On October 4, 2014, the first Beatification in the United States occurred. A young American religious, Sister Miriam Teresa, was declared a Blessed. Born Teresa Demjanovich to loving immigrant parents, Blessed Miriam Teresa grew up in Bayonne, New Jersey, in the early twentieth century. She witnessed events that changed the United States—such as the introduction of automobiles and motion pictures, the sabotaging of American industry during World War I, and the rise of the labor union movement. All the while, Teresa was discovering the unchanging reality of God's love. Like Thérèse of Lisieux, the Little Flower, Teresa learned that God wanted to be her friend and from an early age desired to become a Carmelite. Jesus longed to be with her, and she wanted to be with Him, whether she was studying, working, praying, or enjoying the company of friends. This was her secret to happiness, and to holiness.

Squirrie is the baby squirrel of the Old Tree Escruel family. One day, her best friend, a chipmunk, disappeared. Suffering from great loss, Squirrie is crying. To make Squirrie smile again, her grandmother decides to tell her an amazing story about life. A Little Flower and a Giant Tree is told through a fairy tale lens. It explores the themes of life: the past, the present, dreams, reality, hurt, and loss. Through stories and experiences, lessons are learned that lead to discoveries of truth and hope. Sandie tells her stories with passion and love, all in an effort to make little Squirrie smile again because that is what good stories dothey make us smile!

For more than two hundred years American Catholics have struggled to reconcile their national and religious values. In this incisive and accessible account, distinguished Catholic historian Jay P. Dolan explores the way American Catholicism has taken its distinctive shape and follows how Catholics have met the challenges they have faced as New World followers of an Old World religion. Dolan argues that the ideals of democracy, and American culture in general, have deeply shaped Catholicism in the United States as far back as 1789, when the nation's first bishop was elected by the clergy (and the pope accepted their choice). Dolan looks at the tension between democratic values and Catholic doctrine from the conservative reaction after the fall of Napoleon to the impact of the Second Vatican Council. Furthermore, he explores grassroots devotional life, the struggle against nativism, the impact and collision of different immigrant groups, and the disputed issue of gender. Today Dolan writes, the tensions remain, as we see signs of a resurgent traditionalism in the church in response to the liberalizing trend launched by John XXIII, and also a resistance to the conservatism of John Paul II. In this lucid account, the unfinished story of Catholicism in America emerges clearly and compellingly, illuminating the inner life of the church and of the nation. In this lucid account, the unfinished story of Catholicism in America emerges clearly and compellingly, illuminating the inner life of the church and of the nation.

Religion and American Culture challenges the religion's traditional emphasis on older European, American, male, middle-class, Protestant, northeastern narratives concerned primarily with churches and theology. Breaking through the field with multicultural tales of Native American, African Americans and other groups that cut across boundaries of gender, class, religion and region, David Hackett's anthology offers an illuminating and comprehensive overview of the most exciting work currently underway in this field.

Betrayed can have this impact on the readers life because it presents three main elements: 1) the doctrinal/catechetical truths left with the Apostles by Christ Himself, 2) the history of the Catholic Church from the time of Christ, and 3) the life story of a Catholic priest, both in his active years and after he was laicized and married.

The transformation of a house into a home has been in our culture a traditional task of women. The articles examine this process as they reflected the role of American middle-class women as homemakers in the years 1840-1940.