A stridently feminist plea for another fall of Rome, if that’s what it takes.
No mere rap on the knuckles for the Catholic establishment, from a nun with 40 years in the sisterhood.
Initially disqualifying herself as a Catholic historian, Sister Karol (Ten Fun Things to Do Before You Die, not reviewed, etc.) goes right on to commingle her opinions with those of authoritative sources supporting her view that the prime aspect of the ongoing travails of the Church today is: Men did it. And they have been doing it, she opines, pretty much since the fifth century, when Saint Augustine got up one morning with an exaggerated, if not paranoid, dread of what “the intrinsic evil of sexual pleasure and the seductively subordinate nature of women” would do to his church. Augustine’s law of celibacy, the author believes, drawn directly from pagan religious practices and applied to a select all-male priesthood otherwise anointed with power and privilege, was a major derailment of what the preexisting populist “Jesus Movement” had intended. She also cites a firm economic basis for celibacy (no families to support or to inherit property) that was not lost on two millennia of popes and their accountants. Not that celibacy was ever observed all that much by the Church fathers and their brethren, she asserts, citing centuries of “rampant” sexual activity in monasteries, Venetian convents operated as upper-class brothels, and even a pope who died in an adulterous embrace—possibly bludgeoned by the offended husband. History recounted, her stance is: What did you expect? Forced celibacy is tantamount to abuse and creates abusers protected by a pervasive tradition of “infallibility, guarded by secrecy and silence.” Sexual straying in convents today? Maybe occasionally, the still-devout sister allows, but nothing like the priesthood and virtually no abuse of children or parishioners. Her final word? Only a “second Pentecost” can save Catholicism.
A stridently feminist plea for another fall of Rome, if that’s what it takes.Pub Date: Feb. 17, 2004
ISBN: 1-4000-5055-3
Page Count: 224
Publisher: Harmony
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 1, 2003
BOOK REVIEW
Worthwhile reference stuffed with facts and illustrations.
A compendium of charts, time lines, lists and illustrations to accompany study of the Bible.
This visually appealing resource provides a wide array of illustrative and textually concise references, beginning with three sets of charts covering the Bible as a whole, the Old Testament and the New Testament. These charts cover such topics as biblical weights and measures, feasts and holidays and the 12 disciples. Most of the charts use a variety of illustrative techniques to convey lessons and provide visual interest. A worthwhile example is “How We Got the Bible,” which provides a time line of translation history, comparisons of canons among faiths and portraits of important figures in biblical translation, such as Jerome and John Wycliffe. The book then presents a section of maps, followed by diagrams to conceptualize such structures as Noah’s Ark and Solomon’s Temple. Finally, a section on Christianity, cults and other religions describes key aspects of history and doctrine for certain Christian sects and other faith traditions. Overall, the authors take a traditionalist, conservative approach. For instance, they list Moses as the author of the Pentateuch (the first five books of the Hebrew Bible) without making mention of claims to the contrary. When comparing various Christian sects and world religions, the emphasis is on doctrine and orthodox theology. Some chapters, however, may not completely align with the needs of Catholic and Orthodox churches. But the authors’ leanings are muted enough and do not detract from the work’s usefulness. As a resource, it’s well organized, inviting and visually stimulating. Even the most seasoned reader will learn something while browsing.
Worthwhile reference stuffed with facts and illustrations.Pub Date: Sept. 1, 2005
ISBN: 978-1-5963-6022-8
Page Count: -
Publisher: N/A
Review Posted Online: May 23, 2010
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
This a book of earlier, philosophical essays concerned with the essential "absurdity" of life and the concept that- to overcome the strong tendency to suicide in every thoughtful man-one must accept life on its own terms with its values of revolt, liberty and passion. A dreary thesis- derived from and distorting the beliefs of the founders of existentialism, Jaspers, Heldegger and Kierkegaard, etc., the point of view seems peculiarly outmoded. It is based on the experience of war and the resistance, liberally laced with Andre Gide's excessive intellectualism. The younger existentialists such as Sartre and Camus, with their gift for the terse novel or intense drama, seem to have omitted from their philosophy all the deep religiosity which permeates the work of the great existentialist thinkers. This contributes to a basic lack of vitality in themselves, in these essays, and ten years after the war Camus seems unaware that the life force has healed old wounds... Largely for avant garde aesthetes and his special coterie.
Pub Date: Sept. 26, 1955
ISBN: 0679733736
Page Count: 228
Publisher: Knopf
Review Posted Online: Sept. 19, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 1, 1955
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