Customer Reviews

The Third Miracle

5 star:		(2)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

As a faithful Catholic who wonders about the veracity of miracles, this forces one to consider that the true value of the miraculous experince is in the eyes of the beholder. Perhaps it is not whether a miracle is "real" or not, but rather how it affects those who believe it to be true. Some inconsistencies and the end is rather too "neat", but a provocative read.

The Third Miracle is a fun read - more similar to a mystery than I expected and more than I suspect the author intended. The premise and plot are sound within the scope of a novel telescoping time into a short period of the characters' lives rather than the realistic time that would cross multiple life times.

However, I wish the book had been better editted or researched ... the sequence of the elements of the Mass was incorrect, the liturgical calendar was incorrect, the understanding of consecrated hosts was incorrect ... I don't believe that the intention of the author was to make me laugh at this point.

On the positive side, I enjoyed the realism of the range of motivations and faith of the priests, the recognition that virtue and human weakness exist side by side, the non-confrontive questioning of the origin of evil and the apparent non-responsiveness of God.

If you enjoy a fun read that still makes you think, this is a book for you. If you only read "great literature" that you believe should stick around for a few decades (or centuries), this isn't your taste.

This book was selected as a Library Journal Best Book of the year and eventually made into a movie starring Ed Harris (who recently starred in the much-acclaimed movie/bio of artist Jackson Pollack). I've read the book and I've seen the movie. The book has its flaws, as many reader reviewers below have noted, but I found it an extremely powerful book. Perhaps this is because my religious background is Judaism and so the Catholic church and the beliefs of its members were fresh and new to me - as they might not be to some readers. Beyond that, however, I found the story of a man's search for faith to be quite moving and believable - and his desire to find out if a true miracle had occurred or not was also compelling. No matter one's religious tradition or beliefs, the desire to find spiritual truths is a universal one and the book is worthy of being put on anyone's reading list. Now, as to the movie - Ed Harris is one of my favorite actors and I found his portrayal of a priest in crisis to be a poignant one. This movie is NOT, however, for those who are easily offended by priests who act in less than ideal ways - and who has some very human failings. Be forewarned. I'd suggest you read the book and then see the movie. The is available on VHS and you can come across pre-viewed copies fairly regularly.

Lately, it is hard not to be inundated with religious imagery and thought in the media. TOUCHED BY AN ANGEL rules the airwaves. Evangelists run for president. The LEFT BEHIND series of fundamentalist Christian apocalyptic adventures continues to publish new installments. Arnold Schwarzenegger battles Satan in END OF DAYS. Sometimes, it can all get a little overpowering.

But reading THE THIRD MIRACLE, at first, gave me cause for hope. Here was a story about the struggles a priest must deal with when it comes to faith. Rather than embrace it blindly, faith becomes a hard commodity to hold onto when you can't find a reason to go on.

But alas, THE THIRD MIRACLE eventually lets the reader down; not in its discussion of the ramifications of faith and disbelief, but in its storytelling capabilities. In a novel full of intensely personal and important themes, the story's execution is too slight to withstand it.

The priest in question is Father Frank Moore, a smart, handsome man who has had a crisis of faith. (Incidentally, are ALL priests smart and handsome? After the movies THE EXORCIST and STIGMATA, the deeply brooding and charismatic priest is becoming WAY too much of a cliche). His crisis is a result of his job, as a postulator for the Church. Frank has the unenviable task of researching alledged 'miracles', and debunking them if possible. In his last assignment, he revealed that his personal mentor had committed suicide, thereby destroying any chance the congregation had of getting him declared a saint. It also destroyed the faith and hopes of the congregation itself.

Now, Frank is alone and unsure. He finds himself unable to care about others, and his new assignment into the possible sainthood of a local woman is not one that he wants. But there are several variables he hadn't counted on. A statue that bleeds human blood. A young girl miraculously cured of Lupus. And the daughter of the woman, whom Frank is drawn to despite his vows.

This does have the makings of a terrific novel. Author Richard Vetere at first manages to balance the fine line between characterization and themes, which makes for some enjoyable reading. And the insight he offers into the canonization process of the Catholic Church is thought-provoking. I cannot vouch for its authenticity, but Vetere's presentation of the entire scheme is illuminating.

But THE THIRD MIRACLE, in the end, isn't deep enough. It purports to discuss the perils that faith can lead to, but the problems of the characters are too obvious, and Vetere isn't a good enough writer to make it fresh. The dynamic between Frank and the daughter Roxanna is trite, and implausibly fast. The epilogue is too pat, and can be seen coming a mile away. In the end, Vetere fails to create any real tension, presenting themes without passion.

That's not to say the ideas are meaningless. Regardless of a person's beliefs, the quest for faith will always be a fascinating subject. Even a waste of a movie such as STIGMATA sparks some element of interest in the viewer, because the subject-matter is inherently compelling. But Vetere hasn't done enough to sustain interest over THE THIRD MIRACLE's rather short length. Vetere has the outline right, but he needs to fill in the blanks.

The first two reviews listed in this section are extremely harsh and, in my opinion, unfounded. It's interesting to note that in one review, a typo exists in the very sentence criticizing the book for typos! The Third Miracle is a novel. It was most likely not intended to be a long essay on the Roman Catholic church. I didn't find the characters cliched, and I thought the author did an excellent job providing background on church interworkings. I was drawn to this book because it appeared to offer a more human picture of priests and the feelings/issues they have to deal with. I was certainly not let down and would recommend this work to anyone who has shares this interest.

I picked up this book cause I felt like getting wrapped up in a new book that wasn't too long a book. I immediatly got wrapped up in this book and couldn't put it down. I am usually an Anne Rice type of reader and love thrillers and mysteries but this was different. I ended up finishing the book in 3 days and wished that I had preserved it a little longer. I still reread some pages that did not entirely make sense to me. There was one part that the book did not fully explain and I counted about 2 typos, no biggy. I guess I should see the movie but not sure if its the same title as the book. To break it down, its a great read reguardless if you are catholic or not. There is alot of religeous catholic talk and some of it is a side of catholicism that is overly exaggerated in this book but afterall, it is FICTION. I did fall in love with the characters tho =).

I grew up in Maspeth, Queens, situs of the novel's action, and graduated from St. Stanislaus School, in whose back yard the first "miracle" of the novel occurs. I had anticipated Vetere's novel because we share these roots. Maspeth is not a corner of the world which inspires great literature - unless you happen to be Joyce Carol Oates. I was terribly disappointed when "The Third Miracle" failed to live up to even these pedestrian expectations. The plot and characters embrace just about every cliche one could imagine in a tawdry melodrama which, unlike its cover copy, has little to do with faith, saintliness, or love. Just look at these characters, who Vetere took right out of Central Casting: the "hero," Father Frank Moore, priest/postulator of a would-be local saint, on the skids and doubting his vocation because he "failed" himself and "the people"; his handsome, boyish, sports-car driving priest/sidekick; a beautiful, troubled, angry lapsed-Catholic divorcee with whom Moore has a brief liason; the Machiavellian cardinal who sends Moore to Maspeth; a drugged-out teen slut who was the recipient of the first miracle; the belligerent, Teutonic devil's advocate with whom Moore engages in a battle of wits (or lack therof) in the canonization inquiry - get it? I will admit it was fun to see places, streets and the "old school" in print. However, Vetere's prose is so purple one wishes that Hagstrom or Rand McNally had visited Queens in his stead. Sartorial note to the author: priests stopped wearing maniples 35 years ago and nuns would never wear a rosary as a fashion accessory! Also, please check out the Ordinary of the Roman Mass - the "Agnus Dei" follows the Consecreation, it doesn't precede it. This volume is also very sloppy in its graphic design and editing. Shame on you, Scribner's, for the bad grammar you let slip and the typographical errors threin! In more skilled hands the context of the story, e.g., the criteria of sainthood on the eve of the third millenium, could have provided the makings of an entertaining, nay, even enlightening novel. Because of its "movie of the week" subplots, weak, sterotypical characters, and its jaundiced, inaccurate presentation of the Catholic Church's hierarchy and ritual,"The Third Miracle" leaves the reader unsatisfied, annoyed, and, if s/he happens to be Catholic, wishing that Vetere had paid more attention to the Sisters of St. Joseph during his catechism lessons at St. Stan's. One hundred years ago "The Third Miracle" would have been serialized in a "penny-dreadful." Would that there was its like in our day, to spare the unwary reader! If you want to read about priests solving mysteries, you can't go wrong with G.K. Chesterton's Father Brown mysteries. Father Moore deserves nothing less than obscurity.

I've read this book 3 years ago. I enjoyed it because I come from the neighborhood in which it takes place. The story was charming. My heart went out to the priest and the struggle with his faith. God wins! I just saw the movie which was good but stick to the book version!

The whole idea of miracles, saints, and how to "prove" such things, is fascinating. Unfortunately, in the hands of the author, the scenario becomes a cartoonish exercise with stereotypical and poorly drawn characters. Some of the scenes actually made me cringe, they were so crudely written and unbelievable. The dialogue is clumsy and at times downright laughable; I wondered where the editor was when the manuscript was being prepared. I stuck with it because I thought the premise was a good one, but it was a total waste of time. I can only hope that in the proposed movie version that they hire a scriptwriter who knows how to write dialogue and create a plot that works. Mr. Vetere certainly doesn't.