The Queue

I've made precious little progress through Perfectly Yourself in the midst of a hectic Lent, finishing only the first of the book's nine lessons. If I do not resume making progress, & more rapid progress, in the next week or two, I'll most likely abandon Perfectly Yourself & give another book it's place in the "Currently" division of the queue.

The Crusades Controversy is more of a pamphlet than a book, even shorter than Messy & Foolish, but was a highly illuminating read. It is well titled, being less about the Crusades & more about the staggeringly ill-informed contemporary controversy about the Crusades. I read The Crusades Controversy precisely because the study of Church history I'm facilitating in my parish is about to begin a three-part series called "Crusaders & Scholars," covering the years 1000-1299. Perhaps one day I'll read Maden's pre-9/11 textbook (since updated) A Concise History of the Crusades.

In the last two days, I also read the fifth chapter (of five), "From Acts of the Apostles to Revelation," of the coffee table/reference book National Geographic Who's Who In the Bible. I was pleased to discover it made little to add to my own knowledge of the early Church, though I was also saddened to think who far astray the ignorant might be led by such a volume.

Recently
Matthew Warner, Messy & Foolish: How to Make a Mess, Be a Fool, and Evangelize the World
Father John Riccardo, Heaven Starts Now: Becoming a Saint Day by Day
Thomas F. Madden, The Crusades Controversy: Setting the Record Straight
Jean-Pierre Isbouts, National Geographic Who's Who In the Bible: Unforgettable People and Timeless Stories from Genesis to Revelation ***a chapter***

Currently
Matthew Kelly, Perfectly Yourself: Discovering God's Dream for You

Presently
Norman Davies, Vanished Kingdoms: The Rise and Fall of States and Nations ***oft delayed***
Sherry A. Weddell, Forming Intentional Disciples: The Path to Knowing and Following Jesus
William E. Simon Jr., Great Catholic Parishes: How Four Essential Practices Make Them Thrive
Bishop Robert Barron, Seeds of the Word: Finding God in the Culture
Mike Aquilina, Understanding the Mass: 100 Questions, 100 Answers
Xavier Rynne, Vatican Council II
John W. O'Malley, What Happened at Vatican II
Pope Benedict XVI, Deus Caritas Est (God Is Love)
Pope Benedict XVI, Sacramentum Caritatis (The Sacrament of Charity)
Scott Hahn, A Father Who Keeps His Promises: God's Covenant Love in Scripture
Rosario Carello, Pope Francis Takes the Bus and Other Unexpected Stories
Father Mathias D. Thelen, Biblical Foundations for the Role of Healing in Evangelization
Richard Price, Clockers
Sir Richard Francis Burton, translator, "Sinbad the Sailor" from The Arabian Nights
Sir Ernest Shackleton, South: A Memoir of the Endurance Voyage
William F. Buckley Jr., The Unmaking of a Mayor
Margaret MacMillan, Paris 1919: Six Months That Changed the World
John le Carré, A Legacy of Spies