References and Further Reading
Bibliography
Heaven is for Real: A Little Boy’s Astounding Story of His Trip to Heaven and Back.
Burpo, Todd, Heaven is for Real, (Thomas Nelson publishers, Nashville, 2010). Available online.
The Practice of the Presence of God – Brother Lawrence
If you want to remain in the presence of God and learn a simple way of praying from your heart read The Practice of the Presence of God – Brother Lawrence. A good website introducing Brother Lawrence and his maxims is Soul Shepherding. There are others as well. This book was first published in 1692. It briefly describes his life (1611-1691) and contains his advice for spiritual living. Page references throughout our website are from the translation published by Paraclete Press in 1985 (Hal M. Helms, ed., trans. Robert J. Edmonson, The Practice of the Presence of God – Brother Lawrence (Orleans, MA Paraclete Press), 1985)
Mere Christianity
C.S. Lewis, Mere Christianity (Harper Collins Edition, San Francisco, 2001)
The True Story of Fatima
John de Marchi, I.M.C., The True Story of Fatima. Available online.
Historiography of the Apparition of Guadalupe
There are countless references to Guadalupe that can be accessed on the internet and through traditional print media. An excellent detailed, scholarly, and very readable history of Guadalupe is the beautifully written Historiography of the Apparition of Guadalupe, by Daniel J. Castellano.
Is the New Testament History?
Barnett, Paul, Is the New Testament History? (Servant Publications, Ann Arbor, Michigan, 1986).
Catechism of the Catholic Church
The Catechism is available online from many sites, including the St Charles Borromeo Catholic Church website.
Life of Christ
Bishop Fulton J Sheen (1895 – 1979) (Fulton J. Sheen, “Ch 49 – The Seven Words from the Cross,” in Life of Christ (New York, New York: Mc-Graw-Hill Book Company, Inc, 1958).
The Seven Words of Our Lord on the Cross
H.H. Pope Shenouda III (1923-2012), 117th Pope of Alexandria, Egypt and the See of St. Mark, The Seven Words of Our Lord on the Cross (Dar El Tebaa El Kawmia, 1991).
Useful Websites
- Evidence for God is an extraordinarily comprehensive website containing numerous articles and references to other websites and literature.
- “Is There a God? Does God exist? Here are six straightforward reasons to believe that God is really there.”
- Christianity in View
- Christian Classics Ethereal Library
Attributions and external references in the pages indicated
Home
- Christ Pantocrator accessed from the Catholic Exchange website. Many websites display this image or icon.
- Negative of the face on the Shroud of Turin is available on many internet websites.
- Prince of Peace can be accessed from the God Reports website.
About
- Heaven is for Real
- Christ Pantocrator
- Prince of Peace
- The Temptation of Christ by the Devil by Félix Joseph Barrias (1822 – 1907) retrieved from Wikimedia Commons.
Overview
- The quoted story re St. Augustine’s vision is from Our Lady of Mercy Lay Carmelite Community website.
- The painting of the Vision of St. Augustine by Sandro Botticelli (1445-1510) retrieved from Wikimedia Commons.
Atheist Objections
- The picture is from the 1929 cover of the USSR League of Militant Atheists magazine, showing the gods of the Abrahamic religions being crushed by the Communist 5-year plan. The League’s slogan was “Struggle against religion is a struggle for socialism.” Accessed from Wikipedia
Traditional Apologetics
- The picture is that of Brawling or Fighting Men in Medieval Dress or Costume.JPG English: Illustration by Paul Mercuri from “Costumes Historiques” (Paris, ca.1850′s). Accessed from Wikimedia Commons.
Help my Unbelief
- The Practice of the Presence of God – Brother Lawrence. A good website introducing Brother Lawrence and his maxims is Soul Shepherding.
- Basilica of Our Lady of Guadalupe
- Heaven is for Real: A Little Boy’s Astounding Story of His Trip to Heaven and Back
- Prince of Peace
- Christ Pantocrator
- Shroud of Turin
- Original engraving of Jesus knocking on the door by Peter Carl Geissler (1802-1872). Accessed from Wikimedia Commons.
Prayer
- The photograph and the Soviet soldier’s prayer accessed from Grace Gateways.
Brother Lawrence: Remaining in the Presence of God
- The Practice of the Presence of God – Brother Lawrence
- The sketch of Brother Lawrence in the kitchen is from a book published by Fleming Revell Co. in 1900 accessed from Wikimedia Commons.
Evidence Independently Verified
- The photograph of the cottage was taken by vindicator and is accessed from Wikimedia Commons.
Appearances by Mary
- Photograph of the statue of Mother Mary looking upon the crucified Jesus in the Basilica of Bom (Goa, India). Accessed from Wikimedia Commons.
Our Lady of Fatima and the Miracle of the Sun
- The True Story of Fatima
- Fatima website
- Neither God, nor Religion describes some of the attacks upon Christianity and Catholicism in Portugal during the early 20th
- The Whole Truth about Fatima
- 100 Years of Fatima
- The picture of the three children of Fatima is accessible at numerous websites.
Fatima’s Messages of Love
- Apostolic Letter, dated October 16, 2002
- The True Story of Fatima
- Fatima website
- The artist of this painting of the Immaculate Heart of Mary was Leopold Kupelwieser (1796-1862) and was accessed from Wikipedia.
Our Lady of Fatima 1917: The First Four Appearances
- The True Story of Fatima
- Fatima website
- The picture of the three Fatima children in jail in August 1917 accessed from the America Needs Fatima website.
Our Lady of Fatima: The September 13th Miracle
Our Lady of Fatima: The Effects of Her Appearances
- The True Story of Fatima
- Church of the Most Holy Trinity
- Barnett, Paul, Is the New Testament History? (Servant Publications, Ann Arbor, Michigan, 1986)
- Fatima website
- The photograph of the Fatima chapel bombed in 1922 is from the website, Devotion to Our Lady, Shrines of Mary – Fatima.
- The photograph of the Basilica of Fatima is available from numerous websites.
Fatima and Islam
- Monsignor Pope discussing Islam and Mary, the mother of Jesus.
- How Fatima Came to Be describes the Islamic/Christian historical underpinnings for Fatima, Portugal.
- The statue is “Mother Mary in the Park of the Dialogue” located in Iran. The picture was retrieved from the article, “Jesus and The Virgin Mary in Islam” appearing on the Muslims for Peace website.
Our Lady of Fatima: The Floundering Skeptic
Our Lady of Lourdes
- A description of the 70 officially confirmed miraculous healings at Lourdes [there are thousands of healings which have never been officially confirmed]:
- Miracles 1-67
- Miracle 68
- Miracle 69
- Miracle 70
- Bernadette’ description. St. Bernadette’s verbatim description was accessed from http://www.ewtn.com/library/mary/bernlife.htm. For reasons unknown this link has been discontinued. Other accounts of the visits by the Heavenly Lady are readily available on the internet, but they appear to be only summaries.
- Lourdes. Twenty-two beautiful photos of Lourdes.
Our Lady of Knock
- Knock Shrine
- Daily Telegraph 1880 policeman report.
Our Lady of Zeitoun
- Official Zeitoun website.
- Zeitoun lights. The Skeptic’s Dictionary website.
Our Lady of Guadalupe: Crushing the Snake
- Nican Mopohua. Earliest written account of the appearances by Our Blessed Mother to Juan Diego.
- There are countless references to Guadalupe that can be accessed on the internet and through traditional print media. An excellent detailed, scholarly, and very readable history of Guadalupe is the beautifully written Historiography of the Apparition of Guadalupe, by Daniel J. Castellano.
Our Lady of Guadalupe: Gilding the Lily
- Historiography of the Apparition of Guadalupe, by Daniel J. Castellano.
- Nican Mopohua. Earliest written account of the appearances by Our Blessed Mother to Juan Diego.
- Ave Maria. The Barbara Streisand YouTube version with her posing to the words and music of this sacred song.
Shroud of Turin: A Brief Introduction
- The Shroud of Turin: A Critical Summary of Observations, Data and Hypotheses
- Shroud Presentations and News within the Eastern Orthodox Church compiles some Eastern Orthodox references to the Shroud of Turin. Compiled by Ralph Sidway, October 2017.
- Shroud of Turin
- Turin Shroud Center of Colorado
Shroud of Turin: Historical Documentation
- John 20: 6-8
- 2 Timothy 4:13
- The Shroud of Turin: A Critical Summary of Observations, Data and Hypotheses
- 2 Kings Ch 2
- Troy used to be known as Ilion
- Bible Reference to Shroud of Turin
- Acheiropoietos Jesus Images in Constantinople: the Documentary Evidence***
- Icon of Elijah dropping his mantle to Elisha retrieved from Wikipedia Commons.
- The quotation describing Elijah passing the mantle to Elisha quoted from the Orthodox Christian Fellowship website.
The Shroud of Turin: Facts that Compel Belief
- The Archaeological Institute of America
- The Shroud of Turin: A Critical Summary of Observations, Data and Hypotheses
- Second Face on the Shroud of Turin
- Turin Shroud: the latest evidence will challenge the sceptics
- Shroud of Turin Facts Check
The Shroud of Turin: Evidence against the Shroud’s Authenticity
- The Shroud of Turin: A Critical Summary of Observations, Data and Hypotheses
- A peer reviewed scientific paper by Raymond N. Rogers, retired Fellow of the Los Alamos National Laboratory, was published in the journal Thermochimica Acta, Volume 425, Issues 1-2, Pages 189-194. The paper is titled “Studies on the radiocarbon sample from the shroud of turin.”
- Turin Shroud: the latest evidence will challenge the sceptics
The Sudarium Confirms the Shroud of Turin
- John 20: 6-8
- The Second International Conference on the Sudarium of Oviedo
- New Study: The Shroud of Turin and the Sudarium of Oviedo Covered the Same Person
- The Other Shroud of Christ
Holy House of Loreto
- Our Lady of Trsat
- Servants of the Pierced Hearts of Jesus and Mary
- Catholic News Agency December 10, 2018 article
- Pictures of the interior of the Holy House of Loreto are from the website, Sanctuary of the Holy House of Loreto.
Science and Evolution
- Image of the human ear
- Human body’s major operating systems
- Sperm
- Ovum
- Respiratory
- Nervous
- Skeletal
- Muscular
- Cardiovascular/Circulatory
- Endocrine
- Lymphatic
- Urinary
- Digestive
- Reproductive
- Skin
- human cell
- webmd.com. How the human eye sees.
- A bird of paradise dance
- The diagram of the ear was retrieved from the Digisound Hearing website.
Miraculous Healings
Jack Traynor
- I Met a Miracle — The story of Jack Traynor
- Picture of John Traynor retrieved from Miracles of Lourdes website.
Marie Bailly and Nobel Laureate Alexis Carrel
- Heaven’s Recent Wonders or The Work of Lourdes from the French of Dr. Boissarie, Authorized translation by Rev. C. Van der Donckt, (FR. Pustet & Co, New York and Cincinnati, 1909), pp 93 – 109. Detailed description of the cure of Marie Bailly as recorded at the time.
- John 10:26
- Two Lourdes Miracles and a Nobel Laureate: What Really Happened? by Stanley L. Jaki. (The author is the winner of the 1987 Templeton Prize. The following is the annual Joseph M. Gambescia lecture given at the conclusion of the 19th World Congress of FIAMC and the 67th Annual Meeting of the Catholic Medical Association, September 13, 1998.) A brief description of the Marie Bailly cure and further elaboration of the career and conversion of Alexis Carrel.
- Photograph of Dr Alexis Carrel retrieved from the Miracle of Lourdes website.
Gabriel Gargam
Marion Carroll
- Three websites describing the miraculous healing of Marion Carroll:
- The Free Library
- The Irish Catholic
- YouTube interview of Marion Carroll
- Marion Carroll’s photograph retrieved from catholicireland.net
Francis Pascal: Blindness Cured
- Francis Pascal’s cure is described in this newspaper article.
- The photograph of little Francis Pascal was retrieved from the ListVerse website.
Miracle of the Holy Fire
- An extensive description of the annual Miracle of the Holy Fire.
Great Peshtigo Fire
- “The Martyrdom of Polycarp” in the Catholic Encyclopedia.
- Apparition. First Approved Marian Apparition in the US, Champion, Wisconsin
- Shrine of Our Lady of Good Help
- Reverend Peter Pernin. “How Do You Stop Wildfires When Human Efforts Fail? A Lesson From the Peshtigo Fire Miracle”
- The martyrdom of St. Polycarp print retrieved from the ChurchPop website.
Our Lady of China: 1900 and Confirmed in 1995
- Marian Shrines of the World
- The Miracle Hunter
- The Virgin Mary’s Apparition in Dong Lu, China
- Divine Mysteries and Miracles website
Cokeville, Wyoming
A God of Love
Evil and Suffering
- Catechism of the Catholic Church
- The Practice of the Presence of God – Brother Lawrence.
Unanswered Prayers
- Photograph of anxious dog at veterinarian’s office retrieved from the The Meta Picture
Alexandrina da Costa of Balasar
- Alexandrina da Costa of Balasar
- Photograph of Alexandrina da Costa of Balasar retrieved from Mystics of the Church website.
- Alexandrina’s quotations retrieved from the Vatican website.
The Savior’s Incredible Love
- Matthew 27:31-32
- Mark 15:20-22
- Luke 23:26
- John 19:14
- “New Light on the Sufferings and the Burial of the Turin Shroud Man,” appears in the May 19, 2017 issue of Peertechz.
- Painting of Jesus bearing our sins retrieved from the art4god website.
Why did Jesus have to Suffer and Die?
- The Practice of the Presence of God – Brother Lawrence.
Hell: A Loving God and Eternal Punishment?
- John 3:16
- Romans 6:23
- Catechism of the Catholic Church
- Revelation 14:9-11
- Romans 2:14-15
- Apostles’ Creed
The Trustworthy Bible
- Painting of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John writing their Gospels by Pieter Soutman (died 1657) retrieved from Wikmedia Commons.
The Resurrection
- The painting of the empty tomb retrieved from the International Bible Society website.
The Resurrection: Complementary Gospel Accounts
- The complete accounts of the burial, resurrection, and aftermath are contained in Matthew 27:57 – 28:20; Mark 15:42—16:20; Luke 23:50—24:53; and John 19:38—20:31.
The Apostolic Conspiracy
- Exodus 24:18
- Deuteronomy 8:2
- The accounts of the Transfiguration are contained in Matthew 14:1-13, Luke 9:28-36, and Mark 9:2-13.
- Painting of the 12 Apostles meeting retrieved from the Strange Notions website
Incomprehensible God
- S. Lewis, Mere Christianity (Harper Collins Edition, San Francisco, 2001)
- The photograph of the eye in the universe retrieved from the National Geographic website.
Glimpsing Eternity
To Heaven, Hell and Back
- 1 Corinthians 2:9
- Father Jose’s account of his life after death experience
Heaven is for Real
- Burpo, Todd, Heaven is for Real: A Little Boy’s Astounding Story of His Trip to Heaven and Back, (Thomas Nelson publishers, Nashville, 2010). Available online.
- Prince of Peace
- 1 Corinthians 2:9
- Father Jose’s account of his life after death experience
- Painting of Jesus by Akiane Kramarik retrieved from God Reports website.
Portrait of Jesus, Ruler of All
- Christ Pantocrator
- Prince of Peace
- Mandylion
- Burpo, Todd, Heaven is for Real: A Little Boy’s Astounding Story of His Trip to Heaven and Back, (Thomas Nelson publishers, Nashville, 2010). Available online.
- Christ Pantocrator icon retrieved from the Catholic Exchange website.
Remaining in Christ
- United States Conference of Catholic Bishops offers daily scriptural reading and brief commentary.
- Association of Catholic Priests offers brief homilies from Irish priests for the daily scriptures.
Praying to Mary
- Luke 1:46-49
Mary’s Love and Fidelity
- Matthew 26:65-66
- Matthew 13:55
- Mark 6:3)
- John 7:15
- Luke 22:64
- Luke 7:34
- John 10:20
- Matthew 9:34
- John 18:30
- 15 Prayers of St Bridget
- Picture of Michelangelo’s Pietà in Saint Peter’s Basilica retrieved from Wikipedia Commons.
Understanding the Rosary
The Joyful Mysteries: The Birth and Childhood of Jesus
- The Annunciation is narrated in Luke 1:26-38. The angel’s appearance to Joseph telling him of the Annunciation is described in Matthew 1:18-23.
- The Annunciation by Dante Gabriel Rossetti retrieved from Wikimedia Commons.
- The Visitation is described in Luke 1:39-56
- The Visitation painting retrieved from Tom Perna website.
- Luke 2:1-20 describes the circumstances surrounding the birth of Jesus, including the appearance of the angels to the shepherds. Matthew 2:1-12 relates the story of the magi from the east following the Star of Bethlehem. John 1:1-2, 14 tells us that Jesus is God who became flesh and is the only Son from the Father.
- The Church of the Nativity icon was retrieved from the Legacy Icons
- The complete account of the Presentation in the Temple can be found in Luke 2:22-39.
- The Presentation of the baby Jesus in the temple was retrieved from the Ekklesia Project
- Luke 2:41-52 tells us the story of Mary and Joseph finding Jesus in the temple.
- Finding of the Savior in the Temple by William Holman Hunt retrieved from Wikimedia Commons.
The Luminous Mysteries: Jesus Proclaims the Gospel
- Matthew 3:13-17, John 1:29-34, Mark 1:9-11, and Luke 3:21-22 describe the Baptism of Jesus.
- Baptism of Jesus retrieved from the Canção Nova website.
- The full account of the Wedding at Cana is in John 2:1-11.
- The Wedding at Cana retrieved from the Tabor Blog.
- The Proclamation of the Gospel and the beginning of Jesus’ ministry is described in Matthew 4:12-17; Mark 1:14-20; Luke 4:14-30; and John 1:35-51.
- Icon of the Parable of the Sower retrieved from Wikimedia Commons.
- The Transfiguration accounts are in Matthew 17:1-13, Luke 9:28-36 and Mark 9:2-13.
- Transfiguration of Christ by Carl Bloch (1834-1890) retrieved from Wikimedia Commons.
- Direct accounts of the Last Supper are contained in Matthew 26:17-30; Luke 22:7-23; Mark 14:12-26; 1 Corinthians 11:23-34; and John Chapter 13. See also John 6:25-71.
- The Last Supper by Pascal Dagnan-Bouveret (1852-1929) retrieved from Wikimedia Commons.
The Sorrowful Mysteries: Christ Crucified
- Luke 22:39-46; Mark 14:32-42:and Matthew 26:36-46.
- John 19:1; Matthew 27:26; and Mark 15:15.
- Matthew 26:57 – 27:31; Mark 14:53 – 15:20; Luke 22:47 – 23:25; and John 18:12 – 19:16.
- John 19:17; Matthew 27:31-34; Mark 15:20-23; and Luke 23:25-32.
- Matthew 27:33-66; Mark 15:22-47; Luke 23:33-56; and John 19:16-42.
- Agony in the Garden retrieved from the Thomas More Singles website.
- Scourging at the Pillar by Rubens (1577-1640) retrieved from Wikipedia.
- Crowning of Jesus by Maarten van Heemskerck (1498-1574) retrieved from Wikimedia Commons.
- Christ Carrying the Cross by Giovanni Battista Tiepolo (1696-1770) retrieved from Wikimedia Commons.
- Crucifixion by Mathias Gothart Grünewald (1516) retrieved from Wikipedia Commons.
The Glorious Mysteries: Resurrection and Promise of Eternal Life
- The complete accounts of the burial, resurrection, and aftermath are contained in Matthew 27:57 – 28:20; Mark 15:42—16:20; Luke 23:50—24:53; and John 19:38—20:31.
- The Ascension is described in Acts 1:1-11, Luke 24:49-53, and Mark 16:19-20.
- Pentecost is described in Acts 2:1-41.
- Prayer for the Seven Gifts of the Holy Spirit
- Catechism of the Catholic Church, par 974
- The Eastern Orthodox have cherished a detailed tradition concerning the Assumption of Mary which can be accessed from an Eastern Orthodox website, Orthodox Church in America. The painting of Jesus taking Mary up into heaven is from the Ancient Order of Hibernians
- Mary Magdalene at the empty tomb painting by Liz Lemon Swindle retrieved from the ArtUSA
- Ascension icon retrieved from the Monastery Icon
- Pentecost painting retrieved from the Missionaries of the Holy Family
- Jesus welcoming Mary Assumption painting retrieved from the Young & Catholic Nigeria
- Painting of Mary as Queen of Heaven to recall her Coronation retrieved from A Lamp to my Feet
The Gospel through Inspirational Music
- Arabic Christmas Carol
- The Annunciation (O Come, O Come Emmanuel)
- The Visitation (My Forever Friend)
- The Birth of Jesus (O Helga Natt (O Holy Night))
- The Presentation (Were You There)
- The Flight into Egypt (Farther Along)
- Finding Jesus in the Temple (Amazing Grace)
- The Baptism of Jesus (Just a Closer Walk with Thee)
- The Wedding at Cana (He Turned the Water into Wine)
- Jesus Proclaims his Kingdom (Make Me a Channel of Your Peace)
- Feeding of the 5,000 (Somebody Bigger than You and I)
- The Transfiguration (How Great Thou Art)
- The Last Supper (Panis Angelicus)
- The Agony in the Garden (In the Garden)
- The Scourging at the Pillar (Take My Hand, Precious Lord)
- The Crowning of Jesus (Scarlet Purple Robe)
- The Way of the Cross (The Darkest Hour is Just Before Dawn)
- The Crucifixion (The Old Rugged Cross)
- The Entombment of Jesus (Peace in the Valley)
- The Resurrection (Hallelujah Chorus)
- The Ascension (Where We’ll Never Grow Old)
- Gift of the Holy Spirit (You Raise Me Up)
- The Assumption (Ave Maria)
- Coronation of Mary (Whispering Hope)
- The Question that Trumps All: If Jesus Comes Tomorrow (What Then)
- I Came to Believe
- I won’t have to cross Jordan alone
- The painting of four ecclesiastics listening to and contemplating sacred music retrieved from the Crisis Magazine
Seven Last Words of Jesus from the Cross
- The Seven Words of Our Lord on the Cross
- Life of Christ, “Ch 49 – The Seven Words from the Cross”
- The painting, Jesus Alone on the Cross, by James Tissot (1836-1902) retrieved from Wikipedia Commons.
The First Word
- Luke 23:34
- St Bridget’s Fourth Prayer
- What Our Lord saw from the Cross painted by James Tissot (1836-1902) retrieved from Wikipedia Commons.
The Second Word
- Luke 23:43
- Life of Christ, “Ch 49 – The Seven Words from the Cross”
- Christ and the Good Thief by Titian (c 1556) retrieved from Wikimedia Commons.
The Third Word
- John 19:26-27
- Christ on the Cross with Mary and John by Albrecht Altdorfer (1480-1538) retrieved from WikiArt.
The Fourth Word
- Matthew 27:46
- Psalms 22
- Life of Christ, “Ch 49 – The Seven Words from the Cross”
The Fifth Word
- John 19:28
- Seventh Prayer of St Bridget
- Life of Christ, “Ch 49 – The Seven Words from the Cross”
- Luke 16:19-31
- Psalms 69:21
- Psalms 22
- The painting at the beginning of this page depicting the thirsting rich man reaching for heaven retrieved from the BibleStudy1
- One Drop of Water written by Ralph Stanley and sung by him and the Clinch Mountain Boys.
- The lyrics to One Drop of Water can be found at the Genius
The Sixth Word
- John 19:30
- Genesis 3:15
- The painting of Christ’s heel coming down upon Satan’s head retrieved from Reflections for Living
The Seventh Word
- Luke 23:46
- 15 Prayers of St Bridget
Sharing your Faith
- The photograph of Jesus on the cross in the sky was retrieved from this YouTube posting.
Christian Unity and Division
- C.S. Lewis, Mere Christianity (Harper Collins Edition, San Francisco, 2001)
- Luke 23:34
- John Chapter 17
- Photograph of West Virginia country church is by Forest Wander and can be accessed at Wikimedia Commons.
- Photograph of the Catholic Milan, Italy Cathedral (the Duomo) is by Jiuguang Wang and can be accessed at Wikimedia Commons.
- Photograph of an Orthodox Church in Ukraine retrieved from the Holy Theotokos of Iveron Russian Orthodox Church
Last updated October 10, 2019