An Apologists' Book List

Have you ever thought that maybe your gut feeling about a Church teaching you disagree with may be wrong and that the Church may be right? You’d be surprised what you’ll find if you investigate why the Church teaches what it does. Here’s a list of resources (which the theology department doesn’t want you to see) that may be helpful to you:

• Is there a difference between blind obedience and religious obedience? Yes! http://bcatholic2.blogspot.com/2008/01/on-blind-faith-and-obedience-to-holy.html
• The Handbook of Christian Apologetics by our very own Kreeft and Tacelli demonstrates that Jesus Christ is God and He rose from the dead. Christianity is metaphysical and not just a moralism. It corresponds to reality.
• Refutation of Moral Relativism also by Kreeft. Title says it all.
• Karl Adams’ The Spirit of Catholicism is a great overview of what the faith is.
• Upon This Rock by Stephen Ray is a great defense of the papacy.
• Audio talk “The Conversion of Scott Hahn” available at www.catholicity.com. Catholicism is Biblical. www.Biblechristiansociety.com has more audio that is helpful.
• The Ratzinger Report, Salt of the Earth, and God and the World. All three include great commentary by Joseph Ratzinger on modern Church issues.
• Christopher West The Good News About Sex and Marriage. You’ve been lied to about your sexuality and the Church has good news about what it’s really for.
• Joseph Ratzinger, The Spirit of the Liturgy. A deeply theological book on the Mass and why more ‘traditional” Masses are more fitting for worship.
• Patty Schneier “Prove it God” and He did audio talk from omsoul.com. One practicing Catholic’s conversion story on an issue of Church teaching that can apply to all of us in other areas.
• The Theology of the Body talks by Pope John Paul II
• “Humanae Vitae and Conscience” audio talk by Janet Smith. What is the role of conscience in Church teaching?
• Companionofjesus.org explains Ignatian spirituality without watering it down.
• “Development or reversal?” by Avery Cardinal Dulles. How many times are we told Church teaching has changed on X so it can change on Y? This exposes that fallacy. http://www.firstthings.com/article.php3?id_article=234
• History of Christendom by Warren Carroll. The first book debunks a lot of myths about Scripture that we are taught at BC. Read all of them.
• Person and Being by Father Norris Clarke. The Church has long held that men and women complement one another. A lot of feminists reject this, seeing receptivity (a fact of sexuality) as something bad. They get this belief from Simone de Beauvoir and Sartre. Clarke shows how both men and women are at times receptive and that this is something good. The first chink in the armor of feminism.
• The Priest is Not his Own by Fulton Sheen. This explains what priesthood is all about, in case there was any confusion.
• The Courage to be Chaste by Groeschel shows that a celibate life can be a joyful one. This applies to those with same-sex attraction and those without it.
• Beyond Gay by David Morrison. This book shows that not every person with same-sex attraction has the same experience that tells them there is nothing wrong with what they are doing and how conversion to Christ brings about true happiness.
• The Truth about Homosexuality by Father John Harvey. Explains Church teaching and debunks the myths that in all circumstances same-sex attraction is innate and unchangeable.
• God or goddess by Manfred Hauke. Think it’s okay to call God “Mother” or “She”? Think again.
• Women and the Priesthood by Alice von Hildebrand and Kreeft. A short little book on the topic.
• Women in the Priesthood by Manfred Hauke. To my knowledge, the definitve work.
• Priesthood and Diaconate by Gerhard Muller. Women aren’t going to be deacons either.
• Why Catholics Can’t Sing by Thomas Day. This is just for fun, and it explains why so many people find Mass boring and the music is so bad.
• www.Catholiceducation.org has articles explaining everything.

And just remember, none of any of this matters if you don’t live as a disciple. So study, yes, but love and follow Christ.