Most if not all Wanderer readers can name at least one Catholic book that majorly impacted their lives. Many converts to the Catholic faith speak of how a seemingly chance encounter with a particular Catholic book set into motion their journey to the Catholic faith. St. Teresa Benedicta of the Cross’ (Edith Stein’s) discovery of the autobiography of St. Teresa of Avila in a friend’s home is a great example of this. Almost invariably, such an initial encounter with Catholic literature leads to the perusal of one book after another, for once the human soul has tasted perhaps for the very first time the “eternal verities” about God and the real meaning of life, it hungers and thirsts for more. Thus we speak of converts like St. John Henry Newman reading their way into the Catholic faith. For cradle Catholics, a pivotal encounter with a good Catholic book can bring about a different sort of conversion — in some cases a return to the practice

Mankind’s highest undertakings have typically begun with a great deal of preparation. Columbus’ epic voyage of discovery in 1492 was no spur of the moment journey. The technology to land man on the moon in 1969 was not patched together overnight. If this is so for these merely temporal achievements, can it be any less so for the greatest of all tasks that Almighty God has placed into the hands of frail mortals to carry out by His divine power and command, the confection of the Holy Eucharist? Our Lord has been so superabundantly generous in bestowing the power to celebrate Mass upon His priests that we can make the mistake of taking for granted its daily celebration at thousands of altars around the world. I confess that I myself have habitually made this terrible mistake, often arriving for Mass at the last minute with a head full of distractions, scarcely prepared for what is each day the most sacrosanct event on the face of