Catholicism & Orthodox Christianity (World Religions (Facts on File)) [Hardcover]

Stephen F. Brown (Author), Khaled Anatolios (Author)

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

Grade 6-9-Clearly written, easy to follow, and filled with excellent black-and-white illustrations, this thin volume explains the differences between the Roman Catholic Church and the Orthodox Churches. Their origins and history are presented in two chapters, which are followed by discussions of basic beliefs and practices, and the influence of the churches on cultural life in the U.S. andthroughout the world. The last chapter, "Facing New Challenges," does not deal with the recent sex scandals involving some Catholic priests as the book was published-before those events became news. For the most part, the black-and-white illustrations are well placed and well chosen. A modest complaint: there is a reference to "two of the most beloved icons in the Eastern tradition," but they are not shown. This book is perfect for middle school libraries, a bit weak for high schools, and might be just the thing for fledgling researchers.
Herman Sutter, Saint Agnes Academy, Houston, TX
Copyright 2002 Cahners Business Information, Inc.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 128 pages
• Publisher: Facts on File (November 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0816046131
• ISBN-13: 978-0816046133
• Product Dimensions: 9.5 x 7.4 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 15 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 2.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #6,551,674 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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10 of 17 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Catholic Church Promotion, July 19, 2005

By 

Kenneth A. Dailey "kadailey" (Cairo, Egypt and Nashville, Tennessee) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Catholicism & Orthodox Christianity (World Religions (Facts on File)) (Hardcover)

First, the good stuff. It is written so that grade 6-8 kids can read this easily and it is certainly a general overview.

This book reads more like a Catholic Church pamphlet than a seriously researched document. Non-Catholic groups, regardless if they are Protestants or Orthodox, are depicted as groups who decided to not follow the correct views, but are nevertheless not completely bad.

The Crusades are dealt with in a paragraph and "Throughout the succeeding crusades, however, dissension among the leaders took place and deviations from their holy purpose often led to failure." By stating that there was a holy purpose to conquering the Levant is not only extremely subjective, it is historically inaccurate. The Inquisitions are similar reviewed in a paragraph and stated as being a means to achieving political unity. Nothing is mentioned of executions, torture, or the really good stuff. There are many other examples, but these two should demonstrate a fundamental weakness that is consistent throughout the book.

In short, the subjectivity of this work got on my nerves and as a history teacher I would question its value as a source because of it very obvious bias.