Saint Nicholas of Tolentino


Book Description

"A joy to those who were sad, a consolation to those who were suffering, peace to those who were at odds with one another, refreshment to those who were weary from their daily toil, support for those who were poor and a healing balm for those who found themselves in prison." This is the way a fellow religious described the ministry of St. Nicholas of Tolentino. Thanks to Pope Leo XIII who gave him the title in 1884, we remember him today, though, principally as the special patron saint of the Holy Souls in Purgatory. This is a fascinating little biography of a saint whose feast is celebrated by the Augustinian Family throughout the world on September 10th each year.
















Saint Nicholas


Book Description

You know him as the rotund merry-maker in the red suit. But set aside the childhood myth. In this portrait, you’ll encounter the true St. Nicholas, a figure revered for his astonishing miracles and a humility that redirected all attention to God’s glory. You’ll be amazed to find St. Nicholas always turning up at just the right time—rescuing sailors from the certain death of a violent sea, saving three young women from a life of prostitution, and guarding an infant from the burns of a boiling bath. A tireless defender of God’s truth and His people, St. Nicholas’s wonderful and mysterious deeds illustrate, time and again, a heart for the weak, the poor, and the endangered—truly “the patron saint of practically everybody” and one of the most fascinating figures in all of Christian history. We learn about life through the lives of others. Their experiences, their trials, their adventures become our schools, our chapels, our playgrounds. Christian Encounters, a series of biographies from Thomas Nelson Publishers, highlights important lives from all ages and areas of the Church through prose as accessible and concise as it is personal and engaging. Some are familiar faces. Others are unexpected guests. Whether the person is D.L. Moody, Sergeant York, Saint Nicholas, John Bunyan, or William F. Buckley, we are now living in the world that they created and understand both it and ourselves better in the light of their lives. Their relationships, struggles, prayers, and desires uniquely illuminate our shared experience.




The Incorruptibles


Book Description

Continuously popular since it first appeared in 1977, The Incorruptibles remains the acknowledged classic on the bodies of Saints that did not undergo decomposition after death, many remaining fresh and flexible for years, or even centuries. After explaining both natural and artificial mummification, the author shows that the incorruption of the Saints bodies fits into neither category but constitutes a much greater phenomenon which is unexplained by modern science even to this day. The author presents 102 canonized Saints, Beati and Venerables, summarizing their lives, the discovery of their incorruption and investigations by Church and medical authorities. The incorruptible bodies of saints are a consoling sign of Christ's victory over death, a confirmation of the dogma of the Resurrection of the Body, a sign that the Saints are still with us in the Mystical Body of Christ, as well as a proof of the truth of the Catholic Faith for only in the Catholic Church do we find this phenomenon.




Sainthood in the Later Middle Ages


Book Description

This is a standard work of reference for the study of the religious history of western Christianity in the later middle ages which, since its original publication in French in 1981, has come to be regarded as one of the great contributions to medieval studies of recent times. Hagiographical texts and reports of the processes of canonisation - a mode of investigation into saints' lives and their miracles implemented by the popes from the end of the twelfth century - are here used for the first time as major source materials. The book illuminates the main features of the medieval religious mind, and highlights the popes' attempts to gain firmer control over the wide variety of expressions of faith towards the saints in order to promote a higher pattern of devotion and moral behaviour among Christians.




The Saint Who Would Be Santa Claus


Book Description

The real story of Santa-and why he became a Saint