Rating: 
Summary: AMEN to Paul Dinter's "experience"!!!
Review: As an ex-priest myself, I identify with Dinter's spiritual experience. I empathize fully with his emotional odyssey. I ministered in several parishes in NY, California and Rome. I was always shocked by the hubris and arrogant self-righteousness of church leaders (from pastors to the Vatican higher-ups!). As a priest I was and still am tormented by many unanswered questions re church dogma. I consider most religious beliefs as unproven and pure cultural myths. The spiritual void and emotional loneliness devastated me as a priest... I always looked down on celibacy as an absurd and unnatural requirement that renders the priestly ministry much more difficult and ineffective. NOW, just as Dinter I'm happily married and feel like a living human being.
Rating: 
Summary: Too Limited with Questionable Recollections
Review: Dinter's account of his life in the Catholic clergy presents many problems. The Washington Post gave this book a weak review mainly because Dinter's appraoch is too limited and his observations are hazy. Dinter attacks celibacy but doesn't say why he entered an institution whose celibacy rules were in place for centuries. Many of his experiences are typical of any profession: law, medicine, and business all have their share of corruption, cronyism, and greed. If Dinter has something to offer, it should be more than just sour grapes.
Elsewhere, Dinter's recollections are often based upon hearsay. As the Washington Post pointed out, there's something unsettling about a former priest divulging a scandalous situation based merely upon what other people have told him. At the very least, these tactics don't help the book or Dinter's credibility. Neither does his smear campaign against former Columbia students sound very priestly. Why Farrar Strauss Giroux would allow such hearsay as evidence raises questions about their integrity as well.
Rating:
Summary: AMEN to Paul Dinter's "experience"!!!
Review: Dinter's account shows how this man unfortunately chose the wrong vocation. Many of his books have succeeded in faulting the Church for its many ills, yet his own personal responsibility seems lacking. Some of his stories are exaggerated. I too was at Columbia during his time, and he was known for alienating and dividing many students with his political ideas. Although he was close to some of the '60s leaders, by the 1980s Dinter continued to preach ideas that had long passed that generation. He controlled his community in Ford Hall (some of whom were not students) with a political agenda, requiring people to lie down in front of police cars and getting jailed for anti-nuclear demonstrations. The lawsuit filed against him was largely due to what what most people deemed as a messy personality conflict. Whatever happened between him and this woman no one really knew, but it exploded into a controversy that eventually led in part to his transfer from Columbia University (they settled the lawsuit and readmitted the woman to the congregation). Although I sympathize with his criticisms of Opus Dei, I recall during one campus event Dinter's group marched into the back of the room where a priest from Opus Dei was speaking and made rude comments and loud criticisms. Many times he complained openly about Church celibacy and at others turned the Mass into a forum launching a tirade against political leaders and anyone who voted for them. He was very unhappy with the priesthood and his resignation came as no surprise.
Rating:
Summary: An Unfortunate Choice for an Unhappy Man
Review: Dinter's account shows how this man unfortunately chose the wrong vocation. Many of his books have succeeded in faulting the Church for its many ills, yet his own personal responsibility seems lacking. Some of his stories are exaggerated. I too was at Columbia during his time, and he was known for alienating and dividing many students with his political ideas. Although he was close to some of the '60s leaders, by the 1980s Dinter continued to preach ideas that had long passed that generation. He controlled his community in Ford Hall (some of whom were not students) with a political agenda, requiring people to lie down in front of police cars and getting jailed for anti-nuclear demonstrations. The lawsuit filed against him was largely due to what what most people deemed as a messy personality conflict. Whatever happened between him and this woman no one really knew, but it exploded into a controversy that eventually led in part to his transfer from Columbia University (they settled the lawsuit and readmitted the woman to the congregation). Although I sympathize with his criticisms of Opus Dei, I recall during one campus event Dinter's group marched into the back of the room where a priest from Opus Dei was speaking and made rude comments and loud criticisms. Many times he complained openly about Church celibacy and at others turned the Mass into a forum launching a tirade against political leaders and anyone who voted for them. He was very unhappy with the priesthood and his resignation came as no surprise.
Rating: 
Summary: The Other Side of Paul Dinter
Review: Dinter's portrayal of himself as an innocent victim is far different than what others knew of him. His account is so self righteous that he omits many other issues. For instance, he publicly announced, when he returned to Columbia University after a trip to the then-communist Russia, that there was no religious persecution in the Societ Union. Naturally, many Jews were offended. Dinter's problematic encounters with students show how "playing therapist" got him in way over his head. He counseled young people using Freudian psychology when he had no graduate training or license in the field (he's a Biblical scholar by training). His conflict with Rosa, who he said came on to him (she said he came on to her) was a case in point, which embarassed Columbia and possibly led to his transfer. (Incidentally, contrary to what Dinter insists, Columbia University--which is neither the church nor the state--was responsible for campus religious activities.) But Dinter's recount of this and other incidents is so one sided that one wonders just how honest he really is.
Rating:
Summary: The Other Side of Paul Dinter
Review: Dinter's portrayal of himself as an innocent victim is far different than what others knew of him. His account is so self righteous that he omits many other issues. For instance, he publicly announced, when he returned to Columbia University after a trip to the then-communist Russia, that there was no religious persecution in the Societ Union. Naturally, many Jews were offended. Dinter's problematic encounters with students show how "playing therapist" got him in way over his head. He counseled young people using Freudian psychology when he had no graduate training or license in the field (he's a Biblical scholar by training). His conflict with Rosa, who he said came on to him (she said he came on to her) was a case in point, which embarassed Columbia and possibly led to his transfer. (Incidentally, contrary to what Dinter insists, Columbia University--which is neither the church nor the state--was responsible for campus religious activities.) But Dinter's recount of this and other incidents is so one sided that one wonders just how honest he really is.
Rating: 
Summary: The (accurate portrayal of) Evolution in Today's Priesthood
Review: I entered the seminary in 2000, as a young, impressionable eighteen-year-old. I was, in no way, prepared for the arrogant and evasive methods used in the diocesan formation. Homosexual predation is rampant, as many older seminarians victimize the younger students through emotional and psychological grooming, some estimates (which I find to be accurate) maintain that over 60% of seminarians today are practicing homosexuals - despite the explicit Church teachings demanding otherwise. I was profoundly touched by Dr. Dinter's account, primarily because I felt - even though I left the seminary after only two years - a closeness with his accounts. Idiocy and indifference are still plaguing the seminary institutions in this country, and as long as those within the system refuse to see the quagmire that has been created, abuse and exploitation will only be perpetuated.
This is a book that every Catholic should read, especially priests, seminarians, and family and friends of these individuals. The only way these horrific situations will cease is by an honest introspection into the functions of Catholicism, and a renewed sense of authentic spirituality.
The age of avoidance and hiding must certainly end, and Dr. Dinter does a wonderful job depicting this life as it truly has become.
Rating:
Summary: Publishing is like preaching.
Review: I knew Paul Dinter well, during my years at Columbia from 1974 to 1978, and kept in contact with him for an additional 15 years. This book, rushed for publication, is an accurate portrayal of the facts, and Paul's uncomfortable fit into the roman collar. From my viewpoint, he is basically honest concerning his relationship to his father, his polarized association with episcopal authority, and his grudging acceptance of a celibate discipline. I applaud his honesty in relaying some uncomfortable facts.
Yet, the facts alone are not enough to restore health. I myself have felt the hurt of Paul's acerbic delivery. Now, he broadens his assault to the "Men's Club on the Tiber", knowing full well that "Rome will not change". Is celibacy a hierarchical control mechanism? Tell that to the Dalai Lama. Tell that to American Shakers. You don't have to be Catholic to define a correlation between sexuality and spirituality. But is celibacy still relevant? Paul hints at the advantages that monks and ordered clergy have, but then dismisses any investigation into how to reform the routine of diocesan clergy to acclimate to celibacy. It's in this refusal, buried by his father induced wounds, that the book falls apart. Publishing is like preaching. You talk, but you don't have to listen. Paul has been doing both for too long. He has significantly contributed to the noise; possibly modestly contributed to the debate; and sadly, unconstructively detracted from a solution.
Rating:
Summary: Interesting, but too limited in focus
Review: If one is 'working backwards' from the scandal of there being sexual abuse scandals, and 'covering up,' Dr Dinter's book does present an absorbing treatment of factors which have influenced both tendencies. However, the scope of the thought is far too limited. In the early chapters, where Dinter speaks of his childhood and seminary training, the traits which encouraged those not suited to the priesthood to pursue ordination, and attitudes assumed on the part of family and local church, were presented as if they were universal. Celibacy was treated as if it were the source of inevitable pathology (though not criminal actions or necessarily sexual abuse). I am not suggesting that Dinter's observations would apply to some, perhaps many, of the clergy, but there is no balance in this book. The observations are assumed to apply to all. Dr Dinter's intelligence and background are clear, and it therefore is very disappointing to see generalisations lead to half truths. This oddly reminded me of the quite different generalisations that he so deplored in his seminary training.
Rating:
Summary: The First Estate - Heaven Help Us!
Review: Paul Dinter gives the Catholic laity a rare view into the process of priestly formation. The Other Side of the Altar confirmed some of my ideas of this process, but revealed many other aspects of the continuous formation of Catholic clergy. Mr. Dinter's use of his own story, his personal experiences, makes the book credible and interesting. The layers of possible dysfunctional behavior -- that of the individual priest, the collective group of priests and the entire Roman Catholic hierarchy -- are intertwined and bring understanding to many of the problems currently associated with the Catholic clergy. The author clearly defines a curious view of human sexuality that is mainstream to past and present Catholic doctrine. How important this issue is to letting the Catholic Church move forward and into the new millennium is a matter for all readers to decide. Paul Dinter's ideas on this issue certainly broadened my perspective in this area. Paul Dinter spares no punches and names some prominent people that touched his priestly formation. A great read for all readers and a must read for all Catholics.
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