Pre-Owned Catholicism Today: An Introduction to the Contemporary Catholic Church (Paperback) 0415719437 9780415719438

This book intends to familiarize its readers with Catholicism and Catholics. An attempt has been made, in this book's structure as well as in the topics covered, to provide answers to questions which, in the author's experience, are quite common when the subject of the Catholic Church is raised. After an extremely concise historical overview of Christianity in general and Catholicism in particular, the book explores what being Catholic might mean, the core beliefs of Catholics, the way the Church is organized, the variety of Catholic rituals, and the Catholic calendar. It ends with a discussion of the challenges the Church faces now, and will face in the coming decades.