Teen Interest

The perfect journaling companion to The Catholic Youth Bible® has arrived: designed for girls to discover who they authentically are! Its inviting pages will make them want to write, color, draw, and doodle in response to the open-ended prompts. It will help them reflect on their gifts, their goals, their self-image, and their mission; and it will encourage prayer. 

From the author:

As a young woman, I often heard that advice. Sometimes I wondered, "What does that really mean?" Other times I thought, "I don't really know who that is yet."

I came to realize that we discover how to "be ourselves" through our relationship with the God who created us. The same awesome God who knew the universe needed a sun and air also knew the world needed you. How amazing is that?

We truly discover our identity when we nourish our relationship with God and learn His will for our life. This journal is designed to help you enjoy learning about God's will for you.

This girl's journal is divided into six sections:

• Who You Really Are
• Peace
• Love
• Prayer
• Talents and Gifts
• Your Life

It is versatile. Some days she may go right to the “Prayer” section; other days she may just want to find a page to color. With this journal, she can choose where she wants to go, when she needs to. The journal is designed to be flexible for her needs, wherever her heart may lead her.

In Breakthrough: The Companion Journal, Fr. Rob Galea's reflections on faith and the lessons he learned and shared in the bestselling Breakthrough are highlighted and paired with questions such as these to assist you in applying these lessons to your own faith. The journal takes you chapter by chapter through Breakthrough, guiding you as you consider your faith, your relationship with God and others, your past, and your future.

Breakthrough shares Fr. Rob Galea's journey from desperation to hope--from a lonely and angry teenager to a passionate priest--while Breakthrough: The Companion Journal invites you to consider your own life and faith in light of the experiences Galea shares and the lessons he learned from his troubled past.

This full-color, visually appealing journal also includes inspirational quotes from the book to contemplate as you write and full-page quotes that you can pull out of the book and post as a daily reminder.

Whether you are reading Galea's book for the first time or the fifth, Breakthrough: The Companion Journal will help you more deeply understand his journey to hope and apply its lessons to your own life.

“How can you keep your heart focused on Jesus, our first love?”

“What kind of relationship do you desire to have with Jesus?”

“What gifts has God given you that you can use to glorify him?”

In Breakthrough: The Companion Journal, Fr. Rob Galea’s reflections on faith and the lessons he learned and shared in the bestselling Breakthrough are highlighted and paired with questions such as these to assist you in applying these lessons to your own faith. The journal takes you chapter by chapter through Breakthrough, guiding you as you consider your faith, your relationship with God and others, your past, and your future.

Breakthrough shares Galea’s journey from desperation to hope—from a lonely and angry teenager to a passionate priest—while Breakthrough: The Companion Journal invites you to consider your own life and faith in light of the experiences Galea shares and the lessons he learned from his troubled past.

This full-color, visually appealing journal also includes inspirational quotes from the book to contemplate as you write and full-page quotes that you can pull out of the book and post as a daily reminder.

Whether you are reading Galea’s book for the first time or the fifth, Breakthrough: The Companion Journal will help you more deeply understand his journey to hope and apply its lessons to your own life.

Lizzie Velasquez recently graduated from Texas State University in San Marcos with a degree in communications. She is one of only three known people in the world with a medical syndrome that doesn't allow her to gain weight or create muscle. Lizzie, an author of three books, has appeared as a motivational speaker at more than 200 workshops. Her story has been featured in national and international media, including The Today Show, Inside Edition, Katie Couric, Dr. Drew, Australia's Sunday Night, and Germany's Explosiv.

Sometimes it's seeing God at work in ordinary human experiences that nurtures faith. The Bible has so much to teach about life, and the people of the Bible have so much to teach about living. In a very real way, these people are our spiritual ancestors who show us how to deepen our relationship with God. The 366 reflections in Day by Day with People of the Bible will help teens examine the stories of over 70 biblical characters. With a Scripture passage, commentary, brief question, and prayer, these daily reflections will allow teens to carry the wisdom of God into their daily lives.

Do you feel like God is calling you to...something, but you don't know what? Don't know where to start? Do you find it hard to clear away the noise of life, and apps, and phones and really listen to God?

You're not alone! But, happily, now there is a book to help you cut through the clutter so as to prayerfully discern God's will for your life...that life to which he calls you and for which He created you.

Discernment Do's and Don'ts, a practical guide to vocational discernment for Catholic teens and young adults, combines the teachings of Scriptures, Church documents, the Church Fathers, and the saints -and a healthy dose of good old common sense - into one handy "How to" guide on finding God's will for you.

College chaplain, tech apostle, and parish priest Fr. George Elliott shows young people how to navigate seven different states of the discernment process and provides one best practice (the Do's) to employ and one pitfall to avoid (the Don'ts) at each stage.

Discernment Do's and Don'ts is an invaluable guide offering a wealth of practical advice and resources including:

Discernment Do's and Don'ts lays out a clear path and helps young people identify anything that may be interfering with the discernment process and suggests ways to overcome those obstacles. Though written for teens and young adults, every Catholic not yet settled in a definitive vocation and anyone who cares about such "seekers" (That's you, parents!) should read this book.

Everyday Justice brings the principles of Catholic social teaching to teens, whether they are using it as a companion for a social justice course, to broaden their personal understanding of justice issues, or as a reflection guide while they are on a service project. But more than that, it inspires them to respond to our Gospel call. Each day begins with a quote from the Scriptures, a Church document, or an advocate of justice and is followed by a reflection, a prayer, and a call to action.

How well do you know Jesus? Like, REALLY know him?

Catholic author and speaker Katie Prejean McGrady shares sometimes embarrassing, often humorous, and always inspiring stories about how she came to know and love Jesus and how you can, too, through prayer, scripture, sacraments, and service.

In the summer of 2016, Katie Prejean McGrady walked off the stage feeling great about a forty-five-minute talk she had just given, when a young man from the audience stopped her for advice. His questions caught her completely off guard.

"Who is Jesus?"
"How can I get to know him?"

Prejean McGrady--who speaks to tens of thousands of Catholic teens and young adults a year about her passion for Jesus--couldn't give the guy a straightforward answer. And it bugged her. Bigtime.

In Follow, she uses engaging, sometimes awkward, and frequently funny stories from her own life to show you four simple and practical steps to get to know Jesus and have life-changing friendship with him:

These days, virgins may be embarrassed by their lack of "experience" while non-virgins may feel it's too late for them. Men and women of all ages feel compelled to "take their relationships to the next level"--meaning they think it's time to have sex, not try on wedding rings. Chastity author and speaker Jason Evert addresses these issue, and dozens more, in If You Really Loved Me: 100 Questions on Dating, Relationships, and Sexual Purity.

This landmark work features the most common questions Evert is asked when speaking about the virtue of chastity in hundreds of Catholic, Evangelical Christian, and public schools. His humorous, friendly and blunt approach opens hearts and minds to a topic often either rejected out of hand or misunderstood.

Teens will find this book a useful guide to starting a relationship, deciding one's vocation, one day finding a potential spouse, and maintaining purity--without forsaking love. This book will give parents and educators new insights to help teens know the difference between love and lust. They may even look at their own lives differently, because as Evert explains, chastity is not only for singles; married couples must practice this virtue as well.

Many young people work and study hard, are happy and sociable, but lack knowledge of decent manners in public — it either hasn’t been passed on through the generations, or its importance hasn’t been emphasized. And yet small details in social life have a big impact on relationships and first impressions. From learning basic table manners to public speaking; from manners relating to dating, hygiene, and technology, to appropriate clothing choices: the author illustrates these details in a straight-forward and often amusing way. As the author aptly states, “many doors and hearts are opened by good manners.” Manners make strong impressions, lead to effective relationships, and shape one’s character and reputation. Most importantly of all, this book teaches how to discover the good in others and how to live with more grace and style. John Narbona is a journalist. He lives in Italy and is an expert in corporate communication and the education of young people.

Hookup culture is about much more than the quest for pleasure. It offers an easy way out of real communication and lasting relationships. It also teaches us to treat each other as objects for personal satisfaction. Even those who reject the hookup culture can still be negatively affected by it and develop poor habits of relating to others. In Off the Hook, Timothy P. O'Malley, professor of theology at the University of Notre Dame, shows how God's plan for love serves to heal the wounds of hookup culture and is a medicine for what ails our understanding of sex, romance, love, and marriage.

Here are a few things Timothy O'Malley discovered from students in his popular undergraduate course, Nuptial Mystery: Divine Love and Human Salvation:

In Off the Hook, O'Malley explains how the ethics of hooking up shape relationships between men and women and examines the considerable harm to individuals and society that results. By exploring the sacrament of marriage in its biblical, theological, and liturgical dimensions, he offers Catholic young adults and those charged with their formation and pastoral care a wealth of insight into God's plan for love.

Young people will find help grappling with the Church's countercultural understanding of sex, love, and marriage. Parents and pastoral workers will discover a refreshing presentation of the Catholic theology of marriage and wise counsel about forming young people in the Church's vision. Newly married, and even long-married couples will find hope, courage, and the promise of sacramental love that can sustain them for a lifetime.

Now comes an opportunity for children ages 6 and up to meet Philip not only as a football star, but also as a spiritual role model"€"and their teammate in holiness! With special photographs and behind-the-scenes stories, God's Quarterback relates how Philip has pursued excellence both at the altar and on the field.

What do you say when someone tries to tell you:

Prove It! Church gives you the answers you need when someone challenges your Catholic Faith. From Mary to the saints to papal infallibility, infant baptism, purgatory, and a whole lot more. Prove It! Church explains what you need to know to prove that the Catholic Church belongs to Christ, teaches Christ, preaches Christ - and is, in fact, Christ in the world today!

These are the answers teenagers desperately want!

Why didn't God answer my prayers? What's the best way to pray? Does praying do any good at all?

For many teenagers, the whole subject of prayer is a mystery. Amy Welborn helps them understand what the Church teaches, and why what the Church teaches is right.

Do you wonder why, as a Catholic, you do some of the things that you do? Have you ever found yourself unable to answer basic questions about what you believe and why you believe it? The Survival Guide for Young Catholics will tell you a bunch of stuff that you might already know and a lot more that you probably don't. You won't get long, boring answers. Instead you'll get quick-fire, straight-up answers that any parent or pope would be proud to hear. So prepare for an overview of the Catholic faith that is sure to leave you a little smarter, a lot more confident and the envy of your fellow Catholics.

Legendary former Notre Dame football coach Lou Holtz shared three easy to remember and impossible to forget rules for life during a commencement address at Franciscan University Steubenville.

Now in paperback, Three Rules for Living a Good Life: A Game Plan for after Graduation offers a quick, sometimes humorous, and always practical formula for recent college graduates and other young adults to reach success in their business, personal, and spiritual lives.

Three Rules for Living a Good Life is a great gift book for a young adult looking for a quick read that offers encouragement and concrete advice for transitioning to the workforce and to deeper, more committed relationships.

Holtz, one of the most successful college football coaches of all time, shares a message that is genuine and sensible. Punctuated with examples for keeping and living the three rules each day from his years of working with teams, in business, and with his family, Holtz's book keeps the discussion light, humorous, and real.

Holtz's commencement message is one he often shares with business leaders around the world. He points to the foundation of his Christian faith and the necessity for young adults who have been raised in the faith to take stock of themselves at this crossroads of their life. "Don't ignore God! Don't give up the faith!" he writes.

A sought-after motivational speaker, Holtz annually gives hundreds of presentations on topics having to do with leadership, success, and achieving peak results. Holtz has also given many commencement addresses and been awarded a number of honorary degrees. In Three Rules for Living a Good Life, this iconic Notre Dame football coach sums up his essential graduation message in a way that college grads will find useful as they take their place in the "real world."