Today on Kresta - June 4, 2010

Talking about the "things that matter most" on June 4

LIVE FROM THE RELIGIOUS BOOKSELLERS TRADE EXHIBIT

4:00 – Coached for Life
We hear a true account of how two high school football coaches molded an undistinguished group of young men into state champions in 1962, this book features a dramatic 40-year retrospective from the players themselves on how the principles instilled in them have continued to shape their lives in positive ways long after leaving the football field. The story is a testament to the profound impact leaders can have on other people’s lives, whether they are educators, coaches, business leaders, clergy, or counselors. Ed Flaherty is here to tell the story.

4:20 – Murder in the High Himalaya : Loyalty, Tragedy, and Escape from Tibet
For the last three years, award-winning investigative reporter Jonathan Green, funded partially by the Fund for Investigative Journalism and Investigative Reporters and Editors, has travelled to remote parts of the Himalaya researching the amazing story of the murder of a Tibetan nun. He introduces us to the disparate band of adventurers and survivors who were at the “rooftop of the world” that morning, as he seeks an answer for one woman’s life. This is the story that Chinese officials don't want the rest of the world to know. The investigation, uncovers a portrait of modern Tibet that raises enduring questions about morality, and how far people will go to achieve freedom.

4:40 – With Hearts Full of Joy: Following Christ the Redeemer
Jesus lived a life of announcing the kingdom of God. Some people converted upon hearing his message and others rejected him. For centuries the Church has proclaimed that the salvation Christ won for us is a gift . But what have we done with that gift? How well do we understand it? How are we living it? With Hearts Full of Joy: Following Christ the Redeemer is a book of reflections and questions on the topic of "plentiful redemption," a theme that the Redemptorists, founded by St. Alphonsus Liguori, preached to rich and poor alike. St. Liguori underwent tremendous conversion to know Christ the Redeemer. He learned that to love Christ required a conversion of mind and heart and undertook a lifestyle that would deepen his relationship to Jesus. His journey led him to walk away from a potentially lucrative career in law and embrace a lifestyle of poverty in service to the abandoned poor through preaching Christ's plentiful redemption. His legacy as a Doctor of the Church includes being the patron of confessors, the founder of what today is known as Moral Theology, and a man of deep prayer. We look at it with Fr. Matthew Kessler.

5:00 – My Sister Is Annoying: and Other Prayers for Children
Children say the most wonderful things! This book of prayers, by Fr. Joe Kempf and his furry friend, Big Al, is written the way children talk—and the way they think! My Sister is Annoying is a beautifully illustrated, fun way for children to talk to God about things that are important to them, such as the joy of playing outside, celebrating a birthday, and trying to figure out the right thing to do. Read the prayers and listen to the CD with a child you love as Father Joe and Big Al introduce these prayers read by children. My Sister is Annoying will help children—and their parents—to pray the way Jesus taught us to pray…simply and from the heart.

5:20 – My Journey into the Catholic Church
Jon Sweeney loves books. His book publishing experience includes working for a Lutheran-owned house, a Jewish-owned house, starting a multifaith trade spirituality book imprint, and editing books by everyone from Sufis and Vedantists to evangelical Christians and the Eastern Orthodox. His personal path has been anything but linear: After 20 years as an evangelical, and 21 years as an involved Episcopalian, in 2009 he became a Roman Catholic on the Feast Day of St. Francis. He values and has learned a great deal from every step. We talk about his journey to the Church.

5:40 – Kresta Comments