The Church Under Attack

by Diane Moczar

Here's an unabashedly Catholic history that documents scores of sustained and unprecedented assaults on our Catholic Faith these past five centuries and delineates our Church's brave response to each one.

Genres: Catholic, History, Christianity, Religion, Nonfiction

256 pages, Paperback

First published April 4, 2012

Reviews

[Matthew Selby · Rating 4 out of 5]

A good overview of the history of Western civilisation from the Reformation to the modern day, with mentions of the Catholic Church and her activities throughout. It essentially concludes that the church has been assaulted by numerous forces, starting with Martin Luther and John Calvin, to the French Revolutions, and to the Soviet Union and Nazi Germany, but still manages to survive. The only thing that dampens this book is the brief, seemingly unrelated tirade about the Second Vatican Council and “modernism in the church,” lamenting the decrease of the Latin Mass and other what I’d call “tradcath” things. Still a good read nonetheless.

[Stuart · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Church Under Attack is Dr. Diane Moczar's latest release. For those of you who have not heard of her before, Dr. Moczar is a Catholic historian. This is an important distinction to be aware of before reading this book, as it means the book will be written from a pro-Catholic perspective. This is not unheard of in the field of history, but it is rare. In her book, she provides a brief glimpse of the previous five centuries (1500s-1900s) and how the Church has been attacked throughout the ages.

The author starts off remarking about how crammed the Sixteenth Century was with happenings. She states that there isn't enough room to record all of the events that occurred during this time and even proclaimed, "Stop doing things! Leave something for the next century!" That made sense to me, and I appreciated her condensing her thoughts on the Sixteenth Century to 24 pages. However, she then proceeds to devote 43 pages to the Seventeenth Century. That seemed a bit backwards to me. I personally would have loved to read more about the Sixteenth Century, as opposed to the Seventeenth Century, but that's a personal preference. The book then works its way through Reformations; Revolutionary Wars, both French and American; World Wars, and the Cold War. There was a ton of information packed in these 200+ pages.

There were several aspects I liked about this book, but the biggest one was that the author doesn't present you with a "just the facts" approach to history. She makes it interesting and fun with a bit of snarkiness, i.e., referring to the Protestant Reformation as the Protestant Revolution. I also appreciated her focus on Mary's impact on historical events as well as the holy men and women throughout the centuries. This served as a reminder that there were still people fighting for what was right in the world when others weren't.

Overall, I would give this book 4 stars. It's impossible to write a lively history text like this one, without some sort of bias. Don't mistake me. I greatly appreciated the author presenting the Catholic Church in an almost entirely positive light., and it was refreshing to read a history text without a clear bias against the Church. However, if you read a Protestant history text on the Reformation, I imagine you would get a completely different viewpoint than the Catholic viewpoint in this book. With that said, this is still a fruitful read and would be a great book for home-schooled students. It could also serve as a good supplemental text for your high school or college student to read and counter their dry and generally anti-Catholic textbook.

[Bob Lundquist · Rating 3 out of 5]

The Catholic Church had a good run in the early and medieval years. Then comes along the Modern Era about 1500 and things go down the drain. Luther, Calvin, Knox in Scotland, the nobility and elites who supported and protected these people all contributed to the Church’s troubles. Then comes along Henry VIII, Elizabeth I, the Stuarts and the English Civil War with a king’s head rolling around – and he was not Catholic. Cromwell, the Thirty Years War, the English Restoration and the Hanovers. The French Revolution, Napoleon, the French Republics, and Bismarck. Not to mention the Balkan Wars, World War I and II and Communism and Modernism. With all this, the Church was torn apart and could be considered a miracle it is still viable.

This book surveys all these events and ideas very, very quickly. It is a quick read and so only glances at these events through a black and white lens. The author points out some myths that still are believed today but otherwise avoids some more subtle points that are endemic once people started to leave the Church. There are no citations and only descriptions of sources the authors thinks the reader should look at. So, while it is useful to see all this history in the big picture, hopefully, readers will follow up for themselves those things that interest them.

[Elizabeth Swift · Rating 4 out of 5]

It was interesting when I think of the many historical "facts" I thought were accurate that are challenged in this book. Especially in today's culture, being Catholic isn't something you flaunt. A must read for those who'd like a history of the Church which is more Catholic friendly.

[Daniel coulon · Rating 3 out of 5]

A good overview

Trying to cover 2000 years of challenges to the church but never really gets to the church under attack in the 20th and 21st centuries.

[Michael M Hebbeler · Rating 5 out of 5]

understanding the mind of the Church in history

I like the concise thumbprint of the highlights of events as they pertained to the Catholic Church. Good over view of Church history

[Jimmy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Since this book is trying to cover five centuries in only 235 pages, it doesn't provide a lot of detail; the author still gives a good outline of the major events and individuals that influenced the world since the Protestant Revolt, and the ideas that lead to these situations.

I do have two criticisms of the book. One is a minor inconvenience; there isn't an index. More seriously, the author barely touches on the absolute disaster and destruction caused by Vatican II and the post-conciliar popes. She also omits mention of the work of restoration started by Archbishop Marcel Lefebvre and the SSPX; instead, the only "traditionalist" groups she mentions are the indult groups Institute of Christ the King and FSSP. (Since they are required by the Vatican to regard the New Mass and other conciliar paraphernalia as good things, they are part of the problem, not the solution.)

[Patrick Johnston · Rating 4 out of 5]

Pretty quick read. Actually a good overview of European history. She makes really good and interesting points...especially ones that you don't necessarily learn in school. I always enjoy learning actual stories versus the ones everyone seems to accept as true (e.g. Galileo).

[Sam Fink · Rating 3 out of 5]

A very quick survey and reads quickly. Somewhat lacking in depth; superficial in many ways. Readable but not enthralling. Short syllabus provide for future reading.

[William F · Rating 5 out of 5]

All Americans need to read Chapter 4