Catholic Thought discussion

Our next read falls in the long term read category. A long term read is a book that is long, and so we break it up into segments. We will read a segment, move onto the next books in the cycle, return to the long term read to pick up the next segment, and so on. Long books otherwise will either never get selected or become a bore to chug through. Our last long term read was Dante's Divine Comedy.

So we're up to start a new long term read. Let's take this week to nominate books and next week to vote on the nominations.

Let me start. I'd like to nominate the Catechism of the Catholic Church.

I'd like to nominate The City of God by St. Augustine.

“Preparation for Death” by Alfonso Maria de Liguori

https://www.goodreads.com/notes/18879...

Do not let the title be a “spoiler” as there is none here. I have read parts of it and several shorter writings by this widely followed Doctor of the Church and as the few quotes at above URL should indicate it is a quality candidate for required reading. It falls barely short of the 500 word requirement for this long selection. I show 473 words.

I'll nominate The Lord by Romano Guardini

A History of Christianity: The First Three Thousand Years
by
Diarmaid MacCulloch

It is over 1,000 pages
A History of Christianity: The First Three Thousand Years

Looks like four good nominations so far. We probably need to cap the number of nominations at some point. But I don't know what that number is yet. ;)

Irene wrote: "A History of Christianity: The First Three Thousand Years
by
Diarmaid MacCulloch

It is over 1,000 pages
A History of Christianity: The First Three Thousand Years"

Wow! Now I'd be interested here!! I do have his "The Reformation", and I haven't even started yet...

When I checked Amazon, it was listed at a mere 1184 pages!! LOL, this is why we need these long term reads. We would never even approach books of this length.

Oops, I missed counting Madeleine's nomination above. We have five good nominations.

I just did some digging around, and MacCulloch is Anglican and I also found a YouTube with an interview on his views on gay marriage, et. al, and in so many words, he is very much a modernist and thinks the Church is slow in coming around to it because the Bible is negative on the subject.
So my initial enthusiasm is a bit tempered here. If I invest in a tome like it, I'd like to read from the Catholic perspective. Having said that, there is a BBC program based on the book. I wouldn't mind streaming that and happily knit more socks for Christmas while watching it.

Kerstin wrote: "I just did some digging around, and MacCulloch is Anglican and I also found a YouTube with an interview on his views on gay marriage, et. al, and in so many words, he is very much a modernist and t..."

If there is a BBC program on it, you can be assured the program will not support traditional views. I'd rather read the book. From what I've seen, the book appears to not be biased, though everything I've read on the author suggests he is on the far left side of the religious divide.

Good point :-)

Frances is having trouble getting onto Goodreads and sent me an email. She asked me to supply her nomination until she figures out what is wrong. She wishes to nominate William Bennett's Tried by Fire: The Story of Christianity's First Thousand Years.

I think six is a good quantity, so since we've gone a day without anyone adding to the nominations, let's end nominations now.

So these are the nominated books:

1. Catechism of the Catholic Church
2. St. Augustine's City of God
3. St. Alfonso Maria de Liguori's Preparation for Death
4. Diarmaid MacCulloch's A History of Christianity: The First Three Thousand Years
5. Romano Guardini's The Lord
6. William Bennett's Tried by Fire: The Story of Christianity's First Thousand Years

Poll will be up in a day or two.

OK, everyone. Poll is up. Ends Saturday night.

https://www.goodreads.com/poll/show/1...