Winner of two 2019 Catholic Press Association Awards: Memoir (First Place) and Cover Design (Second Place). Monastic life and its counter-cultural wisdom come alive in the stories and lessons of Br. Paul Quenon, O.C.S.O., during his more than five decades as a Trappist at the Abbey of Gethsemani. He served as a novice under Thomas Merton and he also welcomed some of the monastery's more well-known visitors, including Sr. Helen Prejean and Seamus Heaney, to Merton's hermitage. In Praise of the Useless Life includes Quenon's quiet reflections on what it means to live each day with careful attentiveness. The humble peace and simplicity of the monastery and of Quenon's daily life are beautifully portrayed in this memoir. Whether it be through the daily routine of the monastery, his love of the outdoors no matter the season, or his lively and interesting conversations with visitors (reciting Emily Dickinson with Pico Iyer, discussing Merton and poetry with Czeslaw Milosz), Quenon's gentle musings display his love for the beauty in his vocation and the people he’s encountered along the way. Inspired by his novice master Merton, the poet and photographer’s stories remind us that the beauty of life can best be seen in the "uselessness" of daily life—having a quiet chat with a friend, spending time in contemplation—in our vocations, and in the memories we make along the way.

After 60 years at Gethsemani Abbey, Br. Paul follows up his recent memoir, In Praise of the Useless Life, with a poetic collection that shows how to do just that – by writing poetry. Amounting to Nothing is both practical and metaphysical, a puzzling over the ultimate things of life, and a descending on the Benedictine ladder of humility to the earthly creatures surrounding a Kentucky monastery. This is less an exploration in self-knowledge than a forgetting of self in the wonders of everything. Quenon treads bare footed on the margins of mortality and immortality, with wit, thought, and hope.

When Grammy-nominated artist and TV production professional LynnMarie Rink and her husband decided to start a family, her worst fears were realized—the doctor told the couple their baby would be born with Down syndrome. With humor and honesty, Wrap Your Heart Around It reveals LynnMarie’s unique take on some heavy topics like depression, Down syndrome and co-dependency. LynnMarie’s strength and conviction shows how we can let go of fear and hurt to move forward and live in the now. “LynnMarie's transparency and testimony in this book will captivate and touch you." - Brenda Epperson, actress and co-chair of Ascend Women’s Conference "This is a beautiful account of her journey of faith and unconditional love that will keep you laughing and crying." - Kathleen Cooke, co-founder of Cooke Pictures and The Influence Lab

Come along as author Jon M. Sweeney sits in the warm October sun talking with Father Luke or enjoys a December afternoon in the monastery with Father Ambrose. In Cloister Talks, Sweeney offers a rare glimpse into his decades-long friendships with monks and shares the wisdom and insight for everyday living he has gained along the way. The contemplative monasticism Sweeney practiced with these monks has been the greatest source of guidance in his journey of faith, and here he shares it with poignant honesty. Sweeney's conversations with monks engage various universal areas of life, including life, death, love, work, play, and spirituality. Readers will emerge with a deeper understanding of this ancient way of Christianity, a much needed antidote to the hurry of contemporary life. EXCERPT Ambrose has such an interesting mind. When he talks it's as if he's painting the circles on a target, beginning at the outer ones. "If I had to give you one piece of advice it would be this: Don't look for sudden enlightenment. People call them ah-ha moments; don't worry about those. I know that you may feel your time is wasted here if you haven't had enough ah-has, but I assure you it won't be." "So what should I be doing?" I asked him, feeling confused. "When you finally quiet down enough you'll begin to hear the divine voice. "Don't walk around looking for moments of enlightened insight," Ambrose continued. "For one thing, we're not that smart!" He laughed. "Instead, you should walk around praying. Sit in the church before dawn, praying. Or just shut your mouth for a few days. Listen to the talks given by the retreat master, if you like. Just sit. Try your best to stop thinking." It sounded too easy to me. I told him that. "What I'm suggesting is much harder than you might think. You'll see."

In Love Your Life: Living Happy, Healthy, and Whole, Victoria Osteen offered practical solutions to achieving what every person desires: balance between relationships, career, social obligations, and self. Sharing personal experiences from her own family, ministry, and business endeavors that helped shape her into the person she is today, Victoria is able to approach life with enthusiasm, grace, humor, and a winning spirit. Now in Daily Readings from Love Your Life, Victoria offers a guide to help you transform your life and love it more! Each reading offers insight, scriptures, stories, and uplifting messages focusing on the eleven themes found in the bestselling book Love Your Life: • Understanding Your Influence • Living with Confidence • Embracing What’s Important • Keeping the Right Perspective • Making the Most of What You Have • Recovering Lost Opportunities • Overcoming Offenses • Enjoying Rich Relationships • Discovering What Others Need • Being a People Builder • Receiving Love Each section consists of readings that elaborate on these themes. As you travel through each day, you will find new and exciting ways to connect with the teachings of Love Your Life. Highlighting key stories from the book and sharing new ones, this devotional also supplies passages and daily thoughts that offer messages of faith, hope, and strength to help you lead the most fulfilling life possible. As co-pastor of Lakewood Church—America’s largest church—Victoria Osteen understands intimately how day-to-day responsibilities can pile up and at times feel overwhelming. As a wife and mother, she sets the tone for her household and acts as a role model for her family. As a minister, she reaches out to an enormous community of people who look to her for guidance, strength, wisdom, and encouragement. She knows as well as anyone that operating in so many different roles can be extremely demanding, yet she has managed to find balance. If you ask her, she’ll tell you that she loves her life and she wants you to love yours too. A life well lived does not come easily; you have to set out for it, look for it, and make it happen. Love Your Life shows how to turn the challenges of each day into opportunities to love and appreciate all that you are.

How Catholic was Thomas Merton? Since his death in 1968, Merton’s Catholic identity has been regularly questioned, both by those who doubt the authenticity of his Catholicism given his commitment to ecumenical and interreligious dialogue and by those who admire Merton as a thinker but see him as an aberration who rebelled against his Catholicism to articulate ideas that went against the church. In this book, Gregory K. Hillis illustrates that Merton’s thought was intertwined with his identity as a Catholic priest and emerged out of a thorough immersion in the church’s liturgical, theological, and spiritual tradition. In addition to providing a substantive introduction to Merton’s life and thought, this book illustrates that Merton was fundamentally shaped by his identity as a Roman Catholic.

The spiritual seeker's guide to living with authenticity and integrity in troubled times. This book is a dialogue between two spiritual seekers--one a Trappist monk and the other a married professional woman. It is two people "stuttering to articulate life's universal questions from diverse contexts and perspectives." Brother Paul writes as one steeped in silence and the daily rhythms of the ancient prayer practices of monasticism. Judith Valente writes as a professional woman attempting to bring a sense of prayer and contemplation to a scattered life in the secular world. Valente uses the story of Brother Paul's interview for a PBS documentary as a jumping-off point: When asked the purpose of the Trappist life in the modern world, he said that it is "to show you don't need a purpose." The purpose of life, he said, is life. "You're to live your life." How to Be offers a window into two people living their lives on purpose (or not) and struggling to come to terms with the big issues everyone faces: faith, mortality, mystery, prayer, work. It is a book that provides insight and inspiration for those walking the spiritual path--particularly for those interested in the contemplative path.