Few events have been as impactful on the present-day circumstances of the Catholic Church as the Italian Unification. Pope Pius IX led the Church through a time of massive change in the political climates of Europe, ushering in the increase in visibility of the pope. Pius IX led the world in his strong attack against Modernism, and the increasingly secular cultures and economic systems which were engulfing the world.-Print ed.

This book looks at how the use of story can capture and embody our spiritual experiences, whether human or divine. It is a collection of meditations on how God initiates all experiences and how we respond to God's initiative through our relationship with the Divine One. The stories challenge us to reflect more deeply on how we encounter the Spirit in our religious traditions as well as in the personal experiences of our lives.Paperback

Award-winning author and storyteller, John Shea shares a poetic word of hope to help us “make it” this Christmas season.Whether your “it” is the overwhelming pressure to get it all done, the task of just getting through it, or simply being present this holiday season, award-winning author John Shea urges us to slow down during the rush of the season and open our hearts and minds to how the Spirit is calling us to renewal.By focusing on theological, scriptur...

Storyteller and theologian John Shea provides a unique commentary that's ideal for preaching, teaching, or simply meditating on the Gospels. His writing is poignant and conversational making this book a valuable tool for professional ministers, as well as for Christians who reflect on the Gospels for personal spiritual growth.Shea draws readers into the people and situations that Jesus encountered in ways that are evocative and inspirational. The resource is based on both the Catho...

Saint John's Gospel ends with the words, "But there are also many other things that Jesus did; if every one of them were written down, I suppose that the world itself could not contain the books that would be written" (John 21:25). This very popular book by master storyteller John Shea picks up where the Gospel of John leaves off. Inside its pages are stories that Christians tell, a few of the worlds they inhabit, invitations that lure them, and decisions that face them.Paperba...

Six New Yorkers are sick with a mysterious virus that attacks the brain.Experts suspect a tiny culprit: mosquitoes! Then birds start dropping dead. Scientists think that the outbreaks are related. But how?High-interest topics, real stories, engaging design, and astonishing photos are the building blocks of the XBooks, a new series of books designed to engage and motivate reluctant and enthusiastic readers alike. How can a bite from a pet prairie dog cause a...

2006 Catholic Press Association Award Winner!With a goal of transcendent awareness, John Shea presents this commentary on the Sunday Gospel readings for those who are drawn to the spiritual wisdom of the Gospels. Ideal for Christian preachers and teachers, and Christians who meditate on the Gospels, Shea's book takes a literary-spiritual approach. He analyzes the mindsets of characters and how Jesus complimented, critiqued, praised these mindsets, to inspire medita...

With a goal of transcendent awareness, John Shea presents this commentary on the Sunday Gospel readings for those who are drawn to the spiritual wisdom of the Gospels. Ideal for Christian preachers and teachers, and Christians who meditate on the Gospels, Shea's book takes a literary-spiritual approach. He analyzes the mindsets of characters and how Jesus complimented, critiqued, praised these mindsets, to inspire meditation, reflection, and spiritual development. On Earth as It Is in ...

In this true crime memoir, a former member of the Irish mob under Whitey Bulger details his criminal exploits in 1980s and '90s Boston.An ice-cold enforcer with a red-hot temper, John "Red" Shea was already a top lieutenant in the South Boston Irish mob at the young age of twenty-one, a protégé of the notorious Irish godfather James "Whitey" Bulger. Brutal and ruthlessly ambitious—a loan shark, money launderer, and multimillion-dollar narcotics kingpin—Shea was at t...

Foundations of Data Science with Python introduces readers to the fundamentals of data science, including data manipulation and visualization, probability, statistics, and dimensionality reduction. This book is targeted toward engineers and scientists, but it should be readily understandable to anyone who knows basic calculus and the essentials of computer programming. It uses a computational-first approach to data science: the reader will learn how to use Python and the associate...

Stone tools are the least familiar objects that archaeologists recover from their excavations, and predictably, they struggle to understand them. Eastern Africa alone boasts a 3.4 million-year-long archaeological record but its stone tool evidence still remains disorganized, unsynthesized, and all-but-impenetrable to non-experts, and especially so to students from Eastern African countries. In this book, John J. Shea offers a simple, straightforward, and richly illustrated introduction in ...

A hurricane roars up, headed straight for Nantucket Island. That’s where James O’Neill, struggling hedge fund manager, is trying to put his life back together. Luckily, before the storm strikes, James is able to get his 12 son Danny on the last outward-bound ferry—but he can’t find his aging father. As the hurricane ravages the island, James searches for his elderly dad. He encounters mysterious men throughout the quaint town. After he spots two of them cruising offshore in his friend’s bo...