Welcome back to my Study. Today, I am reviewing the book Night of the Confessor: Christian Faith in an Age of Uncertainty by Tomas Halik. This is the first book that I received as part of the Blogging for Books program. It's a pretty sweet deal. They send you a free book, and all you have to do is give it an honest review.
Tomas Halik is a Czech priest, who was clandestinely ordained a priest due to Communism being rampant at the time. Blessed Pope John Paul II appointed him as an advisor to the Pontifical Council for Dialogue with Non-Believers and in 2009, Pope Benedict XVI granted him the title of Monsignor - Honorary Prelate of His Holiness. So it seems like this priest would know his stuff, and would be a good read.
Unfortunately, the book was near impossible for me to read. I'm not sure if it is because the book was translated from Czech to English, and there was something to be desired in the translation or if Msgr. Halik is just too smart and scholarly for writing, but this book was dense, dry, and tough to read. Perhaps, it that each chapter is its own essay, and it's hard to get the full effect of an essay reading it.
I do however agree with and like the overall message of the book, and that is that Christianity is a paradox. We must die to live, loving those who persecute you, and decreasing to let the Father increase. These paradoxes and others are the underlying themes in the book, which Msgr. Halik echoed in every chapter and which he also believes are the only way worth living in our culture. I would like to recommend this book to the average reader, but I simply cannot.
Tune in next Monday for my review of Lifted by Angels by: Joel Miller.
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