Ryan, Michelle

English

Loyola Marymount University

Catholic Education: A Journal of Inquiryand PracticeVolume 10 | Issue 1 Article 99-1-2006Mapping the Catholic Cultural Landscape, editedby Richard Fossey & Paula Jean MillerMichelle RyanFollow this and additional works at: https://digitalcommons.lmu.edu/ceThis Book Review is brought to you for free with open access by the School of Education at Digital Commons at Loyola Marymount University andLoyola Law School. It has been accepted for publication in Catholic Education: A Journal of Inquiry and Practice by the journal's editorial board andhas been published on the web by an authorized administrator of Digital Commons at Loyola Marymount University and Loyola Law School. Formore information about Digital Commons, please contact digitalcommons@lmu.edu. To contact the editorial board of Catholic Education: A Journalof Inquiry and Practice, please email CatholicEdJournal@lmu.edu.Recommended CitationRyan, M. (2006). Mapping the Catholic Cultural Landscape, edited by Richard Fossey & Paula Jean Miller. Journal of Catholic Education, 10(1). http://dx.doi.org/10.15365/joce.1001092013104 Catholic Education/September 2006BOOK REVIEWSMAPPING THE CATHOLIC CULTURALLANDSCAPERICHARD FOSSEY & PAULA JEAN MILLER, EDS.ROWMAN & LITTLEFIELD, 2004$28.95, 308 pagesReviewed by Michelle RyanMapping the Catholic Cultural Landscape (Fossey & Miller, 2004) is aseries of essays compiled “to explore the inculturation of the Catholic faithwithin a global perspective” (p. xvi). The book is organized into three mainsubject areas: (a) “Literature and Art: Embodiments of the Faith”; (b)“Culture and Holiness”; and (c) “Transforming Interrelationships: CatholicFaith and Secular Society.” Each section, though modest in length, presentsan eclectic array of subjects to a startling depth. Rather than an overview ofCatholic culture, this is a sampling of the beauty of Catholic history, prac-tice, and modern theology. The intended audience is clearly a universityCatholic studies class; while the essay topics are somewhat obscure, theycould certainly produce enlightening discussion among young Catholics. Infact, it is the obscurity and variety of topics included that make this a goodchoice for any Catholic interested in thought-provoking reading. Sources for part 1, Catholicism in literature and art, range from the obvi-ous choices of Flannery O’Connor and the iconography of Santiago to someless identified with Catholicism, such as the writings of Jane Austen andWilliam Shakespeare. These writings explore elements of Catholicism fromits influence on Anglican theology in The Book of Common Prayer (Churchof England, 1976), to religious allegories in Tolkien’s (1954) novel The Lordof the Rings.Volumes have been written about the relationship between culture andholiness, but part 2 creates a sense of the common threads in the Catholicpractice of spirituality across time and place by giving a glimpse into thePolish and Spanish Marian devotions, the saints of France, and the 19th cen-tury mystic, Lucie Christine. The essence of Catholic spiritual culture is cap-tured throughout these essays, even while the practice of strong Marian devo-tion among ethnic Catholics is examined under the light of papal admonitionthat “Marian veneration should clearly express her Trinitarian andCatholic Education: A Journal of Inquiry and Practice, Vol. 10, No. 1, September 2006, 104-128 © 2006 Catholic Education: A Journal of Inquiry and PracticeChristological connections” (Fossey & Miller, 2004, p. 111).Any discussion about faith and secular society will raise questions thatare not only difficult to answer but also somewhat painful to ponder. In part3, these difficult questions are raised. In examining the opposition to vouch-ers for sectarian schools, Fossey wonders if anti-Catholicism is at the heartof the matter. The fact that members of the fashion industry have chosen toridicule Catholicism shows both the disrespect directed toward Catholic val-ues and the important place Catholicism holds in popular culture to beregarded enough to be mocked. While there is no single right answer to thequestions raised about Catholicism and secularism, the opportunity to deep-en faith lies within the dissonance between the two.The topics of the individual essays vary widely and represent the univer-sality of the Catholic faith in breadth of subject alone. While touching on manyareas close to the hearts of Catholics, the book neither attempts to address eachtopic comprehensively nor to represent completely the diverse ethnic cultureswithin the faith, but rather to provide an exploration into Catholic studies.Mapping the Catholic Cultural Landscape successfully completes that task,while creating in the reader a piqued interest not only in one’s own culture, butin Catholic inculturation throughout the world. Discussion of the various facetsof the Catholic faith as it affects culture, and culture as it affects faith, leads toa deeper understanding of personal spirituality while lending itself to a questfor further knowledge. Our faith is best expressed in the community of ourworld and in the daily tasks to which God leads us.REFERENCESChurch of England. (1976). The book of common prayer, 1559: The Elizabethan prayer book (J. E.Booty, Ed.). Charlottesville: University of Virginia Press. Fossey, R., & Miller, P. J. (Eds.). (2004). Mapping the Catholic cultural landscape. Lanham, MD:Rowman & Littlefield.Tolkien, J. R. R. (1954). The lord of the rings. Boston: Houghton Mifflin.Michelle Ryan is a middle school teacher at St. Theresa Catholic School in Ashburn, VA.BOOK REVIEWS 105

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