Will There be Faith book review

I was asked again to join the TLC Book Tours to review a free copy of Will There be Faith?  I was excited to receive this book as it is a subject I enjoy: How can we bring Faith back into education?
'Will There be Faith? supposedly offers a new vision that can enable parents and teachers to embrace their responsibility for religious education in our time and, with the help of God's grace, to fulfill it well.  It proposes an approach that is contemporary, natural, holistic, and flexible.  He summarizes it quite simply as "bringing life to Faith and Faith to Life."'
Unfortunately, Thomas H. Groome misses the mark if he is attempting to reach "parents and teachers" as he suggests from his introduction.  To be quite honest I was barely able to get through the first two chapters, and only skimmed the remaining chapters.  Will There be Faith? is a difficult read, and is aimed more for a Catholic theologian audience.

His life to Faith to life idea is an interesting concept, and the questions Groome poses for reflection and conversation throughout the book are very good.   But, overall I feel he will loose most "parents and teachers" due to the boring, college textbook like writing.  There were times when I just wanted him to get to the point.

Also, I'm not Catholic so I found some of Groome's interpretations of the Bible to be in conflict with my beliefs.  All in all I think the Christian world would agree with Groome's ideas and thoughts, but he just doesn't present them in a way that holds much conviction for actually getting anything done.  And he doesn't try in any way to unite his ideas with others of faith who would like to see change.

If you would like to read more reviews about Will There be Faith? here is the list of the other TLC Book Tour hosts:

Tuesday, August 23rd: Young Catholic Mom
Wednesday, August 24th: Googling God
Thursday, August 25th: Ten Kids and a Dog
Monday, August 29th: A Catholic Mom Climbing the Pillars
Wednesday, August 31st: JonathanFSullivan.com
Thursday, September 1st: Catechesis in the Third Millenium
Friday, September 2nd: Mom’s Mustard Seeds
Tuesday, September 6th: Joy in this Journey
Thursday, September 8th: Catechist’s Journey
Friday, September 9th: Building Cathedrals
Monday, September 12th: My Heart’s Desire
Friday, September 16th: Raising Little Saints
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5 comments:

  1. LeAnnSeptember 13, 2011 at 1:05 PM

    I really like your thought of bringing faith to life and life to faith. This is a great subject to be explored more. I enjoy reading book reviews and this was an interesting one.
    Blessings to you for the thoughts!

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  2. heathertlcSeptember 13, 2011 at 7:15 PM

    Darn, I'm sorry this book didn't connect with you as a parent. Thanks for giving it a chance and for being on the tour.

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  3. MeganSeptember 14, 2011 at 8:35 AM

    Thanks for this review... I'm a new follower and would love for you to check out my blog as well! Thanks!

    http://megabyte8709.blogspot.com

    ReplyDelete
  4. AnonymousSeptember 19, 2011 at 11:16 PM

    I am Catholic and read the book too for a review and just wanted to leave you a message that what the author says on a Biblical level (Genesis) is NOT what the Catholic church believes. :) God bless you!

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  5. LyndaSeptember 20, 2011 at 12:23 AM

    Thank you, Anonymous. I apologize if I generalized the Catholic beliefs. We are all individuals with our own understanding and truths from God. Bless you for pointing that out, as it was very judgmental on my part.

    I have taken the time to read more of the book. I am very impressed with the author's ideas and thoughts. I still stand on my opinion though that it is not written in a style that would benefit of the average parent or teacher.

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