Why I Am a Catholic
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- $23.99
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- $23.99
Publisher Description
An “intellectually satisfying, and spiritually moving,” argument for a questioning, conscience-driven faith, by a New York Times bestselling author (Booklist).
Pulitzer Prize winner Garry Wills has been asked more than once why he remains in the Church, especially in the wake of his bestselling book Papal Sins, which examined the darker side of the religion’s history. In Why I Am a Catholic, he offers some persuasive and heartfelt answers.
Beginning with a reflection on his early experiences as a child, and later as a Jesuit seminarian, Wills reveals the importance of Catholicism in his own life. He discusses G.K. Chesterton, a personal hero whose writings brought him comfort after he left the seminary. He goes on to challenge, in clear and forceful terms, the claim that criticism or reform of the papacy is an assault on the faith itself. For Wills, a Catholic can be both loyal and critical, a loving child who stays with his father even if the parent makes mistakes.
Why I Am a Catholic also goes beyond his personal experiences to present a sweeping narrative covering two thousand years of Catholicism, revealing that the papacy, far from being an unchanging institution, has been transformed dramatically over the millennia—and can be reimagined in the future. At a time when the Church faces various crises and struggles, Garry Wills offers an important look at both its past and its future, in a book that is “one part autobiography, three parts history, and one part confession of faith” (Booklist).
“It is a great satisfaction to have the Church’s history analyzed by a mind so critical but still so in love.” —The New Yorker
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
In this "unintended sequel" to his 2000 book, Papal Sin, Wills tries to answer the many readers who asked why he remains a Catholic even as he has criticized its authority figures, especially the current pope. He begins with a very personal, though brief, look at his life as a Catholic, which includes time spent as a Jesuit novice, then proceeds with a detailed defense of his views on the church and its papacy. He concludes with an explanation of the Apostles' Creed, which he regards as the true foundation of his faith. Wills's detractors may be surprised to learn that he has had a largely positive church experience, refreshingly bereft of the kind of stereotypical bad memories that have marked other recent Catholic memoirs. He even reports that he has never stopped going to Mass and saying the traditional Marian devotion known as the Rosary. For Wills, a Catholic can be both loyal and critical, a loving child who stays with his father even if the parent is wrong. He has remained Catholic, he says, because his faith is based on "the great truths of salvation" found in the creed, which he believes Catholicism has played a major role in preserving. Wills's book is well written and carefully referenced to support his point of view. It's unlikely to satisfy his critics, but it will offer solace to those Catholics who cling to the church while hoping it will start to better reflect the times.
