Essentials of the Faith, Updated: A Guide to the Catechism

By Alfred McBride

Book Overview

Essentials of the Faith brings the timeless teachings of the Catechism of the Catholic Church into your life today. Reflections, prayers, and daily actions in this book will help you to understand and live the Faith more fully. Fr. McBride understands that being a Christian means not just knowing, but also doing.

Accessible and topical, this book is for anyone who wants to understand the Catechism better -- and for anyone who wants to live a truly Christian life.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 193170953X
• ISBN13: 9781931709538
• Release Date: May 2002
• Publisher: Our Sunday Visitor
• Length: 358 Pages
• Weight: 0.74 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.5" x 6.0" x 9.2"

Customer Reviews

An Invaluable Resource of Substence for RCIA

We have been using this text for 3 years in RCIA to replace a program with little hard core catechetics in it. Both the team and the inquirers are well pleased with it. It should be used with a bible and The Catechism of the Catholic Church.

Good Catholic Apologetics

At some point this book will probable decrease as a reference for those in vocations that are studying and speaking re Catholic Apologetics -- because of the "official" 1992-95 Post Vatican II Catechism of Catholic Church (C.C.C.)

Marvelous

In fifty-five, two-page chapters, Fr. McBride breaks open and explains the much longer Catechism of the Catholic Church. Each chapter includes an opening narrative, a Q & A with responses excerpted from the Catechism, a prayer, a glossary of words and terms, and a personal reflection. It's a marvelous resource, with crisp writing and orthodox explanations. Fr. McBride also provides a brief history of catechesis that examines the failure of methods preached by catechetical elites for the past forty years. Anyone stuck in a vacuous "let's sit in a circle and talk about the Sunday readings" RCIA program, i.e., the RCIA program of a typical American parish, should treat this book as a godsend.

Easy-to-read summary of the beliefs of the Catholic Church

The Catechism of the Catholic Church is an extremely popular reference for Catholics and others interested in the Catholic Church. However, it can be a difficult read, given that it changes voices all the time--quoting from Scripture, writings of the saints, Church documents, etc. In this case, these strengths can be a weakness to readers unfamiliar with reading Church documents. Father McBride provides a guide to the Catechism, complete with cross-references. He has an easy-to-read style that is accessible to all readers. His chapters are short and succinct. They are divided into useful sections: glossary, summary questions, reflection, etc. A good investment for anyone who would like to understand the Catholic faith.