From Publishers Weekly Johnson's title may lead readers to expect a volume that explains Catholicism's unique rites， symbols and beliefs to believers of other traditions. Not so. The book is， instead， an apologia for many Catholic traditions-the denial of ordinations to women， a celibate clergy， etc.-and addresses the reform issues that currently fracture the Catholic Church. Protestants， in fact， may be offended by Johnson's frequent reference to them as "separated Christians，" a pre-Vatican II term that implies that Catholicism bears no responsibility for Christian disunity. Johnson offers lucid-and downright chatty-explanations of a dizzying array of customs and beliefs， ably demonstrating why diocesan newspapers across the country have picked up his column， "Sign of Faith." This volume will likely appeal most to those same readers. Copyright 1994 Reed Business Information， Inc. From Library Journal Art historian Johnson here spews out numerous facts and even more numerous-and suspect-opinions on Catholic faith， worship， culture， and customs. Unfortunately， he either over- or underexplains his information， shifting between the interests of Catholics and curious non-Catholics and satisfying neither. Even marginally informed readers will feel compelled to question his sweeping generalizations. On style of worship， for example: If you come from Italy， Ireland， or Spain， you prefer the visual; from England， northern Germany， or Scandinavia， you prefer words and music. On priestly celibacy: "There's never been much call to allow priests of the Latin Rite to marry." Equally irritating are countless non sequiturs， sloppy editing， and an idiosyncratic bibliography in which a German text is recommended with the qualifier "Only kidding." Misleading， contradictory， inappropriately irreverent， and not recommended.Nancy M. Laskowski， MHC Correctional Facility Lib.， Jessup， Md.Copyright 1994 Reed Business Information， Inc. See all Editorial Reviews