15 Catholic books to get you through self-isolation

By Fr John Corrigan

When I was young, I would finish a glass of wine even when it was vinegar, and I would persevere with a book even when it was awful. Then I turned 30, which can be an occasion for epiphany. In my case, I resolved that life is too short to drink bad wine and read bad books. With that truism in mind, I present this humble Catholic reading plan. Its biases are glaring – most of the featured authors lived in the past 100 years, and many have an Australian connection. At 15 titles, my list in no way pretends to represent the scope of Catholic thought. Butstill it can serve a noble purpose: adapt its contents to your own, personalised, reading plan. Intentional reading is the surest way to read the best and avoid the rest.

This list of recommended reading is based on two much more ambitious projects by Fr John Hardon SJ and Fr John McCloskey. Google ‘Catholic Lifetime Reading Plan’ for more information – but don’t spend too much time online. Better to get lost in a good book!

THEOLOGY:

1. ‘ The Lord’

Romano Guardini

Before Pope Benedict wrote Jesus of Nazareth, there was Guardini’s The Lord, translated into English in 1954. In the words of the Pope Emeritus: ‘The Lord has not grown old, precisely because it still leads us to that which is essential, to that which is truly real: Jesus Christ Himself. That is why today this book still has a great mission.’

2. ‘ Essay on the Development of Christian Doctrine’

Bl John Henry Newman

A giant in his own lifetime, Cardinal Newman’s influence has only increased since his death. He could well be the first English-speaking Doctor of the Church. His so-called Essay on Development (a book, not an essay!) is perhaps Newman’s most original and enduring theological contribution.

3. ‘ Theology and Sanity’

Frank Sheed

Sheed (who admittedly lived in London but hailed from Sydney) is Australia’s answer to G.K. Chesterton and C.S. Lewis. He may not be as famous, but he is every bit their equal as an apologist, catechist, and popular theologian. Theology and Sanity is Sheed’s masterpiece: a profound but accessible synthesis of Catholic theology. HISTORY AND CULTURE:

4. ‘ Christianity and European Culture’

Christopher Dawson

Dawson, acclaimed as ‘the greatest English-speaking Catholic historian of the twentieth century,’ is undeservedly obscure. This collection of Dawson’s work ably demonstrates why he is so celebrated in history and cultural studies, and why he should be more widely known and read.

5. ‘The Catholic Revival in English Literature’

Ian Ker

Published in 2003, Ker’s survey of six great writers and Catholic converts – Newman, Hopkins, Belloc, Chesterton, Greene and Waugh – is surely destined to join the literary pantheon of modern classics. It is rightly described as ‘a masterpiece of literary criticism as well as a kind of theological primer.’

6. ‘Enthusiasm: A Chapter in the History of Religion’

Ronald Knox

The eminently readable Knox called Enthusiasm ‘the whole of [my] literary life; the unique child of [my] thought.’ It documents the history and development of Christian enthusiasm: from Montanism and Donatism to Jansenism and Quietism. Much more captivating and rewarding than it sounds! LIVES OF THE SAINTS:

7. ‘The Quiet Light’

Louis de Wohl

This historical novel was written at the Pope’s personal request. In 1948, Wohl, an internationally acclaimed author, was granted an audience with Pope Pius XII. He asked the Holy Father what he should write about next. ‘St Thomas Aquinas,’ the Pope replied, without hesitation. The Quiet Light is the result.

8. ‘Secrets of the Saints’

Henri Gheon

Gheon was an accomplished playwright and dramatist, who applied his craft to reinventing the traditional hagiography. Secrets of the Saints artfully depicts the human pathos and grace-filled triumphs of four great saints: St Margaret Mary Alacoque; St Thérèse of Lisieux; St John Bosco; and St Jean-Marie Vianney.

9. ‘Something Beautiful for God’

Malcolm Muggeridge

This is the book that introduced Mother Teresa to the world, and changed the world in the process. It is the fruit of a 1969 TV documentary by Muggeridge, a writer and journalist who was at various times an independent socialist, a British spy, and, ultimately, through Mother Teresa’s influence, a Catholic convert.

FICTION:

10. ‘Lord of the World’

Robert Hugh Benson

On at least two occasions – probably more – Pope Francis has encouraged journalists to read this obscure dystopian novel, published in 1907. Lord of the World depicts the rise of the Antichrist and the Final Battle described in John’s Apocalypse. Benson is eerily prescient in describing our own contemporary world.

11. ‘Father Elijah: An Apocalypse’

Michael O’Brien

This 1996 page-turner covers similar ground to Lord of the World, but it deserves its own entry. As thrilling as it is thoughtful, Father Elijah tells the story of David Schäfer, a holocaust survivor who converts to Catholicism, becomes a Carmelite friar, and is commissioned to confront and convert the Antichrist.

12. ‘Brideshead Revisited’

Evelyn Waugh

Waugh’s most popular novel, and not even his best (that honour belongs to Sword of Honour), Brideshead is the tragic and compelling tale of ‘divine grace operating on a group of diverse but closely connected characters.’ It’s also worth watching the 1981 television adaption, which is one of the finest TV series you’ll ever see. (But avoid, like the plague, Hollywood’s 2008 movie adaption. What a travesty!)

THE INTERIOR LIFE:

13. ‘This Tremendous Lover’

Eugene Boylan

Boylan was an Irish-born Cistercian monk who was founding superior of Tarrawarra Abbey in Australia. He was renowned for his spiritual direction and retreats: after his visit to Kentucky, Thomas Merton famously remarked, ‘This is the best retreat we ever had at Gethsemani.’ Published in 1946, This Tremendous Lover was an instant best-seller, and it endures as a modern classic, describing the length and breadth of God’s love for souls and His pursuit of each of us.

14. ‘Rediscover Catholicism’

Matthew Kelly

If Sheed is the Australian answer to Chesterton and Lewis, Kelly is his 21st century counterpart. Maybe Australia’s answer to Peter Kreeft and Scott Hahn? Published in 2002, Kelly’s Rediscover Catholicism is an acclaimed best-seller which inspires and equips its readers to foster personal holiness and engage in the modern apostolate.

15. ‘Prayer For Beginners’

Peter Kreeft

Kreeft is a professor of philosophy whose academic credentials are burnished by his popular writings in philosophy, theology and apologetics. In the tradition of St Thérèse’s ‘Little Way’ and Msgr Knox’s ‘Prayer of Stupidity,’ Kreeft’s Prayer for Beginners is aimed at ordinary souls who are sincere in their search for God.

Fr John Corrigan is a Priest of the Diocese of Ballarat

Originally Published as 'Fifteen Modern Classics: A Catholic Reading Plan' in Sequitur 2017 published by Catholic Vocations, Archdiocese of Melbourne.