Saint Biography

Teresa of Ávila (1515-1582) is one of the most beloved of the Catholic saints. In 1562, during the era of the Spanish Inquisition, Teresa sat down to write an account of the mystical experiences for which she had become famous. The result was this book, one of the great classics of spiritual autobiography. With this fresh translation of The Book of My Life, Mirabai Starr brings the inimitable Spanish mystic to life for a new generation, with contemporary English that mirrors Teresa's own earthy, vernacular Spanish, and that presents us with someone we feel we know.

How is it possible that a chain-smoking socialist, a teenage video gamer, an opium addict, a satanic high priest, a disabled beggar, and a self-absorbed mean girl became saints? Popular itinerant missionary Meg Hunter-Kilmer will stretch your preconceived notions of holiness by exploring the lesser-known lives of seventy-five extraordinary people whose human struggles and limitations reveal the power of God's grace.

In 1975, two centuries after her birth, Pope Paul VI canonized Elizabeth Ann Seton, making her the first saint to be a native-born citizen of the US in the Roman Catholic Church. Hers was an exemplary early American life of struggle, ambition, questioning, and faith, and in this flowing biography, Catherine O'Donnell has given Seton her due.

Saint Augustine's contributions to Christian theology are second to no other post-apostolic author in the whole sweep of church history. Yet along side his doctrinal treatises, Augustine tells a story of his life devoted to Christ as his only satisfaction. The Confessions is at once the autobiographical account of Augustine's life of Christian faith and at the same time a compelling theology of Christian spirituality for everyone.

In C. S. Lewis and the Catholic Church, Joseph Pearce delves into Lewis's life, writings, and spiritual influences to shed light on the matter. Although C. S. Lewis's conversion to Christianity was greatly influenced by J. R. R. Tolkien, a Catholic, and although Lewis embraced many distinctively Catholic teachings, such as purgatory and the sacrament of Confession, he never formally entered the Church.

Saint Augustine is one of history's most prolific geniuses. With great eloquence and passion, his Confessions - a masterpiece of Western literature - explores enduring questions that continue to stir millions. Perhaps the most moving record of a soul's journey to grace, Confessions appears midway in Saint Augustine's prodigious body of theological writings and remains his most influential work.

Despite considerable press coverage and a lengthy trial, the full story of the Fundamentalist Church of Latter Day Saints has remained largely untold. Only one man can reveal the whole, astounding truth: Sam Brower, the private investigator who devoted years of his life to breaking open the secret practices of the FLDS and bringing Warren Jeffs and his inner circle to justice.

Ex-priest Stephen H. Donnelly’s memoir, A Saint and a Sinner, is an immersive experience into the world of a Catholic priest and a brutally honest account of Stephen’s journey of sinfulness. At age 42, Stephen was ordained a Roman Catholic priest. As he stood before God, the bishop, and the congregation, he made promises he struggled to keep. Three years into his priesthood, he descended into a world of cocaine and alcohol abuse.

St. Benedict was not interested in fame, power, or legacy. He was only interested in living the Christian life to the fullest and helping those around him do the same. The rest is history - and the work of Providence. Not only consecrated religious, but also many lay people, find inspiration in his call to balance, discipline, and prayer. Historically, St. Benedict helped bridge the early Church with the medieval period by standing on the shoulders of the fathers of the monastic tradition.

Over 1600 years ago, God raised up a man named Patrick to take the Gospel of Christ to the people of Ireland. Seldom in church history has any missionary been blessed with a more fruitful ministry. The preaching of Patrick was used by God to transform many of the Irish people from idol-worshiping pagans into servants of the one true God of Scripture.

Love like poets, live like saints. This unique exploration of people such as Saint Thérèse, George MacDonald, and C.S. Lewis offers insight into 11 of the world's most thoughtful and authentic Christ followers. Weaving biography and spiritual formation together, Poets and Saints reminds us of the convictions that set us apart as Christians - and the truth that has set us free in every generation.

In an age that smirks at the mention of miracles, sin, angels, and demons, St. Pio of Pietrelchina has emerged as a figure of immense popularity, attracting fascination, veneration, and emulation. Padre Pio, who once wrote in a letter, "I am a mystery to myself," is certainly a mystery to all who know of him. To those who moved beyond mere credulity, he became an inspiration to embrace the fullness of faith.

The world needs saints to show it the way to true humanity. The church needs saints to show it how to live out its calling. The witness of the lives of the saints is a powerful testimony to the reality of God’s plan and the possibility for truly following it in one’s life. So often, we do not see this witness. We see hypocrisy and mediocrity among Christians. That is why we must look to the saints - the ones who really followed the words of Christ and let them be carried out fully in their lives. The saints also give us a reason to hope.

The Sinner and the Saint is the deeply researched and immersive tale of how Dostoevsky came to write this great murder story - and why it changed the world. As a young man, Dostoevsky was a celebrated writer, but his involvement with the radical politics of his day condemned him to a long Siberian exile. There, he spent years studying the criminals that were his companions. Upon his return to St. Petersburg in the 1860s, he fought his way through gambling addiction, debilitating debt, epilepsy, the deaths of those closest to him, and literary banishment.

Dubbed the "Dumb Ox" by his classmates for his shyness, Saint Thomas Aquinas proved to be possessed of the rarest brilliance, justifying the faith of his teacher, Albertus Magnus, and sparking a revolution in Christian thought. Chesterton's unsurpassed examination of Aquinas' thinking makes his philosophy accessible to listeners of any generation.

The Confessions of St. Augustine is one of the most moving diaries ever recorded of a man's journey to the fountain of God's grace. Writing as a sinner, not a saint, Augustine shares his innermost thoughts and conversion experiences, and wrestles with the spiritual questions that have stirred the hearts of the thoughtful since time began.

For centuries, Augustine's writings have moved and fascinated readers. With the keen eye of a writer whose own intellectual analysis won him a Pulitzer Prize, Gary Wills examines this famed fourth-century bishop and seminal thinker whose grounding in classical philosophy informed his interpretation of Christian doctrine. Saint Augustine explores Augustine's thought as well as the everyday man who set pen to parchment. It challenges many misconceptions.

The first book to quilt the spirit of a wildly successful international clothing brand among the scraps of childhood trauma, Glitter Saints is the story of Robin Brown, creator of Magnolia Pearl. It’s a mining of tragedy for the kind of magic that creates and sustains—a sharp-eyed, soft-hearted, stubborn hope that’s the rarest raw material.

In 1929, nearly 400 years after the deaths of Saints Thomas More and John Fisher, G.K. Chesterton observed in words equally attributable to Fisher, “Blessed Thomas More is more important at this moment than at any moment since his death, even perhaps the great moment of his dying; but he is not quite so important as he will be in a hundred years.” Robert J. Conrad, Jr. anticipates Chesterton’s 100-year mark in a collection of stories from the lives of More and Fisher, demonstrating how their sanctity and integrity carried them and those who loved them through tumultuous times.

After a lifetime of putting his body on the line to entertain his dozens (and dozens!) of fans, the Hardcore Legend is paying the price - physically and emotionally. When the final bell on Mick's career tolls, not in the ring, but in a neurologist's office, his future seems far from merry and bright. Until Mick is given the chance to become Santa Claus - not dress up, not pretend, but become Santa - allowing him to rediscover the joy of performing. Fully committing to his new mission, Mick details the drastic measures he takes to keep the Christmas magic alive.