cover image A FAITH INTERRUPTED: An Honest Conversation with Alienated Catholics

A FAITH INTERRUPTED: An Honest Conversation with Alienated Catholics

Alice L. Camille, Joel Schorn, . . Loyola, $12.95 (175pp) ISBN 978-0-8294-1682-4

As two writers who have worked in the parish-based program known as the Rite of Christian Initiation for Adults (RCIA), Camille and Schorn are accustomed to dealing with people who want to become Catholic. In this book, they reach out to those who were baptized in the faith, but no longer practice it. They begin with an overview of why Catholics leave the church and then attempt to provide reasons to return. After asking disaffected Catholics to think about what they want from the church, they offer ways to find it through the right parish and a deepened spiritual life. As they seek to engage the estimated 17 million alienated American Catholics who now describe themselves as ex, lapsed, former, nonpracticing, retired or recovering, Camille and Schorn take a careful, thoughtful, nonjudgmental approach that employs humor and extends the olive branch of understanding. They also attempt to correct misconceptions, such as those concerning church marriage regulations and the annulment process. If the book has a weakness, it is in the resources appendix, which seems remarkably thin given the wealth of resources available in an exploding Catholic media market today. In general, however, this guide should interest not only disaffected Catholics but also church pastoral staff members interested in outreach to alienated members. (Oct.)