The Divine Comedy of Dante Alighieri has captivated the imagination of its readers for over seven centuries as Dante, a pilgrim on a journey to God, is called by Our Blessed Mother through the supernatural realms of the afterlife to witness the state of the souls of the departed. Accompanied first by Virgil, who represents human reason, and later by Beatrice, who represents divine revelation, Dante engages in conversation with souls in Hell, Purgatory, and Heaven. Through each engagement, he experiences spiritual growth until he is made ready for the Beatific Vision, which is no less than an experience of the mind of God. Our journey, dear reader, is one that will lead to our own spiritual growth as we, through the grace God freely provides, are prepared to be pure, perfect, and ready for the stars.

585 pages! Includes a prose translation of the entire Divine Comedy  by Arthur John Butler, every illustration by Gustav Dore, and lectures and questions for reflection by Dr. Sebastian Mahfood, OP.  

Paperback: $29.99 | Kindle: $9.99

REVIEWS

Review by Dr Pravin Thevathasan. Christendom Awake! (15 November, 2020). For access to the review, click here.

TESTIMONIALS

“Its journey has some stars. The book is dedicated for Our Blessed Mother without whom that voyage would not be possible. Along it, “the Red Sea’s waters stood aside”. There are especially stars in the sky over us. They are four cardinal virtues, which guide us: prudence, justice, temperance, and fortitude. Here this is a great catalyst recalls a lifesaver and beacon, whom is: Mary, the Star of the Sea!” – (Rev.) Vincent A. Salamoni, Missionaries of the Holy Apostles (M.S.A.), author of The Mercy Ocean

“Sad that you never read some of the great classics of Catholic literature?  Here’s your chance to try Dante with the help of the sparkling commentary of Sebastian Mahfood, linking the insights of the past to the issues of today.” — Ronda Chervin, Ph.D., Professor Emerita of Philosophy, Holy Apostles College and Seminary

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

​Dr. Sebastian Mahfood, OP, is a retired Professor of Interdisciplinary Studies at Holy Apostles College & Seminary in Cromwell, CT. He first studied the Divine Comedy under Dr. Simone Turbeville in the spring of 1991 at the University of Texas in Arlington and began teaching it as literature half a decade later at Texas Christian University in Ft. Worth. It wasn’t until he began studying philosophy and theology at Holy Apostles College & Seminary in Cromwell, CT, that Dr. Mahfood began to see within the Comedy the care Dante took in a very Marian framework to map himself onto the works of Aristotle and St. Thomas among the other philosophers and poets he meets in Limbo and the theologians and Church doctors he meets in Paradise. Dr. Mahfood was prepared by Dante, who was himself a Lay Franciscan, to become a lay member of the Dominican order, which considers study to be an act of prayer.

OTHER ACADEMIC BOOKS

In Praise of Life

by Dr. Donald DeMarco

INTERVIEW

TESTIMONIALS

“Don DeMarco has once again provided his reading audience with a strong testimony in support of human life, not just in this part or in that part of our existence, but in all of it. He models within this book the famous observation by St. Irenaeus, that ‘the glory of God is man fully alive, but man fully alive is man when he sees God.’” – Dr. Sebastian Mahfood, OP, Associate Professor of Interdisciplinary Studies, Holy Apostles College & Seminary

“Professor DeMarco is a national Catholic treasure.  His work gives witness to our faith in a world which is increasingly seeking to exclude Christian perspectives from the public square.” – Phil Horgan, President of the Catholic Civil Rights League (CCRL)

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

OTHER ACADEMIC BOOKS

The Way of Love: The Path of Inner Transformation

by Dr. Ronda Chervin

A reprint of Dr. Ronda’s The Way of Love: The Battle for Inner Transformation, this new edition under a new subtitle puts back in front of the world the nature of human love alongside human passion as told from the perspective of a woman who has deeply experienced both.

All of us hope that others think of us as loving persons. But do we really have nothing but love in our hearts: how about anger, anxiety, despair, annoyance, the blahs…? Learn from Dr. Ronda’s The Way of Love how to understand different types of love, how to overcome obstacles to love with the grace of God, and how to make loving moral decisions. Respond to the challenge of becoming more loving day by day as a spiritual marathon runner.

Paperback $18.95 | Kindle $9.99

FROM THE AUTHOR

“I wanted to write something that would deal with a passionate concern of mine about myself and others – how is it that I, and many of my closest friends, long and yearn to be holy, defined by me as having nothing but love in our hearts, and yet it doesn’t happen. As well as love, we find pockets of anger (the bad kind), anxiety, discouragement, disgruntlement… and other unloving emotions. And how is it that these don’t yield to the graces of daily Mass, the rosary, liturgy of the hours, adoration, or talking to Jesus all day?

“My diagnosis was that our prayers and thoughts are often too vague so that we can be in denial of our worst patterns of thought, word, and deed in spite of general prayers to be more loving. My remedy was to write for my blog-readers a 100-day book, not of sweet meditations but, instead, of challenges. I wrote it. I tested out each one on myself ,with ardent prayers for God’s help, in the writing and the practicing, with the result that some of my nearest and dearest thought I had improved greatly.

“Let us step forth on the way of love with this Scripture as our challenge: ‘You are the temple of the living God, just as God has said: I dwell with them and walk among them. I will be their God and they shall be my people. Since we have these promises, beloved, let us purify ourselves from every defilement of flesh and spirit, and in the fear of God strive to fulfill our consecration perfectly.’ (2 Corinthian 6:16b; 7, 1)” — Ronda Chervin

TESTIMONIALS

I was the first Catholic that Ronda met, and we became friends immediately. She could be called ‘the Apostle of the Confused’ because, through grace, she is making good use of her atheistic background to reach many of those who live in darkness and confusion. The water of atheism (and other dirty water) is changed into the wine of faith. – Dr. Alice von Hildebrand, author of Man and Woman: A Divine Intervention

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Ronda Chervin has a Ph.D. in philosophy from Fordham University and an M.A. in Religious Studies from Notre Dame Apostolic Institute. She is a convert to the Catholic faith from a Jewish but atheistic background. She has been a professor at Loyola Marymount University, St. John’s Seminary of the Los Angeles Archdiocese, Franciscan University of Steubenville, Our Lady of Corpus Christi, and presently teaches at Holy Apostles College and Seminary in Connecticut. More than fifty books of hers have been published by Catholic presses in the area of philosophy and spirituality. Dr. Ronda presents on EWTN and Catholic radio. She is a dedicated widow and grandmother. Her many books include Quotable Saints, Healing Meditations from the Gospel of St. John, Catholic Realism, Voyage to Insight, Weeping with Jesus, and Healing of Rejection. 

OTHER ACADEMIC BOOKS