Catholicism Today by Matthew Kohmescher

Title: Catholicism Today: A Survey of Catholic Belief and Practice

Author: Matthew F. Kohmescher

First Published: 1980

No. of Pages: 243

Synopsis (from B&N): "This volume is a revised [as of 1990] and substantially enlarged edition of a book published in 1980. It presents the major elements of Catholic belief and practice and the principal trends found in the Catholicism of our day."

Fiction or Nonfiction: Nonfiction

Comments and Critique: I found this book to be okay overall, but not nearly comprehensive enough for either the Catholic or non-Catholic to get a true and complete overview of the faith. Granted, the book is intended to be and is even titled as a survey; however, the Catholic faith is so old and there is simply so much information that even a basic survey of the faith should be more in-depth than found here. I also had problems with the manner in which the author presented information -- he was very good at stating conclusions, but did not provide any support. This is acceptable occasionally, but occurred too often here. This work has value as part of a more extensive study of the Catholic faith, but I would not recommend it to someone looking for a basic understanding from just one work.

Challenges: 999 ("Catholicism")