The HarperCollins Encyclopedia of Catholicism

If you are a fundumentalist/ radical Mother Angelica type catholic you will be hard pressed to appreciate the truth presented in this book about the Roman Catholic Church. As a masters level student in Theology, I am familiar with Mcbriens other publications and I commend Mcbrien et.al. for their courage to continue publishing "truth" even at the risk of medieval magisterial papal suppression. This book is an excellent resource for parish catechists and all lay ecclesial ministers. If you can handle the truth, buy this book. Otherwise spend your money on beads and leaflets

This is a fine companion to McBrien's "Catholicism: New Study." McBrien has always been fearless in rising above elementary explanations for the relationship between man and God, and once again he takes us on a fantastic journey into both Catholic religion and Catholic theology. He takes you to the pillars of Chrisitianity, to its sensibleness as well as its spirituality. The piece on "hell" is only one example. Hell, the author of the piece writes, is not a place but a state of existence. "It is the the eternal loss of God.... While moral theologians have perhaps been careless over the centuries in designating certain actions as morally sinful, the church has never taught that anyone has, in fact, died in such a state..... It is not God who tortures the sinner, but the sinner who rejects God." There are countless more insightful treatments of Christian theology in this reference, and the inquiring mind will be forever flattered that McBrien and his writers never underestimate the reader.