History and Faith

A Short History of the Early Church, by Harry R. Boer.

An Eerdman’s book. “For readers who want a brief yet reliable introduction to the history of the early church as well as for those who are looking for a quick review of the period, this volume furnishes a concise overview of the key events, figures, controversies, and councils essential for a proper understanding of the first seven centuries of the Christian church. Harry R. Boer provides background on the world into which the church was born, surveys the life of the church from the ministry of Jesus until 600 A.D., examines the effects of persecution and heresy on the church, explains the role of several key church leaders, and focuses specifically on the church's ongoing struggle to formulate proper doctrines of the Trinity and of Christ. Each chapter is clearly outlined and concludes with several discussion questions that enhance the book's use as a study guide for church groups or as a text in courses on early church history.” I got this copy in the early 80’s and found it a good factual resource to combat more secularly-biased versions of history.

Ranking: Keeper.

File Code: Church History. Religion. Softcover.

How the Catholic Church Built Western Civilization, by Thomas E. Woods, Jr., Ph. D.

“Ask someone today where Western Civilization originated, and he or she might say Greece or Rome. But what is the ultimate source of Western Civilization? Bestselling author and professor Thomas E. Woods, Jr. provides the long neglected answer: the Catholic Church. In the new paperback edition of his critically acclaimed book, How the Catholic Church Built Western Civilization, Woods goes far beyond the familiar tale of monks copying manuscripts and preserving the wisdom of classical antiquity. Gifts such as modern science, free-market economics, art, music, and the idea of human rights come from the Catholic Church, explains Woods. In How the Catholic Church Built Western Civilization, you’ll learn:

• Why modern science was born in the Catholic Church
• How Catholic priests developed the idea of free-market economics five hundred years before Adam Smith
• How the Catholic Church invented the university
• Why what you know about the Galileo affair is wrong
• How Western law grew out of Church canon law

·         How the Church humanized the West by insisting on the sacredness of all human life

No institution has done more to shape Western civilization than the two-thousand-year-old Catholic Church—and in ways that many of us have forgotten or never known. How the Catholic Church Built Western Civilization is essential reading for recovering this lost truth.” – Google Books. If we continue chopping away at the roots of our culture, we may find there is nothing (philosophically speaking) holding up the branches anymore. Illustrated.

Ranking: Essential.

File Code: History. Western Civilization. Hardback.

Literary Converts, by Joseph Pearce.

“A biographical exploration into the spiritual lives of some of the greatest writers in the English language this century. The twentieth century has been marked both by belief and unbelief. While attendance at church has declined dramatically, the lives of many of the greatest leaders have been influenced and inspired by Christianity. In LITERARY CONVERTS Joseph Pearce explores the world of some of the finest writers in the English language who have believed. Most of those included converted to Roman Catholicism and some to Anglicanism. The list is like a 'Who's Who' of the last one hundred years: Oscar Wilde, Evelyn Waugh, C S Lewis, Malcolm Muggeridge, Graham Greene, Hilaire Belloc, G K Chesterton, Dorothy L Sayers, T S Eliot and J R R Tolkien.” – Google Books. Pearce takes a historical look at the movement, from the conversion of Wilde at the beginning of the century to the death of the ambiguous Grahame Greene near its end, to look at the influences and motives of the ‘Literary Converts’, including their debates and controversies with the likes of Shaw and Wells. Illustrated with photos.

Ranking: Essential.

File Code: Literary History. Religion. Hardback.

Between Heaven and Hell: A Dialog Somewhere Beyond Death with John F. Kennedy, C. S. Lewis & Aldous Huxley, by Peter Kreeft.

“On November 22, 1963, three great men died within a few hours of each other: C. S. Lewis, John F. Kennedy and Aldous Huxley. All three believed, in different ways, that death is not the end of human life. Suppose they were right, and suppose they met after death. How might the conversation go? Peter Kreeft imagines their discussion as a part of The Great Conversation that has been going on for centuries. Does human life have meaning? Is it possible to know about life after death? What if one could prove that Jesus was God? With Kennedy taking the role of a modern humanist, Lewis representing Christian theism and Huxley advocating Eastern pantheism, the dialogue is lively and informative.” – Amazon. While Kreeft is a decidedly Christian writer, he gives the other viewpoints a fair hearing, often quoting from the speakers’ works themselves. There is a similar book by Kreeft, “Symbol or Substance?”, a dialogue on the Eucharist as imagined between Billy Grahame, C. S. Lewis, and J. R. R. Tolkien, that I want to get.

Ranking: Essential.

File Code: Religion. Philosophy. Softcover.