Often people shopping for a Bible will ask me what kind they should get. While of course I want them to have the whole Bible, I will often also suggest that they buy a study guide that goes through one book in detail.

The Bible is not the easiest book to read. And let’s be honest: Many Catholics have very poor Biblical literacy. That’s why I am so thankful for the Ignatius Catholic Study Bible series.

Over the past several years, Ignatius has been publishing these studies of the individual books of the New Testament. The notes are provided by the popular Catholic apoligists Scott Hahn and Curtis Mitch. Their notes and short articles are written in an easy to understand yet in-depth manner. Even better, unlike some OTHER (ahem!) so-called “Catholic” study Bibles, these notes actually encourage and teach the Catholic faith.

Also included in these volumes are chapter-by-chapter questions for study and personal reflection. If someone were to faithfully read a chapter a day and take the time to seriously think about the questions, I can promise a marked deepening of faith and understanding of Holy Scripture.

The only criticism that I can make of this series is that they are still not finished with the New Testament, and that the books are only available separately. The price is quite high for such small books, $10 for about 80 pages, though I feel that the price is justified by the quality of the presentation of the subject. It is better to know one book of the Bible thouroughly than to have an unused full Bible gathering dust on your shelf.

Pope Benedict XVI has pronounced this to be the Year of St Paul, make it a goal to do a study of his works. The Ignatius Study Bible is the perfect aid in this endeavor.

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Check out this facinating interview with Denver’s Archbishop Chaput.

The good Archbishop proclaims the Gospel boldy in the public sphere, never shying away from the difficult topics. In his new book, he describes the responsibilities of Catholics in a democratic society, and puts to rest the tired notion that our faith is simply to be “a private thing” that somehow we lay aside in the voting booth.

Render Unto Caesar is neither a “conservative” nor “liberal” book, but is a Catholic book, and no matter what your political outlook might be, you will be challenged. In writing this book, Archbishop Chaput continues to fullfil his role as a prophet and teacher among God’s people. Would that all Bishops had his sense of duty.

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People often ask for book recommendations from the staff at the store. Over the years we’ve compiled a long list of authors that seem to come up time and time again. In time, we’d like to review all (or at least most) of these authors, but in the meantime, THE LIST:

All the Popes
All the Saints
Anscar Vonier
Archbishop Fulton J Sheen
Benjamin Wiker
Blessed Columbia Marmion
C.S. Lewis
Christoph Cardinal Shonborn
David Currie
Evelyn Waugh
Father Benedict Groeschel
Father John Hardon
Father Mitch Pacwa
Father William Most
Fr. Adrian Fortesque
Fr. Frederick Copleston
Francis Cardinal Arinze
Francis Xavier Cardinal Nguyen
Frank Sheed
G.K. Chesterton
Gabriele Marcelle
Harry Crocker III
Hellair Belloc
Henri de Lubac
Ignacio Larranaga
Janet Smith
John Henry Cardinal Newman
Joseph Pearce
Josef Pieper
Karl Keating
Mike Aquilina
Peter Kreeft
Pope Benedict XVI
Pope John Paul II
Pope John XXIII
Pope Paul VI
Pope Pius XI
Pope Pius XII
Ralph Martin
Ramero Cantalamessa
Romano Guardini
Scott Hahn
Sir Thomas More
St. Alphonsus de Ligouri
St. Athanasius
St. Augustine
St. Basil
St. Bernard of Clairvaux
St. Catherine of Sienna
St. Francis de Sales
St. Ignatius of Loyola
St. John Chrysostom
St. John of the Cross
St. Peter Julian Eymard
St. Teresa of Avila
St. Therese of Lisieux
St. Thomas Aquinas
Steve Ray
Tim Gray
Tim Staples
Warren Carroll

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