Rating: 
Summary: Unpleasent Surpirse.
Review: The book does provide a valuable and entertaining sketch of the history of the Catholic Church and Europe over the last 2,000 years. However the overt bigotry of the author is reminiscent of Rush Limbaugh. I am a devout Catholic, however I (unlike the author) believe that many non-Catholics will end up in Heaven!The author has completely missed the point of Vatican II and his partial distortion of Humanae Vitae is disturbing.
Rating: 
Summary: Crocker has very nearly accomplished the impossible...
Review: I would have said a popular history of the Catholic Church -- one that is nonetheless historically respectable -- would be impossible to produce. Yet here it is. Crocker writes from the point of view of a loyal convert, but he is no polemicist. He acknowledges the Church's bad eggs, and shines his light on the darker chapters of Church history -- like the Inquisition. Crocker has graciously included hundreds of footnotes which make it easy to trace the genesis of his ideas. I was particularly grateful to have a view of the *whole* history of the Church, rather than just the highlights. It's a fascinating read -- in part because to a large degree the history of the Catholic Church *is* the history of Western Civilization. But also because the existence of Christianity itself is such a mystery.
Rating:
Summary: Bravo!!!!
Review: H.W. Crocker undertook quite a task when he wrote "Triumph." How can anyone capture the entire history of the Catholic Church in one book? Considering his scope, the 400+ pages of text isn't nearly long enough. Many historical figures - some famous, some infamous, some merely noteworthy, some all but forgotten - spring to life in this book. Crocker succeeds admirably in showing the human side of the Church: the faults and foibles, the sins and weaknesses, along with more than a few examples of holiness and heroic virtue. Then something else emerges along with it: the realization that the Catholic Church has survived vicious attacks from within and without. Even the bad popes have not brought down the Church that Jesus founded on the Rock of the Apostle Peter. It reminds the reader of the words of Gamaliel in the Acts of the Apostles, Chapter 5, verses 38 and 39. "Triumph" is a history of the people of the New Covenant, just as the Old Testament is a history of the people of the Old Covenant. I do not suggest that "Triumph" was divinely inspired; I merely suggest that there is a comparison to be made in terms of history. Saints and sinners work together to spread the Gospel to all corners of the world. Kings, soldiers, knights in shining armor, explorers, popes, bishops, and priests all play a part in this magnificent pageant. Also, significantly, "Triumph" is, to a very large extent, a history of Europe. It was in Europe that the Church thrived for most of Her history, and Crocker demonstrates that the arts and sciences reached their greatest heights in Catholic Europe, especially in the Renaissance. There is, of course, a decidedly pro-Catholic slant to this book. Let the reader be aware. If you are a Catholic, you will find this book to be exciting and inspiring. If you are not Catholic but are willing to consider the Church's side of the story, you will find much food for thought here. Crocker, in writing about the greatest on-going "Triumph" in all of history, has achieved a "Triumph" of his own.
Rating:
Summary: Excellent overview of what makes a Catholic a Catholic.
Review: Before I read this book I had no idea of how the Catholic Church had become what it is today. All I had ever heard of the history of the Church was filled with flaming anti-Catholic rhetoric against the Inquisition, selling indulgences, and the Crusades. It is nice to know the full history involving the immeasurable good that the Church also did throughout world history. Although at many times it seems the author is being one-sided against Protestants, I'd like to remind you that it may just be possible that the Church itself was being wronged by the people he was talking about at the time. I know that in todays day and age it is difficult for people to put things into shades of good and evil, or right and wrong, but in the religious sense that usually is the case. Please attempt to put your learned anti-Catholic biases aside before you read the book. Heck, until I was 18 all I had ever heard was that the hierarchy of the Catholic church was a terrible, worthless institution that only did harm, and I'm a Catholic! I was terribly mislead, and thanks to this book, now I know why I should have thought differently! I'd recommend this book to any Catholic who is questioning what makes your religion different from any other Christian one, and why you should accept the faith over the other big name religions inside Christianity and out.
Rating:
Summary: disappointing
Review: the book began with an even handed introduction to the Church until the beginning of the reformation era. at that point the author began to use words like 'toadies' 'fissiparous' and other value laden phrases that detracted from the subject matter. i had expected a clear exposition of the history of the Church, not a polemic against protestantism and its progeny. for the record i am a committed Catholic.
Rating:
Summary: okay
Review: Pretty good but a little week in the treatment of the Gallieo affair. Gallieo gets off too easy. And he gets t0o much of the credit for what was actually the work of Churchmen. Example, we often he of Gallieo dropping various size objects off the Pisa Tower. In fact, he probably never did this Instead, he just plagiarized the works of his Jesuit professors from 50 yearS prior.
Rating: 
Summary: A good counterpoint
Review: This is a piece of RC cheerleading, not an objective history, as the book's title suggests. But since everybody knows the sins (real and supposed) of the church, Crocker can't be faulted for telling just one side of the story. He is strongest, I'd say, in helping us to see that the Renaissance popes were first and foremost men of their age-- not worse, often better. One call still wonder over that (Luther certainly did), but it's a valid perspective. Crocker also, right near the end, puts a final stake into the Big Lie that Pius XII was unhelpful to the Jews. To the contrary, JEWISH sources attest that Pius saved at least 700,000 Jewish lives. This book will help Catholics who are feeling blue, and conceivably could give others a new thought or two.
Rating:
Summary: A First
Review: I finally found a book that gives a history of the Christian Church from start to finish. It's well written, gives enough detail, with references, to validate all instances, and enough humor injected to make it readable. Even though written from a Catholic point of view, there's enough information in the book for any reader, Catholic or non-Catholic, to decide on who's at fault, if anyone should be. Life, back then, was rough to say the least. I recommend this book for anyone whose is interested on just how the church began.
Rating:
Summary: the Gospel threaded through history
Review: This book is a great resource for Catholics defending their faith and is fun to read. Cardinal Newman said that to be steeped in history is to cease to be Protestant, and 'Triumph' is a vehicle for that end. It is a tool for apologetics and is much better than the Thomas Bokenkotter book "A Concise History of the Catholic Church" which is too liberal and trendy. 'Triumph' busts innumerable myths about the Catholic Church and shows that real objective history is pro-Catholic history. This is born out by Crocker's footnotes and the resources he used in researching the book, which are from secular sources. 'Triumph' is an important history of the Catholic Church that should accompany the Bible and the Official Catechism of the Catholic Church on every Catholic's book shelf.
Rating:
Summary: A must-read, no matter how you slice it.
Review: Mr. Crocker tries to compress 2000 years of history into about 550 pages. I say, he hit this one outta the park! This book can be too dry or too glib, too long or too short, too light on the Inquisition or too pro-Crusades, to please all of the people all of the time. It also covers the topic too lightly to be held up as an end-all, be-all text. But don't let these imperfections fool you -- if you are honestly interested in reading a pro-Catholic, modern history of the Catholic Church, you must read this book.
Once you read this book, you want to turn back and read something interesting or something funny again, so you will realize that you must have this book. So buy it.
"He chose his sources very selectively" -- read it and decide for yourself -- you may have to get other sources and learn more history. "He gets his theological sources confused" -- well, read it yourself, and learn some more theology from other sources, and decide for yourself.
He does seem to look down on democracy, and to lump all Protestants together, and he does make the occasional joke about Italian organization or French fighting prowess that others call offensive. But it is a good, fun, entertaining read, it sparks your interest, and it makes you want to go out and read more books on a variety of subjects. It is an excellent primer on a most daunting subject. Full disclosure: I'm Catholic, and I loved it.
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