitled Compendio de la Vida Ejemplar de la Venerable Madre Sor Teresa Juliana de Santo Domingo, which is the foundational documentary evidence in the case for beatification of this nun, and as such it is the most significant and comprehensive source of information about her. This volume, the first English translation of the Compendio, is a hagiography, an example of a biographical genre that recounts the lives and describes the spiritual practices of holy people - saints officially canonized by the Church, informally recognized by local devotees, or respected ecclesiastical leaders. The effort to have Chicaba canonized continues today, as Fra-Molinero and Houchins explore in their introduction to the volume.

The first modern biography of William Robertson, a key figure of the Scottish EnlightenmentA prominent figure in the Scottish Enlightenment, William Robertson differed from his contemporaries, such as Voltaire, Hume and Gibbon, because he used the critical tools of the Enlightenment to strengthen religion, not to attack it. As an historian, he helped shape 18th-century historiography. As a minister of the Church of Scotland, he sought to make the church fit for a polite age. And, as principal of the University of Edinburgh, he presided over a flourishing of intellectual inquiry in the midst of the Enlightenment. But despite his European fame, he was a controversial figure. Drawing extensively on his unpublished correspondence, Jeffrey Smitten captures both the man and his work in his own words. By foregrounding Robertson's religious outlook, Smitten gives us a more contextualised and nuanced interpretation of Robertson's motives, intentions and beliefs than we have had before.Key Features:Includes new biographical information drawn from archival sources and from all Robertson's largely unpublished correspondenceDiscusses Robertson's works, published and unpublishedAssesses Robertson's achievement based on fresh consideration of all facets of his career as minister, historian and principal

From the prizewinning Jewish Lives series, a meditation on the deeply Jewish and surprisingly spiritual roots of Stan Lee and Marvel Comics Few artists have had as much of an impact on American popular culture as Stan Lee. The characters he created-Spider-Man and Iron Man, the X-Men and the Fantastic Four-occupy Hollywood's imagination and production schedules, generate billions at the box office, and come as close as anything we have to a shared American mythology. This illuminating biography focuses as much on Lee's ideas as it does on his unlikely rise to stardom. It surveys his cultural and religious upbringing and draws surprising connections between celebrated comic book heroes and the ancient tales of the Bible, the Talmud, and Jewish mysticism. Was Spider-Man just a reincarnation of Cain? Is the Incredible Hulk simply Adam by another name? From close readings of Lee's work to little-known anecdotes from Marvel's history, the book paints a portrait of Lee that goes much deeper than one of his signature onscreen cameos.

About Jewish Lives: Jewish Lives is a prizewinning series of interpretative biography designed to explore the many facets of Jewish identity. Individual volumes illuminate the imprint of Jewish figures upon literature, religion, philosophy, politics, cultural and economic life, and the arts and sciences. Subjects are paired with authors to elicit lively, deeply informed books that explore the range and depth of the Jewish experience from antiquity to the present. In 2014, the Jewish Book Council named Jewish Lives the winner of its Jewish Book of the Year Award, the first series ever to receive this award. More praise for Jewish Lives: "Excellent." - New York times "Exemplary." - Wall St. Journal "Distinguished." - New Yorker "Superb." - The Guardian