Catholic Literature Recommendations

Director’s Choice: May

From the man who became Pope Francis, Jorge Mario Bergoglio shares his thoughts on religion, reason, and the challenges the world faces in the 21st century with Abraham Skorka, a rabbi and biophysicist. On Heaven and Earth: Pope Francis on Faith, Family, and the Church in the Twenty-First Century by Jorge Mario Bergoglio and Abraham Skorka For years Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio, archbishop of Argentina,... Read More

SJEC Library

Many of the books we recommend on our website can also be checked out from our lending library, located in our offices at 1400 Buffalo Road, West Des Moines, inside Dowling Catholic High School. Our regular office hours are Monday – Thursday, 8:30 am – 4:30 pm. Please feel free to call our offices at (515) 222-1092 to reserve a book for pick up. Click here to view our library database,... Read More

Director’s Choice: April

Life for emerging adults is vastly different today than it was for their counterparts even a generation ago. Young people are waiting longer to marry, to have children, and to choose a career direction. As a result, they enjoy more freedom, opportunities, and personal growth than ever before. But the transition to adulthood is also more complex, disjointed, and confusing. Lost in Transition: The Dark... Read More

Director’s Choice: March

Why Stay Catholic? Why stay in the church? What’s so good about being Catholic anyway? Editor Michael Leach offers answers to these and other questions in his book, Why Stay Catholic? Its message is, “Don’t throw the baby out with the bathwater!” The baby [our Catholic faith] is precious, it’s real, it never grows old, can still give you joy, peace, and assurance, and... Read More

Director’s Choice: February

In the person of Pope Benedict XVI, one of the most significant of Europe’s intellectuals is heading-up the Vatican. The journalist Peter Seewald, who has known Ratzinger since 1992, conducted the “longest interviews in church history” with him, for two books which were best-sellers world-wide, Salt of the Earth, God and the World. Benedict XVI: An Intimate Portrait by Peter Seewald Now... Read More

Director’s Choice: January

The Virgin Mary has been an inspiration to more people than any other woman who ever lived. For Catholics, Protestants, Jews, and Muslims, for artists, musicians, and writers, and for women and men everywhere she has shown many faces and personified a variety of virtues. Mary Through the Centuries: Her Place in the History of Culture by Jaroslav Pelikan In this important book, a world-renowned scholar... Read More

Director’s Choice: December

The Blessing of Christmas is a lovely little book by Pope Benedict XVI. It is profusely illustrated, ideal for the Christmas and Advent season with its inspiring, profound, yet popular meditations on the blessings of the season. Taken from his sermons as well as his writings, these beautiful meditations by the acclaimed spiritual teacher, writer and now Pontiff, give his usual fresh insights into the... Read More

Director’s Choice: November

In Homegrown Faith, Heidi Bratton invites you into her home, where she’ll show you where to find God — right inside the busyness of modern family life. A series of insightful and often humorous weekly reflections on raising faithful Catholic families, Homegrown Faith draws on familiar situations — sibling rivalry, fender-benders, lost shoes before Mass — to reveal unexpected... Read More

Director’s Choice: October 2012

Vatican II is known to every Catholic at least by name, but we’re a little skimpy on the details. What happened there? Why did it take place? Why have there been mixed reactions to it? Most importantly, what is the impact of the Second Vatican Council on the people of the Church now? Peter A. Huff, answers these questions and more in a lively, brief, easy-to-read, fresh overview of the event... Read More

Director’s Choice: September 2012

Pope John Paul II urged the church repeatedly and persistently to proclaim the gospel to all humanity. This summons to a new evangelization characterized his papacy. But what does the new evangelization mean? And who is supposed to evangelize? What is the role of the parish? Of married couples? How do we evangelize teens? And what are the ecumenical dimensions of evangelism? John Paul II and the New... Read More

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