Wills turns outward from his personal experiences to present a sweeping narrative covering two thousand years of church history, revealing that the papacy, far from being an unchanging institution, has been transformed dramatically over the millennia -- and can be reimagined in the future. At a time when the church faces one of its most difficult crises, Garry Wills offers an important and compelling entrée into the discussion of the church's past -- and its future.
Intellectually brisk and spiritually moving, Why I Am a Catholic poses urgent questions for Catholic and non-Catholic readers alike.

I read this book after a significant loss and was hoping it would help resolve my anger. Clearly, I was not in a state of mind to select appropriately. The book reads like a text book; heavy thinking & nothing for a casual reader. The author is all about himself at the start. The chapters then progress to some interesting history which I knew I would never keep straight. The latter half of the book is good to have as a resource yet I doubt I would read it cover to cover again. ( )

I didn't quite make it through this one. I skipped around and read what I felt was relevant. It is a little too dense for my taste. ( )

Wills begins with a reflection on his early experience of faith as a child, and later as a Jesuit seminarian, revealing the importance of Catholicism in his own life. He goes on to challenge, in clear and forceful terms, the dogmatic claim that criticism or reform of the papacy is an assault on the faith itself. In a sweeping narrative covering two thousand years of church history, he reveals that the papacy, far from being an unchanging institution, has been transformed dramatically over the millennia and can be reimagined in the future. Wills ends with a meditation on the significance of the creed, the timeless core of the Catholic faith, which endures even as the institution of the church changes.
Posing urgent questions for Catholic and non-Catholic readers alike, Why I Am a Catholic argues for the continuing relevance of a papacy understood as a symbol of unity, not of infallibility.

I wished the author would've spent less time talking about his academic life & work & given more of his take on the current issues dividing the church. While it's a nicely written book, I would have liked more analysis as opposed to autobiography. ( )