The Story of the Church: Peak Moments from Pentecost to the Year 2000

Rating:
Summary: A mile wide and an inch deep
Review: While this is a pleasant book, it would be extremely pretentious to suggest it is a serious history text. Of course, Fr. McBride is trying to cover 2000 years of history in less than 200 pages and therefore I am certain he had a particular audience in mind; I just know few of them. In fairness, the book doesn't overtly bill itself as a serious history, or even as a reasonably complete overview. In that aspect, it succeeds. It uses a series of imagined dialogues to introduce historical periods or concepts. I found them distracting. The method probably appeals to those who find factual reading of history unappealing. The nihil obstat and imprimatur assures us freedom from doctrinal error or moral error, and Fr. McBride's credentials are unimpeachable (far greater than mine, I should add). On a more constructive note, an index would be extremely helpful; it has none. Also, it references many other sources, such as videos and further readings. These could be an extremely valuable resource, especially in a parish religion class, if the author could see fit to provide greater assistance accessing those tools such as a bibliography detailing the publisher's/producer's address. The author includes a section in each chapter called "Connecting to Our Times." This is a great idea, and many of the ideas expressed in the questions address very relevant issues, however, the phrasing of the questions themselves sometimes seem awkward, especially in the context of the level of understanding required of the readings. I believe an especially good teacher would be required to facilitate discussion.