There is no greater authority on the saints than Alban Butler, and his enormous research has been the standard reference on the subject for the last two and a half centuries. This new adaptation of Butler's multi-volume Lives of the Saints presents a modernized text for today's reader and provides an illuminating guide to these historic, symbolic, and foundational Christian men and women. Butler's daily readings from the lives and works of the saints offer readers of all backgrounds the opportunity to engage directly with these great figures. Butler's distinctive contribution to stories about saints was to turn attention away from the superhuman, miraculous themes that are prevalent in earlier works. He gives us saints who are examples of Christian living, who provide inspiration for our own lives, in every time and circumstance. As Butler writes: "They were once what we are now, travelers on earth. They had the same weaknesses we have. We have difficulties; so had the saints." Important features of this version include mention of recently canonized saints as well as those whose path to official sainthood is still in progress. Also included in the daily readings are more obscure saints whose lives and contributions to Christianity should not be forgotten.

This companion book to "Lives of the Saints" includes short biographies of other Saints not included in the official post-Vatican II liturgical calendar for the Universal Church.

And other Catholics of both sexes, that have suffered death in England on religious accounts from the year 1577 to 1684

"This is indeed true: if the saints and blesseds collected here share one overarching characteristic it is to have put their love of God to work for their fellow men and women as they saw fit - through austerity of life, contemplative prayer, or myriad embodiments of what we would now call social work. They are holy examples to us because they lived and died for others, for us."--BOOK JACKET.

When young Vittorio Innocente’s mother, Cristina, is bitten by a snake in the family stable, no one sees the blue-eyed stranger leaving except for Vittorio. He struggles to keep his mother’s secret but secrets in a small village are hard to keep, and while Cristina’s belly gradually grows under her loose dresses, they find themselves shunned by their superstitious neighbours. A classic of Canadian literature, Lives of the Saints has earned many distinctions since it was originally published in 1990. It was a national bestseller for seventy-five weeks, received the Governor Generals Literary Award for Fiction, the W.H. Smith / Books in Canada First Novel Award, and the F.G. Bressani Prize. In England it won the Betty Trask Award and Winifred Holtby Memorial Prize, in the U.S. was shortlisted for the Los Angeles Times Art Seidenbaum Award for First Fiction, and in France was an Oeil de la letter Selection of the National Libraries Association. It was also adapted into a miniseries starring Sophia Loren.

For more than two centuries, Butler's Lives of the Saints has been hailed as the authority on the Christian patron saints. Now, in this new edition of the original classic, Michael Walsh has culled the ruch resources of earlier editions to accentuate the more modern and best-documented saints. Echoing the charm and style of the eighteenth-century edition, Walsh's volume has been edited to make the fascinating and inspiring lives of the saints easily accessible to readers today. This edition features saints from many nations and backgrounds and includes new articles on recently canonized saints. The index offers the list of saints from the complete edition, and includes all new canonizations and new dates, making it eh most up-to-date listing of saints available. Butlter's Lives of the Saints remains a remarkable reference source and, through its comprehensive biographies, a valuable aid to devotion and a rich source of historical information.

This new collection, which includes a short biography of a Saint or Blessed together with a prayer for each day of the year, is in accord with the Roman Martyrology (2004 edition) and the Liturgical Calendar for the United States. Over 80 full-color illustrations and ribbon marker enhance this volume.