Tips for building a Catholic library at home.
Almost everyone has a home library of one kind or another, be it a few comic books on a dusty shelf or an entire room dedicated to the classics. Books help define who a person is - their interests, dreams, and beliefs. The Catholic home should be no different, with one exception - some of those books should be books concerning the Catholic faith.
While a Catholic home library can contain many books, it can be as small as a few essentials. There are some books every Catholic should have.
- A Catholic Bible - There are many different translations to choose from, ranging from the more formal King James-like Revised Standard Version, Catholic Edition (RSVCE) to the much looser, informal The Way, a version of the Catholic Living Bible. The readings at Mass are taken from the New American Bible (NAB). Find a Catholic translation that best fits personal taste for private devotion. Remember, the Catholic version of the Bible contains seven books not found in the Protestant canon, called the deuterocanonical books. So when purchasing a Bible as part of a Catholic library, make sure it is a Catholic edition.
- Catechism of the Catholic Church - There are some people who read the Catechism from cover to cover, and some who only use it from time to time. Regardless, this book contains information on all the basic beliefs in the Catholic faith. From Baptism to the existence of angels to devotion to the Blessed Virgin Mary, the Catechism is an important addition to the Catholic library.
- A book about saints - There are many to choose from. Choose a compendium like Butler's Lives of the Saints or Ann Ball's Modern Saints: Their Lives and Faces, Vol. 1 or Vol. 2. A book like one of these tells shorter stories about many saints in one book. Or, buy separate books about individual saints. Either way, the important thing is to have the inspirational stories of great men and women of faith on hand. The examples of the saints serve to inspire and to remind the faithful of what is truly important in life.
- A Catholic Classic - Every Catholic library should contain at least one of these classic books: St. Augustine's The Confessions, Francis de Sales' Introduction to the Devout Life, or St. Therese's Story of a Soul.
- Explaining the Faith - There are several books that explain aspects of the Catholic faith. One or more of these help to round out a good Catholic home library. Use these books for increasing personal knowledge or in help in answering those questions that begin, "Why do Catholics...?". Good ones to choose from: Why Do Catholics Do That?, by Kevin Orlin Johnson; What Catholics Really Believe, by Karl Keating; Catholic Christianity, by Peter Kreeft; and there are many more of this kind of book that would make an excellent choice.
That about covers the absolute essentials. However, the Catholic home library should not end there. There are so many wonderful books that would be valuable additions for Catholics. Authors such as Scott Hahn or Patrick Madrid are very popular, and have a variety of good books. Christopher West writes clearly on the Church's view of Theology of the Body. Then, there are all the encyclicals, the official writings of the popes. Among these it would be helpful for the more serious reader to include a copy of the documents of Vatican II to their home library.
The list could go on and on. However, the essentials are the foundation of any good Catholic home library.
