Customer Reviews

Surprised By Truth 2: 15 Men and Women Give the Biblical and Historical Reasons For Becoming Catholic. (v. 2)

5 star:		(37)
4 star:		(6)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(4)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

If you subscribe to Envoy Magazine you may already be familiar with some of the stories in this wonderful sequel to Surprised by Truth. Nonetheless, this volume is a terrific addition to any Catholic apologetics collection if you do not keep an archive of the stories as they appeared in the magazine.

While the first Surprised by Truth concentrated primarily on Evangelical Protestant converts to the Faith, Surprised by Truth 2 chronicles the stories of converts from other realms: Mormonism, paganism, Judaism and Unitarianism among others. This volume even included stories from cradle Catholics who fell away and returned. I thought it interesting to read to read these viewpoints, as "Catholic convert" books usually focus upon former Fundamentalists who join the Church and it is rare to find conversion stories about Mormons, Jehovahs Witnesses and people of other faiths. I enjoyed reading how the people in SbT2 discovered how they came to Catholicism: which included thorough study of the Bible, prayer, and moral issues like abortion.

Books like this are great not only for people considering the Catholic Faith but for cradle Catholics seeking assurance in their faith.

Pat Madrid has done it again. Surprised by Truth 2 picks up where the original left off. Whereas the original featured 11 stories of primarily Evangelical Protestants, the sequel (or equal perhaps) features 15 stories from men and women of a variety of backgrounds: Mormon, Lutheran, pagan, Protestant missionary...

While many of these stories have appeared in the pages of Envoy Magazine, collectively they leave a lasting impact on the reader. Each story demonstrates how the Holy Spirit acts within individual lives to move individuals towards Christ and His Church.

Each story highlights various historical, biblical, personal, and emotional reasons for the individual conversions. Taken as a whole, the book confronts most of the arguments that people have against the Catholic Church.

I'd recommend this book to those who have misconceptions with the Church, those unsure why they are Catholic, and those solid in their faith. It is reassuring, inspirational, informative, and uplifting.

Of the three Surprised by Truth volumes in the series, I definitely liked this one the best. While the first volume was very good in providing a strong dose of conversion accounts from ex-Encangelicals (something people needed to read when it came out back in 1994), and the third volume was interesting, though light on apologetics info and not as well-written, Surprised by Truth 2 is the strongest. Not only was the variety of stories the best of the three (it included stories by relapsed Catholics as well as from converts from non-Protestant backgrounds, which was a big plus), SBT2 has the strongest literary punch. Though all the chapters were excellent, the truly standout chapters were by Kristine Franklin (Our Mission to Convert Catholics Made us Catholic), Fr. Ray Ryland (Meeting Christ on His Terms, Not Ours), Thomas Howard (Catholic Is Not Enough) and Patrick Madrid (Conclusions of a Guilty Bystander). Those four essays in particular combined keen intellectual insights with superb writing and convincing arguments. The one downside in this book (actually with all three) is that it didn't include a chapter by a convert from atheism. There are plenty of atheists milling around out there, and having a well-written and logically coherent account of believing in God would have been icing on the cake. Who knows? Maybe a future Surprised by Truth volume will have one.

The success of Surprised by Truth, a collection of the stories of former Protestants (and others) who moved to Roman Catholicism, far exceeded editor Patrick Madrid's wildest expectations. Filled with entertaining and at times poignant accounts of their personal journeys into historic Christianity, the book was warmly received by faithful Roman Catholics and inquirers from other traditions alike and is one of the most influential books in the new wave of Roman Catholic apologetics. Like any surprising media success, there has to be a sequel and Surprised by Truth 2 has Madrid put together stories from a new group of converts to Rome.

The format is similar but with more space allotted for each account. This allows for a greater detail in the theological specifics of their conversion process. Yet with this depth, there is a problem as well - the very success of the first book has so greatly influenced the new converts that the arguments sound very familiar. One of the great joys of the first book was that the converts really had no idea until the end exactly what they were doing. They were largely on their own in their journeys and their stumbling into the historic Church had a freshness about it that was contagious. Now there are so many aids to the historic Churches that once someone shows an interest, there are books, tapes, websites, etc. to guide them every step of the way. This is good for the spread of the Catholic faith but bad for this particular book genre.

Overall, the contributors give a compelling account for Roman Catholicism for those interested (Christians happy in other traditions and well versed in their faith will largely remain unconvinced). Those expecting a theological treatise will be disappointed - this type of popular account does not (and should not) be confused with serious theological works. Taken for what it is, the book is a worthy follow-up to the original. It is stronger in some areas while weaker in others - but still successful in its purpose.  

I found this book to be as inspiring as the the first one. I think it is well-written and presents a very balanced approach to the Catholic faith. The book makes a great gift to devout Catholics, Catholics who have stopped attending church or to people of other faiths who would benefit from a better understanding of the Catholic faith.

When Pat Madrid brought together "Surprised By Truth" he innovated the Catholic apologetics movement by bringing together the stories of various converts to Catholicism from Protestantism. That first book revolutionized the Catholic Apologetics world and sparked many immitations.

Yet few can immitate Pat Madrid except Pat himself. This is proven in "Surprised By Truth II," in which Madrid once again demonstrates why he is a leading Catholic apologist in North America. This book goes beyond the scope of the first book, bringing together the stories of converts from non-Christian religions, reverts who left the Church and came back, as well as people who re-ignited their Catholic faith after falling away for a time to follow secularism and the ways of the world. As such, it reaches a wider audience than Pat's first book, asking questions which trouble modern man.

I highly recommend this work, which can be read in short sittings and which will challenge even the most mediocre Catholic to rethink their faith.

This book deserves more than 5 stars. After reading several of the latest Catholic conversion story anthologies from different publishers -- all of which are obviously trying to copy the two Surprised by Truth books -- I have found that Surprised by Truth 2 is better than all the others and surprisingly is even better and richer than the first Surprised By volume. What I especially appreciated from volume 2 was its variety of conversion stories and especially the stories from the cradle Catholics who wavered or even left and then became strong in their Catholic faith. Read these testimonies with an open heart and mind and let the Holy Spirit speak to you through them. He will!

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Thank you for the opportunity of reading this manuscript, Patrick. One powerful story after another, starting with your own. Your story really hit home with me and quite frankly it gave me hope. There are times in a man's life when he feels so far from God--by one's own choice, that finding home can be impossible. With great precision and honesty, you point out the various paths and choices we all make and how quickly and seemingly painless we find ourselves on the "outside looking in."

Much has been written about how we find ourselves parted from the grace of God. It is a rare occasion when one picks up a book which points out the beginning of that story, the curving journey through it, and how to find the way home again.

The greatest aspect of this book is how it directs the reader into reevaluating where "home" really is. Complacency can really cloud the mind and deceive the soul, and your book helped me with my vision.

You put your heart and soul into this book--as did the others, and it shows. The only difficult parts of the book were those that gave me a lump in my throat and a jab to my conscience.

That is all.

I enjoyed Suprised by Truth 2 even more than the first collection of conversion stories. The first book is an apologetics primer filled with scriptural references and handy arguments supporting the Catholic Church and the faith. The second book is a testimony from the heart that reveals the basic human need to know the truth and conform one's life to the Truth that is Christ. The stories in the second book have stayed with me for months and continue to inspire me and help me appreciate the treasure of our faith in the one, holy, catholic and apostolic Church.

This book emphasizes logical reasons for being a Catholic. Some of the conversion accounts cite biblical reasons but not to the extent that the first Surprised By Truth does. The conversion stories are of people from a wide background. They include Jews, Agnostics and a person who practiced witchcraft as well as Protestant Christians. This book will be interesting to all persons interested in spirituality and will be life changing for some.