The book under review provides a thick historical narrative for Europe and India, and a thin narrative for other continents with reference to Christianisation, de-Christianisation and the struggling Church. The book has four parts: 1) from the beginning up to 800 AD; 2) the Middle Ages up to 1350; 3) the New Age up to1622 and ,4) in two parts: a) the Age of Enlightenment up to 1815 and b) from the Congress of Vienna to the Second Vatican Council, up to 1965.
While the book tends to cover the history of Christianity in all the continents, Europe has been given more attention. The Americas, Africa and Australia get passing attention. A special feature of this book is the history of the Church in India which is fairly detailed and has been fitted into the periodisation mentioned earlier.
This book is reader friendly and written in an easy prose style. Another feature is that the role that the Saints played in the Church in different contexts is very insightful and does not limit it to a simple hagiography. So also the role played by different Religious Orders is very significant in different historical contexts.
Having said the above, one must commend that this brief history by Fr. Garriz is a useful tool for Christians to know their own heritage, the ups and downs, and struggles of the global Church. I am sure this capsule history of the Catholic Church will be read by religious and lay people alike. Not reading history we are bound to commit the same mistakes.
- Title: A Breif History of the Catholic Church
- Author: Garriz M. Diaz, SJ
- Publisher: Gujarat Sahitya Prakash, Anand
- PAGES: 519
- PRICE: Rs 500
