Life During Jesus' Time transports you to the world that shaped Christianity. In 12 lectures, you will navigate the streets Jesus walked, enter the temples the disciples attended, and explore the sociopolitical context in which they lived. Fr. Collins, a renowned New Testament scholar, leads you on this journey with wisdom and wit.

St. Francis of Assisi has for decades been depicted in illustrations, paintings, and even garden birdbaths as a saint with a love for animals. But he is not the only Christian saint associated with animals. In this series of lectures you will approach these stories as hagiography - that is, stories of the saints intended to edify, to communicate a spiritual meaning to their audience.

Let one of America's foremost liturgical scholars lead you to a deeper understanding of Catholic beliefs about mortality. If you are a pastor, or if someone in your life is sick or dying, this powerful course is for you. Over the course of our lives, we all mourn the losses of loved ones. We all, at the end, confront death. Despite its certainty, many regard mortality with fear and try to avoid these events. The Catholic Church instead faces this reality with hope, assuring men and women of their final destiny: to live with God forever.

The sacraments are seven enduring pillars of the faith, triumphantly revealing Christ alive in the world today. And yet few truly understand these signs of God's grace. Now, you can transform your understanding of the sacraments with this powerful course. Insightfully taught by liturgical expert Dr. Daniel Van Slyke, The Seven Sacraments will deliver you to the heart of the Catholic faith. Its unique approach will enlighten, inform, and inspire you.

St. John of the Cross is one of the most inspiring figures in the history of Christianity: a saint of profound faith, a compelling mystic, and an immensely gifted poet. Now, you can explore the life, teachings, writings, and reflections of St. John of the Cross.

This unforgettable course by modern spiritual master Fr. Howard Gray will change the way you see the Bible. For as long as humans have been around, we have found comfort in stories. In Great Biblical Stories: A Narrative Journey with Howard Gray, you will discover newfound theological and spiritual meaning in the Bible's great stories. By looking at the stories God uses in the Bible and developing an informed approach to the literature of faith, you will come to know him more personally.

From the age of the apostles to Vatican II, the Catholic Church has evolved and invigorated itself. Now, you can take a riveting journey through Church renewal and reform. When we first encounter the words reform and renewal in talking about the Catholic Church, we might think of Vatican II and the idea of aggiornamento - "updating". But the history of reform is nearly as old as the Church itself; indeed, one of the constants in Church history is change.

Meister Eckhart remains the outstanding representative of Germany’s medieval Rhineland mysticism. While our knowledge of Eckhart’s life is limited, we can see that he was an active mystic in his preaching, teaching, and writing. His boldness of speech is matched by his power to integrate what seem like irreconcilable opposites.

Capuchin Fr. Dan Crosby, master retreat leader, invites you to look anew at Jesus' call to discipleship, and at what that call means for us in our lives. Enjoy these talks and gain fresh insight into scripture and the Christian life.

Join Fr. John R. Donahue, S.J., one of Catholicism's leading Mark experts, in exploring the Gospel of Action. Christianity was at a crossroads. The great apostles Peter and Paul had died. Members of the original Christian communities had passed. Jesus' word might also soon be buried and forgotten. But it was Mark's good news - not Matthew's - that saved the faith.

In the final year before his death in 1996, Henri Nouwen wrote an account of the death of his friend Adam, a severely handicapped young man from L'Arche. In the story of Adam he found a way to describe his own understanding of the Gospel message. Adam could not speak or even move without assistance. Gripped by frequent seizures, he spent his life in obscurity. And yet, for Nouwen, he became his friend, teacher, and guide. It was Adam who led Nouwen to a new understanding of his faith and what it means to be Beloved of God.

A retreat with the Gospel of Matthew will enable you to spend prayerful time with Jesus Christ. Containing prayerful reflections, outstanding biblical scholarship, and an engaging presentation style, this audio retreat is brilliantly presented by Fr. Felix Just, SJ (PhD, Yale), an award-winning biblical retreat leader. His acclaimed conferences combine insightful examinations of Matthew's Gospel with three methods of biblical prayer: reflective meditation, imaginative contemplation, and centering prayer.

You will explore key themes in spiritual theology from a Catholic perspective. It draws on the spiritual masters as well as core truths of the Catholic faith to elucidate the experiences of prayer, darkness, faith, hope, and love. Fr. Goergen helps you appropriate the spiritual wisdom of centuries passed so that you might deepen your interior life and relationship to God. His expert guidance will prepare you to face the challenges presented by our world and the Catholic Church today.

Enter into the ancient world of the psalms in this essential audio course. You will explore the literary forms of the psalms, especially praise and lament. You will learn how the New Testament writers and early Christians used the psalms. The psalms have their origin in the worship and prayer of ancient Israel, and now you, too, can discover them as models and guides for your life of prayer.

Did you realize that such enduring expressions as "the patience of Job" and "nothing new under the sun" derive from the Wisdom literature of the Bible? Now you can explore the wisdom of such extraordinary books of the Bible as Proverbs, Job, Song of Songs, Psalms, Ecclesiastes, Sirach, and Wisdom of Solomon with top Scripture scholar and master teacher Fr. Michael Guinan, OFM, as your guide.