Throwback Thursday: Actual church vs. virtual church?

Welcome to this week’s “Throwback Thursday” installment. Today, we’re going to revisit a post that was originally published back on July 3, 2017 and has been revised.

My very long (23 year) prodigal “season” away from the Lord and church gave me an uncommon perspective. I’m not bragging, it’s just what happened.

When I returned to the Lord in 2014, things sure looked different in churchdom. Very different. On the decline were such things as getting dressed up for church, hymns accompanied by piano or organ, expository preaching, and three services per week. Instead there were now mega-churches with hip names that featured CCM rock music and light shows, pastors in skinny jeans with swag haircuts, coffee and donut bars, topical doctrine-lite preaching, huge video screens, and “small group” meetings instead of a mid-week service.

Oh, my.

And there was also the internet. In the old days, everyone pretty much relied on their pastor for their Bible teaching. Sure, many read their Bibles during the week and a few might even have had hardbound commentaries and other Bible study aids. We also had a few solid preachers on radio and television. But the bulk of the teaching was from the pastor at the local church. That may not be the case for many today. Now we have tons of Bible aids online as well as sermon podcasts galore from many solid (and unsolid) pastors. There’s also many Christian forums and blogs like here at WordPress. Need some godly advice about a personal or doctrinal problem? There’s thousands of articles and YouTube videos just waiting out there in cyberspace, more than enough to make your head spin. Sunday worship? You can spend all of your waking hours on Sunday interacting with other believers without ever venturing out the front door just by trolling through the posts here at WordPress. Some even see that as the preferable option given the style and substance of many of the churches today.

The article below discusses how “virtual church” is impacting shoulder-to-shoulder worship and fellowship with brothers and sisters in the Lord. The internet can be a great tool for the Gospel and spiritual growth. I truly appreciate many of the online resources that are available. But there’s also a danger. We can easily separate ourselves from family, friends, neighbors, and fellow Christians in our community that we could otherwise share “real life” with as we instead increasingly become “virtual church” shut-ins.

“And let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works, not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near.” – Hebrews 10:24-25

In today’s world, can “meet together” mean online interaction or must it be physical face-to-face? A twenty-five-year-old would probably answer that question differently than I would.

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Online Sermons Causing Low Church Attendance?
http://www.christianpost.com/news/online-sermons-causing-low-church-attendance-189601/

Note from 2024: Of course, the COVID-19 pandemic, which hit three years after this post was published, intensified the “actual vs. virtual” issue for the church. I would also add that it’s becoming increasingly hard to find a solid, Gospel-preaching, Bible-teaching church these days as pastors are increasingly turning towards the seeker-sensitive, movie-theater/rock concert church-growth model and also caving to ecumenism with Rome.

Back when “The Singing Nun” had a #1 hit single

I’ve recently been reading about the Roman Catholic Inquisition, and one of the books made reference to the popular song from the early-1960s, “Dominique.” If you’re in your late-60s or older, you may remember the song. Either way, please pull up a chair because this is a sadly interesting tale.

Wikipedia states, “‘Dominique’ (was) a 1963 French language popular song, written and performed by Belgian singer Jeannine Deckers, better known as Sœur Sourire (“Sister Smile” in French) or The Singing Nun. The song is about Saint Dominic, a Spanish-born priest and founder of the Dominican Order, of which she was a member (as Sister Luc-Gabrielle).”

I personally remember this song very well even though I was only seven-years-old at the time of its release. “Dominique” climbed to the top of the U.S. single charts and improbably stayed at No. 1 for four weeks in the months of November and December, 1963. How could a song with French lyrics have been #1 in the U.S. for four weeks? This was immediately prior to the British Invasion when the Beatles and other English rock bands took the U.S. by storm. Various kinds of folk music were still quite popular and Dominique’s chorus did have a catchy melody. Deckers sang “Dominique” on the Ed Sullivan Show on January 5, 1964 (see the video far below). Hollywood attempted to cash in on the “Dominique” craze and released “The Singing Nun” movie (1966), starring Debbie Reynolds, which was loosely based on the life of Deckers.

The Dominique referred to in the song was Dominic de Guzmán (1170-1221),¹ a Spanish priest who founded the Ordo Praedicatorum (Order of Preachers) religious order, popularly referred to as the Dominicans. The Roman Catholic church’s Inquisition had been formally instituted by the Third Council of the Lateran in 1179 to suppress the Albigensian/Cathar movement in Southern France/Languedoc. The Dominicans were founded in 1215 and the Roman Catholic hierarchy assigned the administration of the Inquisition to the new order and that arrangement would continue for over 600 years. The Dominican friars developed and standardized a system of investigation, interrogation, torture, and execution in cooperation with the civil magistrates to eradicate heresy. This system was brought to bear against proto-Protestants and Protestants in the 15th and 16th centuries. In the English translation of “Dominique,” we read Deckers lauding St. Dominic for persecuting the Albigensians.² In addition to hunting heretics, Dominic claimed that Mary appeared to him in 1221 and presented him with a rosary. The Dominicans subsequently spread the praying of the rosary to Mary throughout Catholicism and as we all know it became a very popular and defining practice.

What about the singing nun herself? Jeanne-Paule Marie “Jeannine” Deckers (b. 1933) became a world-wide celebrity due to her international hit. However, she was expelled from her Fichermont, Belgium convent in 1966 for being a “bad influence.” Deckers attempted to continue her singing career and became involved with the burgeoning Catholic Charismatic Renewal movement. She also entered into a “live-in relationship” with another ex-nun, Annie Pécher. Faced with mounting financial difficulties, Deckers and Pécher carried out a double-suicide pact on March 29, 1985.

Millions upon millions of people were enamored with “Dominque” back in 1963 and 1964, including, I’m sure, some unwary evangelical Protestants. But the song lauded a Roman Catholic “saint” who helped establish and formalize the 600-year-old torturous and bloody Inquisition, which was responsible for the suffering and deaths of innumerable Gospel Christians. Convents were/are a perverted and cultish expression of the RC false gospel of salvation by sacramentalism and merit. Jeannine Deckers was a lost and troubled soul who did not know Jesus Christ as her personal Savior.

Below is a video of the Singing Nun, Jeanine Deckers aka Sister Luc-Gabrielle, performing “Dominique” on the Ed Sullivan Show:

Above: Actress Debbie Reynolds is all smiles as “The Singing Nun.” The 1966 film portrayed convent life as a joyful experience, but that was a fictional mirage.

Above: The former Fichermont convent complex near Waterloo, Belgium where Jeannine Deckers resided from 1959 until she was expelled in 1966. The complex is now home to the secular Musica Mundi School, a primary and secondary boarding school for gifted young musicians.

1. Saint Dominic, Wikipedia article ↩︎
2. “Dominique” English Lyrics ↩︎

Inquisition 2

God’s Jury: The Inquisition and the Making of the Modern World
By Cullen Murphy
Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2012, 310 pp.

For many years, I’d desired to familiarize myself with the Roman Catholic church’s infamous Inquisition and have made some progress. I’ve recently checked off a couple of books which focused specifically on the RCC’s persecution of the Cathars/Albigensians (see here) and the Waldensians (see here), and also completed a non-scholarly bookazine, which took a general approach (see here). I still desired to read more about the murderous institution and came across this “unusual” book at our library.

This was an “interesting” read. Author Murphy (historian, journalist, and editor) critiques various aspects of the Roman Catholic Inquisition and proposes that it was the inspiration for oppressive, freedom-limiting regimes and their institutions in modern times, including the Nazis, the U.S.S.R. and even the U.S.A. with, for example, its rounding-up and internment of Japanese citizens during World War II. He suggests the inquisitorial mind-set also ramped-up in this country during the Red Scare (1947-1957), the anti-war student protests of the 1960s, and again following the 9/11/01 attacks.

Murphy provides a lot of interesting details regarding the development of the RC Inquisition bureaucracy (in a pre-bureaucratic era) and that alone makes this book worth the read. I see from some google sleuthing that Murphy was raised Roman Catholic, but he’s definitely not an apologist for the RCC. Murphy scoffs at any and all “true believers” who thereby seek to control/eliminate nonconformists as was trailblazed by the Roman Catholic inquisitors of the Medieval era. Hey, I take exception to that generalization! I am a true believer in Jesus Christ, God’s Word, and the Gospel of salvation by God’s grace alone, through faith alone, in Jesus Christ alone. True believers in Jesus Christ do not seek to control and oppress others, but rather seek to sow the Gospel. Well, over the centuries there admittedly have been misguided Protestants who did support church-state alliance and embraced inquisitorious methods. I got a bit of a chuckle out of unbeliever Murphy’s moralizing regarding the “evils” of the Inquisition and of modern governmental authoritarianism. Even beginner students of Presuppositional Apologetics like myself know it’s ludicrous for atheists to moralize.

While this book has some very good information about the archetype Roman Catholic Inquisition and modern expressions of various types, I wouldn’t go so far as to recommend it.

Sunday video shorts with Dr. Leonardo De Chirico, #6: How should Christians respond to the temptation of converting to Catholicism?

Welcome to our Sunday video shorts series featuring Dr. Leonardo De Chirico, Director of the Reformanda Initiative.

In this 1:28-minute video-short, Dr. De Chirico discusses how Christians should respond to the temptation of converting to Catholicism.

From my perspective, I cannot imagine a genuinely blood-bought, born-again believer who is free in Christ opting for the works-righteousness shackles of Roman Catholicism. There are many who profess to be born-again Christians, but who are actually tares among the wheat. For them, “swimming the Tiber” and subsequently attempting to merit their salvation as the RCC dictates makes “more sense” (1 Cor. 2:14) than forgiveness of sins and the gift of eternal life through faith in Jesus Christ alone. That said, we acknowledge that the seeker-sensitive, church-growth, mega-church model, with its shallow and vapid preaching, movie theater/rock concert ambiance, and historical rootlessness may motivate some unredeemed church-goers to search for a “more dignified,” “reverential” experience.

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Below is a link to the Reformanda Initiative website.

The Reformanda Initiative
https://www.reformandainitiative.org/

Welcome to the Weekend Roundup! – News & Views – 5/11/24

• Chicago priest blesses same-sex ‘spouses,’ says Fiducia Supplicans allows it

A video (see here) of Catholic priest, Joseph Williams, of Chicago blessing the “marriage recommitment” of lesbians, Kelli and Myah Knight (photo above), is causing a stir among conservative Catholics. I imagine similar “ceremonies” are being repeated all across the country. The Fiducia supplicans declaration issued by the Vatican on December 18, 2023, with the approval of pope Francis, authorized the priestly blessing of individuals in same-sex marriages/unions with the half-hearted qualification that such blessings would not mean priestly or church approval of said marriages/unions. Pope Francis and Víctor Manuel Cardinal Fernández, author of Fiducia supplicans and prefect of the Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith, are spiritually blind, but they are not stupid. They knew full-well that the declaration would lead to the above. Fiducia supplicans was the initial means in shifting the RCC towards eventual full acceptance of practicing S&G-uals. Thanks to Michael at Berean Crossroads for bringing the Chicago video to my attention.

• ‘A step back in time’: America’s Catholic Church sees an immense shift toward the old ways

In reaction to the liberalism of the Second Vatican Council, which is being further expanded upon by the progressive reforms of pope Francis, a number of younger Catholics are returning back to pre-conciliar, 1950s-style, militant RC-ism. As this article points out, some parishes are embroiled in a bitter tug-of-war between the pro-Francis faction and the anti-Francis faction. Last weekend, I posted an article that cited Francis’ granting of approval to liberal (implied) Catholics to “parish shop” if their neighborhood parish was becoming too conservative. Catholic apologists like to present the RCC as a unified monolith, but that’s far from reality.

• How a little-known cable channel for Roman Catholics (EWTN) is radicalizing the faithful

I don’t endorse everything written in this politically-liberal article, but it’s an interesting critical examination of conservative Catholic cable channel, EWTN, and its burgeoning influence. In September 2021, pope Francis circumspectly referred to EWTN as “the work of the devil.”¹

• Call for the Resignation of Pope Francis

This petition is another example of the many conservative Catholics who view pope Francis as a heretic and are scandalized by his progressive reforms. We live in unusual times when conservative Catholics are lining up against their pope. Please take note that the genuine Gospel of salvation by God’s grace alone, through faith alone, in Jesus Christ alone can’t be found in either the conservative or liberal camps of the RCC.

• Roman Catholic Joe Biden asks ‘for God’s continued guidance’ in National Day of Prayer proclamation

Thursday, May 2nd was the National Day of Prayer. As a result of the energetic campaigning of Billy Graham, President Harry S. Truman signed a bill into law on April 17, 1952 proclaiming a National Day of Prayer. The National Day of Prayer promotes religious ecumenism and nonsectarian American Civil Religion. Born-again Christians should abstain. God’s Word exhorts us not to yoke with unbelievers in ecumenical and interreligious endeavors (2 Corinthians 6:14-18).

• Pastor John MacArthur says there is no such thing as mental illness, calls PTSD ‘grief’

I respect John MacArthur for his 55-years of ministry and for his steadfastness on such issues as ecumenism with Rome, but I didn’t agree with his denial of the COVID-19 pandemic (he actually contracted COVID himself and kept it a secret from his congregation for eight months) and I don’t agree with his denial of mental illness. There are people who are mentally ill. In my lifetime, I have witnessed acquaintances, co-workers, friends, and family members who had some form of mental illness. I do agree that mental illness therapies run the gamut and some may be worse than whatever affliction, however, Gospel Christians come across as flat-earthers when they deny mental illness.

1. Explainer: The story behind Pope Francis’ beef with EWTN ↩︎

A Blue Collar Answer to Protestantism – Interlude

Thanks for joining us today as we continue our Friday series examining Catholic apologist, John Martignoni’s book, “A Blue Collar Answer to Protestantism: Catholic Questions Protestants Can’t Answer” (2023).

Last week, we completed Part 1 of the book, which was comprised of 12 alleged “Problems with Protestantism” chapters. Each of the chapters in that 85-page section was about 7 pages in length. This week, we’re taking a short break/interlude with just a few thoughts I have regarding this book so far.

My thoughts after Part 1

Compared to Dave Armstrong and Karlo Broussard, the authors of the previous Catholic apologetics books we’ve examined, Martignoni is more of a militant, in-your-face type of apologist. He appeals less to Scriptural (mis)interpretation and more to “blue collar” rationale/common sense. The main theme of the first section of the book was definitely the RCC’s claims to divine authority and divine guidance and we easily rebutted all of Martignoni’s arguments. The secondary theme was Martignoni’s disparagement and ridicule of the Gospel of salvation by God’s grace alone, through faith alone, in Jesus Christ alone in favor of the RCC’s false gospel of salvation by sacramentalism and merit. As I mentioned previously, I’m almost “grateful” that Martignoni clearly distinguishes between the two irreconcilable gospels. These days, namby-pamby apologists, ESPECIALLY on the evangelical side of the divide, are far too willing to overlook doctrinal distinctives in the interest of false unity.

No apologia for doctrinal error is commendable, but Martignoni’s amateurish argumentation, which includes an amazing amount of redundancy, is some of the poorest I’ve come across. Martignoni insults his “blue collar” Catholic readers with his angry, condescending, “shoot from the hip” polemics. We note that the RCC officially pronounced all non-Catholic religionists as able to merit Heaven way, way back at its Second Vatican Council (1963-1965), so for Martignoni and other EWTN conservatives to continue to militantly debate and attack evangelical Protestants is a blatant anachronism in direct contradiction of papal-sponsored ecumenical and interreligious cooperation.

Thank you for supporting this series up to this point! Next week, we’ll pick up with Part 2 of the book, in which Martignoni will begin presenting his 30 questions that he boastfully claims “Protestants can’t answer.” Each chapter in the upcoming 87 pp. section averages only 3 pages in length, so my preparation “should” be somewhat easier each week.

Next week: Question #1: Is a Dead Body Really a Body?

Throwback Thursday: Catholic leaders meet to try to stanch alarming exodus from the church

Welcome to this week’s “Throwback Thursday” installment. Today, we’re going to revisit a post that was originally published back on July 4, 2017 and has been slightly revised.

The article below reports the U.S. Catholic church is currently losing six members for every one it gains. That’s an amazing statistic. Why the sharp drop-off? Older Catholics look around at the empty pews on Sunday morning and wonder what’s going on. Catholic leaders from across the country are meeting in Orlando this week to try to figure out how to stanch the exodus.

The majority of Catholics participate in the church’s mandated obligatory rituals only sporadically. From there it’s only a short step to dropping away entirely. Most Catholics would say they “don’t get anything out of” the mass and their religion. But, as the article points out, some who leave are attracted to evangelical outreach, accept Christ, and attend evangelical churches instead.

After having been a Roman Catholic for 27 years, and with many friends and family members who are still Catholic, at least nominally, I can speak to some of the frustrations:

• The obligatory Sunday mass is boring beyond description – Few these days want to sit through an hour-long liturgical rote ritual that is as dead as a door nail.
• The eucharist is a case of the emperor with no clothes – Catholics line up to receive the all-important Jesus wafer during mass and the grace that it supposedly confers, but don’t feel ANY different afterwards. Nothing changed.
• No relationship – Catholics are taught they were “born-again” when they were baptized as infants. Christians know that’s NOT how it works. Catholics haven’t accepted Christ as Savior and do not walk with Him. They have no joy or peace in Christ. Religion for them is legalism and sacramental ritualism. Some pious Catholics may claim joy in the Lord, but they actually have no assurance of their salvation because their salvation depends upon their obedience.
• Treadmill fatigue – In Catholicism, one must do, do, do, do and hope to die in a “state of grace” with no serious sin on their soul. But the Bible says no one is good and no one can merit Heaven by trying to obey the Ten Commandments. The commandments only show us we’re sinners in desperate need of the Savior. Many Catholics become tired of the religious treadmill and step off, hoping for the best.
• Confession – Confession to a priest at least once a year is mandatory under threat of damnation, but hardly any Catholics participate. Honestly, who would want to tell their deepest, darkest thoughts and actions to a sinful man? Many predatory priests began grooming their victims in the confessional.
• Conspicuous gaudiness – While Catholicism’s worldly and ostentatious displays of wealth and power may have impressed the masses in bygone eras, they hold much less appeal today and are even seen as negatives by many.
• Pedophile priests – With all the newspaper headlines, Catholics can’t help but look at their celibate parish priest and wonder about HIS propensities.
• Birth control – The RCC threatens eternal damnation for using birth control, but 98% of Catholic women of child-bearing age use it anyway. Catholics legitimately wonder, “If the church is wrong about birth control, what else is it wrong about?”
• Remarried divorcees – Catholics who had divorced and remarried were made to feel like Hester Prynne in “The Scarlet Letter” by being barred from communion. Pope Francis is trying to surreptitiously get around this “infallible” restriction with his infamous “Amoris Laetitia” footnote but the damage has been done.
• Why bother? – Their pope says even atheists will go to Heaven if they follow their conscience and are “good,” so the laity logically wonder why they need to bother with all the rituals and exacting religious legalities (1752 canon laws)?

To my Catholic friends, Christianity is not an institution or a religious treadmill. Christianity is a Person, Jesus Christ. He came to save sinners. Do you qualify? Put institutional religion aside forever, repent of your sinful rebellion against God, and accept Jesus as your Savior through faith alone. Let go of the 100 lb. religious weight on your back and accept Jesus Christ. Then ask the Lord to lead you to an evangelical church in your area that preaches God’s Word without compromise. Only after you repent and accept Christ as Savior through faith alone can you follow Him joyfully as Lord.

God bless you as you search for the Truth.

“Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.” – Matthew 11:28-30

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‘For every person baptized, the U.S. Church loses six Catholics’
https://international.la-croix.com/news/for-every-person-baptized-the-us-church-loses-six-catholics/5464

Mike Gendron speaking at Hope in Christ Bible Church, Berkley, MI, May 10-12

Great to see evangelist, Mike Gendron, director of Proclaiming the Gospel outreach ministry to Roman Catholics, will be speaking at Hope in Christ Bible Church, Berkley, MI, May 10-12.

Praise God for Pastor Peter Smith and the believers at Hope in Christ Bible Church. Due to the spirit of undiscerning ecumenism that’s permeating big tent evangelicalism these days, many churches are reluctant to host brother Gendron.

For my index of 38 video shorts in which Mike Gendron and Costi Hinn discuss the errors of Roman Catholicism, see here.

Below is a link to Mike Gendron’s Gospel outreach ministry to Roman Catholics, Proclaiming the Gospel.

Proclaiming the Gospel
https://www.proclaimingthegospel.org/

Blogging reciprocity?

It’s rare that I use this blog to comment on blogging, but this post has been rattling around in my brain for quite awhile.

The Lord has put it in my heart to publish regularly on this blog (2900 posts in close to 9 years). I’m motivated to defend the genuine Gospel of salvation by God’s grace alone, through faith alone, in Jesus Christ alone, and to point out religious systems that propagate a false gospel, especially the Roman Catholic church. I also post on topics of a more whimsical nature on my second blog, Tom’s Other Topics, here.

I purposely limit the number of blogs that I subscribe to because I try to actually read the published content. I confess there are times when I have scanned longish posts. I definitely try to subscribe to blogs that uphold Gospel Christian orthodoxy. If I see a blogger is getting too far into some questionable theological weeds, I’ll unsubscribe. Maybe there’s something to be said for befriending non-believing bloggers or bloggers caught up in aberrant theology as a witness, but “like”-ing their content can be more dangerous than a slippery slope.

Many solid bloggers stop publishing for a variety of reasons. Over the years, I’ve witnessed many blogging friends abruptly cease publishing without a goodbye. WordPress shows I’m currently subscribed to 101 blogs, but only about 50 of those still publish on at least an occasional basis.

Periodically, I’ll subscribe to what looks to be an interesting and theologically-sound blog and extend my “like”s and comments. A few times a year, I’ll sit down and review the blogs I’m following with an eye to those who are at least making “some” effort at reciprocity. If I don’t see any reciprocity, I’ll un-follow in many (but not all) cases. I’m not trying to be eye-for-an-eye vengeful, but I want to focus my limited time on those bloggers who do make at least some effort at reciprocity.

I realize much of my subject matter is “controversial” (although it shouldn’t be in evangelical Protestant circles). I’m definitely not competing to be the most popular blogger at WordPress. With heresy and false teachers entering into the church, the alarm must be sounded. But I realize such warnings are repugnant and distasteful to many “evangelical Protestants” in these days of undiscerning ecumenism and relativism.

There are probably more than a few bloggers who have subscribed to my blog over the years and lent their “likes” for a period of time only to be disappointed by my lack of reciprocation. To them I apologize. I guess it’s always helpful to send an introduction and comments to catch a blogger’s attention. I readily admit that some bloggers are much better encouragers than myself. There have also been many bloggers over the years who subscribed to my blog and lent their “likes,” but when I checked their content, I could not reciprocate.

My thanks to all who have supported my “controversial” content over the years.

Below is a good post from my blogger-friend, David, that examines some aspects of blogging etiquette, or rather, mis-etiquette.

One Social Media Trope I’m Not Buying
https://wordpress.com/read/feeds/36444045/posts/5173757599

Inquisition 1

Book of the Inquisition: Inside Catholicism’s Ruthless War on Heresy
Editor, Charles Ginger
Future Publishing, 2023, 128 pp.

The Inquisition, the Roman Catholic church’s 647-year-old (1179-1826) systematic effort to identify, persecute, and execute “heretics,” including Gospel Christians, is a very dark stain on the corrupt church’s history. No reader of the New Testament can imagine Jesus Christ or the apostles authorizing the imprisonment, torture, and execution of innumerable victims.¹ After Christianity was adopted as the official state religion of the Roman Empire, the ascendant clergy-class embraced the Roman imperial model and the violent suppression of “non-conformists” was eventually viewed as a desirable option.

In 2000, pope John Paul II apologized on behalf of the Roman Catholic church for the bloody horrors of the Inquisition as well as other church-sanctioned atrocities.² Popes Benedict XVI and Francis followed suit. How could a supposedly divinely-led, indefectible, infallible church have authorized the murderous Inquisition for 600+ years?

I’ve been meaning to read a “good” history of the Inquisition for decades. I’d recently read a couple of books that specifically addressed the RCC’s suppression of the Cathars/Albigensians (see here) and the Waldensians (see here), but still desired to read a more general history of the Inquisition.

As I was browsing through books and magazines at the local Barnes & Noble recently, I stumbled across this British “bookazine” with an eye-catching, sensationalistic cover illustration. I initially balked at the cover price ($29.99), but eventually relented and bought it.

As it turned out, this publication was a decent introduction for me to the Inquisition. The multi-authored text is informative and there are plenty of complementary photos and illustrations. With all of its good points, it makes no pretensions at being a scholarly work. There are no references. The last-third of the publication veers away from the Inquisition to the theological/political tug-of-war between Catholics and Protestants during/following the Reformation, but it was still informative. The final chapter, “Confessing the Truth,” is a bit jolting in its blatant amelioration/rehabilitation of the ruthless Inquisition. Suspecting dirty pool, I googled the writer, Edoardo Albert, and discovered he’s a very dedicated Roman Catholic. Overall, this bookazine was for me a worthwhile purchase and read although I’d hesitate to recommend it. I also borrowed a book on the topic from the library that I’ll be reviewing down the road.

Sections and chapters:

• The War on Heresy
  • The Origins of the Inquisition
  • Crushing the Cathars
  • Betrayal of the Knights Templar
  • Bernard Gui
  • Directorium Inquisitorum
  • Joan of Arc
  • Witchcraft and the Inquisition

• The Spanish Inquisition
  • Heretic Hunters
  • An officer of the Spanish Inquisition
  • Los Reyes Católicos
  • Tomás the torturer
  • An auto de fé
  • Francisco de Cisneros

• Reformation and Retribution
  • The birth of the Reformation
  • The German Peasants War
  • The Counter-Reformation
  • The Roman Inquisition
  • A global conspiracy
  • Bloody Mary on trial
  • The Thirty Years’ War
  • The beginning of the end

• Ending the Inquisition
  • How Napoleon ended the Inquisition
  • Confessing the truth

1. Estimates of the number of victims of the Inquisition vary widely. Catholics determinedly minimize the number and Protestants are accused of inflating the number. In the minds of most people, “The Inquisition” refers to the Spanish Inquisition, but the RCC conducted a large number of campaigns and operations to root out “heresy” throughout Europe and beyond. How Many People Died in the Inquisition? ↩︎
2. The Pope’s Apology for the Inquisition ↩︎