"Chaucer's The Canterbury Tales brings together an unforgettable group of pilgrims on their way to Canterbury, pilgrims who came from all ranks of society, from the crusading Knight and burly Miller to the worldly Monk and the famously lusty Wife of Bath. Their tales are as various as the tellers, including romance, bawdy comedy, beast fable, learned debate, parable, and Eastern adventure. The resulting collection gives us a set of characters so vivid...

Rome (1896) is a novel by French author Émile Zola. Rome is the second installment in Zola's celebrated Three Cities Trilogy. Published toward the end of Zola's career, the trilogy is an ambitious, sweeping study of one man's struggle with faith in political, religious, and social life. Following his protagonist Abbé Pierre Froment, Zola provides a striking portrait of the soul of modern man in crisis with itself and with an ever-changing world....

At a time when Britain, America, and much of Europe have never been so secular--and when his mother's death and his Irish Catholic family's complicated history with the church prompted a reckoning with his own beliefs -- Timothy Egan decided to follow in the footsteps of centuries of seekers. He embarked on a thousand-mile pilgrimage through the theological cradle of Christianity, to explore one of the biggest stories of our time: the collapse of...

"While visiting Siena, Italy, Mary Lea Carroll grew fascinated with the remarkable story of St. Catherine of Siena and made a resolution: Whenever she was lucky enough to travel, if a shrine dedicated to a female saint was nearby, she'd visit it and learn about her. What started as a hobby grew into a journey she never expected, one rich with challenges and cappuccinos, doubts and inspiration, glasses of wine with strangers and moments of transcendence....

Theologian and papal biographer George Weigel, art historian Elizabeth Lev, and photographer Stephen Weigel explore the annual Lenten pilgrimage to dozens of Rome's most striking churches, which for many faithful is a sacred tradition dating back almost two millennia, to the earliest days of Christianity. Along this historic spiritual pathway, today's pilgrims confront the mysteries of the Christian faith through a program of biblical and early Christian...

"The author of Saint Everywhere is answering the call from fans for more reports from her quest to learn from some quietly extraordinary women-and a man or two-who have changed the world. Mary Lea Carroll travels to shrines and hometowns to learn about such amazing people as Saint Marie of Quebec, who founded the first girls' school in the New World; philanthropist-turned-saint Katherine Drexel of Philadelphia; Saint Brigid, a patron saint of Ireland;...

Winner, 2018 Paul J. Foik Award for Best Book on Catholic History in the American Southwest, presented by the Texas Catholic Historical Society The remarkable history of the Santuario de Chimayó, the church whose world-renowned healing powers have drawn visitors to its steps for centuries. Nestled in a valley at the feet of the Sangre de Cristo Mountains of New Mexico, the Santuario de Chimayó has been called the most important Catholic pilgrimage...

"Through her profound, informative, and witty reflections on the power of stone, water, light, fire, and more, readers will discover new destinations in North America while deepening their own connection to the spirit"--

Bunyan wrote the first part of "The pilgrim's progress" when he was in prison as a Baptist preacher. In his hands a pious tract is transformed into a work of imaginative literature which has been more widely read than any book in English except the Bible. Its influence, both indirectly on the English consciousness and directly on the literature that followed, has been immeasurable. The rich countryman's phrases that Bunyan borrowed or invented have...