BOUND is a stunning debut novel of Vijaya Bodach, who is a scientist turned children’s writer and atheist turned Catholic. The story revolves around the relationship between two sisters: Rebecca and Joy. Seventeen-year-old Rebecca Joshi, an adopted girl from India, burn survivor, and primary caretaker of her intellectually disabled sister, Joy, has one dream and that is to be a physician. Her traditional Indian father relies upon Rebecca to care for Joy while he buries himself in work to drown his grief over his wife’s death. Leaving home is the only way Rebecca can envision reaching her goal. She helps Joy develop greater independence, and is devastated when Joy becomes pregnant. Rebecca tussles-with her father and with herself-over who is responsible for Joy and her baby. When Rebecca discovers the truth of what happened on the day she was burned, she struggles to hold onto her dream while wrestling with questions of life, love, and responsibility. As a feather on the cap “Bound” has been given the seal of approval from Catholic Writers Guild. With many good reviews, the novel is promising and the love of Jesus shines in a realistic and gentle way throughout the novel. Available for purchase at amazon.com

The film “Divine Plan” by Robert Orlando remains the least-known story of the twentieth century. An unlikely pair: president and a pope who combine deep faith with political acumen and high-octane star power. It is a plot that involves two assassination attempts, KGB scheming, CIA intrigue and the final act to topple the Soviet Empire.

Just six weeks apart in the spring of 1981, the pope and the president took bullets from would-be assassins. Surviving strikingly similar near-death experiences, they confided to each other a shared conviction: that God had spared their lives for the purpose of defeating communism. The Divine Plan draws on the film’s exclusive interviews with renowned historians, scholars, journalists, and church officials.

Orlando interviews more than a dozen experts, including well-known historians Douglas Brinkley, H.W. Brands, Anne Applebaum, John O’Sullivan, and Craig Shirley; the leading biographer of John Paul II, George Weigel; close Reagan adviser Richard V. Allen; and Cardinal Timothy Dolan and Bishop Robert Barron. The Divine Plan, a motion picture by Robert Orlando has been released in conjunction with the docudrama of the same name.

Mette Family Band, MJM7 blends the 21st-century vibe, with wildly creative visuals and a mature faith, that seen even in the youngest of the four Mette sisters, led by their father, Michael James Mette. Their concert creates a bridge from the ordinary to the extraordinary, building on the richness of the Catholic faith. Come, enter into praise and worship with a beat; visit: https://shalomworld.org/episode/mjm7-beats to watch Shalom World TV original program BEATS where the Mette’s share their gifts of music, joy and family life.