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Saintdom: A Reader's Guide (Part 2)
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items Part 1 of Saintdom: A Reader's Guide ended with standard reference books about saints known up to c. 1900 when Baring-Gould wrote. It was fairly academic. This list is more popular and takes up where we left off, with saints who largely lived and died in the past 150 years or who were canonized in that period. It also includes saints divided by gender, marital status, or region. Included too are several books on special topics. + Have a favorite book on the saints in general? Leave a comment, and we'll compile a list of your favorites!+ Looking ahead… Our next Saintdom reading list will be on iconography, that is, how saints are depicted in the visual arts. Watch for it in late August!
Sections
6
New and Modern Saints
Obscure Saints
Female Saints & Married Ones
Special Topics: Anorexia, the Stigmata, and Incorruptability
Regional Saints
Final Thoughts...
New and Modern Saints
In the 1970s, it was estimated that there were some 10,000 officially recognized Roman Catholic saints. An explosion of saints were added to the rolls in the latter part of the 20th century, owing largely to Pope St. John Paul II (1920-2005; Papacy: ...
A list by papacy with links to saintly bios of persons canonized in the 20th century…. Includes persons who lived much earlier, such as St. Hemma of Gurk (German; c. 995-1045), but were not officially recognized until after 1900. Picture from vatican.va/news_services/liturgy/saints/index_saints_en.html
List of saints canonized in the 20th century
Verbal and visual portraits of some of the more prominent saints who mostly lived after the invention of photography. Ball's series of books have been widely praised for reinforcing the bond between the Church Militant, that is, those of us alive today, and the Church Triumphant, the saints in Heaven, through photos. Treats 55 saints and blessed (a few through painted portraits). Recommended.
Modern Saints: Their Lives and Faces, Book 1
45 more saints and blesseds Ball ‘humanizes’ with photos. Also available at archive.org/details/modernsaintsthei0000ball
Modern Saints Their Lives and Faces Vol 2
A continuation of Ball's research making holy persons approachable through photos and brief anecdotal bios.
Faces of Holiness: Modern Saints in Photos
Treats 23 more saints, blesseds, venerables and servants of God and their companions. Also available at archive.org/details/facesofholinessm0000ball/page/34/mode/1up
Faces of Holiness II: Modern Saints Photos
Here Ball treats 35 holy children and youth under the age of 20 and their companions, many of them martyrs. As some may find the subject of dead children morbid, I would urge parental guidance. Also available at archive.org/details/youngfacesofholi0000ball/page/9/mode/1up
Young Faces of Holiness: Modern Saints
A chronological list of Blesseds and Saints, who died during the 20th century with links to short bios. See also: https://insidethevatican.com/magazine/editorial/dossier/john-paul-ii-saints/
Chronological list of saints and blesseds in the 20th century
Short but inspiring and easy-to-read bios of recently proclaimed Catholic saints and blesseds… This book surveys the holiness of people from all walks of life living out the Gospel in the modern world with all its attendant challenges.
39 New Saints You Should Know
Short bios of some Roman Catholic saints and blesseds as well as some persons recognized as saintly by the Anglican Communion. The author is an Anglican brother.
Saints of the Twentieth Century - Mowbray
More short bios by Anglican Brother Kenneth of some Roman Catholic saints and blesseds as well as some persons recognized as saintly by the Anglican Communion…. Includes an impassioned plea for the formal canonization by Rome of Venerable Margaret Sinclair (1900-1925), a Scottish Colettine Poor Clares nun known in religion as Sister Mary Francis of the Five Wounds.
More Saints of the Twentieth Century
A list by papacy with links to saintly bios of persons canonized so far in the 21st century…. Includes persons who lived much earlier, such as St. Juan Diego (1474-1548), an indigenous Mexican (Nahua) peasant and Marian visionary who saw Our Lady of ...
List of saints canonized in the 21st century
A chronological list of Blesseds and Saints, who died during the 20th century with links to short bios. Photo of the altar of the Church of Libyan Martyrs in Minya by By 松照庵 - Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0, commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=154159619.
Chronological list of saints and blesseds in the 21st century
Obscure Saints
You probably never heard of some of these saints. I know some were certainly new to me! But you learn (or should learn) something new every day!
Unless you're a religious (priest , brother, monk, or nun) a historian/art historian, or a philiconist (a collector of holy cards, especially antique ones), chances are you've never heard of most of the saints in this book! Treat yourself to this int... 😇
Saint Who?: 39 Holy Unknowns
Female Saints & Married Ones
Canonized males outnumber canonized females by a ratio of about 2 to 1. The rolls are dominated by the male Church hierarchy: popes, cardinals, bishops, priests, monks, and founders of religious congregations. Canonized females have traditionally been virgins (especially virgin martyrs) and religious (founders and member... The following three books shine a spotlight on these underrepresented saintly types.
This book is an ideal intro to female saints for the busy contemporary woman on the go! It features a short bio—each only one-page long—of a female saint a day. Many of the saints will not be household names having lived in the 20th century and not i...
The Big Book of Women Saints
Similar to the preceding volume, this book offers a female saint a day. The saints are drawn from a different pool though, and include Old Testament heroines and women of virtue from other Christian denominations as well as Roman Catholics.
Women Saints: 365 Daily Readings
As already noted, lay men and women are underrepresented among the saints, married people even less so. This book covers over 200 married saints and blesseds from antiquity to modern times reminding us that holiness is a state of being not a function... marital status.
Married Saints and Blesseds: Through the Centuries
Special Topics: Anorexia, the Stigmata, and Incorruptability
These three books introduce controversial mind-body topics that disproportionately relate to female saints.
Its purpose may be different, but self-starvation by young girls isn't. A carefully researched in-depth look at anorexia among late medieval-early modern female Italian saints. Thought provoking.
Holy Anorexia
Since St. Paul, over 300 legitimate stigmatists have been identified. This book presents seven of them--2 male and 5 female Catholic saints or blesseds. A fascinating read…
The Stigmatists: Gifts, Revelations, Warnings
Do the bodies of some saints defy natural decomposition after death? That's the question that prompted Cruz's book. While some of the cases in this groundbreaking 1977 book have now been proven scientifically to have been preserved by man-made means,... Macabre? Perhaps. Interesting? Definitely. + See also catholicnewsagency.com/news/46069/carlo-acutis-raises-question-what-does-it-mean-if-a-saints-body-is-incorrupt
The Incorruptibles: Study of Catholic Saints
Regional Saints
Up until about 1900, saints from Western Europe--especially from Italy, France, Germany, and Spain--dominated the literature. But, holiness is no respecter of geographical boundaries. This section includes books on peripheral European regions like the British Isles and Scandinavia as well as Africa, Asia, and the Americas (from North to South and everywhere in between).
As noted in Part 1, Sabine Baring-Gould (1834-1924) was an English Anglican priest, eclectic scholar, and prolific writer with more than 1,240 publications to his credit, including the lyrics of hymns such as "Onward, Christian Soldiers!" Though the ... Available free for reading online, Vol. 1 covers saints named S. Aaron — S. Byrnach.
The lives of the British saints; the saints of Wales and Cornwall and such Irish saints as have dedications in Britain : Baring-Gould, S. (Sabine), 1834-1924
Available free for reading online, Vol. 2 covers saints named S. Cadell — S. Ewryd.
The lives of the British saints; the saints of Wales and Cornwall and such Irish saints as have dedications in Britain : Baring-Gould, S. (Sabine), 1834-1924
Available free for reading online, Vol. 3 covers saints named S. Faustus — S. Mynno.
The lives of the British saints; the saints of Wales and Cornwall and such Irish saints as have dedications in Britain : Baring-Gould, S. (Sabine), 1834-1924
Available free for reading online, Vol. 4 covers saints named S. Nectan — S. Ystyffa. With a comprehensive index covering all four volumes.
The lives of the British saints; the saints of Wales and Cornwall and such Irish saints as have dedications in Britain : Baring-Gould, S. (Sabine), 1834-1924
Prefer to hold an actual book in your hands? Baring-Gould's volumes on British saints are available singly or in a set on Amazon!
Amazon.com : baring-gould british saints
Few Scandinavian saints are familiar to Americans in general. Sigrid Undset (1882-1949), Nobel Laureate in Literature (1928) and a favorite author of mine, wrote copiously--essays, hagiography (saints' lives), and memoirs as well as historical fictio...
Saga of Saints
Treats 90 individuals renowned for their holiness, not only Catholic saints but also people from other faith traditions. With African prayers, proverbs and wise sayings. By an Episcopal priest with credentials in African studies and foreign service i...
African Saints: Martyrs & Holy People
Profiles of 40 Catholic saints, blesseds, venerables. and servants of God. With a relevant Scripture passage, a prayer, and questions for reflection.
African Saints: 40 Holy Men and Women
Short bios arranged by feast day of 5-11 saints per month who were born in Africa or were of African descent. With a brief history of The Church in Africa from ancient times to the 20th century, glossary, and a map showing where a few of its featured saints lived. Quick reference.
Saints of Africa
Another book by O'Malley, this time about saints in the Orient.. Short bios of about 100 saints often neglected and unknown in the West. Includes some Western missionaries and many local martyrs.
Saints of Asia: 1500 to the Present
Engagingly written bios of the holy men and women who built the Catholic Church in America. A good look at both American and Church history. Well illustrated.
Fearless: Stories of the American Saints
The inspiring stories of six men and women who just happen to be potential Black American saints. With reflections penned by six different authors… An insightful and thought-provoking book for every American regardless of race, color, creed, sex, national origin, ethnicity, or ancestry. But not without controversy… See: https://www.blackcatholicmessenger.org/osv-black-saints-book-review-pt-1/ and https://www.blackcatholicmessenger.org/osv-black-saints-book-review-pt-2/
Black Catholics on the Road to Sainthood
Very short blurbs on Latin American Saints. Once you have a name, though, try Wikipedia or one of the saint sites mentioned in Part 1.
List of Saints from South America Archives
Includes both Mexican saints and some popular saints like Michael and Jude Thaddeus venerated in Mexico.
21 Famous Mexican Saints You Need to Know About (And Their Symbolic Meanings)
A Wikipedia list of Mexican saints, blesseds, etc. with links to bios.
List of Mexican Catholic saints
A Wikipedia list of Central American and Caribbean saints, blesseds, etc. with links to bios when available.
List of venerated Central Americans and Caribbeans
Final Thoughts...
So many saints, so little time! Every year sees the publication of numerous books on the saints. Our Readers' Guides have listed only what we consider essential references. Most of the books cited have bibliographies that will yield suggestions for further reading. + Have a favorite book on the saints in general? Remember to leave a comment, and we'll compile a list of your favorites!
A much more detailed look than the reference in Part I of this reading list at the canonization process, that is, how the Church vets potential saints, in all its complexity…
Making Saints: How the Catholic Church Decides
Though somewhat dated (a number of the saints in “Chapter 18: Waiting for Their Haloes...” have now been canonized), this book remains an easy to read compendium on the sainthood and the saints.
Saints For Dummies
An enjoyable read… A little more recent but a little less comprehensive than Saints for Dummies…
Making Sense of Saints: Facts on Relics & More
At 807 pages, this is not necessarily a book to read continuously from cover to cover, but a book to mine for specific topics. (The bibliography alone runs nearly 100 pages of small type!) It is, however, a grand history chock full of interesting det... A must-have for the serious student of the saints!
Why Can the Dead Do Such Great Things?