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Seeking the Truth of Things

Seeking the Truth of Things:

Confessions of a (Catholic) Philosopher
Al Gini

ACTA Publications (0879464313)

September 2010

From the Publisher:

With humor, wit, penetrating self-revelation, Al Gini exposes the profound concerns that makes us human: the quest for meaning in our personal and professional lives, the desire for knowledge, the struggles between reason and faith—not by ruminations on theoretical debates, but in the context of an authentic life. —Barry L. Padgett, Professor of Philosophy and director of the Ethics and Social Justice Center, Bellarmine University

In this humorous but incisive introduction to the Socratic life, Al Gini makes bold claims that may yet establish him as the country's leading folk philosopher. —Daniel Born, author of The Birth of Liberal Guilt in the English Novel and editor of The Common Review

In this engaging personal narrative, Gini takes us through the life events and ideas that have shaped him as a "public philosopher." He reveals his passion for literature, and takes us through the sources of philosophical and religious inspiration that have made him one of the foremost catholic philosophers (with a lower case "c") in our day. —Ronald M. Green, Professor of Ethics and Human Values, and Mary Jean Green, Professor and French and Comparative Literature, Dartmouth College

Al Gini is a philosopher who writes for real people about things they actually care about: the meaning of work, moral courage, choice, sin, laughter, and leisure. In Seeking the Truth of Things, he explores his lifelong quest for wisdom. Part memoir, part introduction to key philosophical concepts, this book resoundingly establishes philosophy at the center and not the periphery of the public square.

Al Gini is a Professor of Business Ethics and Chair of the Department of Management in the School of Business Administration at Loyola University Chicago. He is also the cofounder and long time Associate Editor of Business Ethics Quarterly, the journal of the Society for Business Ethics. For over twenty-three years he has been the Resident Philosopher on National Public Radio’s Chicago affiliate, WBEZ-FM, and he regularly lectures to community and professional organizations on issues of business and ethics.

Glittering Vices

Glittering Vices:

A New Look at the Seven Deadly Sins and Their Remedies

Rebecca Konyndyk DeYoung

Brazos Press (1587432323)

June 2009

 

From the Publisher:

"Moral formation" and "character development" are popular buzzwords, but they are ineffective concepts without an understanding of what good character is and how to cultivate it. The traditional teachings on the "seven deadly sins," or capital vices, compiled by saints such as Augustine, Pope Gregory I, and Aquinas, offer a strong foundation for recognizing virtues to cultivate and vices to avoid.

Unfortunately, contemporary culture trivializes, psychologizes, or even dismisses the seven vices as if they have no serious moral or spiritual implications. Glittering Vices clears that misconception with a brief history of the vices and an informative chapter on each "deadly sin." Readers gain practical understanding of how the vices shape our culture and why gluttony, lust, sloth, and others are, in fact, incredibly destructive. Through this eye-opening book, readers will be able to correctly identify and eliminate the deeply rooted patterns of sin that are work in their lives.

Winsome and wise, Glittering Vices is intriguing for any reader interested in spiritual disciplines and character formation. Its rich content makes it useful in undergraduate and seminary ethics courses as well.

"This book is a treat for the mind and a tonic for the soul, recovering and refining riches in the Christian tradition almost lost from view. It is not often that one reads a work that is as intellectually deep and sharp as this one, but which is also intensely practical: helping its readers become the persons they were created to be."—C. Stephen Evans, Baylor University

"Glittering Vices is a lucid, historically informed, and well-illustrated exploration of the seven deadly vices. DeYoung's book will unquestionably help teachers, students, and laypersons toward the Socratic and Christian goal of self-examination. This is an invaluable guide for anyone seeking self-understanding, spiritual growth, and philosophical insight."—W. Jay Wood, Wheaton College

"Rebecca DeYoung here gives us an in-depth, informing, and frequently fascinating look at the vices and why they glitter. For the believer, reading her words will become, in and of itself, an act of spiritual formation."—Phyllis Tickle, author of Greed

The Grace to Race

The Grace to Race:
The Wisdom and the Inspiration of the 80-Year-Old World Champion Triathlete Known as the Iron Nun

Sister Madonna Buder and Karin Evans

Simon & Schuster (1439177481)

October 2010

From the Publisher:

Sister Madonna Buder is 80 years old, has run more than 340 triathlons, and doesn't know what all the fuss is about. In The Grace to Race, she shares the no-nonsense spirit and deep faith that inspired her extraordinary journey from a prominent St. Louis family to a Catholic Convent and finally to championship finish lines all over the world.

As a beautiful young woman, she became an elegant equestrian and accomplished amateur actress. But as she describes in this intimate memoir, she had a secret plan as early as 14: she wanted to devote her life to God. After being courted by the most eligible bachelors in her hometown, she chose a different path and became a Sister of the Good Shepherd.

She lived a mostly cloistered life as a Nun until her late forties, when a Priest suggested she take a run on the beach. She dug up a pair of shorts in a pile of donated clothes, found a pair of second-hand tennis shoes, and had a second epiphany. This time, she discovered the spiritual joy of pushing her body to the limit and of seeing God's natural world in all its splendor.

More than thirty years later, she is known as the Iron Nun for all the triathlons she has won. Just five years ago, the age 75–79 category was created for her at the Hawaiian Ironman in Kona, where she completed a 2.4-mile swim, a 112-mile bike ride, and a full 26.2-mile marathon in record time. Now she has set her sights on a new goal: inaugurating another new Ironman age group, 80–84, in 2010.

Sister Madonna holds dozens of records, has broken dozens of bones, and tells of dozens of miracles and angels that propelled her to a far-flung race. "It is my faith that has carried me through life's ups and downs," she writes. "Whenever injured, I wait for the Lord to pick me up again and set me on my feet, confidently reminding Him, 'God, you know, my intent is to keep running toward you.'"

The Grace to Race is the courageous story of a woman who broke with convention, followed her heart, and found her higher mission. 

Lit

Lit:

A Memoir

Mary Karr

HarperOne (006056996)

June 2010

From the Publisher:

Mary Karr’s bestselling, unforgettable sequel to her beloved memoirs The Liars’ Club and Cherry—and one of the most critically acclaimed books of the year—Lit is about getting drunk and getting sober; becoming a mother by letting go of a mother; learning to write by learning to live.

The Boston Globe calls Lit a book that “reminds us not only how compelling personal stories can be, but how, in the hands of a master, they can transmute into the highest art." The New York Times Book Review calls it “a master class on the art of the memoir” in its Top 10 Books of 2009 Citation. Michiko Kakutani calls it “a book that lassos you, hogties your emotions and won’t let you go” in her New York Times review. And Susan Cheever states, simply, that Lit is “the best book about being a woman in America I have read in years."

In addition to the New York Times, Lit was named a Best Book of 2009 by the New Yorker (Reviewer Favorite), Entertainment Weekly (Top 10), Time (Top 10), the Washington Post, the San Francisco Chronicle, the Chicago Tribune, the Christian Science Monitor, Slate, the St. Louis Post Dispatch, the Cleveland Plain Dealer, and the Seattle Times.

The Liars' Club brought to vivid, indelible life Mary Karr's hardscrabble Texas childhood. Cherry, her account of her adolescence, "continued to set the literary standard for making the personal universal" (Entertainment Weekly). Now Lit follows the self-professed blackbelt sinner's descent into the inferno of alcoholism and madness—and to her astonishing resurrection.

Karr's longing for a solid family seems secure when her marriage to a handsome, Shakespeare-quoting blueblood poet produces a son they adore. But she can't outrun her apocalyptic past. She drinks herself into the same numbness that nearly devoured her charismatic but troubled mother, reaching the brink of suicide. A hair-raising stint in "The Mental Marriott," with an oddball tribe of gurus and saviors, awakens her to the possibility of joy and leads her to an unlikely faith. Not since Saint Augustine cried, "Give me chastity, Lord—but not yet!" has a conversion story rung with such dark hilarity.

Lit is about getting drunk and getting sober; becoming a mother by letting go of a mother; learning to write by learning to live. Written with Karr's relentless honesty, unflinching self-scrutiny, and irreverent, lacerating humor, it is a truly electrifying story of how to grow up—as only Mary Karr can tell it. 

Bless This House

Bless This House:
Prayers for Families and Children
Gregory Wolfe & Suzanne M. Wolfe

Jossey-Bass (0787972975)

2004

From the Publisher:

An excellent foundation for all families desiring to begin, renew, or deepen their spiritual journey together, Bless This House features dozens of prayers appropriate for both everyday and special events, including mealtimes, bedtime, holidays, and religious celebrations, as well as prayers for siblings, pets, and the ill or dying. With wisdom and practical advice, parents Gregory and Suzanne Wolfe provide helpful suggestions for introducing the concept of prayer to young minds and dealing with potential obstacles like boredom or short attention spans. Teaching our children to pray opens the door for their spiritual development, but just as importantly, it becomes a path to spiritual renewal for parents as well.