Catholicism and Reason is one of a series of five books that deal with worldview issues from a Catholic perspective.
This seems to be the foundational book since it presents basic apologetics for both Christianity and Catholicism. Using the Creed as a sort of topical framework, it covers some of the same topics found in books like Evidence that Demands a Verdict— "proofs" for the existence of God, the theory of evolution versus the evidence of intelligent design by a creator, and the nature of Jesus Christ. It goes on to discuss the Catholic and Apostolic nature of the Church, authority and the Bible, church unity, eternity, Mary, and many other topics. The systematic presentation is reinforced with quotations from Scripture, Vatican II, and the Catechism of the Catholic Church. The goal of the book is to demonstrate how integral both faith and reason are to one another. The book is purposely divided into 24 chapters so that it can be used for a school year, covering a chapter per week. Topics are especially good for discussions since they frequently touch on controversial issues.
Catholicism and Life works well as a follow-up to Catholicism and Reason. It focuses on the commandments and the Sacraments, showing how we can live the life to which God calls us. This very-practical book explains what the commandments mean, the nature of the Sacraments, and how the grace of the Sacraments works in our lives. Using anecdotes and examples, it answers challenging questions and points us toward growth in holiness.
Catholicism and Scripture is reviewed on a separate page. It tells the story of salvation history, making connections between Old and New Testament as well as the modern-day Church.
These would be the three books I would most likely use with teens.
The other two books in this series are more specialized. Catholicism and Society deals with marriage, family, and social issues. It stresses the vocational nature of every Christian's life. It discusses such topics as relationship issues, raising children, abortion, contraception, euthanasia, stewardship, and public morality. At the end are chapters about cults, the New Age movement, and atheism. You might select parts of this book for use with teens.
The fourth book is Catholicism and Ethics. Subtitled "A Medical/Moral Handbook," it uses a fairly logical approach to dealing with moral dilemmas, showing how to make decisions when considering an action that has both good and bad effects. Life issues, medical care, sterilization, organ transplants, and other medical issues are discussed along with topics like ethics, conscience, natural law, and moral guidelines. Again, use excerpts from this book as is appropriate.
All five books have the Imprimatur and Nihil Obstat, and Leader's/Catechist Manuals are available for each book, but only from the publisher.
