Christ and the Americas

by Anne Carroll

Christ and the Americas is the long awaited high school American history text by best selling author Dr Anne Carroll. It fills a great void because it gives proper attention to and appreciation for the role of the Catholic Church in American history. Beginning before Columbus and concluding with the 1990\'s, this book covers the vast panoply of American history in a fast paced yet thorough manner. Because of it\'s scores of amazing insights and penetrating analysis it renders history understandable and makes it come alive. With study questions at the end of each chapter, this book can be used as a traditional textbook or just read for enjoyment and information. This extensive and easy to read history book is the fruit of Dr Carroll\'s many years as a high school history teacher. Students will come away from this book with a proper sense of who we are and of what American owes to the Catholic Church.

Genres: History, Catholic, Religion, Nonfiction, School

440 pages, Paperback

First published March 1, 1997

Reviews

[allison ★ · Rating 1 out of 5]

had to read this for school history WHICH I HATE. the quizzes were so easy though they were open book we stan

[Elevetha · Rating 2 out of 5]

1.5 stars.

Here is the deal. This should be a fantastic history book. Finally, one that incorporates the important viewpoints along with the historical facts. And it would be great, if that was what it is. Unfortunately, this book is rife, positively RIFE, with typos and factual errors with historical figures leaving for expeditions years before an expedition that they apparently took "later" and kings issuing edits before their births and all sorts of names mentioned and no explanation as to who the heck these people are. In addition, the Index is the most pathetically useless thing ON THE PLANET. What, pray tell, is the use of an Index in which only 2 of every 10 important persons, battles, events, or amendments looked up is actually there? Of absolutely no use, that's what. Someone should rewrite this book, fixing the errors and the occasional utter bias, and then it would be of actual use.

[Tanya · Rating 5 out of 5]

It took awhile for my high schooler and I to get through this book as it covers a lot. I have to say I’m a big disappointed in others negative reviews of this book. I thought it was pretty thorough and an excellent resource for World History. Obviously it’s written from the Catholic perspective, if you don’t like that fact and have a hard time facing the truth then this isn’t the book for you. I found parts of this book very hard to read but it sure made me think and do more of my own digging and research. There are some topics suitable for Middle school age children but I felt it was also appropriate for high schoolers. You really need to take your time with this one.

[Gan Ainm]

I've only paged through it so far, but I've seen enough to know that his is NOT a "history", and the suggestion that it should be presented to students as a history text makes me shudder.

Just for starters: the Confederacy is lionized; Lincoln largely dismissed; Vatican II characterized as a mistake which must be undone...... you get the idea. I'll be back with a more complete review later.

[Karen L. · Rating 3 out of 5]

I am only a 4th of the way through this book, but am really enjoying Carroll's story telling ability, however there are still dates and dry facts thrown in (blah!). Sometimes there is too much detailed information included in some sections. The faith of the early explorers to the Americas was very important in their lives. It is good to read a history book that includes faith stories. She does not gloss over the mistakes of some within the church, but puts the facts out on the table. I will definitely have my kids use this for homeschool highschool! We are breaking it up into a 2 year study.

For protestants or Catholics not into the apparitions of Mary such as that of "Our Lady of Guadalupe," yes, these stories are included, but we don't have to treat them as truth if we are not comfortable with that. Still knowing these stories is helpful in understanding about the cultural influences.

[Maria · Rating 1 out of 5]

I went to a traditional Catholic school and this was my 10th grade history book. The thing literally drove me insane, and now three years later I still have a lot of complaints about it. Besides being filled with various inaccuracies, the book also contains much information that is completely irrelevant to a general overview of history. One of the most blatant inaccuracies was Carroll stating that Washington crossed the Trenton River. I still have no clue how Delaware became Trenton, but that was not the worst of the book.

In the introduction to the book, Carroll gave an explanation of what is history and what should be included in history. She stated that certain events don't belong in history, but apparently she didn't heed her own advice, as the book is filled with references to very unimportant characters and events. Just one example from my notes at the time: February 1519- Cortes departed for Mexico from Cuba. He had 11 ships, 508 Spanish soldiers, 100 sailors, 16 horses, 32 crossbows, 13 muskets, four falconets, and a few slightly larger cannon. That is far too much information for a book that purports to be a history of the entire Americas and not a history of Cortes.

Another aspect of the book that I hugely took issue with was Carroll's insistence on calling the American Revolution the "War for Independence". That was a completely biased and uncalled for opinion of the author. It's a Catholic history book from a supposedly Catholic perspective, but must Catholics have the perspective that the American Revolution was not a Revolution, but a War for Independence? Certainly not. Such a view is not contrary to the Catholic faith, but I honestly found it ridiculous. How was it not a revolution? I can understand arguing that it was a justified revolt against a tyrannical monarch, but arguing that it was a war for Independence and not a revolution? That's ridiculous, and makes Catholics look like imbeciles.

This book perhaps could have worked if Carroll made it a history of events relevant to the Catholic Church in the Americas that would work as a supplement to any 'secular' history textbook. If done in the right way, it would be something entertaining and good to read, and a way to learn how the Catholic Church has played a part in history in the New World. But as it is, it is no way to learn history.

Overall, the book is written like a novel. Carroll got her degree in English, and seems to be in no way qualified as an historian. Nor are her writing skills all that great. This sentence from her book is one that would make any decent English teacher cringe: “The city became wealthy and powerful and remained the most important city in Mexico, which it has continued to be down to the present day, being renamed Mexico City.”

But then there's still the Catholic aspect to it. Can that redeem it? Absolutely not. Carroll writes of Catholic heroism as if Catholics are the most perfect people ever and cannot do anything wrong. Also, in places it reads as if it were a 1950s story written for children, due to Carroll's terrible attempts at using creative language. One thing that irritated me was her calling the Aztec gods the "devil gods". I agree, they were demonic. But really, "devil gods" sounds more like something you'd use in describing the Aztec gods to your 6 year old. Carroll does mention some legitimate instances of persecution of Catholics in America, but I got the impression of a whining brat whose reasoning is: "All my Catholic ancestors got persecuted by the bad bad Protestants so I'm just gonna seethe and write it into a book."

Ultimately, I have nothing good to say about this book. If you are a homeschooling parent and really want your highschooler to get a good education, do not use this as a textbook. It's only value is that it shows how not to write history, and how not to write at all.

[Tony Laplume · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very similar to the virtues and deficits of Christ the King: Lord of History, Carroll’s Christ and the Americas is also punctuated by fresh ground even while sometimes it’s lacking. There’re surely better writers, but few enough willing to tackle such projects. At times it reads like a repudiation of modern history as it has been codified elsewhere, which of course it is, because it looks past bias and doesn’t achieve this merely by honing to religious views. A valuable resource.

[Lea · Rating 2 out of 5]

This is one of those history books that is pretty easy to read and understand, but it's something that you hope to never see again. Some of the dates are messed up, and the historian (as most historians do) present history not as facts but as mostly opinions (if that makes any sense).

[Miss Clark · Rating 2 out of 5]

Most of what i didn't like about this volume is the same as what I disliked about her other history book, though datewise, in this book, she seems to make fewer mistakes.

[Nana · Rating 5 out of 5]

Good. Seton.

[Steven H · Rating 5 out of 5]

A CONSERVATIVE TEXTBOOK FOR CATHOLIC HIGH SCHOOL STUDENTS

Anne W. Carroll was married to Warren H. Carroll (1932-2011), who wrote a 6-volume history of the Catholic Church (e.g., The Founding of Christendom: A History of Christendom); she in fact finished the 5th and 6th volumes after her husband's death. She is also the founder of Seton Junior & Senior High School and Seton Home Study School, and the author of 'Christ the King: Lord of History.'

She wrote in the Foreword to this 1997 book, "This history book is written in the light of Catholic truth. The Catholic knows that the most important event in history was the Incarnation/Redemption/Resurrection and the most important Person in history was Jesus Christ. History is moving in a straight line from the Creation to the Last Judgment... In this book, you will learn the Catholic roots of our country."

About the conquest of Cortes, she observes, "The devil gods had been dethroned, and in the sign of the Cross, the Spaniards had conquered." (Pg. 27) About Charles Carroll ("the only Catholic signer" of the Declaration of Independence), she records that he said, "There go a few millions (meaning that Carroll was putting his considerable fortune on the line for the sake of independence)." (Pg. 106)

She suggests that "the reason the Constitutional system could be perverted ... is that the Constitution allows matters of truth and morality to become open questions, not anchored to Divine law." (Pg. 129) She wrote about John Carroll ("the initial builder of the Catholic Church in the United States"), "(his) views on separation of Church and State are controversial... he always supported that practice in this country. Does that mean he was a Liberal? He was not a Liberal in his views on papal supremacy and papal authority." (Pg. 138)

She later laments, "(some) convinced themselves that America really was morally better than any other nation, that Catholic Europe was corrupt, that America was the City on a Hill, that the Catholic Church in America should be allowed to go its own way without undue influence from the Vatican. These beliefs eventually led to the 'Americanist Hersey,' condemned by Pope Leo XIII..." (Pg. 193)

For readers wanting a general, very traditional, strongly pro-Catholic history of the Catholic Church in America, written for this age level, this will be a very satisfying book.

[Marie · Rating 1 out of 5]

Dear Homeschooling Parents,
If you are interested in or planning to use this book or this series as a history curriculum (particularly those of you following the Mother of Divine grace system) I really urge you to reconsider. I speak as someone who had this as their history book while homeschooled as a teen. This book is firstly not historically accurate ( as you can see for the other reviews) and it is incredibly biased creating a narrative that glosses over any historical wrongs of catholics. Education is invaluable and omitting these truths does not protect your child, it blinds them. By using this book as a history curriculum you deprive your child of accurate information and damage their eduction. You would be much better off using a more modern and balanced history book written by a real scholar of history (Carroll was an english major). If you have already used its precursor: christ our king lord of history I urge you to expose your child to other opposing sources and have a conversation about the differences in opinion and position. Why might Carroll write this version of history? who gets to shape how we see the past? how can Catholics come to terms with the historical wrongs of the church? how can we stand for change and accountability? this would be a much better use of your time than reading this book

[Nina · Rating 2 out of 5]

bad formatting, bad writing style, among other things

[Maren Todd · Rating 1 out of 5]

It says this book was written by an American, but if you look at the revolutionary war chapter you will have doubts 💀

[Benjamin Fenelon · Rating 1 out of 5]

Looking through this now, I think this has to be the worst "history" book I have ever read. One problem is that the book is just too short. As a result, the author is very selective about what is and isn't covered. Even though making the book much longer is the only way of really fixing this, it didn't help when she gave so much space to talking about the saints. The biggest problem though is the huge bias. In virtually every conflict the author has strong opinions about who is the bad guy and who is the good guy, the Church always being the latter. For example, the impression I got from this book is that the evil liberals, communists, and Protestants persecute the Church just out of hatred and bigotry. What she doesn't mention are all the times the Church cruelly persecuted people such as the Jews and Protestants. It was only after reading from multiple other sources that I realized things weren't as simple as she makes them out to be. Rereading later, I found it absolutely mindblowing that Carroll describes Salvador Allende (Chile's democratically elected socialist president) as a brutal dictador while describing the man who overthrew him, Pinochet (an actual dictador who actually engaged in massive violence against civilians), in glowing terms with no mention of the thousands he had killed. She engages in many such inversions of historical fact. This is an awful book that I would never recommend.

[The F · Rating 2 out of 5]

I always wanted a book with a catholic perspective and truth, and yet this book has false info. The problems are:
1. Carroll acts like every Catholic in history (not ALL of them were good, like Zapata, whom she idolizes) is as infallible as a pope. She acts like questionable figures are 100% perfect and sinless, which is an error.
2. This book has a bizarre amount of large, nearly archaic words. Obstreperousness? Amelioration? Acrimonious? The only person who would talk like that would be Sir William Smithford IV, and he doesn't even exist.
3. Weird errors, like calling Thaddeus Stevens, "Theodore Stevens", and saying Germany invaded Belgium on August 4th, though it was August 3rd. FAIL!

The overall opinion the author conveys is that everyone but around 3 people are evil and stupid. She obviously dislikes the American system of government, and then later says that disliking america is "against Christian Hope"
despite those, some of the info is valuable, which is why it gets a 2.

[Orchid]

It seems to be one of those years where I just read everything in the house.

[Elizabeth Kargel · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love history! I loved this book for the solid catholic perspective it gave to historical events.