Gerald O’Collins’ Catholicism: A Very Short Introduction shares the virtues of this expansive series. In a brief 100(ish) pages, the reader is introduced to the 2,000 year history of the Roman Catholic church. His writing is concise and terse, just as you would expect with the space constraints.

O’Collins is a renowned Roman Catholic Theologian, with sixty-seven books to his name including many other published by Oxford University press. Despite his theological acumen, there are some notable lapses in this book. For example, he seems to think that liturgical reform—setting the mass in common language—will be a key to revitalizing the church. This seems naive at best.

Another lapse regards his discussion of Pius XII and popular sentiment that he didn’t do enough to stand up for Jewish suffering during the Holocaust. O’Collins simply mentions that by contrast, numerous writers have praised Pius XII for what he did to save Jews. Rather than making an informed historical decision on the matter, O’Collins deflects, writing that he hasn’t “done the historical research necessarily to adjudicate the debate competently” (43) while further indicating that he leans toward defending the Pope. One would expect the author of Catholicism: The Story of Catholic Christianity, now in its second edition, to be able to make an informed decision on the matter.

Qualms aside, this slim volume is still an excellent introduction to the church that over 1.3 billion people call home.

O’Collins, Gerald. Catholicism: A Very Short Introduction. 2nd ed. Oxford UP, 2017. Very Short Introductions 198.