Letters to a Young Catholic: The Art of Mentoring

Author: George Weigel
Genre: Religious Nonfiction

Mr. Weigel is the author of the Pope John Paul II biography, "Witness to Hope", which I read, and deeply enjoyed, in 2001.

"Letters to a Young Catholic" is an interesting read, but I don't agree with everything Mr. Weigel has to say. The structure of the book is unique, consisting of chapters that are designed as "letters" about Catholic sites around the world. The sites are tied into an aspect of Catholic thought that Weigel wants to communicate about. For example, the Chartres Cathedral in France is used as an anchor to discuss Weigel's Catholic interpretation of the concept of beauty.

The chapter I most enjoyed reading was the one focused on the vocation calling of Pope John Paul II. The chapter I most disagreed with, at least on the surface, was the chapter criticizing "liberal" religion, using England's Cardinal Newman as it's "anchor."

Much of the book is about hope, love, wonder and the mystery of Christ. These subjects, and Weigel's presentation of them, appeal to me. It is the moral polemics that border on the political that turn me off. Weigel is unapologetic about his views, which I admire. I just don't agree with him one hundred percent. I was particularly confused by his logic that freedom should be linked to moral choices. He lambasts the American value of doing it "my way." Undoubtably, freedom can lead to selfishness. I am not defending selfishness. However, Weigel's assertion that freedom means choosing correctly, as opposed to simply having the ability to choose, contradicts his earlier writing that explains "free will" as a God given right that inevitably has a byproduct of sin. In other words, I believe, God wants us to choose correctly, but gives us the freedom to choose incorrectly. Freedom, in and of itself, is simply the ability that we have to choose. Perhaps I am reading too much into Weigel's analysis. His point seems to be that American democracy suffers when freedom is abused. I do not disagree. He also criticizes certain Supreme Court decisions. Of course, I do too. However, I don't think wrong choices and secular policies make for a lack of freedom. At most, it is freedom used inappropriately.