Product Description

A work of major importance, written for an ecumenical audience, Doors to the Sacred is a sweeping and detailed account of the historical and cultural evolution of sacramental rituals and practices.

Since its initial publication, the book has garnered widespread critical acclaim and has become a mainstay not only for students but for all thinking Christians who want to understand the past fully while making their present participation in the sacraments more genuine and intelligent. Martos has greatly expanded all of the bibliographic material and has incorporated the latest developments in theological study and inquiry. His focus is on the seven ecclesial sacraments of the Catholic Church: Baptism, Confirmation, Eucharist, Reconciliation, Anointing, Marriage, and Orders.

Though based on thorough research and impressive scholarship, Doors to the Sacred is written in a lively style that will be welcomed by a general audience.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #88659 in Books
• Published on: 2001-04-01
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 477 pages

Customer Reviews

The Sacraments Brought to Life Anew of Old with Fascination
Discovering the history of how the sacraments were celebrated and changed over the last 2000 years makes them come to life as real encounters with the human risen Lord. Joseph Martos gives us a very readable, interesting and extremely informative new understanding of the sacraments in this updated, after the Second Vatican Council, rendition of his earlier work on this topic. Frequent confession went from non-existent in the first century, to encouraged, to condemned by a Church Council as conducive of frequent sinning and therefore a scandal, to encouraged again for spiritual growth by the Church today. Did you experience a roller coaster of emotions about confession? So did the Catholic Church, as outlined by Martos. Read about all of the sacraments and develop an entirely new appreciation of them, as our tradition presents them. When you whet your appetite on one, you'll want to read about them all. Do yourself a favor and grow in your Catholic Faith today - read the Doors to the Sacred.

Excellent and thorough historical information
Martos's treatment of the history of the sacraments is comprehensive and very enlightening, and presented in a clear and orthodox manner. I would recommend this book for anyone interested in the Roman Catholic view of the sacraments or in Church history.

There are only two disappointing aspects. First, Martos's treatment of the later 20th century gives the impression that sacramental theology is now indefinite, but that this does not matter as long as the believer finds their concepts to be "doors to the sacred." Secondly, he has the rather annoying tendency to use American RC parishes as illustrations of the promise of
Vatican II fulfilled. For example, in his treatment of the sacrament of Reconciliation, he overly stresses "communal guilt" and such "corporate" sins as racism, and suggests that sacramental confession of individual sins fell by the wayside because of this new "awareness." Both are faulty concepts which he presents as if they were highly positive.

It is a fine reference work, but serious theological students will need to be certain it is one of several.

History of the Sacraments
Joe Martos' book is quite detailed on the history of the
Sacraments. The first part of the book is about sacraments
in general: sacraemtns in all religions, beginnings of the Christian Sacraments, Development of the Catholic Sacraments.
He writes about the Protestant relationship to the
Sacraments and the problems that Martin Luther had with
how Catholics were doing Sacraments.
In the second part of the book he goes into detail on each
of the seven Catholic Sacraments.
The book is so detailed and philisophical at times it makes
it difficult to stay focused on the reading.
This book is used in many college courses on Sacraments. It
is NOT a light read, nor does it give much on the rites of
today's sacraments. It is a historical perspective.