Table of Contents
Introduction 1
Book 1: What Do Catholics Believe? 5
Chapter 1: Catholicism 101 7
Chapter 2: Having Faith in God’s Revealed Word 39
Chapter 3: Alpha to Omega: Catholic Teachings on Creation, Original Sin, and End Times 55
Chapter 4: Believing in Jesus 67
Chapter 5: Who’s Who in Catholic Practice 91
Book 2: Living the Catholic Faith 107
Chapter 1: Worshipping Catholic Style 109
Chapter 2: Receiving the Sacraments 121
Chapter 3: Obeying the Rules — Catholic Law 163
Chapter 4: Loving and Honoring: The Ten Commandments 177
Chapter 5: Being Good When Sinning Is So Easy 193
Chapter 6: Growing Your Relationship with God: Pray without Ceasing 215
Chapter 7: Exploring the Church’s Stance on Some Sticky Issues 241
Book 3: Making Sense of the Catholic Mass 275
Chapter 1: Understanding Mass and Its Foundations 277
Chapter 2: Celebrating Mass 305
Chapter 3: The Tools of the Catholic Mass 333
Chapter 4: The Look and Sound of Mass — Architecture, Art, and Music 361
Chapter 5: The Church Calendar: A Look at the Liturgical Year 377
Book 4: Meeting Saints and Other Important Figures 401
Chapter 1: The Blessed Virgin Mary 403
Chapter 2: Understanding Sainthood and Angels 421
Chapter 3: Starting at the Beginning with Apostles and Evangelists 439
Chapter 4: Incredible Saints 455
Chapter 5: Life-Changing Saints Who Inspire Us 477
Chapter 6: Holy Martyrs 497
Chapter 7: Doctor’s Orders: Founding Religious Orders and Doctors of the Church 517
Chapter 8: Saints In Our Day and Age 535
Chapter 9: Women in the Bible — Eight Impactful Ladies 547
Book 5: All About His Holiness, the Pope 587
Chapter 1: Becoming and Leading as Pope 589
Chapter 2: St John Paul II — A Man for All Seasons 613
Chapter 3: Pope Francis — The People’s Pope 631
Index 643