Summer Reading

In school, many teachers recommend a summer reading list. With the vacations we take, less school activities, and longer days, some of us have more free time to be able to read. Bookstores have sections devoted to summer reading as well. I would recommend that we take some of this reading time to enhance our relationship with God with some spiritual reading.

The Bible is always a good place to start. One study states that only 10% of all Christians have read the entire Bible, even though most people have more than one copy in their house. An average reader could read it in 80 hours which is 15 minutes a day for a year, or an hour a day for the summer. There is a wonderful podcast called the “Bible in a Year” which many people have already listened to and can help with the reading of Sacred Scriptures.

Besides the Bible, there are some other great spiritual reading books depending on your tastes. Over the last few years, a number of great and entertaining writers have emerged, including Peter Kreeft, Matthew Kelly, Curtis Martin, Michael White, Scott Hahn, Bishop Robert Barron and so many others. The Holy Fathers are also a wonderful resource as well as the many different saints who have written about a number of different topics; each of our last few popes have different styles of writing and a wide variety of topics. There are some of the writings of the early Church Fathers that we can turn to for example Justin Martyr, Ignatius of Antioch, or Polycarp.

Some of the great Doctors of the Church have some wonderful books that can help us to grow in our faith as well. We have 2,000 years of tradition and writings to delve into and the selections are endless, but here are a couple of my favorites. Scott Hahn’s “The Lamb’s Supper” is a great reflection on the Mass. Fr James did a book study on the Brant Pitre’s book “Jesus and the Jewish Roots of the Eucharist” which can help us to understand the history of the Mass and why we do certain things during our Celebration. St Therese of Lisieux’s “Story of a Soul” shows us the incredible life of a simple and holy woman. Cardinal Robert Sarah did a wonderful book called “The Power of Silence” it is one that can help us with getting into silence in our prayer life. “YouCat” is a youth Catechism which is wonderfully written and is done for teens, but is also entertaining for adults. St. Augustine “Confessions” is one you could read over and over and get something new out of each and every time. The “Lives of the Saints” gives us a short synopsis of many different saints. I would also recommend to look up a saint that has a patronage of something that we are passionate about and read about them. I could continue on with a very long list, but these are some readings that are very accessible for us and a good start along with Sacred Scripture to help us to grow closer to God.

God bless,
Fr. Ken