The profound wisdom found in this Romano Guardini classic will help you to quiet your soul, concentrate your mind, and grow more receptive to God's grace in the Holy Mass. Written for ordinary Catholics who are struggling to become closer to Christ, Meditations Before Mass is full of wisdom and yet offers practical, straightforward advice that will help you overcome distractions and restlessness while leading you into a more enriching experience when you enter into Holy Communion with God. Over fifty years ago, Msgr. Romano Guardini resolved to help his parishioners move beyond the petty hindrances to full participation in the Mass—hindrances to which we are all prone. Just before Mass each Sunday, he gave a brief talk on some aspect of the Mass, teaching them week by week, topic by topic, how to prepare themselves to participate more prayerfully. So helpful were these 32 talks that they were soon published and have since been reprinted countless times in numerous countries and languages, helping generations of Catholics to deepen their devotion during Mass. In these pages, you'll discover: What to do when Mass becomes boring and "routine" How to achieve a genuine—not superficial—stillness The one indispensible element for a deep liturgical life How to gain control over your wandering attention One tendency we must overcome when listening to Scripture readings The real meaning of "keeping holy" the Sabbath—and its special importance for the family The importance of listening, and the inner barriers that prevent it Why it's good to arrive early at Mass whenever possible The true significance of standing and kneeling in church And dozens of other practical ways to enrich your worship

A treasury of spiritual wisdom on how to prepare your mind, body, and heart for Mass from one of the twentieth century's great theologians, Meditations before Mass is Romano Guardini's smart and beautiful guide to spiritual preparation for the source and summit of Christian worship. Meditations before Mass is a wise, pastoral, and timeless classic on preparing for Mass--it is an example of twentieth-century theologian Romano Guardini at his very best. Meditations before Mass was written before Vatican II, but its relevance has endured over the past sixty years. Not a "how to" book for either the old or the new Roman Rite, it is instead a spiritual feast for the mind and heart, and a guide for modern people who wish to make sense of the Church's feasts and liturgies. Meditations before Mass has helped thousands of readers participate more fully in Christian liturgy and continues to do so today.

In what promises to become a spiritual classic, Fr. Edward Looney's Meditations after Holy Communion guides your prayers during those intimate moments with the Lord following Holy Communion, elevating your soul and mind and leading you into a deeper relationship with Christ. Inspired by the work of Fr. Daniel Lord, S.J., Fr. Looney offers here a method of prayer that is sure to renew within you the practice of fruitful Eucharistic prayer. He will guide you through each Sunday of the year with meditations tied to the liturgical seasons, ensuring that you are aligned not only with Advent, Christmas, Lent, Easter, and Ordinary Time, but also with the universal Church, now and throughout the ages. Each meditation introduces you to a topic for reflection and provides points to ponder and a short prayer. These guided meditations are especially helpful in those moments when you return to your pew, recollect after

Follow the spiritual wisdom of one of the twentieth century’s great theologians, Romano Guardini, as you prepare your mind, body, and heart for Mass. Guardini’s sacramental imagination influenced the liturgical renewal that took shape in the Second Vatican Council, and has been highly praised by Pope Benedict XVI and Pope Francis. Romano Guardini’s Meditations before Mass and Sacred Signs collects two seminal works from Guardini that are both filled with brief meditations on the fundamental elements and actions of the liturgy. Taken together, these two classics provide readers with a treasure-trove of reflections on the source and summit of Christian life—The Eucharist. Romano Guardini’s Meditations before Mass is a set of thirty-two reflections on what the Mass asks of us, and how we might properly respond. The book is divided into two parts: Part one focuses on cultivating the appropriate dispositions we need to bring to Mass. Part two delves into the various dimensions of the Mass and the movements that demand our attention. Sacred Signs goes on to explore in twenty-six short meditations the actual things of the Mass as they are used sacramentally—water and wine, kneeling and standing, altar and linens—and the ways that they make spiritual and eternal realities visible. Likened to a mother who teaches her child to do the sign of the Cross, and a teacher who instructs his student as to the meaning of the act, Guardini hoped that he “could bring the sacred signs to life” for the reader. Together, these works reorient our attention and understanding so that, in Guardini’s words, “the gaze lifted to the altar (can) grow inwardly quiet and receptive to holiness.” Though both works were written before Vatican II, their relevance has only grown over the years. They are a spiritual feast for the mind and heart, and a guide for modern people who wish to make sense of the Church’s feasts and liturgies. Romano Guardini’s Meditations before Mass and Sacred Signs are wise, pastoral, and timeless classics on preparing for and savoring the Mass from a theological giant at his very best, yet relatable and meaningful to everyday Catholics who want to deepen their worship through the Mass.

Practical, straightforward, and wise, this book will deepen your devotion at Mass. You'll learn to quiet your soul, concentrate your mind, and open yourself to the bountiful graces Christ offers you in the Mass.

“As poet, prophet, and priest, Thurman builds upon a powerful legacy of ancestral hope: belief in a liberating God who can always be found ‘in and among the struggling.’” —Yolanda Pierce A universal beacon of hope and endurance for people of all faiths seeking to meet the challenges, uncertainties, and joys of life Howard Thurman’s Meditations of the Heart is a beautiful collection of over 150 prayers, poems, and meditations on prayer, community, and the joys and rituals of life by one of our greatest spiritual leaders. Thurman, a spiritualist and mystic, was renowned for the quiet beauty of his reflections on humanity and our relationship with God. In a new foreword, Yolanda Pierce, dean of Howard University’s School of Divinity, calls attention to the justice-centered theological framework of Thurman’s words. Pierce notes how Thurman brings to light an image of God who can always be found “in and among the struggling,” both in times of weariness and in strength. First written for and shared with his congregation of the Church for the Fellowship of All Peoples in San Francisco, California, these meditations sustain, elevate, and inspire. They are a universal beacon of hope and endurance for people of all faiths seeking to meet the challenges, uncertainties, and joys of everyday life with a renewed and liberating faith.

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