author
Francis Bernard Cassilly
1860–1938
A Jesuit priest with a gift for plain, practical writing, this early 20th-century author spoke directly to young readers about vocation, faith, and everyday Catholic life. His books are short, earnest, and clearly meant to guide rather than impress.
1 Audiobook
What Shall I Be? A Chat With Young People
by Francis Bernard Cassilly
About the author
Born in 1860 and deceased in 1938, Francis Bernard Cassilly was an American Catholic writer and Jesuit priest. Surviving library and ebook records show that he wrote devotional and instructional works aimed at ordinary readers, especially young people.
His best-known title appears to be What Shall I Be? A Chat With Young People, first published in 1914. Catalog and library listings also connect him with works such as Shall I Be a Daily Communicant?, A Story of Love, and Religion, Doctrine and Practice, suggesting a career centered on spiritual formation, Catholic teaching, and questions of vocation.
Cassilly's style, at least from the works that remain widely cataloged, seems simple and direct: he wrote to encourage reflection, commitment, and religious purpose rather than literary showmanship. A reliable portrait was not clearly available from the sources reviewed, so no profile image is included.