Free audiobook & ebook: “The Great Encyclical Letters of Pope Leo XIII”

See this legally free audiobook and ebook:

• The Great Encyclical Letters of Pope Leo XIII: Translations from Approved Sources, with Preface by Rev. John J. Wynne, S.J. (New York, Cincinnati, Chicago: Benziger Brothers, 1903). With Imprimatur.
  • The ebook may be read online, and is available in pdf, epub, mobi, and other formats at Internet Archive, with a 2^nd copy at Internet Archive and Open Library. It may also be read online at Wikisource; and it is available in pdf format at Today’s Catholic World.
  • The audiobook, read by Maria Therese, may be listened to online and downloaded in mp3 and other formats at LibriVox and at Internet Archive. [N.B., The recording states that it is in the public domain.]
  • The LibriVox audio is also reproduced for Youtube in 2 parts at Classic Catholic Audiobooks: Part 1 of 2 (11:16:51) and Part 2 of 2 (7:70:43), said Part 2 being also available at Padre Manuel Antonio Garcia Salcedo; and in 2 parts at Full Audiobooks: Part 1/2 (9:10:55) and Part 2/2 (9:56:40); and in 13 parts at Priceless Audiobooks: Part 1/13, Part 2/13, Part 3/13, Part 4/13, Part 5/13, Part 6/13, Part 7/13, Part 8/13, Part 9/13, Part 10/13, Part 11/13, Part 12/13, and Part 13/13.  A portion of the recording (4:26:34) is available at Padre Manuel Antonio Garcia Salcedo and Free Audio Books, and likewise, a part (10:42:14) is available at GreatAudioBooks In Public Domain.

• The work (audiobook/ebook) includes the following encyclicals and other letters (as listed on LibriVox):
  • On the Evils Afffecting Modern Society “Inscrutabili”;
  • Socialism, Communism, Nihilism “Quod Apostolici Muneris”;
  • The Study of Scholastic Philosophy “Aeterni Patris”;
  • Christian Marriage “Arcanum Divinae”;
  • Freemasonry “Humanum Genus”;
  • The Christian Constitution of States “ Immortale Dei”;
  • Human Liberty “Libertas Praestantissimum”;
  • The Right Ordering of Christian Life “Exeunte Jam Anno”;
  • On the Chief Duties of Christians as Citizens “Sapientiae Christianae”;
  • The Condition of the Working Classes “Rerum Novarum”;
  • Allegiance to the Republic “Au Milieu des Sollicitudes”;
  • The Pope and the Columbus Tercenary “Quarto Abrupto Saeculo”;
  • The Study of Holy Scripture “Provindentissimus Deus”;
  • The Reunion of Christendom “Praeclara Gratulationis Publicae”;
  • Catholicity in the United States “Longuinque Oceani”;
  • To the English People “Amantissima Voluntatis”;
  • The Unity of the Church “Satis Cognitum”;
  • Anglican Orders “Apostolicae Curae”;
  • The Prohibition and Censorship of Books “Officiorum ac Munerum”;
  • The Holy Spirit “Divinum Illud”;
  • True and False Americanism in Religion “Testem Benevolentiae”;
  • On the Consecration of Mankind to the Sacred Heart of Jesus “Annum Sacrum”;
  • Christ Our Redeemer “Tametsi”;
  • Christian Democracy “Graves de Communi”;
  • The Religious Congregations in France;
  • Congratulations to the American Hierarchy;
  • The Most Holy Eucharist “Mirae Caritatis”;
  • The Holy Scriptures; The Biblical Commission “Vigilantiae”;
  • The Church in the Philippines; and
  • Review of His Pontificate.

In remembrance of Pope Leo XIII (d. 20 July 1903), vicarius Ss. Petri et Pauli, faithful shepherd and teacher. For other online texts and legally free ebooks, you may access the List of Free eBooks (Arranged by Title) and the List of Free eBooks (Grouped by Subject).

Free ebook: “The Irish University Question: The Catholic Case” by Dr. William Joseph Walsh

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• The Irish University Question: The Catholic Case: Selections from the Speeches and Writings of the Archbishop of Dublin [by Archbishop Dr. William Joseph Walsh] (Dublin: Browne and Nolan, 1897). Available in pdf, epub, mobi and other formats at Internet Archive and Internet Archive.

Posted on the Feast of Saint Patrick, in belated observance of World Speech Day, and in earnest prayer for once-holy Ireland: “Have mercy upon the Irish people, o Lord… Move them to uphold the true dignity of motherhood, fatherhood, family, and humanity, according to the rational laws You wrote in our hearts and confirmed by Your commandments of love.” (From “Prayer for Ireland” at Writer’s Block)

For other online texts and more legally free ebooks, you may access the List of Free eBooks (Arranged by Title) and the List of Free eBooks (Grouped by Subject).

“Moreover, you have endurance and have suffered for my name, and you have not grown weary. Yet I hold this against you: you have lost the love you had at first. Realize how far you have fallen. Repent, and do the works you did at first. Otherwise, I will come to you and remove your lampstand from its place, unless you repent.” (Revelation 2:2-5, NAB, from the USCCB)

Online text: “Canadian Catholic Chaplains in the Great War, 1914-1918″, by Major J.R. O’ Gorman

See this online text:

• “Canadian Catholic Chaplains in the Great War, 1914-1918″, by Major the Very Rev. J. R. O’ Gorman, J.C.D., CCHA Report 7 (1939-40), pp. 71-83. Available in pdf format (on this page) of the Canadian Catholic Historical Association.

One may also see:

• “A Light in the Darkness: The Interaction between Catholicism and World War I”, by Maggie Brennan, The Purdue Historian 6, 1 (2013): pp. 14-33. Available in pdf format (on this page) at The Purdue Historian. [N.B., This text focuses mainly on the effect of the conscription of clergy on the Catholic Church in France.]
• “Roman Catholic Army Chaplains During the First World War: Roles, Experiences and Dilemmas”, by Martin Purdy (Masteral Thesis at the University of Central Lancashire) (January 2012). Available in pdf format at the University of Central Lancashire.
  • [N.B., Although this text does not appear to have been written by a Catholic Christian, it is useful for containing a detailed study of Catholic chaplains in the British Army as a group during the War of Nations. Notably, it attributed the remarkable willingness of Catholic chaplains to risk death at the front lines to their awareness of and response to the critical importance of the sacraments for the salvation of the soldiers they served.]

On the feast of Saint Martin of Tours in the Roman Rite; and in commemoration of the end of the First World War (Armistice or Remembrance Day in Commonwealth countries) and Veterans Day in the United States. For other legally free ebooks, you may access the List of Free eBooks (Arranged by Title) and the List of Free eBooks (Grouped by Subject).

Online text: “St. Thomas More, Christopher St. German, and the Schism of King Henry VIII”, by Samuel Gregg

Sir Thomas More, by Hans Holbein the Younger. Image from Wikipedia

See this online text:

• “Legal Revolution: St. Thomas More, Christopher St. German, and the Schism of King Henry VIII”, by Samuel Gregg, Ave Maria Law Review, vol. 5, issue 1 (2007): pp. 173-206. Available in pdf format (on this page) at Ave Maria Law Review.

On the Feast of St. Thomas More in the Roman Rite.

“We have passed God’s scrutiny, and he has seen fit to entrust us with the work of preaching; when we speak, it is with this in view; we would earn God’s good opinion, not man’s, since it is God who scrutinizes our hearts.” (I Thess. ii, 4)

Online ebook: “Life of St. Stephen Harding”, edited by Blessed John Henry Newman

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• Life of St. Stephen Harding: Abbot of Citeaux and Founder of the Cistercian Order, by J.B. Dalgairns, edited by Blessed John Henry Newman, new edition with notes by Herbert Thurston, S.J. (London, Leamington: Art and Book Company; New York, Cincinnati, Chicago: Benziger Brothers, 1898). With Imprimatur. Available at the HathiTrust Digital Library; and available in pdf, epub, mobi/kindle, and other formats at Internet Archive and Open Library, with a 2^nd copy at Open Library and Internet Archive.

See also this earlier edition, edited by Blessed John Henry Newman before he was received into the one true Church:

• The Cistercian Saints of England: St. Stephen, Abbot, 3^rd ed. (London: James Toovey, 1845). Available at HathiTrust Digital Library, at Google Books, and (with some pages accessible to members only) at Forgotten Books; and available in pdf, epub, mobi/kindle, and other formats at Internet Archive and Open Library.

On the Feast of Saint Stephen Harding. For other legally free ebooks, you may access the List of Free eBooks (Arranged by Title) and the List of Free eBooks (Grouped by Subject).

Online ebook: “From Fetters to Freedom: Trials and Triumphs of Irish Faith”, by the Rev. Robert Kane

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• From Fetters to Freedom: Trials and Triumphs of Irish Faith, by the Rev. Robert Kane, S.J. (New York, London, Bombay, Calcutta, Madras: Longmans, Green and Co., 1915). Available in various format (pdf, mobi/kindle, epub, etc.) at Internet Archive, with a 2^nd copy at Internet Archive; and also available at Forgotten Books.

On the Memorial of Saint Patrick in the Roman Rite; and with fervent prayer for once-holy Ireland and her once-faithful people. For other legally free ebooks, you may access the List of Free eBooks (Arranged by Title) and the List of Free eBooks (Grouped by Subject).

“I know your works, your labor, and your endurance, and that you cannot tolerate the wicked; you have tested those who call themselves apostles but are not, and discovered that they are impostors Moreover, you have endurance and have suffered for my name, and you have not grown weary. Yet I hold this against you: you have lost the love you had at first. Realize how far you have fallen. Repent, and do the works you did at first. Otherwise, I will come to you and remove your lampstand from its place, unless you repent.” (Revelation ii, 2-5)

Online ebook: “Selections from Pope, Dryden, and Various Other British Catholic Poets”

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• Selections from Pope, Dryden, and Various Other British Catholic Poets, Who Preceded the Nineteenth Century; With Biographical and Literary Notices of Those and Other British Catholic Poets of Their Class, Comprising a Brief History of British Catholic Poetry from an Early Period; Designed Not Only for General Use, But Also as a Text-Book or Reader, and a Prize-Book, for the Higher Classes in Catholic Educational Institutions, by George Hill (New York: The Trow & Smith book Manufacturing Co., 1868). The work also states that it was “Examined and Approved by Competent Catholic Authority”. Available in various formats at Internet Archive and Open Library; and at the Hathi Trust Digital Library.

On the Feast of Saint David of Wales. For other legally free ebooks, you may access the List of Free eBooks (Arranged by Title) and the List of Free eBooks (Grouped by Subject).

“May all the wealth of Christ’s inspiration have its shrine among you; now you will have instruction and advice for one another, full of wisdom, now there will be psalms, and hymns, and spiritual music, as you sing with gratitude in your hearts to God.” (Colossians iii, 16)

Online ebook: “The Life and Martyrdom of Saint Thomas Becket”, by John Morris

Image from Wikipedia

See this online ebook:

• The Life and Martyrdom of Saint Thomas Becket, Archbishop of Canterbury, second and enlarged edition, by John Morris, S.J. (London: Burns and Oates; New York: Catholic Publication Society, 1885). Legally available in various formats (pdf, epub, kindle/mobi, etc.) at Internet Archive; and also available at the HathiTrust Digital Library.

On the Feast of Saint Thomas Becket in the Roman Rite. For other legally free ebooks, you may access the List of Free eBooks (Arranged by Title) and the List of Free eBooks (Grouped by Subject).

O God, our refuge and our strength, look down with mercy upon the people who cry to Thee; and by the intercession of the glorious and immaculate Virgin Mary, Mother of God, of Saint Joseph her spouse, of the blessed Apostles Peter and Paul, and of all the saints, in Thy mercy and goodness hear our prayers for the conversion of sinners, and for the liberty and exaltation of the Holy Mother the Church. Through the same Christ Our Lord. Amen. (From Sancta Missa)

Free ebook: “A History of the Somerset Carthusians”, by E. Margaret Thompson

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• A History of the Somerset Carthusians, by E. Margaret Thompson, with illustrations by L. Beatrice Thompson (London: John Hodges, 1895). May be read online, and available in various formats (pdf, epub, kindle/mobi, text, etc.) at Internet Archive.

On the Feast of Saint Bruno of Cologne in the Roman Rite. For other legally free ebooks, you may access the List of Free eBooks (Arranged by Title) and the List of Free eBooks (Grouped by Subject). Blessed be God in His angels and in His saints!

Free ebooks: “The Church of Old England”, in 4 volumes, by Cardinals Vaughan & Manning et al.

See these legally free ebooks:

• The Church of Old England: Being a Collection of Papers Bearing on the Continuity of the Church in England, and on Attempts to Justify the Anglican Position, edited by Rev. W. H. Cologan (London: Catholic Truth Society)
  • Volume I (1890) is available in multiple formats (pdf, epub, kindle/mobi, etc.) at Internet Archive (N.B., This includes the essays “The Popes and the English Church” by Rev. W. Waterworth and “A Voice from the Dead” by the Count de Montalambert)
  • Volume II (1895) is available in multiple formats at Internet Archive (N.B., This includes the essay “Henry VIII and the English Monasteries”, by Cardinal Manning)
  • Volume III (1894) is available in multiple formats at Internet Archive (N.B., This includes the essay “The Conversion of England (England’s Conversion by the Power of Prayer”, by Cardinal Vaughan, and “The Truth about the Reformation”)
  • Volume IV (1894) is available in multiple formats at Internet Archive (N.B., This includes the essay “The Faith of the Ancient English Church concerning the Blessed Virgin” by the Very Rev. Provost Northcote)

On the Solemnity of Our Lady of Walsingham in the Personal Ordinariate of Our Lady of Walsingham and in the Personal Ordinariate of the Chair of Saint Peter (24 September). In solidarity with our brethren from the Anglican tradition, who even now stand for truth and tradition against error and novelty, we sing the hope so beautifully expressed by Father Frederick William Faber:

Faith of our fathers! Mary’s prayers
Shall win our country back to thee;
And from the truth that comes from God,
England shall then indeed be free.

Faith of our fathers, holy faith!
We will be true to thee till death.

For other legally free ebooks, you may access the List of Free eBooks (Arranged by Title) and the List of Free eBooks (Grouped by Subject).