They Lived the Faith is a truly unique work, combining the biographies of numerous Catholic lay leaders in the 19th and 20th century to illustrate the singular theme of Catholic Action in both social and political life.

While many books focus on clerical leaders, They Lived the Faith looks at laity, who worked in politics, literature, and social life to bring the light of the Gospel to ameliorate society’s evils.

In this work, you will learn how these thirteen Catholic lay leaders confronted the aftermath of the French Revolution; attempted to address Church and State relations; fought the onslaught of Liberalism, Socialism, and Communism; and so much more. You will read about figures as diverse as Daniel O'Connell, who was instrumental in Catholic emancipation in Ireland, and Ozanam, who founded the St. Vincent de Paul Society.

They not only lived the Faith, they worked the Faith even before Pope Pius XI promulgated his social doctrine and reformed Catholic Action into a vehicle for restructuring the social order in conformity with the precepts of the natural law and the Gospels. … The people whose stories appear in this book saw something was wrong in society, and did their best to repair it. The means they chose were their faith, which is appropriate, as it was faith itself, a pillar of the social order, that was under attack by the forces of unreason.

-Michael Greaney

Author of Ten Battles Every Catholic Should Know