Discover There We Stood, Here We Stand: 11 Lutherans Rediscover Their Catholic Roots Assembled By Tim Drake Published As Paper Edition

read this because a Lutheran friend is considering converting to Catholicism, and this is one of the many books hes read that has had an affect on him.
Ill start this review by saying that I dont have anything against Catholics, I know lots of swell people who are Catholic, and Ive read other books written by Catholics that I really liked, like The Jesuit Guide to Almost Everything, by Father James Martin.
That was aStar read and a source of much food for thought,
This one made me testy,
Most of the testimonials in this book were written by people who thought the Lutheran Church isnt conservative enough or that it has too many interpretations of scripture flying around.
Thats an oversimplification, because they listed many things that led to their conversions, but I think its fair to say it was a common thread.
I thought the tone was divisive, exclusive, and sometimes a little bonkers,
The one I thought was the most reasonable was a wellwritten piece by Todd von Kampen, who wrote more about discovering what Lutherans and Catholics have in common, although ultimately he still chose to convert to Catholicism.

Most of the testimonials spoke of the Catholic Church as the only true church, Some of them had been Lutheran pastors who pretty much negated their original call by converting, especially the female pastors who now arent allowed to be ordained.
I felt like they were treating their time as Lutherans as if it meant nothing, or nothing beyond being a stepping stone to Catholicism.
One of them referenced Louis Bouyers suggestion in Spirit and Forms of the Protestantism, that “Lutheran worship is a shadow or imitation of Roman Catholic worshipbeautiful perhaps, but without substance.
”
Wow.
With all the divisiveness in the testimonials, it surprised me that the Joint Declaration on the Doctrine of Justification, written by the Lutheran World Federation and the Catholic Church, was included in the appendices, since that was written in the spirit of finding common ground.
This document was something Id never heard of, and as I read through it, I really couldnt see vitally important differences in interpretation of justification.
One of the reasons I rated thisinstead ofwas that I learned some things I didnt know before, like the existence of this effort toward agreement and unity.

People change their minds about stuff, and thats fine, Thats life. I certainly dont think the same way I did as a teenager or young adult, So the path each of these people took is their story and their choice, and I dont disrespect that, But I do resent their adamant assertion that everyone else is wrong, That just makes me want to run as far away as I can get, Nearlyyears ago, Martin Luther broke with the Church, In There We Stood, Here We Stand,former Lutherans talk about what brought them back, Edited by Catholic writer, Tim Drake, with a foreword by Rev, Richard John Neuhaus, these provocative testimonies reveal just how far the Lutheran church has strayed from traditional Christian teaching, Their stories address the differences between Lutheranism and Catholicism differences so profound that they have led many into the Catholic Church, You don't have to be a Lutheran to read There We Stood anybody with an interest in the Catholic faith and why people from Protestant denominations "cross the Tiber" will find this title on par with the other great apologetics books in print.




There We Stood chronicles eleven former Lutherans including a few female pastors on their spiritual journeys and how issues such as the Lutheran church's stance on abortion and how Martin Luther's original teachings differ from that of the church today affected their decisions to convert.




I enjoyed reading especially the stories of the female pastors, all of whom were fully aware that their ordinations would not transfer over to the Catholic faith as they might for a male pastor, even a married one.
To read how they decided Christ in His Church was more important was truly inspiring, and they prove that women do have an important place in the Church, serving through various other ministries.




All in all There We Stood is a wellwritten collection of essays and a wonderful testimony for the Catholic faith.
It's been said the Church's greatest promoters are converts, and this book proves that theory, Tim Drake currently serves as executive director of Pacem in Terris Hermitage Retreat Center, He is an award winning journalist and author, He spentyears as journalist and editor with the National Catholic Register, His articles have appeared in publications such as Faith and Family magazine, Catholic Digest, Our Sunday Visitor, Catholic World Report, Catholic Exchange, com, Columbia Magazine, Gilbert! Magazine, This Rock Magazine, Legatus magazine, and many others, Tim has been a guest on both television and radio, He has appeared on FOX News, Vatican Radio, Sirius/XM Radio, EWTN, and Relevant Radio, Tim has published seven books his most recent being the childrens illustrated story, The Attic Saint, Emmaus Road Publishing,Tim Drake currently serves as executive director of Pacem in Terris Hermitage Retreat Center.
He is an award winning journalist and author, He spentyears as journalist and editor with the National Catholic Register, His articles have appeared in publications such as Faith and Family magazine, Catholic Digest, Our Sunday Visitor, Catholic World Report, Catholic Exchange, com, Columbia Magazine, Gilbert! Magazine, This Rock Magazine, Legatus magazine, and many others, Tim has been a guest on both television and radio, He has appeared on FOX News, Vatican Radio, Sirius/XM Radio, EWTN, and Relevant Radio, Tim has published seven books his most recent being the children's illustrated story, "The Attic Saint", Emmaus Road Publishing,and has contributed to

several others.
He resides in Saint Joseph, Minnesota, sitelink.