Whether it’s the Lady who appeared in a forest to young Adele Brise or the Lady atop a golden dome visible for miles from a college campus in northern Indiana, the Blessed Virgin Mary is revered, cherished, and celebrated in the American Midwest. Fr. Edward Looney, author and priest in the Diocese of Green Bay, and Fr. Nate Wills, CSC, chaplain to the University of Notre Dame football team, share the story of Catholicism in the Midwest of the United States, through the lens of Marian devotion and midwestern grit.

We would love it if you could leave a written review on Apple and share with your friends!

Editing provided by Forte Catholic (https://www.fortecatholic.com/)

Links:

• Sign Up to Receive Emails for Ave Explores
• Get 25% OFF your next order at avemariapress.com with code AEX24 — Some restrictions apply.
• Follow Ave Maria Press on Instagram

What places hold significance, and who are the key figures in the narrative of Catholicism in the United States of America? From both a historical and modern perspective, the story of the Church in the US is expansive, diverse, and compelling. Authors Kevin Schmiesing and Meg Hunter-Kilmer share their insights and expertise on the noteworthy locations and influential figures shaping the Church in the United States today. Explore must-visit shrines and churches, delve into the inspiring tales of Americans on the path to sainthood, and embark on a captivating journey through Catholicism in America.

We would love it if you could leave a written review on Apple and share with your friends!

Editing provided by Forte Catholic (https://www.fortecatholic.com/)

Links:

• Sign Up to Receive Emails for Ave Explores
• Get 25% OFF your next order at avemariapress.com with code AEX24 — Some restrictions apply.
• Follow Ave Maria Press on Instagram

Cardinal Timothy M. Dolan, the 10th Archbishop of the Archdiocese of New York, shares his favorite Catholic churches and places in the United States of America. He offers insight into the current challenges facing Catholics, from a perspective of the historical Catholic Church, and reasons for his abundant hope in the Church in America today.

We would love it if you could leave a written review on Apple and share with your friends!

Editing provided by Forte Catholic (https://www.fortecatholic.com/)

Links:

• Sign Up to Receive Emails for Ave Explores
• Follow Ave Maria Press on Instagram
• Get 25% OFF your next order at avemariapress.com with code AEX24 — Some restrictions apply.

Fr. Tim Anastos, author and assistant chaplain at the St. John Paul II Newman Center at the University of Illinois, highlights how Lent offers us an opportunity to become fully alive in Christ Jesus. Through our weeks of prayer, fasting, and almsgiving, we have experienced the love of the Lord in distinct and profound ways. Now, as Holy Week unfolds and we participate in the liturgies of the Triduum, we witness the culmination of these graces and how they reveal that life is worth living with Jesus Christ.

We would love it if you could leave a written review on Apple and share with your friends!

Editing provided by Forte Catholic (https://www.fortecatholic.com/)

Links:

• Get Your Copy of Made for Heaven by Fr. Agustino Torres, CFR
• Sign Up to Receive Emails for Ave Explores!
• Get 25% OFF your next order at avemariapress.com with code AEX24 — Some restrictions apply.
• Check Out Fr. Anastos's Book, Jesus, Make Me Fully Alive

In this sacred season, our ultimate aim is to draw nearer to Christ. And what better way to achieve this closeness than by physically spending time with him in the presence of the Eucharist?

Join Tanner Kalina, a passionate Eucharistic missionary for the National Eucharistic Revival, as he demonstrates how Lent is the perfect time to seek the Lord's presence. Through prayer, fasting, and almsgiving, Tanner reveals how this season offers a unique opportunity for the Lord to manifest his love, mercy, and kindness to us.

Lent is about having—and maybe doing—less to create space for the Lord to pour out his abundance upon us. This episode shares how we can allow the Eucharist to become our ultimate source of what more the Lord hopes to give

We would love it if you could leave a written review on Apple and share with your friends!

Editing provided by Forte Catholic (https://www.fortecatholic.com/)

Links:

• Get Your Copy of Made for Heaven by Fr. Agustino Torres, CFR
• Sign Up to Receive Emails for Ave Explores!
• Get 25% OFF your next order at avemariapress.com with code AEX24 — Some restrictions apply.

The further we get into Lent, the more likely it is that we have run into some—or many—missteps and pitfalls.

While this can feel discouraging, Sr. Orianne Pietra René, FSP, a passionate social media evangelist, helps us understand how when Lent is “hard” and we feel weak, that is precisely when the Lord shows up to do great things within us. Our poverty in Lent becomes God’s strength and glory.

We would love it if you could leave a written review on Apple and share with your friends!

Editing provided by Forte Catholic (https://www.fortecatholic.com/)

Links:

• Get Your Copy of Made for Heaven by Fr. Agustino Torres, CFR
• Sign Up to Receive Emails for Ave Explores!
• Get 25% OFF your next order at avemariapress.com with code AEX24 — Some restrictions apply.

Join Emmanuel “Manny” Gonzalez, a graduate student at Franciscan University of Steubenville, as he shows how, despite our best intentions, we can inadvertently introduce a false sense of control into our lives through Lenten spiritual practices or even in our general spiritual journey. Without realizing it, we can squeeze the Lord out of our lives even as we do good and holy deeds. Manny shows us how to avoid this pitfall so that we can walk into Lent willing to let go of everything for the Lord and find ourselves with much more than we surrendered.

We would love it if you could leave a written review on Apple and share with your friends!

Editing provided by Forte Catholic (https://www.fortecatholic.com/)

Links:

• Get Your Copy of Made for Heaven by Fr. Agustino Torres, CFR
• Sign Up to Receive Emails for Ave Explores!
• Get 25% OFF your next order at avemariapress.com with code AEX24 — Some restrictions apply.

Do you ever have BIG plans for Lent, only to feel overwhelmed as the weeks go on?

Claire and Mike Couche, founders of Finding Philothea, share how embracing simplicity—through carving out time for prayer, focusing on small acts of fasting, and learning generosity through acts of service—can wield greater impact than grand gestures of repentance and self-denial. When we complicate Lent, our practices can muddy the waters and make this time of prayerful rest overly stressful. When we keep Lent simple, however, we can see that it’s a time to prepare us for Heaven.

We would love it if you could leave a written review on Apple and share with your friends!

Editing provided by Forte Catholic (https://www.fortecatholic.com/)

Links:

• Get Your Copy of Made for Heaven by Fr. Agustino Torres, CFR
• Sign Up to Receive Emails for Ave Explores!
• Get 25% OFF your next order at avemariapress.com with code AEX24 — Some restrictions apply.
• Check Out Finding Philothea on Instagram

What’s the purpose of Lent? It’s a simple question, and one Mark Hart answers in a very honest and straightforward way: Lent prepares us for heaven. If we view Lent merely as a spiritual bootcamp to get ready for Easter, we will miss out on all the season has to offer. However, by approaching Lent with a broader perspective, we'll realize that these forty days can prepare us not only for the rest of our lives but also for the joys of heaven.

We would love it if you could leave a written review on Apple and share with your friends!

Editing provided by Forte Catholic (https://www.fortecatholic.com/)

Links:

• Get Your Copy of Made for Heaven by Fr. Agustino Torres, CFR
• Sign Up to Receive Emails for Ave Explores!
• Get 25% OFF your next order at avemariapress.com with code AEX24 — Some restrictions apply.

When Ash Wednesday rolls around, many of us are ready—even excited—to start our Lenten resolution. However, as the weeks go by, our resolve can wane. What do we do when our Lenten practices become challenging to maintain?

Fr. Agustino Torres, CFR, the author of Made for Heaven, offers us a way to enter this season as he explains why he felt called to write about going into the wilderness of Lent with a willing spirit and a ready heart. If we “fight” Lent, we close ourselves off to God’s greater plan for these forty days. If we go into the desert remembering that Jesus went there first, we will see growth in our faithfulness.

We would love it if you could leave a written review on Apple and share with your friends!

Editing provided by Forte Catholic (https://www.fortecatholic.com/)

Links:

• Get Your Copy of Made for Heaven by Fr. Agustino Torres, CFR
• Sign Up to Receive Emails for Ave Explores and Join Us for Lent 2024!
• Get 25% OFF your next order at avemariapress.com with code AEX24 — Some restrictions apply.