A Dictionary of Quotes from the Saints

Rating:
Summary: Weak collection
Review: As a fan of both quotation collections and words of wisdom from the saints, this book was a big disappointment. Most topics had only a few quotes (something like 3-5 on major topics) mainly from the "big name" saints like Therese or Augustine, and little effort appeared to have been spent in the making of the book. The type is large and the spacing big in order to make it look like a large collection. I paid $for it, and that seems a fair price, but I wouldn't go much higher.

Rating:
Summary: Great for Short Meditations or Scholarly Study
Review: Paul Thigpen's latest book, "A Dictionary of Quotes from the Saints" is not only full of short statements on Catholic beliefs from the Saints and Blesseds, it is most helpfully organized. Whatever topic one wishes to explore, the alphabetized headings make it easy to find a quote for meditation, for composing a lecture, or for inclusion in an article. The Saints are our elder brothers and sisters. They speak to us here in this book from over all the ages to inspire, exhort, illuminate, and guide. A must for any serious Catholic who wants to know God better, to love one's neighbor more, and to witness to the Gospel message regardless of vocation.

Rating:
Summary: Great for Short Meditations or Scholarly Study
Review: Paul Thigpen's latest book, "A Dictionary of Quotes from the Saints" is not only full of short statements on Catholic beliefs from the Saints and Blesseds, it is most helpfully organized. Whatever topic one wishes to explore, the alphabetized headings make it easy to find a quote for meditation, for composing a lecture, or for inclusion in an article. The Saints are our elder brothers and sisters. They speak to us here in this book from over all the ages to inspire, exhort, illuminate, and guide. A must for any serious Catholic who wants to know God better, to love one's neighbor more, and to witness to the Gospel message regardless of vocation.

Rating:
Summary: Fantastic resource
Review: This is not the kind of book that you would sit down and read from cover to cover.

Rather, this is a superb resource for the student, academic, scholar, or writer looking for what a particular Saint may have had to say on a particular topic. Look up "Politics" for example, and you will find 19 quotes from which to choose on the topic.

Under the heading of "Abortion" for example, Saint Basil the Great is quoted as saying, "A woman who deliberately destroys a fetus is answerable for murder. And any fine distinction between its being completely formed or unformed is not admissible among us."

One of my favorite sections, on the Eucharist, features nearly 30 inspiring quotes on the Source and Summit of the Catholic faith. St. Francis of Assisi writes, "All those are damned who see the Sacrament of the Body of Christ on the altar in the form of bread and wine by the words of our Lord in the hands of the priest, yet do not see or believe in spirit and in God that this is really the most holy Body and Blood of our Lord Jesus Christ."

No matter the topic, you'll find inspiring words from the saints in this wonderful collection. It should be on the bookshelf of most Catholic writers and scholars.