Rare is the book that comes with
a pope’s endorsement
And rarer still in Pope Benedict XV’s day. Yet the Holy Father even
waxed enthusiastic over this title—perhaps because Benedict beheld, for
the first time, a book of St. Thomas’ teaching that was arranged for
Catholics with no theology or philosophy training. Wrote His Holiness in
his Preface:
“It was fitting that the singular wisdom of the Holy Doctor should
be made accessible not only to the clergy but to the faithful in
general.”
The Pope added that this book, compiled by esteemed Dominican Thomas
Pegues, “aptly accommodates the riches of the great genius to the
understanding of the less instructed [and] briefly and succinctly
expounds the doctrine.” He called Pegues’ knowledge of Aquinas
“masterly.”
Fr. Pegues takes two classic works—the Summa and the catechism—and
blends them into one of the most remarkable catechetical titles of the
20th century: The basic questions and tenets of the Faith—and after each
question, the answers from the great St. Thomas himself. The hundreds
of topics include some of the most widely misunderstood or distorted
Church teachings today. A tiny sampling:
Miracles: what they are, why they happen
Guardian angels (yes, they’re real, and Scriptural—and logical)
What Heaven and Hell will be like. Why Purgatory is part of God’s
plan
Why, and how, devils go about their work of destruction
Happiness, and how we can acquire it
The nature and purpose of each Sacrament
The difference between mortal and venial sin
Grace and the Holy Spirit, and how God works in our souls
At the last judgment, will the lives of both saved and damned be
revealed to all?
What are the cardinal virtues and their counterparts; how is each
practiced?
Prayer and devotions, and why they are both rational and
“necessary”
Explained, line by line: the Credo. Ditto the Ten Commandments
Our Lord: denied by moderns, or twisted into a nice but harmless
man. Aquinas plainly outlines who Christ was, explains His incarnation,
His knowledge and powers as He walked the earth, and details His
relation to God the Father and us.
“A book proclaiming the victory of the Church and the heroism of her
priests.”— Vatican Radio, 1960
by Fr. R. P. Pegues
This product will be in stock on Tuesday 30 November, 2010.
