Good Reading List To Learn Traditional Theology

Started by tradne4163, September 01, 2013, 09:50:02 PM

Previous topic - Next topic

Parresia

Theology for Beginners

Theology and Sanity

Fundamentals of Catholic Dogma

How Christ Said the First Mass

A Tour Of The Summa



jim111


Beatrice

Thanks very much for this list, it's very helpful!
Suffer me not to be separated
And let my cry come unto Thee.

(~T. S. Eliot, "Ash Wednesday")

May He be blessed for ever who waited for me so long. ~ St. Teresa of Avila

misericonfit

#33
Quote from: tradne4163 on September 01, 2013, 09:50:02 PM
The recent thread about Moral Theology made me wonder what a good reading list would be for learning theology and such.
I guess I could start the list with Fundamentals of Catholic Dogma in addition to the above.
wHat are some other recommendations?

Sent from my Kyocera Rise on Tapatalk 4 Beta
These are all old, but very good:

1. Fr. Arthur Devine (1849-1919), C.SS.R:

A Manual of Ascetical Theology: Or, The Supernatural Life of the Soul on Earth and in Heaven

The Commandments Explained According To The Teaching And Doctrine Of The Catholic Church

The Creed explained; Or, an exposition of Catholic doctrine according to the creeds of faith and the constitutions and definitions of the Church

More here: https://archive.org/search.php?query=creator%3A%22Devine%2C+Arthur%2C+1849-1919%22

"The Creed Explained" is very thorough, which is why it is almost 500 pages long.

No matter what the topic, he has a gift for writing very clearly about matters than can be very abstruse. He makes things a lot easier for the reader by subdividing his chapters, so that one never gets lost. His books are not short, but that is because they are thorough.

2. A book I have found very helpful in working out what out make of the reports of apparitions and similar favours one hears so much of these days, is "The Graces of Interior Prayer" by Pere Auguste Poulain, S.J. The edition I have has a letter of approbation by St Pius X.  I think that speaks for itself.

3. In case no-one has suggested it, Dom Chautard's "The Soul of the Apostolate" has been very highly praised (I've not read it).

This is probably saying the obvious, but for learning how to think about particular topics in a thoroughly Catholic way, ISTM the Encyclicals of the Popes are a must.
Receive, O Lord, all my liberty. Take my memory, my understanding, and my entire will. Whatsoever I have or possess Thou hast bestowed upon me; to Thee I give it all back and surrender it wholly to be governed by Thy Will. Give me love for Thee alone, with Thy grace, and I am rich enough and ask for nothing more.

- St Ignatius Loyola.

Gerard

One of the best books I found especially early on was simply a good Catholic Dictionary.  Fr. Hardon's Pocket Dictionary is great for quick reading, just snooping around and seeing what you can learn.  You might look up one word and then be curious about another one on the same page or so.  There are a couple of quibble's I have with Fr. Hardon nowadays but all in all it's a good book to use. 

Bernadette

Quote from: Parresia on November 20, 2013, 03:52:11 PM
A Tour Of The Summa

Is this like A Summa of the Summa? Which one's easier for a beginner? Which one's like the "middle ground" between beginner and full-on Summa:huh: I'm at once fascinated by, and intimidated by the full-on Summa, so I've never been confident enough to read it (or, really, convinced that I have any particular pressing need to read it, so I guess I'm okay.  :lol:)
My Lord and my God.

Kaesekopf

Farrells companion to the summa is supposed to be good for laity.  It's on opcentrals site

http://opcentral.org/a-companion-to-the-summa/

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-G920A using Tapatalk
Wie dein Sonntag, so dein Sterbetag.

I am not altogether on anybody's side, because nobody is altogether on my side.  ~Treebeard, LOTR

Jesus son of David, have mercy on me.

Bernadette

Quote from: Kaesekopf on February 27, 2017, 04:28:48 PM
Farrells companion to the summa is supposed to be good for laity.  It's on opcentrals site

http://opcentral.org/a-companion-to-the-summa/

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-G920A using Tapatalk

Is there a way to download this that I'm missing?  :huh: I really hope so.
My Lord and my God.

Kaesekopf

Quote from: Bernadette on February 27, 2017, 05:20:17 PM
Quote from: Kaesekopf on February 27, 2017, 04:28:48 PM
Farrells companion to the summa is supposed to be good for laity.  It's on opcentrals site

http://opcentral.org/a-companion-to-the-summa/

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-G920A using Tapatalk

Is there a way to download this that I'm missing?  :huh: I really hope so.
Uh.   Doubt it. 

Probably on archive.org though. 

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-G920A using Tapatalk

Wie dein Sonntag, so dein Sterbetag.

I am not altogether on anybody's side, because nobody is altogether on my side.  ~Treebeard, LOTR

Jesus son of David, have mercy on me.

Prayerful

Quote from: Gerard on February 27, 2017, 03:06:01 PM
One of the best books I found especially early on was simply a good Catholic Dictionary.  Fr. Hardon's Pocket Dictionary is great for quick reading, just snooping around and seeing what you can learn.  You might look up one word and then be curious about another one on the same page or so.  There are a couple of quibble's I have with Fr. Hardon nowadays but all in all it's a good book to use.

I have one with a very fragile spine and some pages loose. Apart from essentially treating the NOM as the settled form of Mass (a mistake but understandable in the early eighties), there are so many neat and correct little definitions of terms a Catholic comes across. The SJ might make a person worry, but Fr Hardon SJ was of that extinct species of orthodox Catholic Jesuits.

Interesting resources in this thread. Thanks all.
Padre Pio: Pray, hope, and don't worry. Worry is useless. God is merciful and will hear your prayer.

martin88nyc

I have Hardon's catechism and it is in line with Vatican II.
"These things I have spoken to you, that in me you may have peace. In the world you shall have distress: but have confidence, I have overcome the world." John 16:33

Gerard

Quote from: martin88nyc on March 01, 2017, 07:50:37 PM
I have Hardon's catechism and it is in line with Vatican II.

I have that catechism and my eyes glazed over rather quickly. I've never been able to get into it.  That's why I suggested the dictionary for a beginner.  A lot of the suggestions are pretty heavy for people that have at most, the basic post-Vatican II instruction.  I think the most important things to learn first is the commonly used vocabulary and the concepts behind them. 

Many people recite prayers they've learned by heart but they actually don't know what half of the words mean.  They have a vague concept of the meaning based on hearing them in context but not a solid understanding and sometimes they simply have a wrong understanding because they've heard it in context used incorrectly. 

Examples:  What does "Amen" mean as opposed to "Alleluia"?  What is "Glory"?  etc.  You get the idea.  Better to really know a smaller amount of prayers full meanings than prattle on with heavier prayers when you don't know what you are even saying. If you don't know what "Glory" is, why would a person be jumping ahead to "consubstantial" or other more complicated and less frequent terms? 

Bishop Sheen's audio catechism is another great resource.  Simple clear explanations with very understandable analogies and examples.  His small books like "The Seven Cardinal Sins" and the "The Prodigal World" are also good collections of sermons and lectures from the early days of his ministry. 

AnneTce


Alnitak


AnneTce

Is that what the old link linked  to, what the Sisters taught from specifically? Or something else ?