Catholics

==== SPOILER ALERT! ==== The irony in this short novel is that the views of the Abbot and of the visiting Fr. Kinsella are the same. We just don't know it at first. Kinsella is a product of the new age without a belief in the miracle of the Mass, while the Abbot represents the old tired world that lost its faith in the miraculous. It's almost as if the Abbot were relieved to have the orders from Kinsella as an excuse to stop the traditional Masses his monks have been saying. Ultimately, the Abbot would have been obedient even without the visit, so the premise of the novel isn't very strong. (Though perhaps we can assume his superiors had doubts about his obedience.) However, the visit to the abbey allows all the characters to interact and bring out their various perspectives and fears. The height of the work is the thoughtful conversation between the Abbot and Kinsella in the evening after dinner. The talk has a tension created by the mystery of where each man actually stands, and what each will do in the end. But despite the tension, the two men are always cordial, even warm, with each other. In the end, the only "presence" of God that the monks can be sure of is that which occurs while they pray. On first reading, this seems a frightening prospect, as indicated by the concerns of the traditionalist "triumvirate" of Fathers Manus, Walter, and Matthew. But then we must realize that if prayer doesn't work, then there is nothing to the sacraments; so prayer is the foundation of the sacraments and the first step toward the presence of God among us.

This is my favorite Brian Moore work. It's briefness doesn't detract from the hugeness of the story. This is a story which touches on faith and how fragile it can be and does it in a simple and elegant way. I love it.Mr. Moore's "Cold Heaven" is also a wonderful book.

This book is a short but vivid sketch depicting a situation in the Catholic Church after the Second Vatican Council which so swiftly and profoundly altered liturgical, ritual and spiritual life of the faithful that many of them - both among a hierarchy and common priests, monks and laymen - were thrown into confusion. However, these changes were positively necessary in order not to clone the former mistakes of negation of the modern world reality that several centuries ago had led to appearance of 'that righteous prig nailing in Wittenberg his defiance to the church doors' who reformed the Church and the history of humankind. The novella does not pretend to a wide scope of theological problems, the characters of cynical church 'generals' are rather schematic and satirical, but the delineation of different kinds of catholics - new 'enlightened' libertarian generation, old generation who preserved their faith and also the hesitating type of believer who is loosing his/her faith - and their intricate interrelations in Time of Spiritual Troubles is really excellent.

This has to be one of Moore's best. I ached with grief for the old Abbot at the end of the book. And I am an atheist...Catholics are coming from all over the world to celebrate the old Latin mass at an obscure spot in Ireland. Some see it as a religious revival. Some see it as a sign of the endurance of "hard core" Catholicism. However, the Pope, and other modern highly place ecumenical figures, see it as trouble. A rebellion against the new, populist church, and a flagrant disobedience.A young, modern, American priest is sent to deal with these old-style upstarts. But can he help but share the genuine sincerity of the isolated monks - living in utmost modesty on the Island of Muck - who have innocently begun the furor? And it comes down to belief in miracles versus the mundane need for the common good. The brash young American priest comes hard up against the solid old Abbot of Muck. Dependable, honest within and without, the Abbot is the only one that knows that his faith is a tenuous thing.The facts of the plot matter little. The excellent character portrayals, and the understanding of the internal workings of such different minds is uniquely Moore. As only he can, he makes the anguish of the Abbot your own, and brings you with him through the trials of his decision.Outstanding.