FranciscanMom

Feb 4, 2024 | franciscanmom.com | Barb Szyszkiewicz

Lent is only one short week away. It’s time to prepare for the journey. That doesn’t mean you need to weigh yourself down with every devotional ever published. I agree with Nicole Berlucchi, who recently wrote that we should just pick one book, devotional, program, or practice. For Lent this year, let’s do one thing and do it well. I’m still making my plan, and I thought I’d show you some of the resources I’ve been looking at.

Jan 2, 2024 | franciscanmom.com | Barb Szyszkiewicz

The first Wednesday of each month, Carolyn Astfalk hosts #OpenBook, where bloggers link posts about books they’ve read recently. Here’s a taste of what I’ve been reading:FictionThe Spectacular by Fiona Davis. A terrific novel about the Rockettes in the mid-1950s, this book is both a coming-of-age story and a thriller. Marion Brooks wants more than the life of a well-heeled housewife, so she puts her lifelong dancing lessons to good use and secretly auditions for the Rockettes.

Dec 23, 2023 | franciscanmom.com | Barb Szyszkiewicz

“What page are we on?”With so many different breviary editions out there, I can’t answer that question in this space. But I can tell you what headings to find, so you can put your ribbons and bookmarks in the right places before you start praying. It looks a little complicated—and this week really IS—but when you set everything up ahead of time, it will make your prayer time easier. Want some basic information on the Liturgy of the Hours?

Dec 5, 2023 | franciscanmom.com | Barb Szyszkiewicz

Scott Hahn and Ken Ogorek have put together a book that takes Sunday Mass prep to the next level. Breaking the Bread: A Biblical Devotional for Catholics not only offers reflections on the Sunday Mass readings that helps readers understand how all the readings for each Sunday Mass fit together, it also features quotes from the Catechism of the Catholic Church that provide even more background information and connection to the life of the Church.

Nov 14, 2023 | franciscanmom.com | Barb Szyszkiewicz

Book 5 in Catholic novelist Antony Barone Kolenc’s Harwood Mysteries series, Murder at Penwood Manor, is one of those stories that will keep your teen reading late into the night. Xan, an orphaned teen who was first taken in by monks and then came to live with an uncle in a distant town, seeks to exonerate a crusader who has returned from the Holy Land and is now accused of the murder of a romantic rival.