Faith of Our Fathers ~ A Book Review

The Faith of Our Fathers

Being a Plain Exposition and Vindication of the Church 

Founded by Our Lord 

Jesus Christ

 By James Cardinal Gibbons

Archbishop of Baltimore

Written in 1876, Faith of Our Fathers is clearly a well-loved classic. Our library has multiple copies from different editions it is so popular in our home, including in eBook format, which is from the ninety-third edition. If it were not for this book landing in our hands, I do not know if my husband or I would be Catholic today. In this book he explains the Catholic Church, its teachings and where they come from in clear, easy to understand language that to this day answers most questions that people would have concerning the Church. In thirty-one chapters he covers so much information in a way that it easily stays with you and challenges your personal convictions to either conform or figure out a solid basis for what you believe.

He is organized, and develops his thoughts well in each chapter which leads directly into the next in such a way that it is difficult to sum up what it is that he had to say without mentioning it all. Needless to say, it is a must read in my opinion for all in Christianity and would do much for the unity of Protestants and Catholics if all were clearly understood as to what the Catholic Church actually is instead of what it is seen to be. To quote Venerable Fulton Sheen:

The chapters begin with four prefaces and an Introduction, having so many editions makes for so many notes- however they are all worthwhile reads. I have to admit that I skipped over them the first time I read the book, I wanted to get right into the meat and potatoes of the book, and that’s exactly what I was rewarded with. The first chapter is one of the most difficult things to understand about Christianity, and that is the concept of the Trinity. This gentleman did not mess around, just dove right in. From the unity found in the Trinity he goes into chapter two on the unity of the church and continues in such a fashion to show where the church comes from, why we can trust and believe her and those in power, the saints, the virgin Mary, sacred art, purgatory, the acts in which the Church has fallen and risen to defend freedom and her people, grace, and each of the sacraments ending in the sacrament of marriage.

If you are looking for a beautifully and powerful book that gives you the solid basis of the Catholic Church from scripture to logic, this is a great book to look into- especially if you are from a protestant background. The beauty of this book is that although it is presented in facts, its purpose is to promote unity. Yes, many have found that this was a starting point they can look back and say, this is when I decided to look into or even join the Catholic Church, but unity for Christian’s is the main theme, and this I love as a former protestant who seeks unity between the pews.

If you would like to read this book, it can be found currently for free as an eBook if you follow this link.