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Exemplifying the old maxim that a picture is worth a thousand words, the Latin Prayers of the Rosary Coloring Book helps young Catholics learn and remember the principal prayers of the Rosary, both in English and in Latin, the traditional language of the Catholic Church. This unique coloring book features thirty original drawings by Catholic artist Robert Kauffmann. Its goal is to help children move beyond merely learning the words of the prayers by rote, allowing them to visualize and understand the deep spiritual and theological meaning that the words of the prayers signify.Get your children or grandchildren started off on the right foot by introducing them to the most beloved and efficacious prayers of the Catholic Church. The Latin Prayers of the Rosary Coloring Book makes an excellent gift for the young Catholic in your life, whether for Christmas, Birthday, First Holy Communion or as part of a Catholic school or homeschooling activity.

In the mid-16th century AD, Christianity arrived in Japan. Heralded by daring Jesuits from Spain and Portugal zealous to bring the Gospel of Jesus Christ to the four corners of the earth, Christianity soon took root in that distant land. At that time, Japan was fractured among warring states as feudal lords known as daimyo vied for supremacy. From the first day, the Catholic faith found surprising acceptance among Japanese of all social status and within fifty years, Japanese converts known as Kirishitans numbered in the hundreds of thousands.But with the advent of a unified Japan under the powerful Tokugawa shogunate in the early 17th century, things began to change. While the Tokugawa shoguns appreciated European weapons and trade goods, they had little use for the foreign religion, whose success came to be viewed with increasing suspicion and hostility.Shiro Nakagawa comes from a family of recent converts living near Hitoyoshi castle on the island of Kyushu. A young man of the samurai class, Shiro studies to be a healer, but has also heard the call to become a Catholic priest. His plans for the future, however, are disrupted when the Shogun in Kyoto orders all churches closed throughout Japan. All gaijin priests are to be expelled from the country. All Christian practices and images are summarily banned. This order leads to widespread persecution, abuse and even slaughter of Christians throughout the islands.When the small church of Saint Michael in Hitoyoshi is closed, its priest Fr. Olivera arrested, and his friend Kumiko brutally attacked, Shiro knows he must take action. Along with his boyhood friend, Tomi, Shiro embarks on a mission to rescue Fr. Olivera and defend the helpless Kirishitan villagers of southern Kyushu. Along with an army of ronin and outraged villagers, Shiro captures the castle at Yatsushiro, sheltering tens of thousands of Christian refugees. But even as the spark of justified resistance begins to burn, Shiro and his comrades know that it's only a matter of time before the Shogun's army descends upon Yatsushiro in full force deploying new and terrifying European weapons.Masaru is an historical novel which paints the travails of the first Japanese Christians in brilliant colors. Author Michael T. Cibenko utilizes his expert knowledge of Japanese culture and language to create a memorable and authentic epic of early Christian Japan which entertains the reader while effortlessly conveying a lesson on this fascinating and complex period of history.

Saint Ambrose of Milan is one of the towering figures of the late 4th century AD. A high official in the western Roman government, Ambrose was conscripted against his will by the people of Milan to serve as their bishop. He would go on to become one of the most important fathers of the Western Church: a fierce opponent of heretics, admonisher of emperors, voluminous writer, worker of miracles, and the spiritual father of other great saints. This 5th century AD biography of Ambrose was written by one of the deacons who served under him: Paulinus of Milan. Paulinus was encouraged in this biographical effort by none other than Saint Augustine of Hippo, Ambrose's most famous disciple. Written in a style similar to other works of hagiography from the same time, Paulinus places Ambrose in his historical and spiritual context, drawing an enduring picture of the man and his times that has helped to cement Ambrose as one of the great holy men of the ancient Church. As a primary source, The Life of Saint Ambrose includes numerous first-hand accounts which were witnessed by Paulinus himself or related to him by those close to Ambrose. The important figures whose lives intersected with that of Ambrose included the Roman emperors Gratian, Theodosius the Great, and Valentinian II; the Arian empress Justina; usurpers Eugenius and Arbogast; the magister militum Stilicho, and saints like Marcellina, Simplicianus, Bassianus, Venerius, and many others. This version of the Vita Sancti Ambrosii was rendered into English by Sr. Mary Kaniecka in 1928. It has been completely re-typeset for the modern reader with simplified punctuation, expanded bibliography, updated citations, and an index. It retains Sr. Kaniecka's introduction and historical commentary, and includes numerous additional notes added by the modern editor. (Note: this edition does not include Sr. Kaniecka's revised Latin text nor her commentary specific to the translation.)

The fourth and fifth centuries AD were an era of intense political and spiritual turmoil in the Roman world, when ancient institutions suddenly crumbled and brilliant new edifices emerged from the rubble. Covering the momentous years between AD 324 and 425, the Ecclesiastical History of Sozomen is one of the most important primary histories of this period of upheaval and transition.A religious historian sympathetic to orthodoxy, Sozomen's focus is on the various quarrels, councils, schisms and reconciliations which roiled the Church at the time when Christians exited the catacombs and entered directly into the imperial administration. He provides exceptionally detailed descriptions of the heresy of Arius and the resulting religious controversies which followed the Council of Nicaea, including the recurring depositions and reinstatements of Saint Athanasius as bishop of Alexandria. With an obvious personal interest in monasticism, Sozomen provides some of the best contemporary accounts of the lives and deeds of famous monks from across the Roman world. Chronicling occurrences over the course of a century, Sozomen's History is an invaluable source on the fateful reigns of emperors such as Constantine the Great, Constantius II, Julian the Apostate, Valens, Theodosius the Great, and the empress Pulcheria. He provides anecdotes about Popes like Julius I, Liberius, and Innocent I, and great saints such as Anthony of Egypt, Ambrose of Milan, and John Chrysostom. He also includes verbatim reproductions of various ancient letters and edicts which circulated among saints, heretics and emperors as they debated the momentous religious and political questions of the age. Drawn from the elegant Bohn Ecclesiastical Library translation of 1855, this edition of Sozomen's History has been completely re-typeset for the modern reader. Obvious typographical errors in the original text have been corrected, and punctuation has been modernized to aid with text flow. To help make the text more accessible for students and general readers, this edition also includes numerous updated explanatory notes, a current bibliography, and an index of people, places and key terms.

When Commodore George Dewey's Asiatic Squadron sailed into Manila Bay on May 1, 1898 to defeat the Spanish fleet, it marked a major turning point in American history. Aboard Dewey's flagship, Olympia, one very young sailor with a keen eye and agile pen was writing it all down.Having run away from home to join the navy in 1895, Jack Tisdale hoped that he would be lucky enough to land a berth aboard the Olympia-a modern steel protected cruiser and flagship of the US Asiatic Squadron. He ended up getting his wish, and a lot more than he bargained for.Originally published in 1908-a decade after the events described-Three Years Behind the Guns is an amusing, gritty look at life aboard a man-o'-war at a time when the United States was on the cusp of becoming a great power. Though a memoir, the author writes with all the youthful exuberence of the age, describing his experiences with good humor and verve, even when they sound suspiciously apocryphal. There are literal fish-stories here, such as when Jack captures a two-foot long flying fish on the deck, or when his shipmate nearly loses a toe while doing some illicit angling. But there are also descriptions of more somber events, such as the death of a shipmate during gunnery practice, or the midnight wreck of a Chinese steamer. Stories of his adventures at various ports of call are myriad, crowned by his unique perspective on the Battle of Manila Bay as a member of the crew of Olympia's main guns.Tisdale's ship, USS Olympia, still exists to this day as a museum in Philadelphia, PA, where visitors may see how the decorative wood paneling and furniture in the officers quarters contrasts sharply with the painted steel and spartan decks of her crew quarters and engineering spaces. Like the ship,Three Years Behind the Guns is a hybrid-part solid fact, part work of art. Such beautiful mementos of our bygone history deserve to be maintained if for no other reason than as concrete reminders of how we got here.A portion of the sales of this edition of Three Years Behind the Guns will be donated to the Independence Seaport Museum in Philadelphia for the continuing upkeep and maintenance of USFS Olympia.

Daughter of a noble Roman family, Agnella had heard tell of the vain beliefs and foul practices of the Christians. Everyone knew that they murdered infants and drank their blood from silver vessels. They venerated a criminal who died ignominiously on a cross. They worshipped a god with the head of an ass. What good person wouldn't despise such a vile sect? Yet Agnella had experienced of the rites of Aphrodite herself, and knew perfectly well the shameful behavior encouraged by her own gods.When Diocletian Augustus declared in AD 303 that all men and women must offer sacrifice to the immortal gods or be punished, Agnella's father, Marcus Acilius Dolabella, præfect of Histria, was quick to put the emperor's command into effect. Little could he imagine that the death of a single elderly slave from his own household would not only upset his plan, but also lead his own daughter down a path where her actions would provide seed for the burgeoning Christian Church.Hearkening to the ancient and authentic acts of early Christian martyrs like Saints Perpetua, Felicity, Agnes, Lucy, Cecilia and Crispina, The Daughters of Pola is a beautiful novella written in the learned yet captivating style of John Mason Neale. Cleverly crafted as a sequence of personal letters among the characters during the Great Persecution, the story follows Angella as she discovers that holding fast to the truth demands a heavy cost and the courage of a gladiator who stands alone in the arena.

Her Frankish mother dead, 17-year-old Aemilia arrives at Soissons in Roman Gaul in search of her Roman father whom she has never met. She knows only that his name is Tarunculus and that he is a former centurion. She finds an old man fixed on the past, attempting in vain to kindle a spark of patriotism in his dispirited countrymen. Soon, Aemilia is caught up in her father's schemes to save the Empire and the intrigues of the Roman nobility in Soissons. In the war between Franks and Romans to decide the fate of the last imperial province, Providence will lead her down a path she could never have imagined. Written and illustrated by master storyteller Justin Swanton, Centurion's Daughter is a thoughtful and compelling journey to a little-known period of history when an empire fell and the foundations of Christendom were laid.

Books for students about the history of western nations are everywhere. Less prevalent are those which focus on the equally fascinating and epic histories of the nations of Asia. Now, for the first time, the vibrant and eventful history of the Philippine archipelago is brought to life for students ages 8 through 18 in The Story of the Philippines: God's Rampart in Asia. Phillip Campbell, author of the Story of Civilization series, has called upon his unique talent as a writer of history and a teller of tales to create this engaging chronicle of the diverse and intriguing peoples who inhabit the 7,000+ of islands of the Philippines.From the hazy early history of the ancient Philippines, to the arrival of the Spanish and Catholicism; from the galleon trade to the Moro Wars; from the battles of the Philippine Revolution and Spanish-American War, to the Japanese invasion and Independence; from the Marcos dictatorship to the modern-day Filipino diaspora, this book covers the entire panoply of Philippine history in Campbell's lively, informal style that is sure to appeal to young readers and their parents alike. Including 20 original and historical illustrations, The Story of The Philippines is an engaging way to introduce students to the history of this island nation whose people play an increasingly important role in present-day America and the world.

The year is A.D. 1565 and the tiny island fortress of Malta, defended by an anachronistic crusading order called the Knights of St. John Hospitallers, is all that stands between the war machine of Sultan Suleiman the Magnificent and the very heart of Christendom. Pitifully outmatched and against impossible odds, the indomitable Grand Master Jean Parisot de La Valette nevertheless inspires his knights to "strike a blow for Christ" and sacrifice their lives to halt the invading Turks at the gates of Europe. Nicholas Prata relates the actual events of the Great Siege in riveting and graphic prose which brings the extreme heroism of the knights and the horror of combat sharply into focus.