Book Reviews and More: FrAshleyBeck

Europe's Soul and Her Patron Saints

Freemasonry and the Christian Faith – CTS Explanations

Ronald Knox

Thomas Merton: Contemplative and Peace-maker

…

Thursday, 4 November 2021

Dorothy Day Devoted Daughter of the Church - Father Ashley Beck - CTS Biographies

Dorothy Day:

Devoted Daughter of the Church

CTS Biographies

Fr. Ashley Beck

Catholic Truth Society
ISBN 9781860825071

eISBN 9781784694913

ASIN B075P2N7LX

CTS Booklet B705

This is the third volume from Father Ashley Beck that I have read. A few years ago, I stumbled across the books and booklets from the Catholic Truth Society quite by accident. I was researching an author I had run across, and was trying to track down all of her works. Soon I had a long list of books from the CTS on my Wish List, and it seems that for everyone I read I end up with 1 or 2 more on my wish list. I have now read over 200 volumes from the CTS, and have nearly that many on my wish list. And with each book I read I am blessed. Father Ashley Beck wrote I believe 8 volumes for the Catholic Truth Society, and most of them were biographies. Some of his are available as eBooks and those that do not appear to currently be out of print. But from what I have read they are well worth tracking down. This volume was published in 2008 and the eBook edition released in 2017. But let us return to this book and the that it is excellent introduction to Dorothy Day. The description of this booklet is:

“Dorothy Day founded the Catholic Worker Movement and Newspaper, and dedicated her life to the cause of peace, opposition to nuclear weapons, and service of the poor. She died in 1980.

A controversial figure in life, and even in death, there are many who believe Dorothy Day, who died in 1980, to be a modern day saint. An American journalist and political activist who converted to Catholicism following a profound existential crisis in her late twenties, Day founded the Catholic Worker Movement and Newspaper, and dedicated her life to the cause of peace, opposition to nuclear weapons and service of the poor. In 2000, Rome recognised the cause for her beatification. This booklet unravels the life, times and thought of this most amazing of women, who passed through despair, crises and opposition to find the Risen Lord.”

The chapters in the book are:

A Modern-day Saint

Early Life

Conversion and Life as a Catholic

Peter Maurin

The Catholic Worker Paper

Vision for Peace

Closing Years and Death

Her Holiness and Theology

The Catholic Worker Movement Today

Further reading

But it should be noted that about a third of the book is dedicated to Peter Maurin, his thought, his influence and his impact on Day and her own thoughts and works. I had come across Dorothy Day a few times in my academic research, having a Religious Studies degree with a focus on Roman Catholic Thought. But As mentioned in the description she was controversial, and often skimmed over or mentioned as a side remark. I really wish I had taken the time to look into the woman and her works earlier. I was surprised by much of what I read in this volume, and will be looking into her life and her works more deeply. And the end of the volume has some excellent recommendations. Just short of a third of the book is the Section “Further reading” and “Endnotes”. I was so impressed with the life of Day that I read all of the end notes and some of them were extensive. The book also has a wonderful ‘Prayer for Dorothy Day’s Canonisation’ at the end. Some of the passages I highlighted my first time through were:

“In the year 2000 the Holy See recognised the cause for the beatification of Dorothy Day (giving her the title ‘Servant of God’). Some years before Cardinal John O’Connor, Archbishop of New York, said in support of the process: ‘It has long been my contention that Dorothy Day is a saint–not a ‘gingerbread’ saint or a ‘holy card’ saint, but a modern day devoted daughter of the Church’.”

“For the poor and for peace The two pillars of Day’s life and teaching bear this out–love for the poor and witness for peace. Day and her associate Peter Maurin established a radical form of love for the poor–living with the poor, sharing resources to help the poor, campaigning for poor workers and the homeless-following in the footsteps of many saints in the history of Christianity.”

“As the cause for her beatification progresses it is right for us to assess her influence and reflect on her heroic qualities. We should, however, recall that she herself said: ‘Don’t call me a saint. I don’t want to be dismissed so easily.’”

“Perhaps surprisingly her experience at university was negative–although she read avidly (especially from now on Russian authors–Gorky, Chekhov, and Tolstoy and, above all, Dostoyevsky) she avoided campus social life and worked in order to support herself financially. She began her journalistic career writing for local papers and joined the Socialist Party.”

“But she had made deep and influential friendships, such as that with Rayna Simons. She and her future husband Samson Raphaelson were Jewish, and the way they were treated at university was Day’s first encounter with antisemitism–in the 1930s, she would found the first Catholic group opposed to anti-semitism.”

“Day was often imprisoned during her life and her sense of solidarity with prisoners was consistently strong, as was her opposition to the brutality of the death penalty.”

“By 1922 she was living in Chicago and working on a paper called The Liberator. Women linked to the I.W.W. were treated by the police as if they were prostitutes and Dorothy was arrested after one of the so-called ‘Palmer Red Raids’ which were such a feature of life in America in these turbulent years. Dorothy was shocked by the ways in which the women prisoners were abused and humiliated: ‘.... It was an unutterably horrifying experience for me. I had opened the door in fear and trembling and had been forced to dress practically in the presence of two detectives, leering….’”

“She also lived with Catholic girls in Chicago who went to Mass and set aside times for prayer each day. The Catholic Church was fascinating to Day, who wrote: ‘worship, adoration, thanksgiving, supplication…were the noblest acts of which we are capable in this life.’”

“Dorothy had met a nun on the beach at Staten Island, and with her help had Tamar Teresa baptised in July 1927. This nun, Sister Aloysia of the Sisters of Charity ‘had had none of the university summer courses that most Sisters must take nowadays. She never talked to me of the social encyclicals of the Popes. She gave me a catechism and brought me old copies of the Messenger of the Sacred Heart, a magazine which, along with the Kathleen Norris type of success story, had some good solid articles about the teachings of the Church. I read them all; I studied my catechism; I learned to say the Rosary; I went to Mass in the chapel by the sea; I walked the beach and I prayed; I read the Imitation of Christ, and St Augustine, and the New Testament.’”

“In these first four or five years as a Catholic Dorothy was searching for a vocation and trying on her own to bring up a baby.”

“The houses of hospitality were to bring about the practice of the spiritual and corporal works of mercy; the farming communes, especially in the context of the early 1930s, were to remedy the terrible problem of unemployment. We will now look at how the paper and the movement behind it developed from 1933.”

“Her consciousness of God’s action through the sacraments is shown in other ways too, such as her experience of God’s forgiveness in confession (and she deplored the decline in the practice of confession from the 1960s) and there are many accounts in her writings of members of the Catholic Worker family being anointed before death. For her the sacraments were never (as they are for some) a means of escaping from the world and its sufferings: rather they were the means through which God meets us day by day with his healing grace.”

“Part of her reading at this time was a life of St Teresa of Avila: from the very beginning of her life as a Catholic Dorothy saw the saints as her friends within the Church. Her closeness to Our Lady is very natural and striking, rooted in everyday life:”

“This characteristic, of resistance to the power of the state, is the final mark of holiness which we can identify. Throughout the history of the Church, and perhaps particularly the twentieth century, this has defined Christian witness, particularly in the lives of the martyrs, men and women like Blessed Franz Jagerstätter, St Teresa Benedicta of the Cross, the Servant of God Oscar Romero and countless others.”

“Day wrote of those who came into contact with Maurin that ‘though they themselves fail to go the whole way, their faces are turned at least toward the light.’ She would never be satisfied with that, of course, but those words do help us understand how great her influence has been, and how much more it can achieve as we learn more of her life and listen to her words.”

This booklet was an excellent little read. It truly is a great read from the Catholic Truth Society, a wonderful volume in the CTS Biographies Series. I highly recommend this book!

Note: This book is part of a series of reviews: 2021 Catholic Reading Plan! For other reviews of books from the Catholic Truth Society click here.

Books by Ashley Beck:

Europe's Soul and Her Patron Saints

Freemasonry and the Christian Faith – CTS Explanations

Ronald Knox

Thomas Merton: Contemplative and Peace-maker

…

Thursday, 28 October 2021

Oscar Romero Martyr for Faith - Father Ashley Beck - CTS 20th Century Martyrs

Oscar Romero Martyr for Faith
CTS 20th Century Martyrs
Father Ashley Beck
Catholic Truth Society
ISBN 9781784690595

eISBN 9781784692629

ASIN B071LKM12H

CTS Booklet B700

During my time in University I did a Religious Studies degree with a focus on Roman Catholic Thought. I was fairly familiar with the broad strokes of the story of Oscar Romero. But this book handles the man, his fiath, and his martyrdom in a very different way. This was the ninth volume in the CTS 20th Century Martyrs series that I have read. It is also the third by Father Ashley Beck that I have read. Over the last few years, I have read over 200 books and booklets from the Catholic Truth Society, and still have almost that many on my wish list. I believe there are eleven volumes in this series. This was one of two new ones I have come across. About half of them have eBook editions. This is one that does. I believe there are few Catholic who have not heart at least the name Oscar Romero. I knew the name and the details I was not aware of the whole story, and the light shone on him in academia is different than that from this excellent volume. This is a complex and yet powerful story.

The description of this volume is:

“Biography of the famous martyred bishop from El Salvador known for speaking up for the poor and for his fidelity to the Church.

Throughout history Christians have suffered martyrdom and torture as a result of ‘hatred of the faith’ (odium fidei). Archbishop Oscar Romero, gunned down while saying Mass, was declared to be such a martyr by Pope Francis, thus opening the way for his beatification. Romero paid the ultimate price for his faithfulness to Christ and his Church, rather than is often misrepresented, for his political activism. Romero’s impressive body of teaching, personal holiness and sufferings illustrate what an impressive witness to the faith he truly was.”

This volume was first published in 2008, revised in 2015 the eBook edition was released in 2017. And it was rebranded in 2020 or 2021 when the CTS started moving away from series. The book is one of over 60 biographies from the CTS I have read and I highly recommend it. .

The chapters in the volume are:

Martyr’s Witness

Early Life, Priest and Bishop

Archbishop of San Salvador

Teaching of Óscar Romero

Sanctity of Óscar Romero

Martyrdom of Óscar Romero

Monday, 11 October 2021

Benedict XV and World War I - Father Ashley Beck - CTS Biographies

Benedict XV & World War I

Fr. Ashley Beck

CTS Biographies

Catholic Truth Society
ISBN 9781860829000

CTS Booklet B757

2014

Over the last few years I have read over 200 volume from the Catholic Truth Society. I am a huge fan of the Catholic Truth Society’s books and booklets. I have read many volumes from the CTS Great Saints Series, CTS Biographies, and also Saints of the Isles Series. And have loved almost all of them. This one is a little different the booklet code is B757 making it a biography, but it is also tagged as history, but the books on the Concise Histories series are prefaced with an “H”. But no matter how hard it is to classify it is an excellent read, and well worth the read today. It is one of eight volume written by Father Ashley Beck for the Catholic Truth Society and it is the second that I have read. In the acknowledgements we are informed that this book was published on the 90th anniversary of Pope Benedict XV’s ‘Peace Note’ from the summer of 1917. The description of this booklet is:

In the introduction to this book was are informed that:

“This booklet is a study of his consistent and outspoken opposition to the war, shown, for example, in one of the least noticed events of the First World War: the publication of the ‘Peace Note’ by the Pope in August 1917 in an effort to bring about a negotiated end to the war.”

And further on that:

“This underrated successor of St Peter and Vicar of Christ was thus a prophet ahead of his time.”

Father Beck does an excellent job of setting the historical context. The events, and the men that was Pope Benedict XV. He was well ahead of the curve on the focus on peace, and that war was changing in ways most devastating. Devastating to the soldiers and to the innocent civilians. We are informed that

“Pope Benedict XV’s urgings in the First World War were the fruits of the “science of peace” (to use the phrase coined many years later by John Paul II) which he learned in his long years in the Secretariate of the State.”

We are told about Benedict XV’s personality that:

“Benedict’s humanity and gentleness (although he was also at times short-tempered) are an important backdrop for his theology of reconciliation and peace.”

From the popes first encyclical he stove to avoid the conflict and once started did all he could to resolve it.

“For the Pope to begin his pontificate with an encyclical devoted to the war was the clearest possible sign that striving for an end to the carnage would be at the heart of his ministry.”

But his efforts were often misunderstood and open opposed. Often both sides saw him as favouring the other.

“Not for the last time, combatant countries could not understand that the international character of the Catholic Church cuts across national rivalries and conditions how the Church responds to specific incidents.”

Some of his greatest opposition came from other Catholics. This booklet makes reference to a CTS Volume called A Little Book of Prayers for Peace, It included Benedict’s XV’s prayer for peace and many other prayers from approved sources. (Note I have been trying to track this down but cannot find a copy anywhere.) In regards to Benedict XV’s vision of perception of warfare we are informed that:

“We can see that the development of modern warfare in the twentieth century has had the effect of driving Christian teaching to be more and more negative about war per se – and in this process Benedict’s teaching was clearly pioneering and prophetic.”

Even after the war Benedict had a deep concern for those lost on all sides:

“Benedict’s Incruentum Altaris showed that for him, the priority was praying for the souls of dead soldiers in purgatory and offering Masses for them. How far do we follow this priority?”

This volume concludes with these words:

“A prophet is not primarily one who foretells the future, but one who speaks the Word of God in truth: and the truth about the First World War was not something which those in power in Europe wanted to face. As we seek to deepen the Church’s theology of peace and help men and women to turn their backs on war and on all that glorifies war, Benedict XV is a great inspiration.”

This book is an excellent read. It is great for those looking into the history, and the development of the doctrine of peace. Benedict was a man ahead of his times, but his messages and concerns are just as relevant today. A great read. And one that leaves me wanting to track down Benedict XV Courageous Prophet of Peace by Father Ashely Beck, which is currently out of print.

Another excellent volume from the Catholic Truth Society.

(This is a revised edition of Benedict XV – CTS Biographies B694 2007 Edition.)

Note: This book is part of a series of reviews: 2021 Catholic Reading Plan! For other reviews of books from the Catholic Truth Society click here.

Books by Ashley Beck:

Europe's Soul and Her Patron Saints

Freemasonry and the Christian Faith – CTS Explanations

Ronald Knox

Thomas Merton: Contemplative and Peace-maker

…

Saturday, 24 July 2021

Freemasonry and the Christian Faith - Father Ashley Beck - CTS Explanations

Freemasonry and the Christian Faith

CTS Explanations

Fr. Ashley Beck

Catholic Truth Society
ISBN 9781860823428

eISBN 9781784694548

ASIN B074KDZSMR

CTS Booklet EX16

This is the first volume from Father Beck that I have read, but it will not be the last. This is the fifth volume that I have read in the CTS Explanations series. In the last few years I have read over 200 books and booklets from the Catholic Truth Society. Based on the CTS number EX21 and the list at the back of the book there are at least 21 books in this series. Some have eBooks, some are out of print, and a few are still available both in print and digitally. This is a fascinating series, it tackles some hard questions. And they give clear and concise summary of Catholic Teachings on those topics. The description on the back of this book is:

“Freemasons celebrate 300 years since their foundation in England in 1717. Today still, despite the Catholic Church’s prohibition, some Catholics in apparent good faith become masons, even on the advice of senior clergy. Evidence suggests freemasonry remains strong in some Anglican churches and cathedrals. This updated edition looks at what Freemasonry is and what the Catholic Church teaches about it. It examines the place of freemasonry within contemporary British society.

The convincing theological arguments against becoming a freemason are set out in a measured and balanced manner, supported by excellent research and extensive endnotes.”

The chapters in this volume are:

Introduction

What is Freemasonry?

Catholic Teaching about Freemasonry

Freemasonry and Catholic Social Teaching

Freemasonry, History and Society

Freemasonry and other Christian Churches

What to do if you are a Catholic and a Freemason

Endnotes

The beginning of the introduction states:

“Some years ago I was approached by a man who had been invited to become a Freemason. He wanted to know whether as a Catholic he was permitted to do so. I had not been a priest for very long and was not sure of the answer, although I found it out quickly; this booklet is an attempt to give a clear answer to the question and to explain some of the reasons for that answer.”

And further on:

“Many Catholics, including the present writer, have good friends and family members who are Masons and it is not the purpose of this booklet to impugn the individual moral character of the majority of Masons. Rather, it is an examination of the system of Freemasonry: what it claims to believe, and how it operates.”

This book focuses on Freemasonry specifically in England, Scotland and Wales. Part of the reason for that is it is Father Beck’s intended audience. He tells us:

“God is referred to in Masonic literature, rituals and prayers as ‘The Great Architect Of The Universe’ (traditionally abbreviated in Masonic rituals to ‘T.G.A.O.T.U’), or (in the ‘Second degree’) the ‘Grand Geometrician’, or ‘The Most High’. … non-English Freemasonry has often been characterised by militant atheism and opposition to Christianity and to the Catholic Church in particular.”

As someone in North America much of the specifics of this book are not as relevant. But one of the passages that struck me most is:

“This makes Freemasonry rather like Pelagianism, the 5th century heresy which taught that humanity could achieve perfection through good works; it is also a form of the earlier 2nd century heresy of Gnosticism, in which people were taught that they could attain salvation through acquiring secret knowledge, gnosis.”

This was an excellent book to read. It provides a clear and concise summary of Freemasonry specifically in the British Isles. And it provides the overview of Catholic teachings on secret societies and specifically the Free Masons. It provides sound advice. It is written with care and concern for those who might already be members but unaware that it is not allowed.

A great read in a wonderful series. I love the succinct summaries and teachings in this book and the series. Another excellent read from the Catholic Truth Society.

Note: This book is part of a series of reviews: 2021 Catholic Reading Plan! For other reviews of books from the Catholic Truth Society click here.

Books by Ashley Beck:

Europe's Soul and Her Patron Saints