5 comments about Evangelical Is Not Enough: Worship of God in Liturgy and Sacrament.

1. One rarely finds any Christian dealing so gently with the dichotomy between Evangelicalism and the Liturgical tradition. Moving from his Evangelical upbringing with a slow, thoughtful conversion, Thomas Howard respectfully describes why he believes that being Evangelical Is, simply, Not Enough.
   
   Howard describes how he came to be reconciled with the more controversial issues of the liturgy - set prayers, the routine of the Church Calendar, priestly garb, prayer for the dead, the Blessed Virgin Mary, and the incessant reminder that we are flesh and blood creatures, not pure intellects. Describing the Good Friday liturgy, where the faithful kiss a replica of the cross, Howard days, "I had never before done anything other than try my best to think about the cross. Here I was obliged to carry these sentiments into actual physical gestures. The act not only expresses something real, it gives force and clarity to it" (144). Howard constantly presses his reader to consider both spirit and flesh; his argument rests in the simple fact of the Incarnation: God became flesh and redeemed it thus (pg. 36, especially). Any reading of the Old Testament illustrates the incredible, visceral way God deals with his people: through sacrifice and blood, through incense, smoke, and physical posture, through meals and clothing. Few Christians realize just how important our bodies are, and Howard gently presses this, constantly reminding his reader that the Liturgy actually frees the believer to worship and refrain from being caught up in his own emotion.
   
   As a convert to Catholicism from Evangelicalism, I was encouraged by the way Howard deals with controversy and challenged to keep the faith in my own routines - not just to genuflect, but to bow with my whole heart, not just to recite prayers at Mass, but to mean them. I often tend towards "apologetics with an axe," and I found the dignity of Howard's book inspiring. He is so courteous I wouldn't hesitate to hand this book to the most fervent opposer of the Liturgy, or the most timid searcher.
   
   Perhaps most happily, Howard's writing is beautiful. I was first transfixed by his articles in "Touchstone" magazine - where he pointed out the overwhelming use of the word "just" in Protestant prayer, much to my amusement - and am simply charmed by his adept handling of the art of composition.
   
   Brilliantly written, well-considered, and endlessly courteous, Howard's book deserves a place on all our shelves. As for me, I can't wait to get my hands on his follow-up book, "On Being Catholic."



2. Linkage with our ancestors. The ancient liturgy which Howard discovers was lacking in his evangelical roots and found in liturgical world of Catholicism, Orthodoxy, Lutheran and Anglican confessions, fills this void with ritual/ceremony which proclaims the fullness of the gospel in all ages to all generations.
   
   Worthy is this effort to dispel some of the evangelical objections to such formalized, structured worship tied to the ancient past of the NT church. Howard explains the disconnect that evangelicals have made with is past and centering on individual devotion coming together in meeting sense to worship. While not bemoaning much at all any doctrinal differences (he seems to be consistent in saying there are none that are of essential nature) he found liturgical worship to be a necessary historical engine to run his spiritual life.
   
   While finding much to admire and concur with, several things prevent the fifth star from being awarded. He places great deal of emphasis on worshipper acting out in the gospel drama at times to at the expense of sacramental nature of Word & Sacraments. Here, called and ordained Servants of the Word enter to do the giving and working of faith through the holy means of grace. Second, find that his literary style (which some have attributed closeness to C.S. Lewis) began to wear on me and stifled his thrust. Theological talk at times is stretched by literary means which is understandable from one of his training and profession. Yet this theologian prefers more theology talk when this occurs.
   
   I would be slow to recommend this read to certain individuals who could not relate to such a literary style, and his tendency to ignore Lutheran contributions which he seems to conveniently pile away into misunderstood and misapplied category of "Protestant." Certainly this is biased, as is Howard's. Those interested will find many of same themes explained more clearly and theologically in excellent "Lutheran Worship: History and Practice."
   
   For more sophisticated readers, this book will aid many in seeing richness of ancient liturgical past and seek their individual connection of Howard did.
   
   Lex orandi, lex credendi!



3. In this classic and moving testimony of Mr. Howard's conversion from devout Evangelical to what he calls, "Catholic Evangelical," we see the philosophical and emotional challenges that underly the begging questions of Christendom. With a linguistic style and pathos reminiscent of C. S. Lewis, Mr. Howard gives us insight in what it is that attracts so many to the ancient faith. In the end, he offers practical suggestions for Evangelicals to obtain some of those attractions while affirming that nothing short of uniting with the Catholic church will grant the fulfillment of their inner man. Mr. Howard's approach is non-threatening and non-polemic. It is a simple description of what great treasures he feels Evangelicals lost in the Reformation. Perhaps it is best summed up in his closing statement: "Yes-I believe that the Roman Catholic Church is the Ancient Church. I accept its claims. I believe that here one finds fullness ("catholicity") of the Faith. Hence, I mourn the splintering in Christendom. I pray daily for the reunion of Christ's Church. "
   
   This is perhaps the best of the flood of conversion stories available in the quality of pros and the deep understanding of liturgy, ceremony, and sacraments. It is also a great work toward helping Protestants and Catholics understand one another. Indeed, the Reformation is not an event for celebration but for sorrow. We would do well to better understand the depths of that great wound and our need for healing.



4. Mr. Howard explains to us, in a quasi poetic way, the importance and relevance of Liturgy and Sacraments. This is a beautifully written book in which sentences give the impression of having been carefully crafted.
   
   Rites and ceremonies (the backbone of Liturgy) convey a significance of things from Above and enact events of the Church in an accessible way for all types of worshipers.
   
   Rites and ceremonies do not follow the old dictum of form to the detriment of substance as them, having their inspiration on the Bible and in the Church traditions, embody both (substance and form simultaneously).
   
   Sacraments are rooted in the Gospel and have been given their due importance sice Apostolic times. This book is food for the soul.



5. Dr. Thomas Howard was a college English professor who grew up in a well-known evangelical Christian family. (His sister is Elizabeth Elliot.) As a young man, he joined the Anglican (Episcopal) Church and remained there for about 25 years before finally becoming Catholic. The year before he became Catholic, he wrote this book. It is a pseudo-biographical explanation of why someone would leave the evangelical Christian tradition for a more ancient and liturgical form of Christianity.
   
   In the first chapter, Dr. Howard reflects on "Evangelicalism", the tradition in which he grew up. This chapter amounts to the most thoughtful and charitable definition/reflection on "Evangelicalism" and its strengths that I have ever read. He ends by asking why, if so much can be said in favor of Evangelicalism, anyone would ever leave.
   
   He then takes the rest of the book to explain ways in which Evangelicalism, while it has many strengths and gets many things right, nevertheless doesn't give us the whole picture of the Gospel. It misses out on some really important aspects of the Christian Faith. In other words, it's good--very good--but not enough.

5 comments about The Faithful Departed: The Collapse of Boston's Catholic Culture.

1. Well written, well researched and carefully thought out book proposing the hypothesis that the sex abuse scandal in the Catholic Church was only the most visible manifestation of a general malaise in moral leadership among the hierarchy.
   I would have liked footnotes to many of the assertions in the book.



2. The author sees the basic problem clearly, the effort in Boston to "make it" by Catholics as if they constituted a sort of race rather than a religion. I think he errs in suiggesting that this atttude was universal in the USA.



3. Lawler uses the failings of the Boston Archdiocese not only recently but over its history as a platform to review the scandals besetting the Catholic Church in America that have been so much in the news.
   
   He rejects the notion that the sex abuse scandal was a series of aberrations, but had at its root the unwillingness of bishops and priests to be faithful to Catholic dogmas and discipline. Outstanding analysis - and a critically important book for understanding not only the sex abuse scandal but also the contemporary situation of the Catholic Church in America today.



4. This book really exceeded my expectations. It was interesting, well written and had the best anecdotes- like the disappearance of the Cardinal's dog on the day of his death, fascinating. There is a blog discussing the book ([...]) and its current black listing by some/most religious bookstores.
   
   If you are like me and like history but find most of it dead boring, you'll like this book because it is a way to learn history and be entertained at the same time.
   
   Best of all it is hopeful.



5. The book was well written and the author's arguments were well developed. However, the editing (eg.,mistakes in tense and agreement) was shameful. To charge good money for such a sloppily produced product does not reflect well on the publishing house. If I were the author, I'd lodge a strong protest.

5 comments about The Catholic Study Bible.

1. The best adult Bible for anyone that is not familiar with Scripture. I give a copy to everyone in my Catholics Returing Home Series



2. A wonderful study bible. In depth witout being so technical as to be inacessible to a lay person.The Catholic Study Bible



3. I am not going to get into the discussion about the positive and negative features of the NAB, but rather focus on a couple things about this 2nd Edition of the Catholic Study Bible.
   
   Two things stand out to me:
   1) I really don't see the need in revising the older edition. To be honest, much of the material remains the same as in older versions. The textual notes, which come with all NAB's, is exactly the same. In addition, the inclusion of expanded reading guides and the terribly bland looking in-text maps seems to be hastly arranged.
   
   2) I dislike the visual format of this edition. Personally, the original 1990 version of the Catholic Study Bible is much better. Does anyone else find the print too light? Also, the cross-referencing apparatus I think is not helpful, as well as the divide between the Sacred Text and the notes, which seems to similar.
   
   While there are other study Bibles for Catholics in the process of being developed, like the Ignatius Study Bible, I am not sure this version is going to stand the test of time. I would rather use an older edition of The Catholic Study Bible or the much better HaperCollins Study Bible.



4. It is so great to have a study Bible that has historical information and liturgal information that the Protestant Church is missing out on so much of today.



5. I have multiple Bibles at home but this is beats them all. Very easy to read, Notes are extremely helpful, as well as the reading guide in the front of the book which helps you put what you are reading into a historlical perspective, making it easier to understand.
   
   I highly reccomend this Bible to all that are starting their studies of the Sacred Book.

5 comments about Padre Pio: The True Story.

1. I just finished reading this book. Most of it was very well done, but the author who is non-Catholic had a bad habit of inserting irrelevant material relating to Martin Luther and other Protestant luminaries in order somehow to bridge the chasm between the holiness of St. Padre Pio and the religious experience of these other individuals. It all has the smell of an ecumenistic work, a suspicion given added weight by the liberal nature of the publishing company. St. Padre Pio was a great saint for modern times. Like all saints he loved all humanity, but his personal love for souls did not, in any way, include acceptance of the errors they espouse. It is inexplicable that this author, who apparently believes what he has written about the saint, did not at the end adjure the errors of Lutheranism and enter the Catholic fold.



2. This is possibly the best book currently on the life of St. Padre Pio. It is very well researched and well written that you honestly get a true glimpse of the man in my opinion.
   
   The book was written by a non-Catholic which can dispel some people's fears that the book is a fanatical work to boost the Padre Pio simply because of his faith.
   
   After reading this book there is little way anyone can doubt the amazing activities which took place around this man. Jesus was surely using St. Padre Pio.
   
   I highly recommend this book for religious and causal readers alike.



3. I've read several books about Padre Pio and was somewhat skeptical about this one because the author is a Lutheran minister. Perhaps that's why C. Bernard Ruffin took such pains to provide a well-documented and balanced approach to the tale of this great saint. Other books, written by Catholics, failed to tell the whole story of the Church's persecution of Pio. Ruffin lays it all out and it is astonishing! Pio's detractors were priests who were jealous of him and an archbishop who had a history of rewarding priests convicted of child molestation, selling church artifacts for personal profit, and questionable sex practices. When the truth was finally revealed, punishment was light. The archbishop was allowed to retire early with all benefits and a few wrists were slapped. But if Padre Pio had had his way they would have been forgiven totally.
   No matter how badly he suffered through this time, he never said anything to harm his "Mother Church" and he remained in complete obedience to Church authority. In fact he would be sad that I am pointing out the character of his detractors. Sorry, Padre.
   All in all this is a book I couldn't put down. Several pages of photos, including one of his parents, makes the book a good read.



4. This is the most Catholic and scholarly biography of Padre Pio to date. Yes, the author on one or two occasions gives some personal reflections of his own from a Protestant perspective. But the other 99% of the book is a thorough and unbiased account of Padre Pio's life, using only verifiable facts, with references and footnotes. The strength of this biography is that it is not sensational like other biographies of Padre Pio. His life is dramatic enough; it does not need to be stylized and watered down to a human level. The facts of his life stand on their own.



5. i had over the years heard a lot about padre pio, but not knowing in depth his journey. the suject of stigmata i think draws a lot of people in to think about religion, sometimes in certain so called horror films not in the right way. this to me is another fasinating subject which in myself brings me closer to my faith. even if you are not religious in any way, but caurious about life and subjects in general this is a great read within its self. i had hoped for some colour within the book to make it really come alive, but overall i would highly recommed this read.

5 comments about The Missionary Position: Mother Teresa in Theory and Practice.

1. I have been reading Hitchens' books quite avidly in the last half of the year, and this book landed in my hands after finishing the superb God Is Not Great: How Religion Poisons Everything.
   
   I should confess I felt a little dirty as the pages started to turn. Despite my enjoyment of Hitchen's prose, this book left a bit of an aftertaste in my mouth, a disappointment similar to finding out that Santa does not exist.
   
   But as terse and poignant it may read this book is not a bitter ad hominem attack on the person of Mother Theresa. It is rather a criticism on the ways that she, other people and even institutions have benefited from the artificial creation of her over-inflated saintly myth and the political/monetary advantages it procured.
   
   The book sometimes reads a bit dry, but the information, quotations, official letters included made it worth my while. And at 98 pages, it is not too long a while.



2. During her lifetime, Mother Teresa was as close to canonization as it was possible to get without actually being dead. The front cover of Time magazine called her a "Living Saint". A cult of holiness surrounded her and in the eyes of the media and many politicians she could do no wrong. She was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize and awarded numerous honors in the countries she visited.
   
   The facts however didn't match the illusion and public perception and Christopher Hitchens had the courage to say so. He exposes her revolting attitude towards the dying, namely that they were there to die and to suffer; in that way they became closer to Christ. Care, compassion and alievement of pain were practically non-existent in her `clinics'. Standard clinical procedures and medical diagnosis was also spurned because they were materialistic. Provenance was to be preferred at all times. Hitchens also shows deceit was practiced as a matter of course towards those of other religions who were secretly baptized without their knowledge by sisters who were supposed to be caring for them.
   
   Then there is her fawning over politicians, including some of the worst despots of the latter twentieth century. The Duvalier's of Haiti and Hoxha of her native Albania were amongst the most notoriously repressive regimes, yet as Hitchens documents, this living saint was there giving them her blessing. If she could preach her message against abortion and her present advocacy of unlimited population growth at the same time, so much the better. Not so much reducing the suffering in the world as adding to it would appear to be Mother Teresa's legacy.
   
   There is also the little matter of money and as Hitchens points out, there is rather a lot of it, that was handed over in the name of charity or humanitarian support. Very little of this ever went to benefit the poor for whom it was intended. Rather it disappeared into unaudited bank accounts. One account in the Bronx had over $50 million dollars, yet Mother Teresa was on record as saying she wouldn't accept altruism. She was quite happy to accept money from fraudsters such as Charles Keating, but ignored a letter from the man investigating Keating's massive thefts requesting its return. It might also be asked where the money came from which allowed Teresa to fly around the world often at short notice. As far as I know, the world's commercial airlines have never operated a policy of free seats to the religious.
   
   Hitchens' book does not set out to be a hatchet job but he has not surprisingly received a fair amount of criticism for writing it. However there has never been any convincing explanations put forward by Teresa's apologists to any of Hitchen's criticisms, yet there has been much silence since he former living saint was hoisted to a higher plane following beatification in 2003. For those who are determined to see Mother Teresa as the embodiment of religious holiness nothing will convince them of anything untoward. However, if you do have doubts about the abuse of religious power and the ways in which all manner of lies are justified on the back of adherence to religious dogma, this book will provide a most illuminating window into a highly corrupt world.



3. The true story of mother Theresa. The chapter on her buddy Charles Keating is particularly enlightening.



4. Here's [an] example of how Hitchens proceeds. He begins one chapter quoting Mother Teresa on why her congregation has taken a special vow to work for the poor. "This vow," she exclaimed, "means that we cannot work for the rich; neither can we accept money for the work we do. Ours has to be a free service, and to the poor." A few pages later, after citing numerous cash awards that her order has received, Hitchens writes "if she is claiming that the order does not solicit money from the rich and powerful, or accept it from them, this is easily shown to be false."
   
   Hitchens isn't being sloppy here, just dishonest. He knows full well that there is a world of difference between soliciting money from the rich and working for them. Furthermore, he knows full well that Mother Teresa never even implied that she wouldn't accept money from the rich. And precisely whom should she--or anyone else--accept money from, if not the rich? Would it make Hitchens feel better if the middle class were tapped and the rich got off scot free? Would it make any sense to take from the poor and then give it back to them? Who's left?
   
   Hitchens smells politics whenever Mother Teresa supports moral causes he objects to. For example, in 1988, while in London tending to the homeless, Mother Teresa was asked to meet with Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher. She did. She also met a pro-life legislator. So? For Hitchens, this shows the political side of Mother Teresa. Forget for a moment that Mother Teresa is perhaps the most noted pro-life advocate alive, and that abortion is first and foremost a moral issue. And does anyone doubt that had she met with a politician interested in socialized medicine, Hitchens would be citing her humanity, not her politics?
   
   Mother Teresa has tended to the sick and poor all over the world. She doesn't pick and choose which countries to go to on the basis of internal politics, and this explains why she has visited both right-wing repressive nations like Haiti and left-wing repressive nations like Albania. Hitchens can't stomach this and indicts Mother Teresa for servicing dictatorships. Now if his logic is to be followed here, then most Peace Corps workers and Red Cross personnel are guilty of courting despots. This may make sense to those who write for the Nation, but no one else can be expected to believe it.
   
   In exemplary Catholic fashion, Mother Teresa comes to the poor not out of sentimentality, but out of love. No matter how impoverished and debased the poor are, they are still God's children, all of whom possess human dignity. This is not something Hitchens can accept. An unrelenting secularist, he cannot comprehend how Mother Teresa can console the terminally ill by saying, "You are suffering like Christ on the cross. So Jesus must be kissing you."
   
   Hitchens is so far gone that he cannot make sense of Christ's admonition that "The poor will always be with you." Not surprisingly, Hitchens says "I remember as a child finding this famous crack rather unsatisfactory. Either one eschews luxury and serves the poor or one does not." But he just doesn't get it: Mother Teresa eschews luxury and serves the poor, yet not for a moment does she believe that she is conquering poverty in the meantime. Only someone hopelessly wedded to a materialist vision of the world would think otherwise.
   
   Hitchens also objects to Mother Teresa's asceticism (if she lived the Life of Riley he would condemn her for that). He charges that her operation in Bengal is "a haphazard and cranky institution which would expose itself to litigation and protest were it run by any branch of the medical profession." Hitchens would prefer that the Bengalis force Mother Teresa to follow regulations established by the Department of Health and Human Services before attending to her work. It does not matter to him that Mother Teresa and her loyal sisters have managed to do what his saintly bureaucrats have never done--namely to comfort the ill and indigent.
   
   It is jealously, not ideology, that propels Hitchens to criticize Mother Teresa for receiving the Nobel Peace Prize. He wonders "what she had ever done, or even claimed to do, for the cause of peace." (His accent.) This is a strange comment coming as it does from one of those "If You Want Peace, Work For Justice" types. And it apparently never occurred to Hitchens that it is precisely Mother Teresa's humility that disallows her to grandstand before the world trumpeting her own work. A true crusader for the underclass, Mother Teresa is not in the habit of claiming to do anything. She is too busy practicing what others are content to preach.
   
   If receiving the Nobel Peace Prize angered Hitchens, it is safe to say he suffered from apoplexy when he read Mother Teresa's acceptance speech. In it, she took the occasion to say that "Today, abortion is the worst evil, and the greatest enemy of peace." Hitchens labels her speech a "diatribe" that is riddled with "fallacies and distortions," none of which he identifies, preferring instead to say that there "is not much necessity for identifying" them. Not, it should be added, if your goal is a smear campaign.
   
   It is ironic that after hurling one unsubstantiated charge after another that Hitchens ends his little book by saying, "It is past time she [Mother Teresa] was subjected to the rational critique that she has evaded so arrogantly and for so long." It would be more accurate to say that it is one more source of her greatness that Mother Teresa never evades anything, including irrational tracts written by vindictive authors. The arrogance is all his, because in the end, Hitchens hasn't even laid a glove on her.



5. I really didn't need to read this book to figure out that Mother Teresa was just another globalist tool and a propaganda/fundraising cash cow for the Catholic church but Missionary Position does a good job of driving that point home and giving good solid evidence to that fact. To give a few examples, the millions she took from the mega swindler Keating and never returned, her response to the Dupont chemical spill in India instead of seeking justice and calling to make Dupont acountable was telling people to "just forgive" so as not to cause any problems with the globalist corporats. Then of course there were the notoriously deplorable conditions in her hospitals and shelters, totally filthy, where they not only reused needles but their idea of sterilizing them was washing them with cold water! Also people were not given proper pain medication (Mother Teresa had this idea that the more you suffered the closer you were to Christ!) So you had things like this going on but at the same time it was found out in just the bank account for her shelters in the New York area there was $50 million dollars sitting idly. When the city of San Francisco donated a fully furnished shelter to her for a shelter for homeless men who had AIDS she promptly had all the couchs, beds and televisions thrown out insuring that the dying would live as comfortless as possible. All I can say is thankfully this cash cow for the forces of evil in this world is dead!

5 comments about Catholicism and Fundamentalism: The Attack on "Romanism" by "Bible Christians".

1. This book, 2 Baptist preachers, a AKJV Bible and Joseph Smith allowed Jesus to bring me out of a Baptist denomination and home to His visible body on earth, His Catholic Church.
   
   You can not deny the truth in this book or the complete 73 Book Bible.



2. This is a clearly written introduction to Roman Catholic apologetics. Keating explains what apologetics is, identifies the top traditional criticisms of Roman Catholicism by Protestants, more specifically fundamentalists, and how to rebut them, and finishes with a very high level "so you think you want to be an apologist" chapter and a chapter recommending other books for further reading if you want to get serious.
   
   I found it a bit dated in his examples and who his focus is on. For example, he spends quite a bit of time on Jimmy Swaggert. Clearly in the 1980's he was prominent, but just as clearly he is irrelevant today. I would like to see an update on who the current cast of characters/ organizations are that sponsor and promote anti-catholicism, but I guess you can get that from Keating's website. In any of the 5 states I have lived I have never experienced the anti-catholic protesting and pamphleteering he writes about as if it is commonplace. Again, maybe I'm just lucky. More often the opportunity for apologetics arises at family and friend informal gatherings when the topic turns to religion. Not with a fundamentalist banging on my front door.
   
   He consistently claims a large percentage of fundamentalist converts are former Catholics but I don't see that where I live. My experience with fundamentalist/bible-church types is not that they have any strong animosity or are stridently anti-catholic but that they are frankly just woefully uneducated on the Christian religion (as are many catholics) beyond what the bible and their particular pastor/priest says. They also tend to be from other Protestant faiths more often than not in my observation. A good bit of this book should help a Catholic educate these folks on the church, and probably educate the Catholic on his own Church as well. I would also recommend The Faith Explained by Leo Trese as an excellent and easily read apologetic.



3. CARL KEATING HAS PROVIDED SOLID ANSWERS WITH HISTORICAL AND SCRIPTURAL BACK-UP TO ATTACKS ON THE CATHOLIC FAITH THAT HAVE BEEN PERPETRATED, TIME AND TIME AGAIN, BY FUNDAMENTAL EVANGELICALS. AS ONE WHO HAS BEEN HAMMERED, UNJUSTLY BY FOLKS OF THIS PERSUASION, I AM DEEPLY GRATEFUL FOR HIS, IN DEPTH, INSIGHTS.
   
   I MIGHT ADD THAT, WITH A FEW EDUCATED ANSWERS FROM KEATING'S BOOK, I'VE MANAGED TO "SHUT DOWN" SOME OF THE SAME OLD, TIRED, POINTED COMMENTS FROM ONE OF MY MOST ANTAGONISTIC OPPONENTS.
   
   THANK YOU MR. KEATING FOR YOUR DETAILED, PLAIN LANGUAGE EXPLAINATIONS OF THE FAITH THAT SO MANY OF US HOLD DEAR, AND JUST DON'T KNOW ENOUGH ABOUT TO WARD OF THESE EVANGELICAL ATTACKS.
   
   JACK MEYER
   DANVILLE, NH



4. One of the BEST!! So many people have converted to Catholicism because of this book. Many have come to a greater understanding and appreciation of the Catholic faith because this book clears up all the misconceptions people have heard and because it reveals the truth of Catholicism right from the horses mouth. A must read!



5. This book came from heaven! Very instrumental in my conversion. It does a good job of exposing those trying to expose the "Evil Roman Church" as well as explaining Catholic doctrines.
   
   It clears up hisorical misconceptions, including many found in Lorraine Boettner's hate book, Roman Catholicism. This book shows, with legit evidence, that history is always on the side of the Catholic Church.
   
   One point that really hit the nail straight on was how fundamentalists consider doctrines like Eucharist, Confession Purgatory to be "inventions of Rome", yet they don't consider their doctrines such as once saved always saved, sola scriptura, and sola fide to be inventions? (all of those came in the last 500 years).
   
   Overall a good read for Catholic apologists in training as well as Fundamentalists.

5 comments about The Rhythm of Life: Living Every Day with Passion and Purpose.

1. I am a fan, this purchase was actually a gift for a friend, the perspective while not entirely unique, almost feels like it is, because it touches on the core issues that many of us identify as the true obstacles to personal , spiritual and emotional health. 5 stars becuase of the integrity and depth of the message... you can "tell' when the message is the result of a personal desire to identify ,and more importantly "share" via effective communication practical tools to change and grow



2. I have incorporated the teachings in this book to my life and highly recommend it for all ages.



3. The Rhythm of Life books are awesome, in great shape and arrived promptly. Thank you!



4. This book is so thought provoking that I plan to buy 5 more copies and share with important people in my life. I enjoyed the insightfulness of Matthew Kelly--this was the first book I have read of his and have moved on to Perfectly Yourself: 9 Lessons for Enduring Happiness.
   
   If you are looking to examine your life and ask yourself some questions about how to move forward and become a person of greater character this book is for you.



5. The Rhythm of Life is a book that I keep going back to. It brings back that life is made up of choices. The choices we make reflect on how balanced our life can/should be. Happiness is not brought about by the amount of "stuff" we have, but by the substance we share physically, mentally, and spiritually within ourselves and others. I've been told that a happy home consists of a good coffee maker and dog. After reading The Rhythm of Life I need to add to a good coffee maker and dog to include a good book, church, and God in your soul. Well worth reading.

5 comments about The Everlasting Man (Dover Books on Western Philosophy).

1. Chesterton drives home his points in captivating, intelligent and often hilarious ways. He is possibly one of the most intellectually honest writers of the last century. His influence has reached far and wide, including forays not only in the Catholic church, but in Protestant circles as well. C.S. Lewis read this book shortly before his conversion to Christianity. You'll not want to read this book with intellect alone (though it is intellectually very stimulating). The Everlasting Man is meaty enough to nourish your spirit and deepen your understanding.



2. I received mine copy today and will return it. It does not have Chesterton's Prefatory Note and the Introduction has been truncated from 10 pages (soft cover Doubleday) to three paragraphs! I started to read it and two pages in I found a typo. Also, I am not pleased with the quality of the print.
   
   The Everlasting Man is a classic and should be read by everyone. It is a shame that the quality of this edition is so mediocre.



3. This may have been a fine work in its original form, but this edition (Wilder Publications, 2008) is so shoddy, it isn't worth the effort to try to read it. Based on my own experience with OCR software, I would guess that this publisher scanned an old copy, translated it to text, then reformatted it, and printed it. There is no evidence that anyone proofread it prior to printing. It it doubtful that it was even run through a spell-check program. Periods are missing at the ends of sentences; words are left out; "d", "h", and "b" are confused; apostrophies are inserted randomly (probably fly-spots on the original), "and" repeatedly appears as "an", "modern" almost always appears as "modem", etc. ad infinitum.
   I read through about a fourth of the book before giving up in exasperation.



4. Book is a spiritual classic and I was glad to find it in paperback for my library.



5. All of the reviews of this book are right on - it is a watershed in Christian and Catholic apologetics.
   
   EVERY CUSTOMER SHOULD KNOW, HOWEVER, THAT THIS BOOK HAS 5 TYPOS IN EVERY PARAGRAPH. IT IS REDICULOUS, AND YOU ARE BEST SERVED BUYING A DIFFERENT VERSION.
   
   I've looked for an explanation as to how this could happen, and I've found none. BUYER BEWARE!

5 comments about My Daily Catholic Bible: Revised Standard Version Catholic Edition 20-Minute Daily Readings.

1. This is a great resource if you want to read the entire Catholic bible in one year. Unlike other one year bibles, this edition has all of the Catholic books of the bible. RSV translation is very readable. The edition is also laid out according to the day of the year, so you can buy it at any time and will be able to completely read the entire bible in 365 days. The only thing that would make it better would be a short commentary at the beginning of each reading that offered some insight/background/reference to that day's reading. Highly recommended.



2. My Daily Catholic Bible is a wonderful bible for every Catholic. It is in a good trustworthy version, the Revised Standard Version, it is a nice size and the print is easy to read. The Bible is laved out with readings for each day of the year. And You can start anytime and just keep going and in a year you will have read the entire Bible. if you miss a day, you can skip that day or go back and catch up, the readings take from 10-20 minutes per day, so it won't take long to catch up. I would encourage every fellow Catholic and every Christian, from any denomination, to read the bible daily, and this, My Daily Catholic Bible, is a great way to read though the whole Bible; I would also encourage all to have more than one bible, I would suggest a Dewey Rhimes version for Bible study, with this My daily Catholic Bible being great edition and addition for daily reading. The LORD said my people die for lake of Knowledge and that knowledge is from God's word. The more we read and study the Bible the more we know the LORD.



3. My Daily Catholic Bible (MDCB) uses the Revised Standard Version (RSV) translation, which is my favorite. The RSV is one of the most accurate translations and does not use inclusive language like the New Revised Standard Version. It incorporates the Deuterocanonical Books nicely. MDCB also quotes a Saint every day, noting particular Saints' Days. Though MDCB does not follow the Lectionary readings of the Liturgical Year, it provides an additional way for the faithful to familiarize themselves with Sacred Scripture every day. Our Sunday Visitor claims that the readings are twenty minutes long. In average, this is more or less true depending on how fast you read. I have found occasional typos, perhaps one or two since I began reading MDCB around May 18, 2008. And, I wish Our Sunday Visitor provided MDCB in a hard cover edition. Nevertheless, I'm delighted with MDCB and look forward to reading it every day!



4. This book achieves its primary purpose: giving an easy, systematic way to read the whole Bible in one year. Three things keep me from giving it a 5-star rating.
   
   First, the New Testament books are not in their traditional order (the Old Testament books are). I really wish Mr. Thigpen had explained why he changed the order, especially since he puts Acts of the Apostles before Luke's Gospel (the other 3 Gospels come before Acts).
   
   Second, there's no index. This is especially important trying to keep track of the New Testament readings.
   
   Finally, the cover's protective coating is not very long-lasting. It started peeling in a distracting way after 4 months.



5. If your life gets so busy that you may be neglecting the spiritual part of your being, this is the book for you. You don't have to give up an hour a day to read the whole Bible. Using this book, fifteen to twenty minutes a day will get you through the whole Bible in a year.
   
   I've read pretty much every translation of the Bible imaginable. I own probably 12 different Bibles for comparison purposes and the RSV version is my favorite. It's accurate and readable. Check out IS 7:14 in RSV and then compare that passage in NLT or NRSV versions.
   
   Keep this Bible in your car and when you're stuck in traffic, backed up in line at the bank or waiting for junior at soccer practice pull out this one year Bible. You'll be surprised how much calmer you'll be...with or without lipstick!

5 comments about This Is Our Faith: A Catholic Catechism for Adults.

1. I have recently been enrolled in RCIA classes, leading to full communion with the Catholic Church at Easter. Being a new student of Catholicism, I found this book to be an ESSENTIAL companion to the Catechism, as it offers explanations that are far easier to comprehend than those contained in official Vatican documents.

   Regardless, many life-long Catholics who are in my RCIA class as sponsors believe that the book is an essential tract to read to gain a fuller understanding of Catholicism.

   Highly recommended!




2. I thought this book did a wonderful job of explaining Catholic beliefs in a straightfoward manner. It touches on pretty much every topic that you could be interested in, and I especially like its question-and-answer format. I believe that one of the best aspects of this book is that, for the most part, you can skip around. If you just have questions about the sacrament of marriage for instance, you can just read that chapter to get your information; it doesn't depend too heavily on all the chapters before it (although everything leading up to it is certainly important also, specifically things like the basis of the Catholic faith)
   What I don't feel is covered as well is the reasoning behind the beliefs. In many sections of the book, references are made to the bible as well as various papers the Vatican has composed. However, I feel that many of the topics warrant much more information about the history behind them, how certain decisions were made, etc. After thinking about it though, I think perhaps that is outside the author's intention for this book; I'm sure someone could write a book on the history of each topic alone.
   Ultimately, this is a great no-nonsense book about the beliefs and teachings of the Catholic church. You'll have to look elsewhere to find out WHY they believe and teach it, though.



3. While not the most original work in the field of Dogmatics and Catechetical work, this is a concise and approachable book that would serve nicely as a reference guide for those who find the official Catechism too dry or difficult to read. What is nice about this volume is that there is Catechism reference numbers that correspond to the subjects Pennock addresses at a given point in the book for those who wish to research further.
   
   Having looked at many "Introductions to Catholicism" in order to better recommend books to those inquiring about a simple reference book to better understand their faith, I have found that this works well as both an introduction to Catholic faith and as an introduction to the Catechism of the Catholic Church.
   
   The simple Question and Answer format allows for this book to be "taken it at your own pace".



4. Very good for group study. I like this book better than the Why Catholic series.



5. I am a Parish Administrator. My duties include the education of the faithful in the ways of our faith. I also must offer an educational process to those individuals who are interested in joining the Catholic faith. The book 'This Is Our Faith' by Michael Francis Pennock is a comprehensive presentation of the Doctrines of the Faith. It invites those in our R.C. I. A. program ( the Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults) to actively participate in each lesson. It provokes questions on the part of the participants and allows for challenging thought and a deeper understanding of the material. I am pleased with this text and would recommend it with high regard. Thank you.