George Weigel "The Truth of Catholicism"

The Truth of Catholicism: Ten Controversies Explored was recommended by a priest at my parish. I owe him, because it is quite good! It is very clearly and simply written, very powerful. It is meant for your average semi-articulate Catholic - such as myself - looking for good ways to explain the faith to others. I myself have a very hard time engaging my family in these matters.

Here is a selection of the first few quotes I recorded in my book journal:

• "In these 3 respects - boredom, skepticism, the Church's own limitations - our contemporary situation replicates 2,000 years of Christian history.... The really new and distinctively modern change is that what [the Church] proclaims is inherently dehumanizing." (page 20)
• "The doctrine of the Trinity reinforces the Christian claim that self-giving and receptivity are the road to human flourishing." (page 32)
• [On Vatican II] "John XXIII had something different in mind [than earlier ecumenical councils].... Some of what John XXIII hoped for actually happened.... [but] Western Europe today is the most religiously arid place on the planet." (page 36)
• "The story of salvation - the story of the Church, and the story of Israel that made the Church's story possible - is the world's story, rightly understood." (page 41)
• "Sanctity, in Catholicism, is not just for the sanctuary." (page 44)
• "Doctrine, those defined truths which mark the boundaries of Catholicism, is in fact liberating." (page 50)
• "Authority in the Church exists to insure that Christians do not settle for mediocrity." (page 51)