What do you think?
Rate this book
Born Fundamentalist, Born Again Catholic
David Currie was raised in a devout Christian family whose father was a fundamentalist preacher and both parents teachers at Moody Bible Institute. Currie's whole upbringing was immersed in the life of fundamentalist Protestantism - theology professors, seminary presidents and founders of evangelical mission agencies were frequent guests at his family dinner table. Currie received a degree from Trinity International University and studied in the Masters of Divinity program. This book was written as an explanation to his fundamentalist and evangelical friends and family about why he became a Roman Catholic. Currie presents a very lucid, systematic and intelligible account of the reasons for his conversion to the ancient Church that Christ founded. He gives a detailed discussion of the important theological and doctrinal beliefs Catholic and evangelicals hold in common, as well as the key doctrines that separate us, particularly the Eucharist, the Pope, and Mary.
215 pages, Paperback
First published May 31, 1996
73 people are currently reading
1036 people want to read
About the author
David B. Currie
7 books15 followersDavid Currie, Research Associate of The St. Paul Center for Biblical Theology, is a popular Catholic author, lecturer and retreat leader.
His widely read and influential 1996 book, Born Fundamentalist, Born Again Catholic (Ignatius Press) tells the story of his conversion, along with his wife Colleen, from fundamentalist missionaries to Catholic apologists. Prominent convert, Thomas Howard, has called it “the book on this topic of Evangelicals being received into the Catholic Church.”
His most recent book, Rapture: The End-Times Error that Leaves the Bible Behind (Sophia Press, 2003), explores the Biblical, historical, and theological roots of the modern “left behind at the rapture” movement. Dr. Scott Hahn, Founder and President of the St. Paul Center, has called this book “a virtual summa of apocalyptic texts…[that] makes these difficult matters abundantly clear… [with a] steady, charitable, clear voice.”
Currie has written widely in the Catholic press and has several popular tape series distributed by St. Joseph Communications, including: “Rapture: Ruse or Reality?”
Currie and his wife Colleen live in the Chicago area with five of their eight children. Their oldest is now married and their next two are attending university.
His widely read and influential 1996 book, Born Fundamentalist, Born Again Catholic (Ignatius Press) tells the story of his conversion, along with his wife Colleen, from fundamentalist missionaries to Catholic apologists. Prominent convert, Thomas Howard, has called it “the book on this topic of Evangelicals being received into the Catholic Church.”
His most recent book, Rapture: The End-Times Error that Leaves the Bible Behind (Sophia Press, 2003), explores the Biblical, historical, and theological roots of the modern “left behind at the rapture” movement. Dr. Scott Hahn, Founder and President of the St. Paul Center, has called this book “a virtual summa of apocalyptic texts…[that] makes these difficult matters abundantly clear… [with a] steady, charitable, clear voice.”
Currie has written widely in the Catholic press and has several popular tape series distributed by St. Joseph Communications, including: “Rapture: Ruse or Reality?”
Currie and his wife Colleen live in the Chicago area with five of their eight children. Their oldest is now married and their next two are attending university.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 30 of 88 reviews
July 5, 2012
In summary, this is the author's personal conversion story from Fundamentalism (i.e., Evangelicalism) to RC. His criticisms of Fundamentalism were moderate, but seemingly fair. This book is certainly not a scholarly theological treatise on the subject (nor does it claim to be), however, the author does bring up some serious problems with Fundamentalism in particular, and Protestantism in general, for which there may be good answers.
The one thing that I really appreciated about this book and what is good lesson for all who are in pursuit of truth is the accuracy of information and a charitable attitude by which to judge that information, especially when it comes to those with whom you disagree (To deliberately avoid to do either would, it seem, indicate a failure of intellectual and moral virtue). As a Protestant, I believed certain things about the Catholic Church. The more that I actually read Catholics themselves, including Catholic Theology and Philosophy, the more I see that many of my beliefs and perceptions about Catholic Doctrine were embarrassingly mistaken. Not to say that I think RC is right about Mary, Purgatory, Papal Infalability, The See of Peter, etc., but rather, that my agreement or disagreement on these matters should be determined by accurate information and not straw men arguments or gross misunderstandings.
The one thing that I really appreciated about this book and what is good lesson for all who are in pursuit of truth is the accuracy of information and a charitable attitude by which to judge that information, especially when it comes to those with whom you disagree (To deliberately avoid to do either would, it seem, indicate a failure of intellectual and moral virtue). As a Protestant, I believed certain things about the Catholic Church. The more that I actually read Catholics themselves, including Catholic Theology and Philosophy, the more I see that many of my beliefs and perceptions about Catholic Doctrine were embarrassingly mistaken. Not to say that I think RC is right about Mary, Purgatory, Papal Infalability, The See of Peter, etc., but rather, that my agreement or disagreement on these matters should be determined by accurate information and not straw men arguments or gross misunderstandings.
August 1, 2011
Being someone who approached Catholicism later in life with a protestant perspective I have always been a little troubled by some of the Catholic teachings. David Curie's book is very enlightening and gave me a better perspective on my Catholic faith. I don't agree with him on all points, but he makes a lot of sense on most topics. A valuable read for protestants and Catholics alike.
September 26, 2013
Good, in that it helped me understand where Catholics are coming from. I never understood their three-part base for authority: scripture, oral tradition, and the clergy.
Bad, in that Currie fails to properly support his main thesis: “the New Testament clearly and positively teaches that we are under the obligation to obey the verbal teaching (tradition) of the Church, just as we are under the obligation to obey clear mandates of the inspired New Testament” (p. 54) To clarify, when Currie says “verbal teaching” he does not just mean things taught orally, he means dogmas and doctrines not found in Scripture but derived from Roman Catholic oral tradition and deemed essential by the Roman Catholic Church (p. 84).
Currie offers five arguments
1. Jesus commanded the Jewish people of His day to obey oral tradition of the Pharisees. Matthew 22:2-3
- Currie attempts to create a parallel between how Jesus expected the Jews to respond to the Pharisees and how Jesus expected Christians to respond to their authorities.
- Currie misreads the text, mixing up his basic grammar. Jesus commanded the Jews to “obey them”. The antecedent for the pronoun “them” is the leaders, not their teaching. The seat of Moses probably refers to their authority to settle disputes (Ex 18). In other words, Jesus was telling the Jews to submit to the Pharisees as judges or arbitrators. It was a submission to their position of authority, not an acceptance of every oral doctrine they taught. Consider some of the doctrines Pharisees taught.
> God loves rich people more than poor.
> Sick people are that way because they or their parents have sinned.
> Salvation was by inheritance. Children of Abraham were entitled to the kingdom of God by birth.
> Salvation was by separation. Keep yourself separate from anything or anyone that might contaminate you and you won’t lose your kingdom entitlement.
Rather than upholding tradition, Jesus undercut it and called people back to the written word of God as the ultimate authority. In other words, Jesus actual teaching goes against Currie's point.
2. Lots of Jesus’ life and teachings were not written. John 21:25
- John clearly writes this of Jesus’ deeds, not his teachings. In the same book, John boldly declares that the information contained in his gospel alone IS SUFFICIENT truth to gain eternal life. What this verse does not say, is that those other unwritten deeds are essential for us to know and follow. That contradicts Catholic teaching.
3. Paul commanded obedience to oral as well as written teachings. 2 Th 2:15 & 2 Tim 2:2
- While Roman Catholic interpretation might fit these verses, there is a more natural interpretation.
- Books were expensive, fragile, and therefore rare. Few individuals would own complete copies of the (Old Testament) Scriptures. Therefore, even teaching from Scripture would be delivered orally! Even in our day, most teaching is done orally.
- It is more natural to interpret these and related verses referring to verbal teaching as a MODE of teaching, not an alternative source of additional doctrine as the Roman Church would have us believe.
e. “Nowhere does Paul imply that the written word is to be used against the verbal tradition or the men entrusted with its protection” (p. 55)
- This is an argument from silence. So what if Paul doesn’t say that. That does not support Currie’s thesis of clear, positive obligation to believe ideas foreign to Scripture.
f. 2 Tim 3:16 does not make Scripture the final authority for our faith.
- Another argument from silence. Again, this verse does not obligate us to obey dogmas whose source is in oral tradition. This verse does not even acknowledge that such an extra-Biblical source exists.
- What’s more, Currie does not mention the very next verse which proclaims the Bible’s SUFFIENCY for equipping Christian leaders ("man of God") for every good work. A clear contradiction of Catholic teaching which requires its priests to adhere to all kinds of extra-Biblical ideas.
All in all, the book is a fascinating read up to a point because Currie shares his personal journey from Fundamentalism to Catholicism, explaining Catholic ideas and their sources along the way. However, once I saw that the very foundation of his claims was seriously flawed I lost interest in the rest of the book and have no intention of finishing it.
I would be very interested to know from devout, thoughtful Catholics if Currie's writing accurately reflects Roman Catholic teachings and reasonings.
Bad, in that Currie fails to properly support his main thesis: “the New Testament clearly and positively teaches that we are under the obligation to obey the verbal teaching (tradition) of the Church, just as we are under the obligation to obey clear mandates of the inspired New Testament” (p. 54) To clarify, when Currie says “verbal teaching” he does not just mean things taught orally, he means dogmas and doctrines not found in Scripture but derived from Roman Catholic oral tradition and deemed essential by the Roman Catholic Church (p. 84).
Currie offers five arguments
1. Jesus commanded the Jewish people of His day to obey oral tradition of the Pharisees. Matthew 22:2-3
- Currie attempts to create a parallel between how Jesus expected the Jews to respond to the Pharisees and how Jesus expected Christians to respond to their authorities.
- Currie misreads the text, mixing up his basic grammar. Jesus commanded the Jews to “obey them”. The antecedent for the pronoun “them” is the leaders, not their teaching. The seat of Moses probably refers to their authority to settle disputes (Ex 18). In other words, Jesus was telling the Jews to submit to the Pharisees as judges or arbitrators. It was a submission to their position of authority, not an acceptance of every oral doctrine they taught. Consider some of the doctrines Pharisees taught.
> God loves rich people more than poor.
> Sick people are that way because they or their parents have sinned.
> Salvation was by inheritance. Children of Abraham were entitled to the kingdom of God by birth.
> Salvation was by separation. Keep yourself separate from anything or anyone that might contaminate you and you won’t lose your kingdom entitlement.
Rather than upholding tradition, Jesus undercut it and called people back to the written word of God as the ultimate authority. In other words, Jesus actual teaching goes against Currie's point.
2. Lots of Jesus’ life and teachings were not written. John 21:25
- John clearly writes this of Jesus’ deeds, not his teachings. In the same book, John boldly declares that the information contained in his gospel alone IS SUFFICIENT truth to gain eternal life. What this verse does not say, is that those other unwritten deeds are essential for us to know and follow. That contradicts Catholic teaching.
3. Paul commanded obedience to oral as well as written teachings. 2 Th 2:15 & 2 Tim 2:2
- While Roman Catholic interpretation might fit these verses, there is a more natural interpretation.
- Books were expensive, fragile, and therefore rare. Few individuals would own complete copies of the (Old Testament) Scriptures. Therefore, even teaching from Scripture would be delivered orally! Even in our day, most teaching is done orally.
- It is more natural to interpret these and related verses referring to verbal teaching as a MODE of teaching, not an alternative source of additional doctrine as the Roman Church would have us believe.
e. “Nowhere does Paul imply that the written word is to be used against the verbal tradition or the men entrusted with its protection” (p. 55)
- This is an argument from silence. So what if Paul doesn’t say that. That does not support Currie’s thesis of clear, positive obligation to believe ideas foreign to Scripture.
f. 2 Tim 3:16 does not make Scripture the final authority for our faith.
- Another argument from silence. Again, this verse does not obligate us to obey dogmas whose source is in oral tradition. This verse does not even acknowledge that such an extra-Biblical source exists.
- What’s more, Currie does not mention the very next verse which proclaims the Bible’s SUFFIENCY for equipping Christian leaders ("man of God") for every good work. A clear contradiction of Catholic teaching which requires its priests to adhere to all kinds of extra-Biblical ideas.
All in all, the book is a fascinating read up to a point because Currie shares his personal journey from Fundamentalism to Catholicism, explaining Catholic ideas and their sources along the way. However, once I saw that the very foundation of his claims was seriously flawed I lost interest in the rest of the book and have no intention of finishing it.
I would be very interested to know from devout, thoughtful Catholics if Currie's writing accurately reflects Roman Catholic teachings and reasonings.
June 26, 2012
I found this to be a good book, but of course it is because some of my thoughts were validated. I recently was baptized Catholic, so I may be biased. One can hardly take another's word for it when it comes to right and wrong in religion, so this was more of a stepping stone for me to really look at scripture, the Church, myself, and to pray. I was not looking for something so that I can say "aha!" to my Protestant friends, because I don't think that is a good representation of what I believe in, but it was refreshing to know that there are answers out there to those scary questions that do get asked. The questions that attack your faith (which I can't imagine doing to someone myself). It was a good supplemental read while attending the RCIA sessions.
March 25, 2008
This book really changed my faith life. I learned so much from it about what Catholics believe and why that I was a completely different type of Catholic after reading it. I gave this book to my cousin when I sponsored her for confirmation, and I've shared it with and recommended it to so many friends/family.
I would highly recommend this book to anyone with an interest in, questions or doubts about the Catholic faith, or any Catholic who wants to affirm, renew, or strengthen their faith.
I would highly recommend this book to anyone with an interest in, questions or doubts about the Catholic faith, or any Catholic who wants to affirm, renew, or strengthen their faith.
March 15, 2012
This was a very down-to-earth book narrating the author's path to Catholicism. I love reading people's stories. Currie uses his conversion story as a tool to both help people understand his story and to aid readers in learning about Catholicism. He gives a very fair assessment of Evangelicalism and its shortfalls. He addresses the main doctrines that separate Protestants and Catholics, and he also points out and explains some of the main obstacles that help support biases Protestants often have against the Catholic Church. His message and information is simple, easy to read and a wonderful introduction to Catholicism for the Protestant (or Catholic) investigating and searching for the one, holy, catholic and apostolic church. This was well worth the read, and I recommend it to all Christians looking for the Church Christ founded. Whether this book points you towards the Catholic Church or confirms your place in Protestantism (though i doubt it will), its worth your time.
March 4, 2012
I find David Currie's description of his switch from Fundamentalism to Catholicism compelling, because I had much the same journey. I understand his history, and I understand his arguments. The book is very well organized; for example, he discusses Scriptural Authority, then Authority in general, and finally Authority focused in the Church hierarchy. The arguments build on each other, creating a compelling case. In the later chapters he spend time on the incarnation and premillenial theology, two areas which are problematic for Fundamentalists: the incarnation, because of the scriptural focus on the Virgin Mary, which seems Catholic; and premillenialism, because it alters the way you look at the Church.
May 24, 2012
Quite possibly the best of the "Protestant-to-Catholic conversion stories" out there. Very accessible. Presents all the typcial obstacles and walks the reader through his process of overcoming them. It's been awhile since I read it, but I remember relating to him a lot better than some of the other authors of this type of book.
May 2, 2008
I read this book during my own [still occuring] conversion process. This book is instrumental in understanding the most popularly controversial doctrines of the Catholic Church from the perspective of a man who spent his adult life preaching against them.
August 21, 2012
David Currie explains Catholic doctrine in language that this (former) evangelical could understand. Highly recommended.
July 7, 2021
3.5 stars.
I have the abridged version, which is probably why I didn’t love this as much as I otherwise would have due to some simplifications. I still really enjoyed it, though!
It gives a great basic breakdown of the Catholic faith from the perspective of an ex-Evangelical Protestant convert. He also made some points I’d never actually heard before, which is always awesome when you read quite a lot of conversion story sorts of books! :)
I have the abridged version, which is probably why I didn’t love this as much as I otherwise would have due to some simplifications. I still really enjoyed it, though!
It gives a great basic breakdown of the Catholic faith from the perspective of an ex-Evangelical Protestant convert. He also made some points I’d never actually heard before, which is always awesome when you read quite a lot of conversion story sorts of books! :)
May 28, 2012
This was an interesting read. I've been on a soul-searching journey between remaining a Catholic or switching to another denomination because of Catholicism's harsh treatment of divorcées, particularly those who remarry. Because of this, I haven't been to church in many years though I desperately want to return. I don't have a problem with God's teachings, but the church's insistence of digging up my 10 year-old dirty laundry with my ex (and paying fees to do so!) which is bound to cause major distress in my life, right now, for the process of annulment has me living my faith quietly away from a congregation. It's not going to be an easy situation to resolve and part of me is deeply resentful of I guess what I was looking for was a reassurance that Catholicism is the right path, but this wasn't the right book for Catholic affirmation of faith.
This book was very obviously written from the point of view of a reformed Protestant and honestly, the conversation became over-my-head when discussing some areas of Protestant faith that I don't know much about. Maybe a great read if you are a Protestant thinking about conversion, and a very technical one at that, who wants to dissect faith and build a hypothesis. It's not a light read and tedious in areas, not to mention I think some of the descriptions of Catholicism were off the mark and I wish I had gone through and highlighted the arguable points. Overall, it was okay...though I have the feeling it's going to be way over the head of many lay Catholics.
This book was very obviously written from the point of view of a reformed Protestant and honestly, the conversation became over-my-head when discussing some areas of Protestant faith that I don't know much about. Maybe a great read if you are a Protestant thinking about conversion, and a very technical one at that, who wants to dissect faith and build a hypothesis. It's not a light read and tedious in areas, not to mention I think some of the descriptions of Catholicism were off the mark and I wish I had gone through and highlighted the arguable points. Overall, it was okay...though I have the feeling it's going to be way over the head of many lay Catholics.
March 5, 2008
very fascinating - new respect for the Catholic Religion
January 5, 2011
At the time I felt it wasn't terribly well written (probably because I was so captivated by Thomas Howard's writing style) yet it was very satisfying and encouraging.
June 18, 2013
Excellent book! Send it as a gift to every fundamentalist you know! :)
October 26, 2017
When our brothers coming back to the full communion of the Catholic Church they are bringing a hand full of gifts for us. I wonder the struggle they went through the journey to find the pearls in the Catholic Church. David B. Currie made an extensive study on the Catholic doctrines and shared it with us. This book made a nice study on the different topics as Scott Hahn, Stephen Ray and many others did in their stories. It is great help for me to find the real values which I am living everyday. I am living it for last 28 years without understanding the real values of many of the customs, practices and beliefs. The different chapters Currie had explored the beauty of Catholicism. It is a helpful guide to many more Christians to find out the real meaning what they are believing.
April 29, 2012
what a great personal struggle david takes you through as he discovers the Catholic Church in a down to earth manner. he gives a fair assessment of Evangelicalism and its shortfalls. he addresses the main doctrines that separate Protestants and Catholics, and he also points out and explains some of the main obstacles that help support biases Protestants often have against the Catholic Church. His message and information is simple, easy to read and a wonderful introduction to Catholicism for the Protestant (or Catholic) investigating and searching for the one, holy, catholic and apostolic church. This was well worth the read, and I recommend it to all Christians, its worth your time.
July 15, 2013
Well written narrative but not compelling to me. He uses the usual arguments of the Roman Catholic apologists that I do not find compelling; nothing new or original here. He starts with the views that the Roman Catholic feels have the strongest Scriptural support and then gradually moves to those with the least Scriptural support (e.g. dogmas on Mary).
He presents a straw man view of evangelicalism. His experience seems to have been in the generic non-denominational movement or non-Reformed Baptist movement and offers a very flat view of those. He offers no comparison of Reformed Theology with Roman Catholicism which I think is a huge gap in the book.
He presents a straw man view of evangelicalism. His experience seems to have been in the generic non-denominational movement or non-Reformed Baptist movement and offers a very flat view of those. He offers no comparison of Reformed Theology with Roman Catholicism which I think is a huge gap in the book.
January 15, 2015
Different from the conversion story of Rome Sweet Home in that this went into more of the common arguments that Protestants have with Catholicism and it tried to provide defenses. He does a very good job on some points but others he didn't present arguments which convinced me to change my opinion. I don't have the book in front of me to remember which I had problems understanding, but I think it was penance, tradition and Mary. His quick summary of purgatory was decent though or it at least answered some of my questions.
July 10, 2011
This book was a bit of a letdown. On the positive side the Author articulated his unanswered questions in fundamentalism and explains Catholic theology in evangelical terms. The negative side is that his arguments are not all that strong and fail to convince. I have had conversations with Catholic seminarians where Catholic theology was defended much more skillfully. I felt his argument for Eucharist to be the strongest, and yet not convincing. Beyond that, the author’s arguments hinge on the acceptance of the invalidity of sola scriptura.
October 17, 2016
This is the conversion story of a man named David Currie, a loving husband and father to 7 children. He says, “This is the story of my inner burning for a closer relationship with Christ -and of where the Truth led me.” He writes with a heart full of humility, patience, and charity for his Evangelical brothers and sisters. I absolutely loved this book, and recommend it to anyone interested in exploring the Catholic Church and what it teaches.
You can read my conversion story here: www.teawithabbey.com/Grace
You can read my conversion story here: www.teawithabbey.com/Grace
April 10, 2013
This book was very insightful on the Doctrine of the Catholic Church. Despite the many criticisms leveled at it by secular and fundamentalist organizations, the Church stands with integrity on many dogmatic issues. It offered many apologetic arguments from David Currie who at first criticized Catholicism, and is now a fervent defender of the Faith (sounds similar to a famous Christian. This book really supported my faith after some Evangelist proselytizing.
May 18, 2013
This is the most persuasive argument I've encountered in support of the Catholic religion over Protestantism. Its effectiveness is probably due in part to the similarities between the author's background and my own. Although this book hasn't completely convinced me, it has convinced me there are some strong arguments worthy of consideration. Equally so, I see strong reasons against some of the evangelical perspective.
December 29, 2008
A key factor in Currie's move/conversion (?) to the Catholic Church was his view of the Host/Eucharist/components of the Lord's Supper. His description of his early life as a Christian were interesting. I found it hard to understand his motivation to convert to Catholicism, outside of the significance of the Host.
July 13, 2012
The story of how a man on track to be a fundamentalist preacher became a Catholic apologist. His criticisms of fundamentalism are at times sharp, but he does do justice to the failure in doctrine of the many fundamentalist faiths. A great read if you are on the brink of joining, or lapsing out of Catholicism.
October 1, 2012
Currie is very personable and works through some important issues facing inquires to Catholic thought. Currie being from a Baptist/Fundamentalist background is great for working through issues of concern for those traditions, but great for anybody to read. He reveals a lot of the things he struggled through while coming into full communion with the Church.
March 26, 2013
I read this because Dale asked me to. Currie was raised and educated Evangelical Free; attended Trinity International University and went on to Trinity Evangelical Theological seminary , Only to become convinced he needed to be a Roman Catholic ....he had a wife and kids, all of whom do convert to the RCC
June 10, 2016
I know this book looks intimidating. But it wasn't a tough read. Very informative and intresting. And also inspiring as we witness the author's testimony about coming home. Though it wasn't much of a testimony as much as it was a comparison of beliefs between fundamental Protestantism and Catholicism. Leading to why Catholic theology and dogmas made more biblical sense to the author.
June 5, 2008
both the personal journey of the author (from fundamentalist christian to catholic) and the arguments he presents for catholicism in this book intrigued me. i have been drawn to catholic spirituality in the last 4 years and it gave me a lot of food for thought.
August 20, 2008
Buku yang menarik
a] bagi umat Katolik : sarana belajar kembali ttg iman Katolik
b] bagi umat gereja reformasi : sarana memahami iman katolik
konteks : amerika
tetapi tidak mengganggu pembaca di Indonesia
a] bagi umat Katolik : sarana belajar kembali ttg iman Katolik
b] bagi umat gereja reformasi : sarana memahami iman katolik
konteks : amerika
tetapi tidak mengganggu pembaca di Indonesia
Displaying 1 - 30 of 88 reviews