Mike Aquilina

The Fathers of the Church

revealing ancient christian symbols

Signs & mysteries

Dion DiMucci

Dion

Known for his hit songs The Wanderer and Runaround Sue in the 1960s, Dion continued to make great music while slowly returning to his Catholic roots. His hard-won wisdom filters through his stories.

The Wanderer Talks Truth : (stories, Humor & Music)

Exploring Mary's Pivotal Role from Age to Age

History's Queen

“Whenever you enter a town and they receive you, eat what is set before you; heal the sick in it and say to them, ‘The kingdom of God has come near to you.’” —Luke 10:8-9 When Jesus sent seventy disciples on ahead of him, part of their mission was to heal the sick. In fact, they were supposed to heal the sick before they preached the Gospel. Best-selling author Mike Aquilina calls this command the healing imperative. And it’s an imperative that ushered in the world of modern medicine. The Healing Imperative: The Early Church and the Invention of Medicine as We Know It reconstructs the fascinating history of a uniquely Christian institution: the hospital. Underlining how the virtues of charity and hospitality motivated the first generations of Christians, along with Jesus’ explicit command to heal the sick, Aquilina shows just how revolutionary the actions of Christian doctors and nurses were and how they transformed society in ways that still reverberate today. The radical developments in health care spearheaded by Christians influenced culture, society, and civilization. As The Healing Imperative proves, now more than ever, the compassion of Christians is needed to guide the world of medicine. Jesus’ command still resonates, and Aquilina urges us to respond.

The Healing Imperative: The Early Church and the Invention of Medicine as We Know It

For the Church Fathers, friendship was at the heart of the Gospel. It was the way to salvation and the most effective means of evangelization. God had taken flesh in order to befriend mankind. Jesus had called his Apostles friends. The first Christians, in turn, spread salvation through friendships of their own. Evangelizing the world was done through one friend bringing another into the Church—where both could be friends with God. Friendship and the Fathers brings together, for the first time, the Fathers’ doctrine and stories of friendship—mostly in their own words. You’ll meet many giants of the early Church, including Minucius Felix, and walk with him as he brings a pagan friend to faith. Basil and Gregory, best friends from school whose friendship was shattered and then restored. Ambrose, who encouraged his clergy to cultivate strong friendships. Augustine, whose grief for a lost friend led him to profound insights—and whose friendship with St. Jerome was fraught with emotional baggage. Rabanus Maurus, the great biblical commentator and writer of hymns, whose counsels on friendship have never before appeared in English.

Friendship and the Fathers: How the Early Church Evangelized

Michael P. Murphy

Jim Daniels

Orlando Ricardo Menes

Philip Metres

Maryann Corbett

Pat Brisson

Joshua Hren

Kim Bridgford

Daye Phillippo

Sheryl St. Germain

Kathleen Marks

Susan Signe Morrison

Stephen Gibson

Jill Pelaez Baumgaertner

Susan L. Miller

Barbara Crooker

Paul Willis

Dean Kostos

Pablo Medina

Gail White

Maria Mazziotti Gillan

Lynn Domina

Jeremiah Webster

Ned Balbo

Richard Cole

Jerry Harp

George Klawitter

C. X. Dillhunt

Julie L. Moore

Debra Bruce

James Matthew Wilson

D. S. Martin

Maryanne Hannan

Leonard Kress

Margaret Rozga

Joseph Bathanti

Richard Spilman

Tyler Farrell

Sharif Elmusa

Chelsea Martinez-Casiano

P. S. Dean

Alan Berecka

Tim Bete

Kathleen Bradley

Mary Buchinger

Roxana L. Cazan

Yuan Changming

Erica Charis-Molling

Joanna Currey

Jessica G. de Koninck

Dominic Gideon

Ed Granger

Lois Marie Harrod

Anne M. Higgins

Thomas Holahan

Siham Karami

Elaine Kehoe

Michael Angel Martin

Rhonda Miska

Robin Amelia Morris

Elizabeth Murawski

Stella Nesanovich

Matthew C. Nickel

Barry Peters

Mia Pohlman

Christopher Poore

Dennis Rhodes

Michael D. Riley

Lisa Toth Salinas

Nicholas Samaras

Janna Schledorn

Rita A. Simmonds

Sofia M. Starnes

Sophia Stid

Carole Stone

Maxine Susman

Maria Terrone

Brian Volck

Mark C. Watney

R. Bratten Weiss

Aleisa Zoecklin

Cydnee Devereaux

Jake Oresick

Mary Ladany

Juditha Dowd

Shanna Powlus Wheeler

Mia Schilling Grogan

New poems, translations, interviews, and book reviews in a yearly literary journal for Catholic Poetry.

: a Journal of Catholic Poetry

Presence

The early Church faced its share of villains -- persecutors like Nero and Julian, heretics like Marcion and Arius. And what good were they? Plenty, say the Church Fathers. The threat of persecution made Christians strong and bold. As noted author Mike Aquilina demonstrates in Villains of the Early Church: And How They Made Us Better Christians, the menace of heresy made Christians smarter—and deepened their knowledge of the divine mysteries. The villains of the ancient world proved the mettle of heroes like Peter and Paul, Irenaeus and Athanasius. Treachery and adversity inspired the Fathers' clearest teaching, most entertaining invective, and more than a few memorable jokes. The time of villains -- and heroes -- is hardly over. Through Villains of the Early Church, you'll learn how you can keep your good humor through trials and opposition, and all the while grow sharper in doctrine and warmer in devotion.

And how They Made Us Better Christians

Villains of the Early Church

James L. Papandrea

Ancient Rome’s brutal culture exploited the weak and considered human life expendable. Women were used as property; unwanted children were left on the streets to die. Four centuries later, even ordinary men and women prospered in what had become a vigorous new Christian society – a society that served the vulnerable, exalted women, treasured virtue, and loved peace. Faith had triumphed. Truth was proclaimed. And on this rock-solid foundation, Christian society flourished in the West for the next 1500 years. These eye-opening pages document the many ways in which Christians penetrated and civilized that debased Roman empire, introducing then-radical notions such as the equal dignity of women, respect for life, protection of the weak and vulnerable, and the obligation of rulers to serve those they rule and maximize their freedom. Here you’ll learn about the seven specific areas where any paganism, ancient or modern, is particularly vulnerable. They provide a roadmap for modern Christians to reclaim for the Faith our own neo-pagan modern culture. Facing an overwhelmingly dark and hostile culture, Rome’s early Christians took the steps necessary to transform it. Their struggles and the hard lessons they learned – documented here – afford us hope that, by imitating their example, we may do the same for our culture today.

...And Must Do So Again

How Christianity Saved Civilization

Lisa M. Hendey

Mark S. Sullivan

For nearly two decades, St. Monica prayed for her wayward son. Years and years of prayers, seemingly unanswered. Countless tears shed with no relief. Yet she would not give up. That very act of persistent prayer blessed the entire Church, for we have all benefited from the conversion of her son, Augustine, who became one of the most revered saints of all time. Parents of any age or at any stage can cultivate the same virtues in prayer that St. Monica discovered during her long wait for God's answer for her child. This devotion includes eighteen contemporary reflections, meditations taken from the writings of St. Augustine, and prayers adapted from the liturgy and other ancient sources. Don't give up. Persistence in prayer can change everything - for you, your children, and maybe even the world. St. Monica and the Power of Persistent Prayer also contains a Foreword by Lisa Hendey, the founder and editor of CatholicMom.com and the author of A Book of Saints for Catholic Moms. Book jacket.

St. Monica and the Power of Persistent Prayer

“Angels are a large part of reality and, as with other large parts of reality—speeding Mack trucks, for example, or looming brick walls—we benefit greatly from their service, and we ignore them at our peril.”—From the Introduction Angels are everywhere—as a matter of fact, right at your side. Forget the sweet-faced cherubs of popular culture, however, and brace yourself for a far more potent reality: powerful heavenly beings who play a significant role in the personal drama of daily life—your life.

Angels of God: The Bible, the Church and the Heavenly Hosts

Getting to know the Church Fathers means getting to know our own roots. It means knowing more deeply who we are as we learn more and more about who they are. The early Christians are our ancestors, our common genealogy, our family. When we look to our roots, what do we see? That's what Mike Aquilina shows you in this book. The Fathers managed to pull off an amazing achievement. They converted the pagan world in a mere two and a half centuries. They did it without any resources, without any social or political power. They did it with the most primitive communications media. Yet their Church sustained a steady growth rate of 40 percent per decade over the course of those centuries. Maybe there's something we can learn from them. This book is a journey into that world, a tour where your guides are the Fathers.

Why the Early Christians Still Matter and Always Will

Faith of Our Fathers

Imagine the dangerous life of an early Christian. You've embraced your newfound faith in Christ but fear the risk of persecution or death at the hands of the pagans living around you. Then a trusted friend tells you about some of Jesus' followers who secretly meet. He whispers into your ear, "Look for a fish carved in a paving stone" by a certain home on the Via Tiburtina. You smile in gratitude. Still today, modern society recognizes those Christian symbols that kept the early Christians safely connected: they appear on churches, bumper stickers, mugs -- even mints and stuffed animals. Yet we are often ignorant of the rich meaning of these symbols: their origins in Scripture, in ancient culture, and in the preaching of the Church Fathers. In this book, noted author Mike Aquilina conducts an intriguing and insightful tour of the symbols that expressed the life and devotion of the Church through the first four centuries of its existence. He explains how Christians freely borrowed pagan and Jewish symbols, giving them new, distinctly Christian meanings. Recover the zeal of our spiritual ancestors as you learn to read their symbolic language -- and discover the impact the symbols still have on your life today. More than a hundred illustrations, reproduced by artist Lea Marie Ravotti from the ancient originals, beautifully complement the text. View a mulitmedia presentation and listen to an interview of the author here.

Revealing Ancient Christian Symbols

Signs and Mysteries

Donald Wuerl, Cardinal

Examines the biblical origins of the fasts and feasts that are part of the Catholic faith, from Christmas and Easter to the Solemnity of the Most Holy Trinity and the Feast of the Holy Angels.

How the Church Year Forms Us as Catholics

The Feasts

In his previous release, you were invited to a year long retreat with the Church Fathers; now, Mike Aquilina presents a new volume of contemplations and prayers about those most mysterious of all created beings: the Angels. Drawing again from the deep well of the Fathers' wisdom, Aquilina has compiled a year's worth of reflections on the Nine Choirs of Angels. A Year With The Angels invites you to discover the authority and strength of the Heavenly Host. Angels embody virtues, graces, and knowledge of the Truth because they stand before the very Throne of God. Among the Angels' responsibilities are governing the universe and the movements of nature, defending creation from the attacks of the devil, and acting as messengers of God to mankind. This year, learn to appreciate our unique relationship with the Angels - especially those assigned to protect us during our sojourn on earth. What better protectors and intercessors could we ask for than the first of all creatures who have beheld the face of God from their very beginning? Beautifully crafted pages, with durable Premium UltraSoft dual tone binding, ribbon marker, gold edges.

Daily Meditations with the Messengers of God

A Year with the Angels

Why did the author pick the popes you’ll meet in the pages of this book? Why not Gregory I, whom many would call the greatest pope of all time? Why not Leo X, who was pope at the beginning of the Protestant Reformation? Why not Leo XIII, who boldly stood up for the rights of workers? Every pope is by definition a remarkable man. But the popes whose stories you’ll read here were chosen because they reveal how the papacy developed. They show us how Christ kept his promise to his bride, the Church, not only in her health but also in her sickness. The great popes advanced our understanding of Christian doctrine. But even more remarkable, the worst popes could do nothing to damage the teaching of the Church. That’s why, even in its darkest moments, the story of the papacy is a story of triumph. And that’s why it’s worth knowing these twelve popes.

Their Lives, Our Lessons

Good Pope, Bad Pope

What did the first Christians believe about the Eucharist? How did they follow Jesus' command, "Do this in remembrance of me"? How did they celebrate the Lord's Day? What would they recognize in today's Mass? The answers may surprise you. In The Mass of the Early Christians, respected author, scholar, and television host Mike Aquilina reveals the Church's most ancient Eucharistic beliefs and practices. Using the words of the early Christians themselves -- from many documents and inscriptions -- Aquilina traces the history of the Mass from Jesus' lifetime through the fourth century. That the Mass stood at the center of the Church's life is evident in the Scriptures, as well as the earliest Christian sermons, letters, artwork, tombstones, and architecture. Even the pagans bore witness to the Mass in the records of their persecutions. These legacies from the early Church bear witness to the same worship Catholics know today: the altar, the priest, the chalice of wine, the bread, the Sign of the Cross ... the "Lord, have mercy" ... the "Holy, holy, holy" ... and the Communion.

The Mass of the Early Christians, 2nd Edition

Christopher Bailey

From medieval Christian piety to contemporary popular culture, the authors provide an intriguing historical study of the lore that arose around the Holy Grail.

Quest for the Real Presence

The Grail Code

In his previous release, you were invited to a year long retreat with the Church Fathers; now, Mike Aquilina presents a new volume of contemplations and prayers about those most mysterious of all created beings: the Angels. Drawing again from the deep well of the Fathers' wisdom, Aquilina has compiled a year's worth of reflections on the Nine Choirs of Angels. A Year With The Angels invites you to discover the authority and strength of the Heavenly Host. Angels embody virtues, graces, and knowledge of the Truth because they stand before the very Throne of God. Among the Angels' responsibilities are governing the universe and the movements of nature, defending creation from the attacks of the devil, and acting as messengers of God to mankind. This year, learn to appreciate our unique relationship with the Angels - especially those assigned to protect us during our sojourn on earth. What better protectors and intercessors could we ask for than the first of all creatures who have beheld the face of God from their very beginning? The beautiful Premium UltraSoft gift edition features two-tone sewn binding, ribbon marker, gold edges, and designed interior pages.

Mike Aquilina

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