Tuesday, May 02, 2017

Novel: The Devil Hates Latin

I've just read a new novel, a first novel, with a Catholic theme: 'The Devil Hates Latin' by Katharine Galgano. It is being published by Regina Magazine. It is really more of a thriller than anything else, involving both the corruption and the graces which characterise the Church of today, and of all ages.

You can buy it here (UK) and here (USA).

Something we need to try to keep hold of today is the interplay in the Church, and in the world as a whole, of really terrible bad things, and the action of God. I think Catholics can handle this better than Protestants, as long as we manage to escape the historically Protestant idea that the Church is or should be the community only of the saved. Of course the Church contains sinners, chancers, the ambitious and the corrupt, and some of these will attach themselves to positions of prestige in the Church because they like the idea of the prestige and the money and influence that it might bring. The Church also contains the lukewarm, and people who have made all sorts of compromises without ever saying to themselves that they no longer believe.

Into this endlessly complicated situation the Devil seeks to bring souls to Hell, and God works his grace, especially through the sacraments. It is a battle fought by all of us, day by day, Mass by Mass, confession by confession, temptation by temptation. Galgano presents this in a highly dramatised form, which is hugely fun to read, but also also says something fundamentally true about the fallen human condition, with some pithy insights into culture, politics, and the Church.

You can buy it here (UK) and here (USA).

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5 comments:

  1. Excellent Review, Chairman.

    Plus, some erudite observations and comments on the situation, today, regarding The Church and The World.

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  2. It’s an entertaining book – very much a roman รก clef (one spends a fair amount of time deciding which current or recently defunct ecclesiastical personality the various baddies represent) – but light-weight.

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  3. Sue Sims, that was sort of my reaction.It's not Michael O'Brien, it's not the next great novel, but it kept me up for an hour last night. There were parts that reminded me of an Indiana Jones movie. The beginning and the ending seemed liked the weakest parts of the book. It deals with serious problems, and identifies the spiritual component in them, but I'm not sure it doesn't gloss over the recovery period.I ended the book not sure whether I liked it or not. I guess I liked it like I used to like a Nancy Drew mystery. It wasn't quite up to Rider Haggard or Helen McInnes standards (although it felt a bit like that sort of story, and I actually think that William Biersach's Father John Baptist books are better written. On the other hand it explores some serious contemporary issues and it does make one wonder whether nefarious stuff really could be going on.

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  4. Does anyone know how I might contact Katharine Galgano to forward my list of corrigenda? There are a fair number of errors in the Latin and in the Italian.
    It was a page-turner, but I'd rather turn the page without being irritated by misspellings :/

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  5. I agree is light but entertaining, the topics that are mentioned in this novel are heavy stuff, a d they are contemporary, part of our reality. Sometimes during the reading it seems that I'm reading the news, all we Catholics and non Catholics are exposed to broken and grin world but the difference it's that Catholics have joy and hope and see the good things, or at least that should be the attitude, otherwise we become good publicity for evildoers that want us to make us believe that God doesn't exist, the faith keep us all grounded and with hope, we can counter the bad things if we can recognise them first, we need to speak out and help who are around us to find purpose, to look for the good in everything and fight temptations, and we are weak if we are alone but if we trust God and pray he will give us an strength that is out of this world, i had seen this many times, it works, addictions can be defeated, redemption is around the corner, people can come around it doesn't matter how much deep they are in immoral behaviours that they are just destroying souls and bringing unhappiness when we actually need to rise to the occasion, understand that we are sacred beings created to the image of God and we must act accordingly. This book is a positive book not alike Angels and Demons where everything is a conspiracy but there isn't a resolution, in this book you are reminded that we fight back evil with good, doing the right things, choosing the right path and helping others with patience and compassion to have a life accordingly to God wishes that always have our best interest at heart, because he knows us intimately, and love us. He also told us "ask and it will be given to you", "look first God and all the others things will come to you effortless", "who has God has everything and lack nothing".

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