Member Review
Review by
Geoffrey S, Librarian
Presently it feels more than ever that those who and call upon attention to their Christianity the loudest and most aggressively are also intense devotees of policies and politicians that are intensely far cries from core tenants like “love thy neighbor.” As a result, reading through “Priests de la Resistance” honestly felt like taking a big breath of fresh air.
Although this work about various devout figures includes several actual saints, this is no glossy hagiography. Butler-Gaille's mini-biographies are not only detailed but honest, and take care to highlight the assorted quirks, eccentricities and vulnerabilities that made them no less human than either their friends or all too numerous enemies. In turn their words and acts of resistance, captured by top-notch writing that is at times both witty and biting, are illuminated as all the more stunningly courageous.
Besides going above and beyond what was anticipated, “Priests de La Resistance” also provided quite the welcome surprise. Despite what the title and description can make one thing, this book proved to be more than a narrow collection of men of the collar. The fifteen figures covered here are an unexpectedly and wonderfully varied mix of women and men from the Catholic, Protestant and Orthodox traditions who believed that the sole option that their sincere faith gave them was to stand up for the oppressed and hunted in any way that they could, even if it meant the cost of their own lives. And instead of being solely limited to figures who faced the textbook-definition facist forces of WWII, Butler-Gaille takes care to cover several Americans from the Civil Rights Movement who worked against the forces of Jim Crow and racial hatred, a deliberate choice that probably is of quite particular comfort to US readers feeling dispirited in this day and age. Granted, the subjects are all members of the same Christian faith, generally speaking, but still they are a far more diverse lot that what was expected, giving a rich array of figures to draw strength from.
To sum up what has already been made quite clear since the start of this review, Reverend Butler-Gaille has written a fantastic work that is perfect for a day and age where hate-spewing strongmen and their followers are on the rise once again. If the lapsed Catholic writing these enthusiastic lines is any indicator, people of all levels of religiosity should be able to draw inspiration from this most-admirable assortment of faith-filled fighting men and women.
Although this work about various devout figures includes several actual saints, this is no glossy hagiography. Butler-Gaille's mini-biographies are not only detailed but honest, and take care to highlight the assorted quirks, eccentricities and vulnerabilities that made them no less human than either their friends or all too numerous enemies. In turn their words and acts of resistance, captured by top-notch writing that is at times both witty and biting, are illuminated as all the more stunningly courageous.
Besides going above and beyond what was anticipated, “Priests de La Resistance” also provided quite the welcome surprise. Despite what the title and description can make one thing, this book proved to be more than a narrow collection of men of the collar. The fifteen figures covered here are an unexpectedly and wonderfully varied mix of women and men from the Catholic, Protestant and Orthodox traditions who believed that the sole option that their sincere faith gave them was to stand up for the oppressed and hunted in any way that they could, even if it meant the cost of their own lives. And instead of being solely limited to figures who faced the textbook-definition facist forces of WWII, Butler-Gaille takes care to cover several Americans from the Civil Rights Movement who worked against the forces of Jim Crow and racial hatred, a deliberate choice that probably is of quite particular comfort to US readers feeling dispirited in this day and age. Granted, the subjects are all members of the same Christian faith, generally speaking, but still they are a far more diverse lot that what was expected, giving a rich array of figures to draw strength from.
To sum up what has already been made quite clear since the start of this review, Reverend Butler-Gaille has written a fantastic work that is perfect for a day and age where hate-spewing strongmen and their followers are on the rise once again. If the lapsed Catholic writing these enthusiastic lines is any indicator, people of all levels of religiosity should be able to draw inspiration from this most-admirable assortment of faith-filled fighting men and women.
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