7 Life-Changing Books by Saints

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In Saint Peter’s Square on Nov. 1, 2013 – All Saints Day – Pope Francis spoke to the crowd about the saints. “The Saints are not supermen, nor were they born perfect,” he said. “They are like us, like each one of us. They are people who, before reaching the glory of heaven, lived normal lives with joys and sorrows, struggles and hopes. What changed their lives? When they recognized God’s love, they followed it with all their heart without reserve or hypocrisy. They spent their lives serving others, they endured suffering and adversity without hatred and responded to evil with good, spreading joy and peace.”

Pope Francis clearly realizes how much the saints can teach us. Without a doubt, he realizes that it’s so easy for us to get lost or distracted as we journey on our path to live a holy life. Even the most devout Christians sometimes struggle with questions about their faith. While the Holy Spirit has lived within us since we were baptized, we don’t always understand what He’s prompting us to do. Sometimes, it helps to receive spiritual guidance from saints who lived only for God and found peace and joy in serving Him.

Fortunately, some saints shared their vast wisdom and spiritual insights with others through books and essays. And although some were written centuries ago, the saints’ words are just as valuable in our modern world as they were when they were written. Here are just seven books written by saints that have changed people’s lives.

“The Story of a Soul,” by St. Therese de Lisieux

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Affectionately known as the Little Flower and given the distinction of being a doctor of the Church, Saint Therese de Lisieux’s autobiography “The Story of a Soul” was written by the young cloistered nun at the request of her Prioress. Although she was originally hesitant to write it, she eventually embraced it as a way to please Jesus. In it, readers learn from her ”little way” of love how to love Jesus fully with a childlike trust, how to put God’s will above all and how to forgive and love everyone.

“He showed me the book of nature, and I understood that every flower created by Him is beautiful, that the brilliance of the rose and the whiteness of the lily do not lessen the perfume of the violet or the simplicity of the daisy,” she wrote. “I understood that if all the lowly flowers wished to be roses, nature would lose its springtide beauty, and the fields would no longer be enameled with lovely hues. And so it is in the world of souls, Our Lord’s living garden.”

“Interior Castle,” by St. Teresa of Avila

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Another great female saint who’s treasured for her guidance and is also a doctor of the Church is Saint Teresa of Avila. Ordered to write the book by her superiors, Father Jerome Gracian and Don Alonso Velasquez, the ailing nun – who was going through a dark time of unjust persecution in her life – wrote “Interior Castle” in trance-like states (frequently after receiving Holy Communion) in 1577.

The book describes a mystical vision God gave her of a beautiful castle that seemed to be made of a diamond or perfect crystal. The castle represents the human soul. In the vision, the innermost chamber/mansion within the castle is the most glorious, and it shines with the Light of God dwelling within it. It is considered the seventh mansion of the soul, and it is extremely difficult to get to that level of closeness with God. The saint’s book helps people journey through the various levels/mansions to become closer to God.

“A Simple Path,” by St. Teresa of Calcutta

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Saint Teresa of Calcutta, who was known as Mother Teresa at the time, wrote “A Simple Path” to show people how they could also lead a life of faith and put their faith into action through love, charity and kindness. Although the book was started several years earlier, it was published only a couple of years before she passed away. In it, she also tells of how the Missionaries of Charity was founded and how their work has touched the lives of many.

The book’s introduction begins with the saint’s words. “I can tell you about my path,” St. Teresa of Calcutta said. “But I’m only a little wire – God is the power. Talk to the others, the sisters and the brothers and the people who work with them. Some are not Christians; talk to them. You will know what it is when you see it. It is very beautiful.”

“The Way,” by St. Josemaria Escriva

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Saint Josemaría Escrivá de Balaguer is the founder of the Catholic organization known as Opus Dei. The saint, who was a priest when he founded the organization in 1928, believed everyone could become holy. He also believed that our ordinary lives provide ways to attain that holiness.

Opus Dei strives to add to the evangelization of the Gospel by “promoting among Christians of all social classes a life fully consistent with their faith, in the middle of the ordinary circumstances…and especially through the sanctification of their work,” and the book strives to promote the same values. "Read these counsels slowly,” wrote the saint. “Pause to meditate on these thoughts. They are things that I whisper in your ear-confiding them-as a friend, as a brother, as a father. And they are being heard by God. I won't tell you anything new. I will only stir your memory, so that some thought will arise and strike you; and so you will better your life and set out along ways of prayer and of Love. And in the end you will be a more worthy soul."

“Finding God’s Will for You,” by St. Frances de Sales

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In the 16th Century, Saint Frances de Sales left his life as a well-educated wealthy nobleman behind him to embrace rough terrain, attacks and poverty as a missionary priest. It was clear that he was able to carefully discern God’s will for him, despite all the temptations that he had to lead a much more comfortable life. In the book, he helps others to discern God’s will in their own lives.

In this book, by the saint who is one of the patron saints of writers, he provides readers with methods for discerning God’s will in every situation. He also helps them to see whether or not their hearts conform to God’s will, and he helps readers to recognize when God is trying to get their attention through inspirations and signs. He also illustrates how we become like the people we love and why accepting and loving God’s will brings us true fulfillment.

“The Spiritual Exercises of Saint Ignatius,” by St. Ignatius of Loyola

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Another great saint of the 16th Century, Saint Ignatius of Loyola wrote this book as a retreat for religious and people seeking to deepen their faith in a life-altering way. It consists of four weeks of spiritual exercises that take the participants through an intense journey of faith. The four key meditations are on the Kingdom of God, the Two Standards (of Christ and Satan), the Three Classes of Men and the Three Modes of Humility.

At the beginning of the book, which is used on Ignatian retreats by religious and lay people to strengthen their faith, the saint wrote “For just as taking a walk, journeying on foot, and running are bodily exercises, so we call Spiritual Exercises every way of preparing and disposing the soul to rid itself of all inordinate attachments, and, after their removal, of seeking and finding the will of God in the disposition of our life for the salvation of our soul.”

“True Devotion to Mary: With Preparation for Total Consecration,” by St. Louis de Montfort

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Saint Louis de Montfort, a French priest who lived from the end of the 17th Century to the beginning of the 18th Century, wrote the book “True Devotion to Mary” to lead people through steps to take to consecrate themselves to Jesus through Mary. He believed consecration to Blessed Mother was the shortest path to holiness. The seminal book on Marian theology illustrates how Mary graciously intercedes for us, as she did at the Wedding Feast in Cana, when Jesus turned water into wine.

“If, then, we establish solid devotion to our Blessed Lady, it is only to establish more perfectly devotion to Jesus Christ, and to provide an easy and secure means for finding Jesus Christ,” wrote the saint. “If devotion to Our Lady removed us from Jesus Christ, we should have to reject it as an illusion of the devil; but so far from this being the case, devotion to Our Lady is, on the contrary, necessary for us—as I have already shown, and will show still further hereafter—as a means of finding Jesus Christ perfectly, of loving Him tenderly, of serving Him faithfully.”