A monthly letter from Orbis Books Editor, Robert Ellsberg

Dear Friends,

Searching for the perfect gift? When you share the gift of Orbis Books, you offer more than a few hours of distraction or entertainment; you are sharing a new perspective, an opening to reflection, a guidepost on the path of spiritual growth. Imagine the delight on Christmas morning as your friends and loved ones, jaded by too many gift certificates, wool scarves, and figgy puddings, unwrap one of the top-ten bestselling Orbis titles from 2011:

1. Joe Girzone, The Homeless Bishop. Readers who loved Fr. Girzone’s famous Joshua books will enjoy the story of Carlo Bruni, an Italian bishop who chooses to live among the homeless and experience the gospel through the eyes of the poor. What happens when he returns to his episcopal office? How does his experience change him, and in turn contribute to world peace AND the renewal of the church?

2. Jim Forest, All is Grace: A Biography of Dorothy Day. Forest, an editor of The Catholic Worker in the early 1960s, he has written the best introduction to a woman described as “the most interesting, important, and influential” American Catholic of the 20th century. With over 200 photographs and extensive quotations from her writings, All is Grace is an inspiring portrait of the radical gospel in action.

3. James Cone, The Cross and the Lynching Tree. The “father of Black Theology,” and the author of Martin & Malcolm & America has written his most challenging and personal book to date. Rooted in his own experience growing up in the Jim Crow South, Cone’s book traces the parallels between the essential symbol of Christian faith and the most terrible symbol of African American oppression. This is a book that will stir your heart and wound your conscience.

4. Ilia Delio, The Emergent Christ: Exploring the Meaning of Catholic in an Evolutionary Universe. In the spirit of Teilhard de Chardin, Delio, a Franciscan theologian and a trained scientist, offers a breathtakingly new overview of the Catholic faith in light of the discoveries of modern cosmology and evolutionary theory.

5. Tom Roberts, The Emerging Catholic Church: A Community in Search of Itself. One of the most distinguished religious journalists in America, Roberts offers a soul-searching portrait of today’s Church, examining its changing demography, the ongoing implications of Vatican II, the sex abuse scandal, and the crisis of authority. But he also looks at signs of renewal, emerging spirituality, and new forms of community.

6. Sandra Schneiders, Prophets in Their Own Country: Women Religious Bearing Witness to the Gospel in a Troubled Church. After the recent Vatican visitation of American women’s religious congregations, Schneiders provides a penetrating overview of the evolution and meaning of women’s religious life as a “prophetic lifeform” in the church today. Their witness offers a challenge to all members of the church.

7. Mary Jo Leddy, The Other Face of God: When the Stranger Calls Us Home. From her work with refugees in Toronto’s Romero House, Leddy shares meditative reflections on how the newcomer disrupts our lives and summons us to a new sense of ourselves, a fresh sense of Christ, and compelling vision of the church.

8. Kerry Walters, The Art of Dying and Living. Through portraits of holy men and women of our time, including Sr. Thea Bowman, Dietrich Bonhoeffer, Etty Hillesum, and John Paul II, Walters showed how in facing death they continue to teach us how to live.

9.Abraham Joshua Heschel: Essential Writings, beautifully edited by his daughter Susannah Heschel, this book highlights the message of a modern prophet and religious teacher, who advanced the cause of Christian-Jewish dialogue and taught countless people how to live a more authentic life of prayer, service, and love.

10. James Martin, S.J., This Our Exile: A Spiritual Journey with the Refugees of East Africa. From the bestselling author of My Life with the Saints, this memoir combines spiritual writing, humor, and keen social observation in describing Fr. Martin’s work with the refugees in the slums of Nairobi, Kenya. What he learned will change the way you look at the poor, humanity, and God.

Merry Christmas, and Blessings,,
Robert Ellsberg
Publisher