Book Review: An introduction to Catholicism

Shaun McAfee is a convert to Catholicism and has written this book to help recent converts and cradle Catholics learn more about their faith.

This is an introduction to Catholicism that can inspire a reader to pursue a more in-depth exploration of particular topics. Some of the topics he explores are customs, rules, traditions, prayer, devotions, spirituality, Sacraments, morality, current issues in the Church and in the world, new evangelization, Mary, the saints and many other interesting and some not so interesting topics. There are no illustrations, which might have helped in showing what certain things are that were talked about like a rosary, holy cards and other things.

McAfee's book is divided into 10 parts with 100 chapters all together. The chapters are short and to the point. Part One is an introduction to the Catholic Church. He presents a discussion about the Bible, the Catechism of the Catholic Church, the precepts and other issues; with a reminder that the Church is perfect, but its members are not.

Part Two: is about the Sacraments. He reminds the reader not to pick up some bad habits like coming to Mass late or leaving early. In Part Three, he covers Mary and the saints. He discusses the issue of “praying to Mary and the saints” and the use of religious articles.

Part Four is on prayer and its various forms; like the rosary, the Sign of the Cross, the use of Holy Water, going on retreat and praying with one's family. He also discusses vocations and praying for those who have died.

Part Five is on Catholic life in which he encourages the reader how to live their faith in daily life. Part Six is on customs, rules and basic etiquette like what are bishops, priests, deacons, the pope, monks and nuns. He also encourages the reader to become familiar with a missal, the parts of the Mass and the various objects used and clothing worn at Mass.

Part Seven is on morality in which McAfee explores evil, relativism, marriage, abuse, immigration and life issues. Part Eight is on knowing and defending one's faith. He encourages the reader to learn about apologetics, the Church fathers and their writings, and learning about answering common questions from those not familiar with the Church and its teachings. He covers a lot of issues in this part.

Part Nine is on evangelization and that we are all involved in this by actively working in this ministry or just by how we live our lives and by our example. Part 10 is the conclusion where he provides an appendix that has many bibliographical references to help the reader.

This book is highly recommended for those curious about Catholicism, new converts to Catholicism and cradle Catholics interested in their faith. He writes on a level that should not overwhelm the reader. Again, the chapters are short and to the point. The reviewer felt an energy coming across from the pages of this book. It is a very interesting book and inspires the reader to explore the topics more.

Br. Benet Exton, O.S.B., from Saint Gregory’s Abbey, is a freelance writer for the Sooner Catholic.