Book Reviews and More: 20 Answers Eastern Catholicism - Daniel Dozier

20 Answers: The Communion of Saints

20 Answers Series from Catholic Answers

Fr. Dcn. Daniel Dozier

Catholic Answers Press
ISBN 9781683571599

eISBN 9781683571612

eISBN 9781683571605

ASIN B083PTHCXC

I love the books in the 20 Answers Series from Catholic Answers. I have read books in the 20 Answers series over 30 times, a few of them multiple times and some of them just once. I have recommended many to friends and family. Both to those with questions, and For those looking to be able to answer the questions of others. A few years ago I started with the 20 Answers Challenge when there were just 20 books in the series, at the time. I have benefited from each that I have read in the series, and have recommended many to friends and family so often. And each one has been educational, informative and has encouraged my faith. I have a Religious Studies Degree with a specialization in Roman Catholic Thought. I would have loved to have had these books as resources back then, or during my time working in Campus Ministry. They are great reads, and this is an excellent offering from Father Daniel Dozier. The description of the volume is:

“What is it like to visit and worship at an Eastern Catholic parish?

How can there be many different “churches” in the one Catholic Church?

What are some aspects of Eastern Catholic theology and practice that differ from the West?

The rich history and theological, liturgical, and artistic traditions of the twenty-three Eastern Catholic churches are such an indispensable part of the global Catholic communion that, along with the Latin West, these churches are said to form one of the two “lungs” by which the Church breathes and lives. Yet even though Pope St. John Paul II called on the faithful to appreciate the treasures of the Christian East, far too many Catholics remain ignorant of them. 20 Answers: Eastern Catholicism provides an invaluable primer, explaining the origins of the Eastern Catholic churches and how they fit into the one Church of Christ, their distinctive prayers and practices, and some of the common misunderstandings and controversies that even today can cause unnecessary division and confusion.”

The description of the series is:

“The 20 Answers Series from Catholic Answers offers hard facts, powerful arguments, and clear explanations of the most important topics facing the Church and the world—all in a compact, easy-to-read package. Check out dozens of other topics in the 20 Answers Series of booklets published by Catholic Answers Press.”

The questions answered in this volume are:

1. Doesn’t the Bible say all Christians are saints?

2. How does someone become a saint?

3. Can someone stop being a saint?

4. Are there non-Catholic saints?

5. Doesn’t praying to saints make gods out of them?

6. Doesn’t the Catholic practice of asking the saints to pray for us contradict 1 Timothy 2:5?

7. Why would we seek the help of saints when we can go straight to Jesus?

8. What about Deuteronomy 18:10–12, which forbids communicating with the dead?

9. How can the saints in heaven intercede for us when the Bible says in Ecclesiastes that they aren’t conscious or don’t know anything?

10. How can the saints in heaven intercede for us when the Bible says God alone knows the hearts of men?

11. Why should we believe that the saints are aware of our prayers when they don’t do anything to save us from harm in our lives?

12. Is there any evidence in the Bible that the saints pray for us?

13. Does the Bible ever instruct us to pray to the saints?

14. Do early Christian sources outside the New Testament affirm the intercession of the saints?

15. How can the Catholic Church approve of having statues when the Bible forbids graven images in Exodus 20:4–6?

16. What about bowing in front of statues?

17. Is the Catholic Church’s veneration of relics from the saints nothing but superstition?

18. What is the biblical basis for the distinction between dulia and latria?

19. Do I have to believe what a saint says in his writings or private revelations?

20. Must I have a devotion to the saints?

The beginning of the introduction to this volume states:

“In the opening remarks of his 1995 encyclical letter, Orientale Lumen (“Light of the East”), Pope St. John Paul II wrote:

“Since, in fact, we believe that the venerable and ancient tradition of the Eastern churches is an integral part of the heritage of Christ’s Church, the first need for Catholics is to be familiar with that tradition, so as to be nourished by it and to encourage the process of unity in the best way possible for each.

Our Eastern Catholic brothers and sisters are very conscious of being the living bearers of this tradition, together with our Orthodox brothers and sisters. The members of the Catholic Church of the Latin tradition must also be fully acquainted with this treasure and thus feel, with the pope, a passionate longing that the full manifestation of the Church’s catholicity be restored to the Church and to the world.”

This booklet is my own small contribution in honor of the saintly pope’s desires that Latin Catholics in the West become familiar with their brothers and sisters of the Christian East, along with their rich treasures of liturgy, spirituality, theology, and disciplines. In this respect, they can come to appreciate more fully what it means to be Catholic.”

And further on it states:

“None of us is responsible for these historical divisions and issues. We have inherited a past we did not create, and yet we have an obligation to shape our present and our future through knowledge, charity, prayerful study, and encounter. In that way we might in fact realize the hope-filled aspirations of a pope whose own familial heritage was itself both Latin and Greek Catholic.

I hope that you find within these pages helpful answers as we walk together toward our true East: the New Jerusalem. May the light of Christ inspire us all to be united in truth and charity as faithful members of the holy Church of the nations.”

When I was in university, I was involved with Campus Crusade for Christ, there was a series of booklets by the founder Bill Bright, called Transferable Concepts, and by reading them many times you could almost memorize them and the message so that you could share it. This book and this series are along those lines. You can easily work through this book in a couple of short sessions. And you could work through it a few times. And solidify the teaching in your own mind and heart. And thus be able to answer questions from non-Christians, non-Catholics and even other Catholics.

This volume was a fantastic read. I have covered the eastern traditions in several theology and church history courses, but this book took it to a deeper level. It really opened my eyes. It has helped me to see the eastern rights in a very different light. I highly recommend this volume.

I have benefited from all the books in this series that I have read. Father Dozier has done an excellent job with this topic, and I am certain all who read this book will come away with a clearer understanding of the Eastern Catholicism.

This is an excellent volume a great read in a wonderful series!

Note: This book is part of a series of reviews: 2021 Catholic Reading Plan!

20 Answers Series:

20 Answers: The Communion of Saints - Karlo Broussard

20 Answers Eastern Catholicism - Father Daniel Dozier

20 Answers Anti-Catholic Myths - Jimmy Akin

20 Answers The End Times - Jimmy Akin

20 Answers The Rosary - Tom Nash

20 Answers Seasons & Feasts – Michelle Arnold

20 Answers New Age - Michelle Arnold

20 Answers Catholic Social Teaching – Mark Brumley

20 Answers Prayer – Hugh Barbour O. Praem and Sebastian Walshe O. Praem

20 Answers Faith & Reason – Christopher Kaczor

20 Answers The New Testament – Jimmy Akin

20 Answers Protestantism – Jimmy Akin

20 Answers Marriage & Sex – Todd Aglialoro

20 Answers The Early Church – Jim Blackburn

20 Answers The Old Testament – Jimmy Akin

20 Answers Judaism – Michelle Arnold

20 Answers The Sacraments – Father Mike Driscoll

20 Answers St Thomas Aquinas - Dr. Kevin Vost

...

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Sunday, 26 December 2021

20 Answers Eastern Catholicism - Daniel Dozier - 20 Answers Series from Catholic Answers

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