/lit/ - Literature

[Anonymous No.21613011]

What are some books that will convert me to Christianity?

[Anonymous No.21613017]

>>21613011
give background info on you so we know what we need to address
we're making a tailored program of Christian reading just for you

[Anonymous No.21613203]

>>21613011
New Testament
New Testament artbook

[Anonymous No.21613216]

Philokalia

[Anonymous No.21613226]

Start with the Holy Bible

[Anonymous No.21613252]

>>21613203
>>21613226
Already read, didn't work.

>>21613216
Not interested in the Russian state propaganda organ.

[Anonymous No.21613279]

>>21613011
>What are some books that will convert me to Christianity?

General Overview:

- C.S. Lewis, Mere Christianity; Screwtape Letters

- G.K. Chesterton, Orthodoxy; The Everlasting Man

- Karl Adam, The Spirit of Catholicism

I think conversion stories can be very helpful. They show the many different and varied ways people come to faith. Although there is no one, fixed path, reading such accounts can open one's mind and spirit to the operation of grace.

I recommend:

- Thomas Merton, The Seven-Storey Mountain. His conversion experience is recounted in Part II.

- Sheldon Vanauken, A Severe Mercy. Vanauken was an American whose conversion was triggered by his friendship with C.S. Lewis while studying at Oxford in the 1940s.

- John C.H. Wu, Beyond East and West. I was pleased to see this book recently became available again, on Kindle, after being out of print for many decades. Wu was an interesting character -- from a poor Chinese family, he rose to clerk for Oliver Wendell Holmes on the Supreme Court. A winsome and charming memoir.

- Spiritual Journeys, edited by Robert Baram. I have read many volumes of Catholic conversion stories, and if not the best, this is certainly one of the best. (Out of print, but used copies are available: https://www.amazon.com/Spiritual-Journeys-Robert-Baram/dp/0819868760/))

- Surprised by Truth series, especially the first volume. Accounts of "atheists, Evangelicals, Fundamentalists, and Pentecostals being surprised by Catholic truth." A very good collection.

The case for the Resurrection is much stronger than many realize. The evidence is set out concisely and well in these two books:

- Green, Was Jesus Who He Said He Was? (Out of print, but inexpensive used copies are
available: https://www.amazon.com/Was-Jesus-Who-He-Said/dp/0892836245))

- McDowell, More than a Carpenter

-If you're the scholarly type, N.T. Wright's The Resurrection of the Son of God is a much longer and more detailed development of essentially the same idea.

Do pray. Ask God to lead you, and to open the eyes of your mind to the truth. Ask for the gift of faith (by praying, you are already making an act of faith). It is all a matter of grace. Trust in the goodness of God.

[Anonymous No.21613294]

>>21613011
Summa Theologicæ

[Anonymous No.21613367]

>>21613011
Try going to a Latin Mass then. I think you'd benefit from seeing the faith of others. Additionally, I would reread the Gospels but for a second, perhaps in St. Matthew's, just read a passage, sit, and take on the mindset that you are interacting with perfection, and then read it again as such. Use the metaphysics Christ teaches you for three months and by the end of it you will be wheeping.

[Anonymous No.21613376]

Why are trying to force yourself into a belief?

[Anonymous No.21614216]

>>21613011
Aren't you pretty much already converted, if you want to be converted into the religion? All it takes talk with a priest and baptism.

[Anonymous No.21614224]

>>21613011
jesus was a druid idiot, "christianity" is shit the Roman empire made up

[Anonymous No.21614240]

>>21613252
You are aware Orthodoxy isnt Russian, right? Im Romanian and most of us are Orthodox while have a great dislike of Russia.
And even within Russia the Church has had a beautiful tradition and many holly man, it is a pity that it has been under constant attack since Peter the Great.
I recommend The Orthodox Church by Kallistos Ware. Its a great a book and even if you dont convert (very likely) it will give you a good rundown on the doctrine and the history of the Church. Helped me understand why the Patriarchy of Moscow is so fucked among other things.

[Anonymous No.21614242]

>>21613252
The Philokalia is a collection of writings from many centuries, it has little to do with Russia or any other country besides the fact that some of its authors were from there.

[Anonymous No.21614249]

>>21614242
The Fathers of the Philokalia were all Greek or Middle Eastern. Many lived before the Kievan Rus was even founded.

[Anonymous No.21614367]

Does that painting have a name?

[Anonymous No.21614376]

>>21613376
It is not a question of force, but rather of standing at the shoreline, and desiring to cast off into the deep.

[Anonymous No.21614399]

>>21614376
Instead of reading a book, go attend liturgy or mass a few times and then ask the priest some questions.

[Anonymous No.21614408]

>>21613011
A Christian girlfriend

[Anonymous No.21614436]

>>21614224
>Christianity is a Roman conspiracy to defeat the Jews
>Christianity is a Jewish conspiracy to defeat the Romans
I don't know who's jewing who anymore

[Anonymous No.21614482]

>>21614436
Judaism is a Jewish conspiracy to defeat the Jews.

[Anonymous No.21614505]

>>21613011
Posting non terribly messed up version of OP.

[Anonymous No.21614523]

>>21614482
Based

[Anonymous No.21614531]

>>21613011
>>21613252
>>21614376
Not Christianity per se, but pic related is known to convince even hardened skeptics that there actually is an afterlife. From there it may be easier to make the leap to Christianity than from whatever atheism or agnosticism you are currently coming from.

Here is a very persuasive argument for why NDEs are real:

https://youtu.be/U00ibBGZp7o

It emphasizes that NDErs are representative of the population as a whole, and when people go deep into the NDE, they all become convinced. As this article points out:

https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/mysteries-consciousness/202204/does-afterlife-obviously-exist

>"Among those with the deepest experiences 100 percent came away agreeing with the statement, "An afterlife definitely exists"."

Since NDErs are representative of the population as a whole, and they are all convinced, then 100% of the population become convinced that there is an afterlife when they have a sufficiently deep NDE themselves. When you dream and wake up, you instantly realize that life is more real than your dreams. When you have an NDE, the same thing is happening, but on a higher level, as you immediately realize that life is the deep dream and the NDE world is the undeniably real world by comparison.

Or as one person quoted in pic related summarized their NDE:

>"As my soul left my body, I found myself floating in a swirling ocean of multi-colored light. At the end, I could see and feel an even brighter light pulling me toward it, and as it shined on me, I felt indescribable happiness. I remembered everything about eternity - knowing, that we had always existed, and that all of us are family. Then old friends and loved ones surrounded me, and I knew without a doubt I was home, and that I was so loved."

Needless to say, even ultraskeptical neuroscientists are convinced by really deep NDEs.

[Anonymous No.21614654]

The Bible
Eternity in their Hearts
Mere Christianity
Signature in the Cell

[Anonymous No.21614761]

The Horse and His Boy

[Anonymous No.21615307]

>>21613011

Your life is worth living
Venerable Fulton Sheen

Also, LOTR was the one that got me into thinking about virtue, wich inevitably led me to long for duty, wich in turn presented me with difficulties that offered Christ as a solution.

[࿇ C Œ M G E N V S ࿇ !KNDYqWRDiE No.21616265]

>>21613011


CONVERSION NECESSITATES METANOIA; THAT CAN ONLY OCCUR IF YOU RECEIVE THE GRACE OF GOD, AND PUT IT INTO ACTION; TO RECEIVE THE GRACE OF GOD, YOU NEED TO JOIN THE CHURCH, AND LIVE CATHOLICALLY.

[Anonymous No.21616266]

>>21613011
The Brothers Karamazov.

[Anonymous No.21616315]

>>21614240
>>21614242
Sure thing, Anatoly.

[Anonymous No.21616622]

>>21614482
Based

[Anonymous No.21616883]

>>21613011
LoTR. If you think Gandolf is cool, then you'll probably like Jesus.

[Anonymous No.21616932]

>>21613011
Revelation (60min read)

[Anonymous No.21616933]

>>21616265
Works are an expression of faith and a desire to commune deeper with God, they are not of the essence of the relationship with god, but an epiphenomena whose absence we ought rightly to question, but whose use is only as a secondary indicator of the true grace of christ given by God and freely sought for and received in faith.

It is like Calvin wipes his arse with you fuccbois, of divine necessity, determined and determined again.

[Anonymous No.21616938]

>>21613011
>What are some books that will convert me to Christianity?

[Anonymous No.21617069]

>>21613011
Ask your local priest.

[Anonymous No.21617187]

Stories that make a Christian case that aren't about being completed rational and verbal arguments: books like Karamazov Brothers, East of Eden, and God is Red. Because ultimately you have to make the leap yourself regardless of the logic, philosophy, apologetics, etc. and practice it in real life if you wish to do so.
Some miscellaneous books that you might find interesting to at least become familiar with the claims in them whether or not you want to subscribe to anything written in them: Rene Girard's Mimetic Theory, I See Satan Fall Like Lightning, That All Shall Be Saved

[Anonymous No.21617223]

>>21617187
>That All Shall Be Saved
Skip this one, DBH is barely even a Christian by his own admission and belief in universal salvation is very close to heresy.

[Anonymous No.21617341]

>>21617223
I don't list him because I subscribe to his views myself but because he's one of the more prominent examples of the 'quiet shock' Christianity has had in the later 20th century when the western public in general outside of academics became much more exposed to asian religious ideas. In some ways the ability of those ideas and eastern religion to continue lurking around in the background and presenting subtle challenges is much stronger than something that appears to be more straighforwardly antagonistic upfront with its challenges or claims like Islam

[Anonymous No.21617367]

>>21616938
in a way this is true. seeing just how retarded new atheism is one would definitely want to be to the opposite side of it

[Anonymous No.21617641]

Join De Monarchia to discuss about literature, philosophy, religion, poetry and other related topics.
https://discord.gg/NMRSjYRQ

[Anonymous No.21617645]

>How do I trick myself into believing allegories and cautionary tales as historical fact
I dunno but why would you want to

[Anonymous No.21617659]

When I was reading Atlas Shrugged I would stop every so often and say "jesus christ, this is terrible."

I think that counts.

[Anonymous No.21617748]

>>21617367
it's called epistemic inn0culaton

[Anonymous No.21617762]

>>21617659
anon, you have to read atlas shrugged as a teenager. it's incredibly enjoying (no I didn't get all the way through but the induced narcissism felt good)
you did it wrong by waiting until you entered an age where we become pragmatic

>why would you want to make yourself believe something unbelievable?

we all believe something unbelievable
there are only two states of the human condition
if you don't force yourself into the right camp, you'll slide into tme left one
(as evidenced by your comment)

[Anonymous No.21617776]

>>21614482
if you think about it, the Bible is the original infohazard

[Anonymous No.21618016]

>>21613011
This question gets posted every fucking day.
Just read the Bible, it's literally the religion's book.