LINKS:

Books:
Fiction

CDs

Theater

The Book of Miracles, Kenneth L. Woodward, (1957 Notre Dame graduate), Simon & Schuster. As the religion editor at Newsweek zeroes in on stories of miracles, he also highlights the differences and commonalities of the world’s five major religions — Christianity, Judaism, Buddhism, Hinduism and Islam. "My aim has been to show how these stories function within each tradition," Woodward writes, "and what they reveal about those who perform them." In so doing, he serves up a lively short course in the major religions told through miraculous stories.

Reading the Gospel, John S. Dunne, CSC, (1951 ND graduate), University of Notre Dame Press. A leader in the field of spiritual books, Father Dunne here turns his attention to the relation of Jesus to God. "If we enter into his relation to God," Dunne writes, "then he is alive for us and he actually lives in us." Weaving in the words and thoughts of thinkers from the Buddha to Tolkien to Proust, the Notre Dame theology professor offers a fresh view of the Gospels and the deep lessons his "odyssey of reading" revealed.

The Voices of the Saints, Bert Ghezzi, (holder of 1969 Ph.D. from Notre Dame), Doubleday. Like a web site, this book is almost interactive. The book offers a year of daily readings about the saints, which can be read in alphabetical or in chronological order, but also by topic. For each of the 365 featured saints, he sketches a short but telling biography and frequently offers their wisdom in their own words. Ghezzi is a regular columnist in Catholic Parent magazine.

Keeping the Faith, Making a Difference, Wilson D. Miscamble, CSC, (holder of two master's degrees and a 1980 Ph.D. from Notre Dame), Ave Maria Press. Father Miscamble calls this collection "a simple book about some significant matters." Using homilies and talks given to Notre Dame students, the associate professor of history covers topics ranging from marriage and parenting to dealing with loss and learning how to discern what is right. Miscamble says that he hopes the book "will encourage young Catholic men and women to participate even more vigorously in the church’s mission on earth."

I Like Being Catholic, edited by Michael Leach and Therese J.Borchard (1994   M.A. from Notre Dame), Doubleday. From top 10 lists of Catholic movies, novels and music to quotes about what religion means to them from Cokie Roberts, Bobby Allison, Woody Herman, Mary Higgins Clark, Martin Sheen, among others, I Like Being Catholic presents the good things that come from being Catholic. "This is not a book of theology," the editors note. It’s a celebration.

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