An engaging reevaluation of Scripture, but one whose mental health advice falls short.
A Catholic educator explores themes of intergenerational trauma in biblical stories.
“Generational trauma,” asserts Jusino in this debut nonfiction book, “is among the root causes of most of this world’s ills.” Such inherited trauma is the focus of a rapidly evolving field of study, and in this book, the author combines an overview of scientific and psychological literature on the topic with own his field of expertise: religion. The stories of the New Testament, he contends, reveal many people affected by traumatic experiences, from worldwide floods and plagues to divine commands by God himself to kill others. At the time of their authorship, these passages served the purpose of religious authorities, Jusino says, who “believed in a God who explicitly said he wanted to be feared.” Yet to modern readers, the book notes, “the Bible seems confusing, contradictory, or even offensive.” To the author, the apparent paradox of the Bible’s portrayals of a vengeful, violent God and of a forgiving, loving deity comes from a misreading of Scripture. Biblical authors, he contends, “were traumatized by their own impressions of God,” and not by the divine being. Similarly, he suggests, modern readers have been traumatized not by God, but by religious leaders; indeed, the author argues that “organized religion all too often is based on forcing, coercing, or otherwise convincing people to adopt the religious leaders’ impressions of God.” This approach, the book suggests, runs counter to the message of Jesus and the writings of the Apostle Paul, who both argue in the Bible that “God can be known” within one’s own conscience.
Jusino, who has a master’s degree in theology and more than two decades of experience as a Catholic high school theology teacher, displays a firm grasp of Christian doctrine. His analysis doesn’t exclude other faiths or Christian denominations while emphasizing the roles that coercion and fear have played in the history of Christianity. Particularly admirable is the book’s combination of astute scholarship (backed by more than 350 endnotes) with prose that makes obscure biblical references and complex theological debates accessible to newcomers. The author’s emphasis on creating an engaging narrative is reinforced by classic religious paintings that accompany and clarify his retellings of biblical stories, as well as his pop-culture references to TV shows and movies. However, despite the book’s disclaimer that the Bible is not “a replacement for any professional help,” mental health professionals and others will question one of its premises that “we choose to be depressed, we choose to have and embrace fear and anxiety….And yes, we choose to be traumatized.” Although the self-help mantra that “our conscious minds can have the power over the subconscious minds” may help some readers, it may do a disservice to others. This, however, is not the book’s focus, which centers on a compelling reexamination of Bible stories—from Cain’s murder of Abel to the violent dysfunction of King David’s family—through the lens of intergenerational trauma.
An engaging reevaluation of Scripture, but one whose mental health advice falls short.Pub Date: April 24, 2023
ISBN: 9798988239512
Page Count: 222
Publisher: Ramon K. Jusino Services, LLC
Review Posted Online: Aug. 4, 2023
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
A pleasure for fans of old-school historical narratives.
Avuncular observations on matters historical from the late popularizer of the past.
McCullough made a fine career of storytelling his way through past events and the great men (and occasional woman) of long-ago American history. In that regard, to say nothing of his eschewing modern technology in favor of the typewriter (“I love the way the bell rings every time I swing the carriage lever”), he might be thought of as belonging to a past age himself. In this set of occasional pieces, including various speeches and genial essays on what to read and how to write, he strikes a strong tone as an old-fashioned moralist: “Indifference to history isn’t just ignorant, it’s rude,” he thunders. “It’s a form of ingratitude.” There are some charming reminiscences in here. One concerns cajoling his way into a meeting with Arthur Schlesinger in order to pitch a speech to presidential candidate John F. Kennedy: Where Richard Nixon “has no character and no convictions,” he opined, Kennedy “is appealing to our best instincts.” McCullough allows that it wasn’t the strongest of ideas, but Schlesinger told him to write up a speech anyway, and when it got to Kennedy, “he gave a speech in which there was one paragraph that had once sentence written by me.” Some of McCullough’s appreciations here are of writers who are not much read these days, such as Herman Wouk and Paul Horgan; a long piece concerns a president who’s been largely lost in the shuffle too, Harry Truman, whose decision to drop the atomic bomb on Japan McCullough defends. At his best here, McCullough uses history as a way to orient thinking about the present, and with luck to good ends: “I am a short-range pessimist and a long-range optimist. I sincerely believe that we may be on the way to a very different and far better time.”
A pleasure for fans of old-school historical narratives.Pub Date: Sept. 16, 2025
ISBN: 9781668098998
Page Count: 208
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: June 26, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 2025
SEEN & HEARD
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
© Copyright 2025 Kirkus Media LLC. All Rights Reserved.
Follow
Popular in this Genre
We can’t wait for you to join Kirkus!
It’s free and takes less than 10 seconds!
Already have an account? Log in.
OR
Sign in with GoogleTrouble signing in? Retrieve credentials.
Welcome Back!
OR
Sign in with GoogleTrouble signing in? Retrieve credentials.
