( Widely proclaimed a classic work of Christian faith, Li...)
Widely proclaimed a classic work of Christian faith, Life of Christ has been hailed as the most eloquent of Fulton J. Sheen's many books. The fruit of many years of reflection, prayer, and research, it is a dramatic and moving recounting of the birth, life, Crucifixion, and Resurrection of Christ, and a passionate portrait of the God-Man, the teacher, the healer, and, most of all, the Savior, whose promise has sustained humanity for two millenia. With his customary insight and reverence, Sheen interprets the Scripture and describes Christ not only in historical perspective but also in exciting and contemporary terms -- seeing in Christ's life both modern parallels and timeless lessons. His thoughtful, probing analysis provides new insight into well-known Gospel events. An appealing blend of philosophy, history, and biblical exegesis, from the best-known and most-loved American Catholic leader of the twentieth century, Life of Christ has long been a source of inspiration and guidance. For those seeking to better understand the message of Jesus Christ, this vivid retelling of the greatest story ever lived is a must-read.
https://www.amazon.com/Life-Christ-Fulton-J-Sheen/dp/0385132204?SubscriptionId=AKIAJRRWTH346WSPOAFQ&tag=prabook-20&linkCode=sp1&camp=2025&creative=165953&creativeASIN=0385132204
(Archbishop Fulton J. Sheen brilliantly examines the vast ...)
Archbishop Fulton J. Sheen brilliantly examines the vast differences between the benefits of psychotherapy and true confession that leads to conversion. While one may help the patient gain some peace of mind, the Christian gains something far greater through the grace of Confession: peace of soul. "The writing is clear and forceful, the logic frequently brilliant...This is a rewarding experience for any reader and those of other religions or of none will enjoy it even when in disagreement".....Catholic World.
https://www.amazon.com/Peace-Soul-Fulton-J-Sheen/dp/0892439157?SubscriptionId=AKIAJRRWTH346WSPOAFQ&tag=prabook-20&linkCode=sp1&camp=2025&creative=165953&creativeASIN=0892439157
( Treasure in Clay provides a lifetime’s worth of wisdom ...)
Treasure in Clay provides a lifetime’s worth of wisdom from one of the most beloved and influential figures in twentieth-century Catholicism. Completed shortly before his death in 1979, Treasure in Clay is the autobiography of Fulton J. Sheen, the preeminent teacher, preacher, and pastor of American Catholicism. Called “the Great Communicator” by Billy Graham and “a prophet of the times” by Pope Pius XII, Sheen was the voice of American Catholicism for nearly fifty years. In addition to his prolific writings, Sheen dominated the airwaves, first in radio, and later television, with his signature program “Life is Worth Living,” drawing an average of 30 million viewers a week in the 1950s. Sheen had the ears of everyone from presidents to the common men, women, and children in the pews, and his uplifting message of faith, hope, and love shaped generations of Catholics. Here in Sheen’s own words are reflections from his childhood, his years in seminary, his academic career, his media stardom, his pastoral work, his extensive travels, and much more. Readers already familiar with Sheen and as well as those coming to him for the first time will find a fascinating glimpse into the Catholic world Sheen inhabited, and will find inspiration in Sheen’s heartfelt recollections. Treasure in Clay is a classic book and a lasting testament to a life that was worth living.
https://www.amazon.com/Treasure-Clay-Autobiography-Fulton-Sheen/dp/0385177097?SubscriptionId=AKIAJRRWTH346WSPOAFQ&tag=prabook-20&linkCode=sp1&camp=2025&creative=165953&creativeASIN=0385177097
He was born on May 8, 1895 in El Paso, Illinois, United States, the oldest of four children of Delia Fulton and Newton Morris Sheen, variously a farmer and storekeeper. Sheen's original first name Peter was dropped at a young age; he later added John, his confirmation name. In 1901 the family moved to Peoria.
In Peoria he attended St. Mary's School and the Spalding Institute, a Roman Catholic high school, from which he graduated in 1913. The same year Sheen entered the College and Seminary of St. Viator at Bourbonnais, Illinois, where he earned B. A. (1917) and M. A. (1919) degrees. He completed his seminary studies at the Seminary of St. Paul in St. Paul, Minn.
Following ordination, Sheen pursued graduate studies at the Catholic University of America (S. T. B. and J. C. B. , 1920), the University of Louvain, Belgium (Ph. D. , 1923), the Sorbonne in Paris, and the Pontifical Athenaeum Angelico in Rome (S. T. D. , 1924).
On September 20, 1919 he was ordained a Catholic priest for the Peoria diocese. In 1925, he taught dogmatic theology at St. Edmund's College in Ware, England.
Sheen proved himself a dedicated priest, unaffected by his experiences in Europe, and the following year was sent to teach at the Catholic University in Washington. After one year on the theology faculty, academic and ecclesiastical infighting, never Sheen's forte, forced his reassignment to the department of philosophy, where he swiftly attained professorial rank and served until 1950.
Starting with the publication in 1925 of his neo-Thomist dissertation, God and Intelligence in Modern Philosophy (with an introduction by his friend G. K. Chesterton), Sheen produced, nonstop until his death, more than sixty books (every one dedicated to Mary, mother of Christ) as well as countless articles in journals and magazines. Eventually he received such prestigious invitations as to deliver the Lenten sermons at St. Patrick's Cathedral in New York City, something he did, to packed congregations, for many years. Sheen proved an equally compelling evangelist whether in a pulpit, before a radio microphone, or on a television stage.
In 1930 he was chosen by the National Council of Catholic Men to be the regular speaker on a new radio program it was sponsoring. The "Catholic Hour, " broadcast on NBC, quickly became an enormous success and made Sheen an international figure. From 1930 to 1952 he drew a worldwide audience of millions to the Sunday evening program. Sheen sometimes received on a single day as many as 10, 000 letters from his listeners, one-third of them non-Catholics.
Sheen also gave instruction courses on Catholicism for large groups of inquirers and privately introduced into the Catholic faith such prominent individuals as Clare Boothe Luce, Henry Ford II, and Heywood Broun.
In 1950, Pope Pius XII sent Sheen to New York City as national director of the Society for the Propagation of the Faith, and in 1951 the Pope also appointed him auxiliary to the archbishop of the New York diocese, Francis Cardinal Spellman. With this appointment came his consecration as a bishop. Sheen's fame and popularity helped to make him effective as the chief fund-raiser and spokesperson for Catholic missionaries around the world. Sheen had acquired so much disposable income through royalties and honoraria.
His "Life Is Worth Living" series ran first on the Dumont network (1952 - 1955) and later on ABC (1955 - 1957) for half an hour on Tuesdays at 8 P. M. Eventually reaching more than 20 million viewers, he competed successfully against the shows of popular entertainers such as Milton Berle and Frank Sinatra. A second series, "The Bishop Sheen Program" ran from 1961 to 1968 but never enjoyed the same popularity.
In 1966, Pope Paul VI appointed Sheen, then seventy-one years old and inexperienced as a diocesan administrator, bishop of Rochester, New York. Sheen, who had participated in Vatican Council II and was generally comfortable with its reforms, struggled valiantly, but too often with a pre-Vatican II administrative style, to lead the diocese according to the new spirit in the Church.
Sheen returned to live in New York City where he continued, quietly but by no means entirely out of the public eye, to preach and write to the extent his declining health allowed until his death in 1979.
Fulton John Sheen conducted the first religious service ever televised, appearing on forty sets on Long Island, thus he become one of the early stars of network television. Sheen's final presenting role was on the syndicated The Fulton Sheen Program, for this work, Sheen twice won an Emmy Award for Most Outstanding Television Personality, and was featured on the cover of Time Magazine. Archbishop Sheen wrote 73 books and numerous articles and columns, tha most famous - Peace of Soul (1949), Way to Happiness (1953), Life of Christ (1958), The Power of Love (1965) and others. The Sheen Center for Thought and Culture in Bleecker Street, Lower Manhattan, is named after him. The cause for his canonization as a saint was officially opened in 2002.
( Treasure in Clay provides a lifetime’s worth of wisdom ...)
( Widely proclaimed a classic work of Christian faith, Li...)
(Archbishop Fulton J. Sheen brilliantly examines the vast ...)
He always insisted that his anti-Marxism was aimed at the philosophy, not at the people subjected to it. He also railed at Freudian psychoanalysis to the consternation and embarrassment of Catholics in the profession (and also Catholic patients), an error he publicly acknowledged in later years. From the time of the atomic bombing at Hiroshima, he attacked nuclear war as immoral.
He had extraordinary speaking abilities. Utterly orthodox theologically, Sheen was capable of speaking out on controversial social justice and other political issues. He was a good and admirable man of great personal charm whether with the mighty or the lowly.
He prayed for an hour every day, led a fairly simple life, and gave most of his money to charity. That he was a source of spiritual awakening and renewal for many people over many years is well-documented.
Quotes from others about the person
Time magazine described his television style: "Sheen's voice (with a wisp of a brogue) ranges from tremulous whispers to Old Testament rage. His hands finger the chain of his pectoral cross, or spread outward in supplication, or hammer down a point in the air, or thrust skyward. "
Many commented on Sheen's eyes which Time characterized as "one of the most remarkable pairs of eyes in America, looking out from deep sockets, pupil and iris almost merged in one luminous disk which creates the optical illusion that he not only looks at people but through them and at everything around them. "
