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“The Spiritual Exercises of St. Ignatius” is a collection of Christian meditations intended to guide one on a 28-30 day process of spiritual purification and connection with Jesus. This text, written by the great St. Ignatius of Loyola has been extensively practiced and studied for hundreds of years. It has become a major text of the Christian canon and is a fundamental text of Ignatian and Jesuit spirituality. This volume presents the complete and original set of Ignatian prayers and meditations, organized into five parts: Creation, Mankind, The Kingdom of God, Christ, and the Trinity. Intended to be carried out over four weeks in retreat, these exercises are full of theological insight, Christian revelation, and contemplative guidance that, together, offers a path toward personal solace. “Spiritual Exercises” is a methodical approach to Jesuit spirituality, though it is accessible to a wide audience of lay people and curious readers alike. Beautifully composed, the work is a moving account of the nature of the soul and human spirituality. This timeless work of Christian Mysticism continues to resonant around the world, offering a path of spiritual meditation and awakening. This edition follows the translation of Father Elder Mullan.

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Born in the late 5th century AD, Boethius was a Roman statesman and philosopher who would come into the service of the Ostrogothic ruler of Italy, Theodoric the Great. Ultimately he would rise to the position of magister officiorum, the head of all the government and court services. In 523 AD he would find himself accused of treasonous correspondence with Justin I, a charge that would land him in prison and ultimately lead to his execution. During Boethius’s year-long imprisonment leading up to his execution he wrote “The Consolation of Philosophy,” a work that would become regarded as one of the most important and influential works from medieval times. “The Consolation of Philosophy” is a classical exposition of human nature as Boethius reflects on the treacherous betrayal that led to his fall from favor with his lord. In it he ponders the universal question of Theodicy, or why a benevolent and all powerful God allows evil to manifest in the world, and on the transitory nature of fortune. Meant to provide himself with some solace in the face of his fated execution, Boethius’ “The Consolation of Philosophy” is a work that has provided spiritual guidance to those in despair ever since its first appearance. This edition includes a biographical afterword.

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Written by Father Jean-Pierre de Caussade, a French Jesuit priest and author, “Abandonment to Divine Providence” contained in this volume is a treatise on the practice of total abandonment to Divine Providence, or in other words, completely giving yourself over to God’s will. Father De Caussade, born in 1675 in Cahors, France, became the spiritual director to the Nuns of the Visitation in Nancy, France from 1733-1740. During his time at the convent and immediately after, he wrote letters of advice and spiritual direction to the nuns. These letters, which form the basis for this treatise, describe De Caussade’s belief in the importance of completely surrendering oneself to the present moment, which is in itself a sacrament from God. It is only by living truly in the present and giving complete attention to every detail and obstacle in one’s daily life that one can come to know the will of God and to live as God intended. De Caussade believed this was the path to true peace and virtue and could be realized by everyone, regardless of their station in life. The spiritual lessons contained in “Abandonment to Divine Providence” continue to inspire and guide the faithful to this day. This edition follows the translation of E. J. Strickland with an introduction by Dom Arnold.

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One of the most important works of Christian theology, the treatise “On the Incarnation” was written by the fourth century Egyptian religious leader St. Athanasius of Alexandria. An influential Christian theologian and church elder, St. Athanasius, also known as Athanasius the Great, Athanasius the Confessor, and Athanasius the Apostolic, was the twentieth bishop of Alexandria from 328 AD to 373 AD. St. Athanasius played an important role in the First Council of Nicaea in 325 AD where Roman Emperor Constantine the Great convened the council to address the question of whether Jesus of Nazareth was the son of God and distinct from his Father. “On the Incarnation” expands with clarity on the conclusion reached by the First Council of Nicaea, that God became man through His son, Jesus of Nazareth, and through Jesus, we too may become one with God. While brief, St. Athanasius explores in detail why God became flesh through Jesus and why this transformation was necessary to save the corrupted human soul and prepare it for a perfect and immortal union with God. This treatise, by one of the most important and influential teachers of Christian philosophy, is an essential read for all students of the Christian faith. This edition follows the translation of Archibald Robertson.

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St. Teresa of Avila’s 16th century work “The Way of Perfection” is a classic of Christian literature which was written for the nuns of the order she founded. Encouraged by her religious counselors, she sought to give advice and guidance to other nuns in her ways of prayer and Christian meditation during the upheaval and change of the Reformation in Europe. In this influential work, St. Teresa of Avila gives practical advice for incorporating prayer in one’s everyday life and in using meditation and time spent in quiet repose to form a greater union with God and understanding of Christian mysticism. Through such meditation and deep contemplation, one could reach a state of rapture, or true communion with God. This guide directs its readers step by step to achieve a greater sense of spirituality and closeness with God by embracing fraternal love, rejecting material possessions, and practicing true humility. St. Teresa of Avila’s practical wisdom has been deeply influential and continues to inspire the faithful centuries later. This edition follows the translation of Rev. John Dalton.

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“The Book of Enoch” is one of the most notable extant apocryphal works of the Bible. Estimated to have been written around 300 BC, this ancient Jewish religious work is ascribed by tradition to Enoch, the great-grandfather of Noah. Consisting of five distinct sections, the book begins with the fall of the Watchers, angels who fathered the Nephilim, the offspring of “sons of god” and the “daughters of men.” The book follows Enoch as he travels through Heaven and expands more thoroughly, than the Book of Genesis, on the early kingdom of Israel and the events leading up to the great flood of Noah. Many themes common to other Biblical apocalyptic stories can be found here: despair by the godly for their world, a world where goodness did not matter and where evil triumphed and prospered. With evil everywhere around, the Apocalyptists saw no hope for the world as it was, it must be destroyed if the good were ever to triumph. This edition follows the translation of R. H. Charles.

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Saint Anselm of Canterbury was a Benedictine monk and philosopher, known as the father of scholasticism, whose works are impressive testaments to the historic and social significance of the Christian religion. In the “Proslogium”, or “Discourse on the Existence of God” we find the origination of the ontological argument for the existence of God. Saint Anselm’s rationalizations for Christian beliefs are continued in his “Monologium” or “Monologue” in which he argues that anyone of reasonable intelligence should be able to see proof for the existence of God in examining the various degrees of good and evil in the world. “Cur Deus Homo” or “Why God Became Man” discusses how Jesus Christ was sent to atone for God’s dissatisfaction with mankind, defending God’s honor and justice. Saint Anselm’s ideas were not universally accepted, which is exhibited by the rebuttal of Benedictine monk Gaunilo, “In Behalf of the Fool”, a work which is included along with Saint Anslem’s response in this volume. Because Saint Anselm’s rationalization for spirituality did not rely on empirical evidence but rather was based purely on intuitive reasoning his beliefs were truly a testament of his personal faith in God. Saint Anselm’s writings, as well as the critique by Gaunilo, remain to this day as critical expositions on Christian theology. This collection of Saint Anselm’s works follows the translation of Sidney Norton Deane.

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Written in the 12th century in Arabic by a faithful Jewish man, “The Guide for the Perplexed” is a work that explores the contradiction a very intelligent mind clearly saw between the tradition in which he was raised to believe and the growing philosophy of Arabian and Western culture. In Maimonides’ time, there was an emerging disparity between the Law and a new level of philosophical sophistication, which he attempts to bridge in this work, primarily through the use of metaphor, though also acknowledging this method’s limitations. “The Guide for the Perplexed” follows the form of a three-volume letter to a student, which was quickly translated to Hebrew and spread throughout the known world and carefully read by Jews and non-Jewish philosophers alike well through the Middle Ages. This work was so successful in its organization and arguments that it has long been a classic of the Jewish religion and of the secular world of philosophy. This edition is translated with an introduction and analysis by M. Friedlander.

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Blaise Pascal was a 17th century French scientist, author, and Christian philosopher who is best known for his work, “Pensées” or “Thoughts.” First published posthumously in 1670, “Thoughts” is an edited compilation of the notes that Pascal had prepared for a planned work that scholars refer to as an “Apology for the Christian Religion.” Given its incompleteness when Pascal died, the order and composition of the work has been debated and as a result has produced many variant publications. In spite of their incompleteness and frequent incoherence, “Thoughts” has long held a high place among the great classics of the Christian religion. Much of the theological argument implied in these utterances has little appeal to the modern mind, but the acuteness of the observation of human life, the subtlety of the reasoning, the combination of precision and fervid imagination in the expression, make this a book to which the discerning mind can return again and again for insight and inspiration. This edition follows the translation of W. F. Trotter with an introduction by Thomas S. Kepler.

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First published in 1609 “An Introduction to the Devout Life” is Saint Francis de Sales work which belongs to the Christian tradition of “Lectio Divina” or “Divine Reading”. Like Thomas à Kempis’ “The Imitation of Christ” it is a work intended to provide guidance to the individual desiring spiritual direction in order to lead a more devout life. Based on a series of letters between Francis and his cousin, Madame Marie de Charmoisy, who as the wife of an ambassador of the Duke of Savoy was struggling with the distractions to faith associated with court life, “An Introduction to the Devout Life” was crafted from those original letters into a guide for a more general audience. Through five parts Francis discusses the aspiration to a devout life, the use of prayer and sacraments, the personal characteristics of virtue necessary to the devout life, the challenge of temptation and how to overcome it, and the practices for renewing and confirming the soul in devotion. An immensely popular work of Christian spirituality “An Introduction to the Devout Life” remains as relevant today as when it was first published.

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