Customer Reviews

101 Questions and Answers on Eastern Catholic Churches (101 Questions & Answers)

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This book is an absolute gem. It is a great first book to learn about the Eastern Catholic Churches. The list/question format is used a lot in books, but for this topic, it is the best way to go. Faulk uses a simple almost folksy tone that would not work in a more formal book on this very formal topic. But it works very well here. He doesn't just throw in fortuitous questions to reach the titled number. At the end you are left with the feeling that a volume two might not be amiss. The questions Faulk poses are comprehensive and interesting. Are the Eastern Churches "under" the Pope? What do you mean by "a new Rome"? What is the significance of icons? How do the Eastern Catholic Churches differ from each other?

I am a Roman Catholic and before this book, I had no idea what an Eastern Church is. I knew they existed but always found a way to blissfully ignore them. I knew more about Judaism and Islam than the Eastern Churches. Thankfully, I started with this book. The author begins by identifying his expected reader. "I am going to assume that you are a Latin or Roman Catholic"... since there are more than one billion Latin Catholics in the world, and about sixteen million Eastern Catholics." That's a good assumption and it works in his explanations. Finally, I "get" that East-West Schism of 1054!

The author is well-qualified to tackle this subject. He is a bi-ritual deacon. With Ecclesiastical permission, he functions as a deacon in the Roman Catholic Church for which he was ordained, and the Melkite Church, one of the Byzantine Churches. He answered all of my questions and left me feeling totally satisfied with my first foray into the Eastern Churches. I may not be able to name all fourteen Churches that use the Byzantine Rite, but finally, I know exactly what the Byzantine Rite is.