Basil Moreau: Essential Writings | An Introduction to the Life and Thought of the Founder of the Congregation of Holy Cross (A Holy Cross Book)

“In this era of the New Evangelization, we can learn much from the inspiring example and writings of Blessed Basil Moreau, a holy priest who embraced with passionate zeal the mission of the new evangelization in nineteenth-century France, facing challenges not unlike our own. This wonderful collection of his writings provides rich material for spiritual reflection. Moreau's spirituality, focused on the imitation of Christ, trust in divine providence, and hope in the victory of the cross, reveals to us the necessary foundation for all our evangelizing endeavors: prayer and friendship with Christ.” --Most Reverend Kevin C. Rhoades, Bishop of Fort Wayne-South Bend

“This much-anticipated and brilliantly compiled volume responds to the need for an English-language anthology of the writings of Blessed Basil Moreau, the founder of the Congregation of Holy Cross. For students of history and religion, as well as for anyone seeking to understand and benefit personally from the profound spirituality of Father Moreau, this book is an absolute treasure.” --Most Reverend Charles J. Brown, Apostolic Nuncio to Ireland

“Blessed Basil Moreau had a singular ability to address problems with a combination of intellectual acuity, spiritual wisdom, and practicality. His thoughts on Catholic education and the virtues of teachers are especially noteworthy. We would do well to reread them at the beginning of each academic year. Grove and Gawrych have assembled a wonderful introduction to the mind and character of the founder of the Congregation of Holy Cross.” --John Garvey, President, The Catholic University of America

“In their steady, non-intrusive editing and organization of Basil Moreau's key writings, Grove and Gawrych make tangibly near the wide-ranging and energetic thoughts of a man notable for his ability to live deeply into his own time yet beyond it.... In accessible and smooth translation, these essential writings reveal that Moreau's spiritual vision is powerful, ongoing, edifying, and gritty, the contribution of a man whose consequences have remained anything but hidden over the ages, under the standard of the cross, to the greater glory of God.” --Robert Geisinger, S.J., Procurator General, Society of Jesus, Professor of Canon Law, Pontifical Gregorian University

“By retrieving the words of their sainted founder, Basil Moreau, two young Holy Cross religious help us to understand the mind and heart of a man who provided (and still provides) the deep impetus that urges the Holy Cross family to proclaim the Cross as our only hope. This inestimable collection will help sustain the Congregation in its charism and give ample encouragement to those who share in its mission.” --Lawrence S. Cunningham, John A. O'Brien Professor of Theology (Emeritus), University of Notre Dame

“These writings are a rich bequest to the Holy Cross family by Blessed Basil Moreau, who shared his vision and design of a Holy Cross education; urged the imitation of Christ as the way to know, love, and serve God; and lived the motto of Holy Cross as he accepted his own cross in his darkest hour and deepest anguish. Amidst chaos and during a time of religious persecution, Moreau showed how the passion and faith of one man brought God back into a world that had rejected him and into the new world that did not know him.”--Carolyn Y. Woo, President and CEO, Catholic Relief Services

Blessed Basil Moreau (February 11, 1799-January 20, 1873) was the French priest who founded the Congregation of Holy Cross in 1837. The congregation's name was taken from the small French town, Sainte-Croix, in which the congregation was founded. While the congregation was still in its early stages, Moreau sent members to developing areas of the world--Algeria, Canada, Bangladesh, and the United States--to make God known, loved, and served. Today, members of Holy Cross live and work in sixteen countries on five continents. In the United States, Holy Cross missionaries founded--and continue to serve--many schools, including the University of Notre Dame and the University of Portland. Moreau was beatified on September 15, 2007, in Le Mans, France.

Rev. Kevin Grove, C.S.C., was ordained a priest in the Congregation of Holy Cross in 2010. In 2015, he was awarded a PhD in theology from the University of Cambridge. Fr. Grove is the coeditor of the first edition of The Cross, Our Only Hope and Basil Moreau: Essential Writings.

Rev. Andrew Gawrych, C.S.C., was ordained a priest in the Congregation of Holy Cross in 2008. He serves as the director of the Congregation's International House of Formation in Santiago, Chile, after years working in parishes in the United States. Fr. Gawrych is the editor and coeditor of several Holy Cross books, including the first edition of The Cross, Our Only Hope; The Gift of Hope; The Gift of the Cross; You Have Redeemed the World; and Basil Moreau: Essential Writings.

John C. Cavadini is the McGrath-Cavadini Director of the Institute for Church Life at the University of Notre Dame. A member of Notre Dame's department of theology, Cavadini served as chair of the department from 1997 to 2010, during which he led the department to a top-ten ranking in the National Research Council rankings of doctoral programs. He is an expert in patristic and early medieval theology, with a special focus on the theology of St. Augustine. In November 2009 he was appointed by Pope Benedict XVI to a five-year term on the International Theological Commission.