Customer Reviews

Being Catholic Today: Your Personal Guide

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Being Catholic Today is what we use during our Mystagogia sessions in the RCIA (Rite of Christian Initiation for Adults). It's format is simply followed for our new Catholics to continue to appreciate what formation they've begun in the process and challenges them with practical ways to live their faith beyond the process. Reflection and Discussion Questions, Action Ideas, and Read Me! sections are very helpful to the catechists facilitating the gatherings.

I found this book to be easy to read and understand, esp. for new catholics or "cradle catholics" who grew up going through the process without really understanding the purposes/intentions behind those practices (like me). I had been feeling somewhat disillusioned about the faith, but this book helped me to understand God's love and patience for mankind. I especially liked the conversational tone of the book, and the author's references between God's love and his own personal life, to make the concepts easier for us to grasp. For example, he compares God's love for us to his love (as a grandfather) for his 1 yr old grandson... He loves his grandson unconditionally and wants to spoil him with everything; however, his grandson does not understand this love & is easily distracted by other things around him. And that is how it is with us and God -- we're so easily distracted by everyday things that we "rarely give God more than a passing glance".

This book is definitely not a textbook or a study on Catholicism. It's a first step for new Catholics, or a quick inspirational review for existing Catholics.

This guide is too brief and simplistic regarding such a complex topic as Catholicism. It reads more like a catechism instead of a layperson's guide. In fact, the author hightly recommends reading the "Catechism of the Catholic Church" as well as a few of his own books which makes for limited recommended reading lists. In seeking guidance for practicing my faith, I was disappointed. I would not recommend this book.