It’s that time of year already! Without further ado, here is the official Denver Catholic Christmas Gift Guide for 2019.
Books/Media
We’re all glued to our phones or a screen of some sort for at least 10 hours a day; why not bury your face in a good book instead? It’s better for the brain, more enriching, and the pages don’t emit a mind-numbing blue glow. However, if it happens to be your designated screen time for the day, there are a couple of ideas for that, too — and they don’t involve Netflix.
1. The Catholic Gentleman by Sam Guzman (Ignatius Press), $16.95
2. Theology of Home: Finding the Eternal in the Everyday (TAN Books), $30
3. The Strangeness of Truth by Father Damian Ference (Pauline Books and Media), $16.95
4. The Beer Option by Dr. R. Jared Staudt (Angelico Press), $17.95
5. The Irony of Modern Catholic History by George Weigel (Basic Books), $30
6. Bishop Barron’s The Mass Blu-Ray/DVD, $69.95
7. Unplanned Blu-Ray/DVD, $22.99
Clothing/Accessories
Just because we’re Catholic doesn’t mean we have to be dressed for Sunday Mass all the time. The following small Catholic businesses are thinking outside the box when it comes to clothing and accessories.
1. Catholic Socks, $10 – $14 (sockreligious.com)
2. Pink Salt Riot Jewelry (pinksaltriot.com)
3. Rosary Habit jewelry (rosaryhabit.com)
4. Brick House in the City
(brickhouseinthecity.com)
5. PAL Campaign (palcampaign.com)
6. Signum X Catholic Apparel (thesignofthecross.com)
Baby/Kids/Teen
Look beyond the shelves of Target and Walmart when shopping for the little ones and kids in your lives. From swaddles to books to skateboards, here are a few Catholic alternatives.
1. Be A Heart Catholic baby swaddles
(beaheart.com), $28
2. Chews Life rosaries (chewslife.com), $38
3. The Seed Who Was Afraid to be Planted by Anthony DeStefano (Sophia Institute Press), $17.95
4. The Attic Saint by Tim Drake (Emmaus Road Publishing), $18.95 (stpaulcenter.com/product/the-attic-saint)
5. Lego Catechism by Kevin and Mary O’Neill (StoryTel Press), $34.95
6. The Saints Chronicles Comic Books (Sophia Institute Press), $14.95
7. Motherboards (loveyourmotherboard.com)
Practical/Religious gifts
While many religious gifts in the past seemed to be better suited for your grandma than your niece, that is no longer the case. Consider gifting one of these sacred gifts this Christmas season.
1. Monk Manual 90-planner, $38 (monkmanual.com)
2. Rugged Rosaries (cordbands.com)
3. JMJ Blessed Beads (jmjblessedbeads.com)
4. The Catholic Journaling Bible, $49.95 (blessedisshe.net)
5. Eternal Lite Candles, $25.99 (eternallite.com)
Local stores
It’s important to support small, local Catholic businesses. Lucky for us, there are quite a few just around the block, and they have wide ranges of gifts that would be perfect for your loved ones of all ages.
1. Bethlehem Handicrafts (bethlehemhandicrafts.com)
2. Creator Mundi (creatormundi.com)
3. Stargazer Fine Chocolates
(stargazerfinechocolates.com)
4. Gerkens Religious Supplies (gerkens.com)
5. Polish Pottery Market (polishpotterymarket.com)
Activities/Events
There are always fun things to do around the holidays in Colorado. Here are a few ideas if you find yourself bored over the Christmas break.
1. Monet Exhibit at Denver Art Museum
Open through Feb. 2, 2020
2. Denver Christkindl Market
Skyline Park, Denver. Open through Dec. 23
3. Colorado Ballet’s The Nutcracker
Open through Dec. 29
4. Christmas In Color Drive-thru light displays
Water World (8801 N. Pecos Street) and Bandimere Speedway (3051 South Rooney Road).
Admission: $26-$30 per vehicle. Open 5:30 p.m.
to 10 p.m. nightly through Jan. 4. All locations will be closed on Dec. 25.
