The season of Lent is an ideal time to grow in the spiritual life. Here are five great reads to help you on your way.

While memories of the shocking moment when Pope Benedict XVI resigned Feb. 11, 2013, are still fresh for the German pope’s collaborators, it is Pope Francis who reflects on Benedict’s historic decision in a newly published book interview.

Flannery O’Connor was not an evangelist. She was an artist, one of the most gifted American fiction writers of the 20th century. But a profoundly Catholic theological vision informs her art, giving her stories resonance and depth that sound deep — and sometimes deeply disturbing — spiritual chords.

Catholics need to know what their words and gestures at Mass signify and evoke, a liturgical expert said.

Founded in Spain in the 1960s, amid the shanty towns of Palomeras Altas near Madrid, the Neocatechumenal Way was defined by St. John Paul II as “an itinerary of Catholic formation.”

Loyola Press announced Jan. 10 it would pull from publication “60 Seconds for Jesus” by Father Jim Sichko, a priest of the Diocese of Lexington, Ky., and a papal Missionary of Mercy known for his motivational talks, generous donations and active social and mainstream media presence.

Rebuilt Parish has expanded to workbooks, podcasts and more, engaging with hundreds of parishes across the nation. Now, the pair has published a new book directed at the faithful, “Rebuilt Faith: A Handbook for Skeptical Catholics,” which outlines a 40-day plan to help Catholics reconnect to what matters.

“The Christmas Carol” is only the most prominent of Dickens’s several Christmas stories, my favorite of which is “The Cricket on the Hearth: A Fairy Tale of Home,” published on Dec. 20, 1845.

Eleanor Bourg Nicholson’s new children’s book, “The Hound of the Lord,” creatively retells the inspiring story of St. Dominic from the perspective of the saint’s ever-watchful canine companion, “Torch.”

Paul Jarzembowski offers inspiration and some practical advice for celebrating the holidays in a meaningful, hope-filled way.