Only four women in the two thousand–year history of the Church—Thérèse of Lisieux, Teresa of Avila, Catherine of Siena, and Hildegard of Bingen—have the distinction of being named Doctors of the Church because of their impact on the faith. In Set the World on Fire, bestselling author, retreat leader, and spiritual director Vinita Hampton Wright offers a four-week personal retreat that immerses you in the dramatic lives, historical eras, and groundbreaking ideas of these formidable saints and invites you to develop the grit, humility, pragmatism, hope, joy, and vision these women possessed. Each week of your retreat begins with weekend reading and prayer to introduce the saint and the primary topic of the chapter, followed by five days of morning and evening prayer. Much of the text comes from the saint’s own writings. Scripture, reflection questions, and suggestions for action are designed to help you engage personally with the saint and her wisdom for living your faith. Each week offers a unique and in-depth experience of the saint and her unique gifts to the Church: Week one: St. Thérèse of Lisieux—the young Carmelite nun whose autobiography sent ripples across Christendom—will teach you to love God through her Little Way. Week two: St. Teresa of Avila—a Carmelite who spent years reforming her order and gave to the world a spiritual masterpiece called The Interior Castle—will instruct you in trusting your personal experience of God. Week three: St. Catherine of Siena—a Third-Order Dominican who poured out her life for people in need but also gave astute, sharp direction to Church leaders—will guide you to live every moment with courage through the love of truth. Week four: St. Hildegard of Bingen—a Benedictine abbess whose spiritual visions led to books, poetry, music, art, and early scientific discovery—will show you how to engage life with passion and creativity. Each woman’s experience of God, understanding of spirituality, and timeless wisdom gained her the title Doctor of the Church, which indicates that through her life, research, study, and writing, she has deepened and advanced the faith.

The Quest Series is an annual competition at The Academy that challenges warrior, wizard and scholar students. In teams of four, they travel across the realm to collect magical items, race through castles, and interact with enchanting creatures in pursuit of championship glory. Kase Garrick is a warrior that strives for greatness and wants to prove himself a champion, but can only compete if he convinces two scholars and a wizard to come together. Although their team defies normal convention, it does not lack strength, wisdom or heart. Their journey tests their individual skills, dares them to look past their differences, and stretches them beyond their limits in order to overcome adversity. It’s a quest of self-discovery and growth, trust and patience, friendship and teamwork.

"[This book] examine[s] how black nationalist women engaged in national and global politics from the early twentieth century to the 1960's"--Amazon.com.

One of only two patron saints of Italy, the other being St. Francis of Assisi, St. Catherine was ahead of her time. As a political powerhouse in late 14th century Europe, a time of war, social unrest and one of the worst natural disasters of all time--the plague, she worked for peace between Christians while campaigning for a holy crusade against Muslims. She was illiterate but grew into a great writer by dictating to assistants. She was frail and punished herself mercilessly, often starving herself, while offering moral guidance and inspiration to kings, queens and popes. It's easy to see why feminists through the years have sought to claim the patronage of St. Catherine. From her refusal to marry to her assertion that her physical appearance was of no importance, the famous Saint is ripe for modern interpretation. She was a peacemaker during Siena's revolution of 1368, sometimes addressing thousands of people in squares and streets; she convinced Pope Gregory XI to return the papacy to Rome at a time when the Catholic Church was unraveling. How did this girl, the second-youngest of 25 children of a middle-class dyer, grow to become one of the most beloved spiritual figures of all time, a theological giant to rank alongside the likes of Thomas Aquinas? In Setting the World on Fire, Emling gives an intimate portrayal of this fascinating and revolutionary woman.

Following their earlier book from Paulist Press, Hope: Promise, Possibility, and Fullfillment, the editors have brought together faculty members of the School of Theology and Ministry at Boston College to reflect on the Holy Spirit through the lens of their various fields of study-scripture, systematic theology, pastoral ministry, history, ethics, and spirituality.

The reigning consensus holds that the combination of free markets and democracy would transform the third world and sweep away the ethnic hatred and religious zealotry associated with underdevelopment. In this revelatory investigation of the true impact of globalization, Yale Law School professor Amy Chua explains why many developing countries are in fact consumed by ethnic violence after adopting free market democracy. Chua shows how in non-Western countries around the globe, free markets have concentrated starkly disproportionate wealth in the hands of a resented ethnic minority. These “market-dominant minorities” – Chinese in Southeast Asia, Croatians in the former Yugoslavia, whites in Latin America and South Africa, Indians in East Africa, Lebanese in West Africa, Jews in post-communist Russia – become objects of violent hatred. At the same time, democracy empowers the impoverished majority, unleashing ethnic demagoguery, confiscation, and sometimes genocidal revenge. She also argues that the United States has become the world’s most visible market-dominant minority, a fact that helps explain the rising tide of anti-Americanism around the world. Chua is a friend of globalization, but she urges us to find ways to spread its benefits and curb its most destructive aspects.

At the end of the Second World War Piers and his younger brother Tom are growing up at Tothill House, the family home with its magnificent baroque hall by Vanbrugh. Tom is the pluckier of the two, because pluck means overcoming one's fears. Piers has no such fears to overcome; he is ambitious. As the post-war years witness a division in their aspirations and their destinies, the two brothers strive to achieve their own means of setting the world on fire. With rich characterization, virtuoso scenes of comedy, and sparkling dialogue, Setting the World On Fire provides a brilliant anatomy of post-war English society from 1948 to 1969. 'It is superb entertainment and social criticism but it is also a poem about the fire in human beings ... A moving and disturbing book and a very superior piece of art.' Anthony Burgess, "Observer."