What can the lay person learn from the life of a monk? Solitude and Silence are two pillars of monastic life that many people quickly point to as the hardest and most confusing parts of this kind of religious consecration. However, the great spiritual writer Thomas à Kempis, author of The Imitation of Christ, helps us to understand that all Christians are called to some solitude and silence in our lives while not taking on a complete eremitical life.

Brother Lawrence was a 17th century Christian who had a dramatic spiritual awakening at the age of 18. Seeing a tree in winter, his soul suddenly opened to the presence of God. Within six years he had entered a Carmelite monastery in Paris, where he worked chiefly in the kitchen, cooking and cleaning. He practiced a simple and natural method. He merely turned his attention to the Divine Presence available at all times during any activity. He reports that he was as fully present with God while washing dishes in the kitchen as he was when partaking of the sacrament in worship.

Sometimes discernment seems complicated, and we struggle to “be still” to listen to God’s voice. Following the death of his spiritual director, St. Alphonsus Liguori penned timeless advice in a letter to one of his spiritual daughters, and it became the famous work titled Uniformity with God’s Will. Now, Dan Burke breaks open St. Alphonsus’s 18th-century classic for you. He intersperses relevant explanations and insights within the text of this great saint and includes reflection questions for each chapter.

We live in an age characterized by agitation and lack of peace. What must we do to overcome the moments of fear and distress which assail us? This is what is taught in this simple, yet profound little treatise on peace of head. Taking concrete examples from our everyday life, the author invites us to respond in a gospel fashion to the upsetting situations we must all confront. Since peace of heart is a pure gift of God, it is something we should seek, pursue, and ask him for without cease. This book is here to help us in that pursuit.

The Practice of the Presence of God is a collection of the teachings of Brother Lawrence of the Resurrection (Nicolas Herman, c. 1614 - 1691), a 17th-century Carmelite friar. The book consists of 16 short letters, a collection of spiritual maxims, four conversations written down by Father Joseph de Beaufort and a brief bio, most likely by de Beaufort. The theme of the work is the cultivation and development of an awareness of the presence of God.

Centering prayer is the path to a wonderful and radical new way of seeing the world. It is not, as is sometimes thought, simply an act of devotional piety, nor is it a Christianized form of other meditation methods. Cynthia Bourgeault here cuts through the misconceptions to show that centering prayer is in fact a pioneering development within the Christian contemplative tradition.

This classic work from Thomas à Kempis, author of The Imitation of Christ, is now available in English for the first time. It is a simple truth that, without the virtue of humility, we cannot enter the kingdom of heaven. It simply cannot be done. Just as pride is the root and source of all sin, so is humility, the foundational virtue in which all other virtues must be grounded if they are to bear fruit. Humility is the heartbeat of the saints. It is the virtue that conforms us most closely to Christ.

A true treasure of spiritual insights, this little book contains the remarkable meditations on The Agony of Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane by St. Padre Pio of Pietrelcina, the stigmatist priest.

The way to perfection is simple - to unite one’s will with God’s, putting into action the prayer “Thy will be done". In this precious short work, Uniformity with God's Will, St. Alphonsus Liguori explains the importance of conforming one’s will to God’s and how to do so; how God is glorified by our resignation to his will even more than by our acts; how to gain peace of mind and serenity by trusting in God, accepting what he wills for our lives, and following his commands.

In a time when technology penetrates our lives in so many ways and materialism exerts such a powerful influence over us, Robert Cardinal Sarah presents a bold book about the strength of silence. The modern world generates so much noise, he says, that seeking moments of silence has become both harder and more necessary than ever before. Silence is the indispensable doorway to the divine, explains the cardinal in this profound conversation with Nicolas Diat, and he seeks to restore to silence its place of honor and importance.

The 12 virtues we must all acquire to be happy in this world and to save our souls. The 12 Steps to Holiness and Salvation is compiled from the writings of St. Alphonsus Liguori and is considered one of the classic works of spirituality. St. Alphonsus reviews the 12 key virtues: love, hope, faith, love of God, love of neighbor, poverty, chastity, obedience, meekness and humility, mortification, recollection, prayer, and love of the cross.

Probably the finest book ever written about the rosary, The Secret of the Rosary appeals to all ages. It shows the great spiritual power of the rosary, which is appreciated by few, and tells why the rosary is the most important private prayer.

The Eucharist is God dwelling among us today. And so, today I say to you, with Moses, David, and Joshua... “Consecrate yourself today to the Lord...that He may bestow upon you a blessing this day.”33 Days to Eucharistic Glory is the first guide to Eucharistic Consecration. I believe it is time we consecrated ourselves to Jesus in the Eucharist—it is time for a Eucharistic Consecration.

We are constantly being formed by the world around us. To be formed by Jesus will require us to become his apprentice. To live by what the first Christian disciples called a Rule of Life—a set of practices and relational rhythms that slow us down and open up space in our daily lives for God to do what only God can do—transforms the deepest parts of us to become like him.

With St. Teresa of Avila’s masterpiece The Interior Castle as his guide, best-selling author Dan Burke takes you on an illuminating journey through the seven levels of spiritual progress, explaining what God is accomplishing within your soul at each stage, as well as the finely tailored demonic strategies applied to throw you off your path. You’ll learn how the devil is as active in your prayer life as you are, and how the saints were able to counter Satan as he adapted his schemes to correspond with where they were on their spiritual journeys.

Brother Lawrence was a 17th century Christian who had a dramatic spiritual awakening at the age of 18. Seeing a tree in winter, his soul suddenly opened to the presence of God. Within six years he had entered a Carmelite monastery in Paris, where he worked chiefly in the kitchen, cooking and cleaning. He practiced a simple and natural method. He merely turned his attention to the Divine Presence available at all times during any activity. He reports that he was as fully present with God while washing dishes in the kitchen as he was when partaking of the sacrament in worship.

Brother Lawrence was a man of humble beginnings who discovered the greatest secret of living in the kingdom of God here on earth. It is the art of “practicing the presence of God in one single act that does not end.” He often stated that it is God who paints Himself in the depths of our souls. We must merely open our hearts to receive Him and His loving presence.

The Practice of the Presence of God is a collection of the teachings of Brother Lawrence of the Resurrection (Nicolas Herman, c. 1614 - 1691), a 17th-century Carmelite friar. The book consists of 16 short letters, a collection of spiritual maxims, four conversations written down by Father Joseph de Beaufort and a brief bio, most likely by de Beaufort. The theme of the work is the cultivation and development of an awareness of the presence of God.

Nicholas Herman (c. 1605-1691) was born in Lorraine, France and served as a cook and shoe repairer at a Carmelite monastery. He was only a lay member of the order, and walked with a limp from injuries incurred as a soldier, yet his private thoughts provide a wellspring of devotional insight and refreshment.

Brother Lawrence lived through the drudgeries of monastery kitchen duty during the turbulence of 1600s France. Joni Eareckson Tada suffered a terrible accident that broke her neck and left her paralyzed. This tragedy led her from a life of distant faith to a life as a devout Christian, and she later became a worldwide influence and disability rights activist, sharing her experiences of suffering with grace. In both their lives, they each found the secret to peace, joy, and a close personal walk with God.