United States History - Religious Aspects, Catholics - General & Miscellaneous - Christian Biography, Roman Catholic Church History, U.S. Church History

The Roman Catholics, Vol. 6

Name: The Roman Catholics, Vol. 6
Author: Patrick W. Carey
ISBN: 9780313254390

by Patrick W. Carey

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Overview

This reference work provides an historical overview of the people and events that have shaped Roman Catholicism in the United States. The first part of the book is a narrative history of Catholicism in America. This section begins with a look at the roots of the American Catholic tradition during the time of Columbus and the arrival of missionaries to the New World. The chapters that follow trace the history of Catholicism from the colonial period to the present day. The second part of the volume is a biographical dictionary of the most important figures in the American Catholic tradition. Each biographical sketch briefly profiles and assesses the career and contributions of a key figure. Each profile closes with a brief bibliography of the most important works by and about the figure, and the volume concludes with an extensive bibliographical essay.

Synopsis

This reference contains an historical essay on the history of Catholicism in America from the time of Columbus to the present day, a biographical dictionary of the most influential shapers of the American Catholic tradition, and an extensive bibliographical essay.

Booknews

A reference divided into two sections, the first being a narrative that focuses upon the themes of continuity and change, unity and diversity, growth and decline, alienation and reconciliation, as these occur in the institutional, intellectual, spiritual, ethnic, and political or social developments of the Catholic church. The second section contains a series of biographical sketches of ecclesiastical and lay leaders who have made major contributions to the life and/or thought of American Catholicism. The volume also contains a basic chronology of the most important historical events in American Catholicism and a bibliographic essay that emphasizes the most useful research tools for the study of American Catholicism. Annotation c. Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)

About the Author, Patrick W. Carey

PATRICK W. CAREY is Associate Professor of Theology at Marquette University.

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Editorials

From The Critics

This book, number 6 in the Denominations in America series, is divided into two parts. Part 1 is a history of Roman Catholicism in the U.S. with extensive chapter notes. Part 2 contains biographies of 145 influential American Roman Catholics, followed by a detailed bibliographic essay that notes both published and unpublished sources. Less than a handful of the people profiled are still alive, and very few are nonwhites. A basic chronology of American Catholicism is also presented here. There is a detailed analytic index, and cross-references are noted by an asterisk after names in the text. The author is associate professor of theology at Marquette University One of the strengths of this survey volume is its unflinching coverage of negative events, for example, the candid description of the exploitation of Native Americans during missionary activities or the racial intolerance expressed in many parishes. Another strength is the mention of diverse and conflicting views held by American Catholics in the period since 1965. There are some shortcomings, however. Because it is both a history and a biographical dictionary, there is not much elaboration of major issues beyond a few paragraphs. For example, only brief reference is made of the issue of women seeking ordination to the priesthood, and only two paragraphs are devoted to abortion. "Roman Catholics", in its biographical entries, avoids such controversial individuals as Andrew Greeley, the Berrigan brothers, and Charles Curran. And how could Greenwood editors overlook the fact that the 1977 edition of their "Dictionary of American Religious Biography" is listed and not the latest edition ["RBB" O 15 93]? Some of the people profiled in "Roman Catholics" also have biographies in the "Dictionary" Public, academic, and religious libraries would benefit from adding this unique summary to their collections because of its scholarly emphasis and its extensive mention of further sources to investigate.