In American Catholicism, Msgr. John Tracy Ellis, long recognized as one of the most outstanding and respected
historians of today surveys the history of the Catholic church in America from the days of the first Spanish and French missionaries down to the present time. Drawing upon his comprehensive knowledge and broad experience-he was for many years the renowned Professor of Church History at Catholic University of America-Msgr. Ellis does a masterful job of synthesizing a vast amount of material on the complex story of American Catholicism into a succinct, objective, and easily readable survey. He provides a straight forward, well-documented account of the struggle of the Catholic colonists for religious freedom, of the part played by Catholics in the American Revolution and the Civil War, and of the difficulties within the church that came with the clash of national interests among Irish, French, and Germans in the nineteenth century. Next Msgr. Ellis critically studies the problem of immigration and views it as the key to the increasingly important role of American Catholicism in the nation's life after 1820. Then focusing on contemporary America, he submits calm and reasoned explanations for the church's attitude on current controversial issues, and shows the tremendous strides the church has made over the last fifty years. American Catholicism is a brisk, compact, yet highly accurate survey of American Catholicism written by our most prominent Catholic historian which is a concise history as well as a critical view of the contemporary Catholic church.