Sharing the faith one book at a time

Legatus founder Tom Monaghan uses popular Catholic books to spread the faith . . .

Thomas Monaghan

Throughout my life I have always been a ravenous reader. The topics of the books have changed over the years, but I’ve always found reading to be a tremendous means of expanding my horizons and broadening my knowledge on a variety of topics.

In recent years, most of the books I’ve read have been spiritual. This past Lent, I resolved to read a spiritual book a week, and I found it very beneficial (and not so hard if you don’t watch TV). In fact, I have found that it’s a good way to evangelize or simply share the faith. When traveling, I have ample opportunities to read. I typically carry a book in my briefcase for easy access. My books have also led to many interesting conversations. People notice what I’m reading and comment on it. I often use the book as a conversation starter.

In fact, I have gotten into many discussions on airplanes about a book I was reading and ended up just giving them the book. Often times though, I will be talking to someone about the faith or a related topic and ask if I can send them a book that I have recently read, which I think they might find helpful or answer some question they might have. It may be a fallen-away Catholic, a Muslim or someone who doesn’t understand the Church’s teaching on abortion.

I’ve found that most people are willing to share their address with me. I write it down on the back of my itinerary, and when I get back to my office, I mail them a copy of the book we were talking about. This is actually pretty easy to do, and while I obviously have no idea what percentage of people actually read the books, I have received a good number of letters thanking me for sending them a book.

We all know Legatus’ mission to study, live and share our faith. This is one relatively simple way of sharing our faith that I thought would be worth sharing. Finally, let me leave you with a list of the books that I commonly send out. It’s by no means exhaustive, but it may be helpful.

Why Catholics Are Right by Michael Coren; If Protestantism Is True by Devin Rose; The Four Signs of a Dynamic Catholic and Rediscover Catholicism by Matthew Kelly; Evangelical Catholicism by George Weigel; Unplanned by Abby Johnson and Did Muhammad Exist? by Robert Spencer.

THOMAS MONAGHAN is Legatus’ founder and chairman. He is a member of Legatus’ Naples Chapter.