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Below is a list and an outline of various
books and sources of inspiration and ideas
which one can refer to and also integrate
in the writing of Catholic articles and
posting in Catholic blogs.
Writing Catholic articles does not mean
focusing on only purely Catholic content.
Since the Church has opened its windows to
an open and a more ecumenical and interreligious
spirit, she has integrated some of the facts
also discovered and learned by the social
sciences and other Christian churches and
denominations. The following list of books
and resources given here, can help us write
from a broader and wider perspective. What
is important though is that we determine
which ideas are congruent to our Catholic
values system, and not to integrate anything
that undermines our basic core beliefs.
On life, love and spiritual growth
- The Road Less Travelled: A New Psychology
of Love, Traditional Values and Spiritual
Growth by M. Scott Peck
- People of the Lie: The Hope for Healing
Human Evil by M. Scott Peck
- A Reason to Live! A Reason to Die!
A New Look at Faith in God by John Powell
- Only the Real Matters: Improving and
Enriching Life with Wisdom that Reveals
by Francis J. Kong [Gems and insights
from the Radio Program "Business Matters"]
- God's Power is for You: Reflections
on the Deeper Life by Wesley
L. Duewel
On Relationship and Community
- Making Friends: A Guide to Getting Along
with People by Andrew Matthews
- The Different Drum: The Creation of True
Community - the First Step to World Peace by
M. Scott Peck
On Personal Growth and Development
- Follow Your Heart: Finding Purpose in Your
Life and Work by Andrew Matthews
- Stay Confident by John Caunt
- Stress and the Search for Happiness: A
New Challenge for Christian Spirituality by
Susan Muto and Adrian vanKaam
- Healing the Father Relationship by Robert
DeGrandis
- Facing Fear: The Search for Courage by
Robert J. Furey
On Success
- If You Can't Climb the Wall, Build a Door!
Principles to Live By when Quitting is Not an
Option! by Dr. Charles Lever
- The Winning Attitude: Your Key to Personal
Success by John C. Maxwell
- A Better Way to Live by Og Mandino
- The Greatest Success in the World by
Og Mandino
- Success is Never Ending, Failure is
Never Final by Robert H. Schuller
On Leadership
- Cloud of Witnesses by Jim Wallis and
Joyce Hollyday
- Developing the Leaders Around You by
John C. Maxwell
- The Heart of a Leader: Insights on the
Art of Influence by Ken Blanchard
- Becoming a Person of Influence: How to
Positively Impact the Lives of Others by
John C. Maxwell and Jim Dornan
Brief reviews of selected books in
the list
Though all of the above books are truly
exceptional, five that will truly speak
to your heart are: Cloud of Witnesses,
The Heart of a Leader,The Different
Drum, The Road Less Travelled and A
Reason to Live! A Reason to Die!
Cloud of Witnesses is a book
that gives short biographical sketches
of people who witnessed to the Christian
faith with such intensity that many of
them willingly gave up their lives
for the cause of the faith. Some of
these Christians who were mentioned
in this book are: St. Francis of Assisi,
Martin Luther King, Jr., Oscar Romero,
Dorothy Day, and Four U.S. Martyrs.
The book is unique because the life
sketches of these Christian witnesses
and heroes are listed and categorized
according to the eight beatitudes
of the Gospel. Each Christian witness
or martyr reflected one of the beatitudes
with his very life and works.
The Heart of a Leader is a
very inspiring book that would really
influence one to seek leadership as
a cause and a mission for the service
of others. Although much of the
insights and wisdom is in the context
of business and corporate life, it can
be applied to life in general also. The
book is so inspiring that it makes
one's heart soar with great ideals
and a bright vision for the future.
The book has no special structure. Its
left page prints a wise saying or
insight while the right page elaborates
that wisdom in more detail through an
anecdote or corporate story.
The Different Drum is a very good
book because it speaks of community from
a perspective of universal values. One
of its basic message is that true community
is really a leaderless community. True
community is really a community of leaders
who are led by a vision and a mission -
like the search for peace and the cause
for life. The book gives insights on how
a community is born, grows, matures and
evolves into the genuine community wherein
each one is a leader following the vision
that united them and led them together as
one.
The Road Less Travelled is a truly
revolutionary book. It is revolutionary
because of its new insights into the
psychology of love, traditional values,
and spiritual growth. This book belongs
to a genre of writing called psycho-spirituality:
a form of writing that
integrates the insights of psychology and
the truths of Christianty. Those who are
interested in psychology will find in this
book a renewed interest and a fresh look
at the Christian faith. This is because
the modern discoveries of psychology which
speak of our present human experiences of
neuroses, depression, and experiences of
loss, are treated also from a Christian
perspective. This book will truly make
one see life at an angle that gives light
to the darkness we see in ourselves and
in others.
A Reason to Live! A Reason to Die!
is written by the Catholic author John
Powell. This is another book on psycho-spirituality
but more focused on the
context of Catholicism. Its basic message
to the reader is really the importance
of faith in life: most especially faith
in God. For those who have at one time
struggled with the aspect of faith in
their life, this book will help them
understand their experience better and
would shed light to their experience of
pain or loss. It will give the reader
indeed a sense of why there is a
reason to live and a reason to die.
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Way of Proceeding to Build a Catholic
Articles Web Site
One way of proceeding to build a Catholic
articles web site is where each member of
the family contributes his resources,
his abilities and talents, and his share
of the work.
Associate and affiliate products
and services to build a web site
Web hosting service, Bookstore service,
Computer items for sale, Information
service. See
Catholic Internet Mission
main page for affiliate logos.
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Various Books and Sources of Inspiration and Ideas
