Back in 2016, I began writing A Song Unheard. The entire inspiration for this story was the existence of the Belgian Refugee Orchestra—a group of top-tier musicians who had to flee their native Belgium when Germany seized their small country, and who fled to the UK for safety. They gathered in Wales and, with the patronage of a particular set of wealthy sisters who repeatedly used art to serve the world, formed an orchestra. My hero, Lukas, was the lead violinist in this orchestra.
Now, writing Christian historical romance as I do, I know Lukas’s faith journey was going to be important. He was, at the start of the book, not practicing the faith he’d been raised in and was instead living the life of a famous playboy. But of course, as the story progressed, he was drawn back to God.
And I had a choice to make. My first inclination, influenced by the fact that I had been raised Methodist and was at the time part of a Sabbath-keeping Baptist denomination, was to have him find his faith in the protestant tradition of Wales, despite knowing that as a Belgian, he would have been culturally Catholic. And to justify this, I told myself, They probably didn’t even have any other options. But I could well envision readers correcting me on this if I just assumed, so I looked it up, thinking to prove myself right.
Instead, I discovered that there was a single Catholic church in Aberystwyth, Wales, that had been very small, before the Belgians arrived. And which thrived with the sudden influx of hundreds of devout Catholics. I learned that the priest at the time made it his personal mission to minister to these displaced refugees, despite the fact that so many in the UK quickly came to resent them. I discovered that this time left such a legacy in this parish that it’s still remembered today, and that priest is still recognized for his mission-focused heart, which led some of those Belgians to remain even after their country regained its freedom.
I discovered a history that I did not want to short-change or ignore. A history I wanted to honor. Because it didn’t matter what my denomination was at the time—what mattered was that these followers of Christ did the work of Christ and drew people back to Christ in a time of crisis. Lukas remained Catholic. And when the heroine, Willa—who had never been anything—also comes to faith, she aligns herself with him. It’s quiet. It’s never even mentioned in that book. But it comes up in The Number of Love.
See, The Number of Love is about Lukas’s little sister, Margot. Margot has always been very devout, and that certainly didn’t change when she moved to London. And, also (obviously) being Belgian, she too would have been Catholic.
Let me pause for a brief history lesson. When the new country lines were being drawn in this part of Europe, they were drawn not based on language or cultural heritage, but on religious affiliation. Belgium was Catholic. The Netherlands was Protestant. This is what DEFINED each country. There are Dutch-speaking and French-speaking parts of Belgium, but what united them was their Catholicism. You were NOT going to find Catholics in the Netherlands, and you weren’t going to find Protestants in Belgium. Period. Even today, Belgium is 98% Catholic (though largely secular).
So Margot had to be Catholic. Not a choice. And this was when I created for myself a rule—I wasn’t going to deal with intermarriage between Catholics and Protestants in my European-set books. It would just introduce too much complication that would distract from the story. So Catholics got to fall in love with other Catholics, and Protestants with other Protestants, LOL. This is just Roseanna’s Simple Rule of Religious Affiliation. My own little cheat.
This is why Drake Elton, the hero of The Number of Love, and his sister, Margot’s best friend Dot, are half-Spanish. So they had an indisputable reason for having been raised Catholic as well in a country that has a Catholic minority population, but which has historically been persecuted for it.
This was the first book I’d written, however, where Catholicism was going to play a key role. For Lukas, his return to faith was personal and was mostly a matter of meeting with his priest, and that was the only mention made, given the demands of the rest of the story. But for Margot, she’d be living her faith out day in and day out, along with all the habits thereof. As would Dot. As would Drake. And this meant details that Methodist-Baptist me simply didn’t know.
So I reached out to my college friend (and fellow writer) Rhonda Ortiz who became Catholic during college and asked if she’d answer some questions for me and do a beta-read of the manuscript to make sure I got things right.
For the first time, I really looked into what it meant to be Catholic. How it impacted one’s daily life. The prayers they would pray, the traditions they would keep. And while some of it seemed incredibly strange to me, other parts were so…beautiful.
In The Number of Love, there’s a particular scene where Dot, who has social anxiety, is praying the rosary before she walks out the door. The ritual of it is described by her brother as putting on her armor to face the day, arming herself to go slay the dragon of her anxiety one more time. I thought I was just being poetic.
But Rhonda said, “You have proven with that one line that you understand the heart of Catholicism.” So often, she went on to say, Protestants outright decry the rituals and memorized prayers as vanity. But they’re not. This, she said, is the whole purpose of them. This is how we equip ourselves to face each day—by going, time and again, to the Lord with the words He gave us, the words so many others have prayed before.
Now, I didn’t even know what the rosary prayers were before writing that scene, and I deliberately chose one that wouldn’t offend my own Protestant ears or those of my readers. (There are specific ones for each day of the week.) I chose ones whose focus are on Jesus (as the majority are) rather than Mary (which a few are).
With Rhonda’s seal of approval, I turned in the manuscript…and wondered if it would fly with Bethany House, which historically has strong ties to the Evangelical worldview. But I was totally delighted when they applauded this aspect of the book.
Then it released. Readers began reading it. And emails began flooding in. Two different kinds.
First, the emails from my Catholic readers, who reached out to ask, “Are you Catholic??? I’m so excited to find a Christian historical book that accurately portrays my faith!”
Then came the others. A long-time reader friend who herself had no issue with the Catholicism in the book, but who had a friend who did. She reached out to ask me about the history of Belgium so she could answer this friend’s objection, and I gave her the statistics.
But of course, that didn’t stop the reviews. The ones that issued “warnings.” “These characters are Catholic. I guess it’s historical, so that’s okay, but they prayed the rosary, so beware.”
And I shook it off with a roll of my eyes. Because, friends, we do not need to warn people that characters are accurate. A book about King David or—even worse—Solomon does not need to say, “Fair warning, guys, they embraced polygamy!” This is history. Trying to impose our own expectations, be they cultural or religious, on them is not only ridiculous, it’s harmful. Not to them, not the characters, not the author…to us.
Because if we can’t see past our own perspective, we never grow. If we can’t accept that people who are different in one way or another can still love the Lord, then we are not truly chasing after the heart of Christ.
It was, in large part, writing The Number of Love that made me start examining the Catholic faith. Which, in turn, many years later, led me to join the Catholic faith. Because while there have been historical failings, that is true of EVERY faith. Every denomination. While there have been moral and instructional failings, that’s also true of every other branch of the church. And more, I discovered that much of what I had been taught about Catholics by Protestants is quite simply false. A lie. Catholics do not believe many of the things I was told they believed. They’re not taught those things. My objections were moot.
But my next several books were about Anglican characters, because that’s what they would have been. British aristocracy? Almost entirely belonged to the Church of England. And I was totally cool with that, because it’s history. My characters in Yesterday’s Tides presented an interesting mash-up though. There were exactly two churches on Ocracoke, both Protestant. So my heroines and their families were Protestant. But I have a character, Grann, from Louisiana who most likely would have been Catholic…so I leaned into that. Made mention of the challenge she faced not only as one of the only Black women on this small Southern island, but the only Catholic. Because that would have shaped her. And the British naval officer who dies in the opening scenes? Real historical figure, and he was really historically Catholic too. The fact that he was given a Protestant burial grieved his family when they learned of it, and eventually a priest came from the mainland to offer the Catholic version. History.
Let’s fast forward. The Collector of Burned Books is set in 1940 France. France at the time, especially Paris, was largely secular…but statistically they were still 98% Catholic. Sure, there were a handful of Protestant churches, most of which were in Paris. But we’re talking 1.5-2% of the population, and most of those were not French. They were English, American, and Scandinavian. So my heroine, Corinne, who was part of the faithful remnant, would have been Catholic. Which meant that, according to Roseanna’s Simple Rules of Religious Affiliation, my German hero also had to be Catholic.
So I looked up Catholicism in Germany in the years leading up to my story. And do you know what I discovered? That the Catholic pockets of Germany had resisted Hitler longer and more vocally than any other districts. They were so vocally opposed to him that the Catholic churches were all stripped of legal standing, physically stripped of all their goods, including altar pieces and the very chalices and dishes used for Holy Communion, and those physical things were sold off or melted down to support the Nazi war machine—a huge affront to the Church, made very deliberately.
And this fit my hero perfectly. Yet when he’s stationed in Paris, he finds himself at last, after years of persecution, in a place where the Catholic faith is still vibrant, if unpopular among the modern, secular avant garde world. Where he can be himself, get back in touch with his faith. And it was a beautiful thing to explore.
In more research I’ve done for the next books, I’ve been reading a lot about the popular artistic culture of the day, and over and again, I came across stories of these artists and writers and actors and musicians who “had a religious experience, as was becoming trendy at the time, and became devout.” And these experiences? Guys, they were very, very Catholic, LOL. As in, they’d go to visit a church to take in the architecture and have a vision. Or pray a Hail Mary in a desperate situation and hear her voice comforting them. This is history. This is the faith of a people.
In Collector, there’s a scene where someone has been shot, and my character prays a Hail Mary. I knew as I was writing it that this could be very unpopular with some of my readers. But I put it in there, because this is the prayer she would have prayed. Why? Because this prayer ends with a plea for the Holy Mother to pray for us “now and at the hour of our death.”
See, in the Catholic faith, there’s a big emphasis on a good death. On the fact that in our final, weakest moments, we are at our most vulnerable, and the devil, who seeks to steal and kill and destroy, is happy to pounce on us in those moments. To make us doubt. To make us curse God for bringing us here. To make us turn away. But that the prayers of the faithful—our own prayers offered throughout life, the prayers of our loved ones, and the prayers of all the saints who have gone before us—can gird us in those moments. We all know prayer is powerful. This particular request is for those prayers to be offered when we need it most.
So I have Corinne thinking through the prayer that could just be rote. She examines every turn of phrase and applies it to her situation. The first part is entirely direct quotes of Scripture, when the angel is speaking to Mary, and then it follows “blessed art thou among women” with the reason that she is so blessed, and which Elizabeth points out in the next story–“and blessed is the fruit of they womb, JESUS.” All caps there, because it’s added in from what we get in the Scripture, yes, but it’s also the pivot around which the entire prayer turns. The middle, the focal point. The rest is a request for Mary, fulfilling the traditional ancient-world role of Queen Mother, to take our petitions for help before Jesus.
Again, I wasn’t sure what my publisher would say. But again, they appreciated the authenticity, not only of that Hail Mary scene, but of the deliberation Corinne gave when she made the sign of the cross over herself. How seriously she took the words, the signs, the traditions that informed her entire worldview and guided her in life. In her very first scene, she contends with a faithless Frenchman that the cross hasn’t failed us just because evil swarms. Its purpose isn’t just to keep us away from danger—it’s to give us the strength to face it.
Not surprisingly, I’ve again had people reaching out both to thank me for the authentic Catholic faith, and also people who feel the need to warn people about it in their reviews.
And I laugh…and shake my head. Because to my mind, what would need a disclaimer would be if she was not Catholic: “Fair warning, guys, this author felt the need to put a character with modern Evangelical American style faith in a setting where nearly every remaining French-born Christian was Catholic. Be forewarned.” I especially shook my head when one person said, “I’m aware the author is Catholic, but I wish she hadn’t put so much of it in here.”
So if we’re talking “apologize” in its classical sense of explain, then I’m happy to do so. I’m happy to explain why I’ve made the choices I have. Why my French and Belgian and Spanish characters are all Catholic, why my English characters are Anglican, why my upcoming Icelandic characters are Lutheran.
Because I write history, friends. And I strive to keep it as true as I can. I strive to make my historical Christians true to their historical faith, and to honor that faith—the very shoulders we today stand on. Were there exceptions? Yes, and those can be compelling stories. But usually those exceptions demand to be the story. I do not want the focus of my book to be why my character isn’t what everyone else is just to appeal to a group of American readers. I want the focus of my book to be how faithful Christians of all Churches have served God wholeheartedly throughout history, and how He has used them to shape the world.
So I will not “apologize” in the sense of saying “I’m sorry.” Because I’m not. I won’t add disclaimers. I won’t warn you, other than this, right now.
Be forewarned—my characters will be true to their time and place and to the faiths that kept people focused on Christ, no matter what the name of their church. I will continue to explore how He has worked through Catholics, Lutherans, Anglicans, Methodists, Presbyterians, Baptists, and on and on, throughout history. Because we are ALL part of His church. And He called us to unity, not to finger-pointing and tearing down.
Let’s celebrate the stories of faithful Christians throughout history. And how, in the eyes of God, there is only ONE Church.
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Roseanna M. White is a bestselling, Christy Award winning author who has long claimed that words are the air she breathes. When not writing fiction, she’s homeschooling her two kids, editing, designing book covers, and pretending her house will clean itself. Roseanna is the author of a slew of historical novels that span several continents and thousands of years. Spies and war and mayhem always seem to find their way into her books…to offset her real life, which is blessedly ordinary. 
That was a wonderful essay! I’ve really enjoyed your fiction set in the US and in the UK. I look forward to meeting your Icelandic Lutheran characters in the future! As a Lutheran myself, I understand many of the thought processes of your Anglican and Catholic characters. Rituals, liturgy, and sacraments are very important to us Lutherans too! Crossing myself is a way that I remember Jesus died for me and reminds me of the profound mystery of the Holy Trinity. Praying memorized prayers is the foundation on which I add my own prayers. Keep up the good work!
I stumbled upon your blog and read half of it (only because I have a thing about long blog posts). I just want to congratulate and encourage you. Our enemies like to point out all the negative stuff but the true followers of Jesus throughout history, no matter what their labels, have done so much good. Glory to God. In Australia we have so many stories of faithful Christians who forged our young country. Caroline Chisolm is a faith hero of mine. She’s on our $5 notes. Anyway, keep telling your stories. Use your gift and be blessed as you bless others.
As a reader, I greatly appreciate you being true historically to the time period you are writing about. And I love your portrayal of faith and that you keep it Christ focused in the characters’ faith journey. That is where Truth lies and what makes your books so powerful! The setting largely being early 1900 through 1918 in Europe is also fantastic. That many characters are Catholic makes sense.
But I admit I hope you really delve into the history of Protestantism and their struggle with the Roman Catholic Church and the millions who died to free the Gospel from the iron grip of Rome. Have you ever heard of the Waldenses? You should delve into the history of these people who kept Scripture alone and were persecuted for it by the Catholic Church to death. A historical novel set in that time would amazing and a true challenge of faith for author and readers alike since they lived long before the time of the Reformation and the Church of Rome hated them. That is just one example that comes to mind.
I’ve been going back and forth on whether or not to submit this comment as I have written and deleted it over and over. My first no less when in fact I was on your site to look up character names because I was pretty sure I was recognizing names and descriptions in your latest book.
My hope and prayer for you is that your focus remains on witnessing of Christ’s goodness in your novels and pointing readers back to their Bibles and their relationship with the Lord over any denomination, even while showing a denomination in its historical setting. May that be our focus as those who follow Christ.
May God bless you and guide you Roseanna!
Amen, Tamara! That is what I always pray my stories do, and what every church in the Church should be doing as well, always! There are DEFINITELY ugly times in history for both the Catholic church and Protestants too, when they resorted to bloodshed and lost the focus they should have had. The Waldenses rings only a distant bell–I’ll have to look that up, for sure! A true testament to the divine presence in our human churches is, without question, the fact that Christianity has continued despite the failings of Christians. 😉
Sorry I am late to this post. Roseanna, I have loved your books ever since I first picked up a copy of “The Reluctant Duchess” from my library’s display case about eight or nine years ago. I was instantly drawn to your characters and their very human struggles. Catholic or Protestant, it mattered not to me. I am Catholic, and it truly is a joy to see Catholic characters portrayed in a positive light, and to see our Faith authentically presented and proclaimed so beautifully in your books. I, too, appreciate the historical accuracy of different faiths presented in appropriate time periods and locations. That is so important. Keep doing what you are doing, for you are making a beautiful difference in the world, all to the glory of God!
I appreciate that the religious affiliations of your characters and how they live it out is historically accurate. I’ve always found it jarring when someone in a historical book talks like a modern American evangelical Christian. And I find your Simple Rules of Religious Affiliation to be a better solution than books that gloss over denominational differences as simply differences of preferred worship style. But what I appreciate most is that Christ and what he has done on our behalf is always (or at least becomes throughout the story) the main focus of your characters’ faith (which is sadly not the case in all Christian fiction).
Roseanna, I’m a big fan of yours (as you know) and am SO THANKFUL that you write about historical people as they were. I’m a Catholic, and so often Catholicism is portrayed as being something…crazy? I LOVE that you write about it truthfully…warts and all. And the people who are living their every day lives as Catholics are shown as they are…normal. I love my faith, and I love that more people are coming to understand it in all in it’s beauty and wonder. Thank you for showing that.
I’d like to say that I appreciate your portrayals of the Christian faith in the lives of your characters…whether that be Protestant or Catholic. I often read and enjoy Amish, Mormon and other stories without feeling compelled to agree with all of their beliefs, lifestyles and teachings. I feel like we each need to read with our own filter in place. If we are solid in our own beliefs we are able to look at others and see the value (or lack thereof) in the differences. When set in context, the denomination or different practice of a religion is a part of the story and is not necessarily meant to sway the reader to a particular viewpoint. I love your stories and look forward to every new release – although I’m not a huge fan of fantasy so we’ll see about that series. 😉 Keep up the good work!
Your poetic imagery *was* rather spot-on… 😀
Roseanna’s Simple Rules of Religious Affiliation is a great way out of the “flirt to convert” problem – I may adopt it myself. Unsurprisingly, I also agree with your principles about historicity – the historical story abides within the bounds of its setting, which is to say it must abide by the truth. I’m as fond of fictional conceits as the next novelist, but conceits have to be plausible. This presents a great opportunity, as you say so eloquently. We (authors and readers alike) have the opportunity to meet characters where they’re at and see how God’s grace is at work in all who seek Him.
And I’m sure I’m paraphrasing your actual response, LOL. I didn’t, like, go look it up or anything, assuming I still have that email exchange somewhere in the bowels of my email. 😉 But regardless, we are (not surprisingly) in total agreement about historicity…and moreover, you sum it up so well. Meeting characters where they’re at and seeing how God’s grace is at work in them is one of my FAVORITE things!
As a convert to Catholicism myself, THANK YOU! So many misperceptions about the Catholic faith. Thank you for tackling the hard questions and quelling the basis AGAINST our beautiful faith. Your characters are real and I can appreciate their beliefs whether Catholic or Protestant. He died for all of us! Thank you again!
He did indeed, and amen!
Roseanna,
I am saddened to hear that you are losing some readers because of your faith choice and your beautiful portrayal of Catholicism. Although I am a Protestant, I have a true respect for the Catholic Church in part because of a deep friendship I formed in college (it was even at a decidedly Southern Baptist college!). I attended Sunday service with my friend many times and grew to appreciate the liturgical beauty (once I figured out when I was supposed to stand ,and when I was supposed to sit. Lol). I, like you, see all believers as part of one Church, one body of the faithful who seek Jesus in our day-to-day lives, not just in our church buildings.
Although I only discovered your books this past year (I found “The Lost Heiress” in the Christian fiction section of my favorite used bookstore), I have been “marching” through them, completely captivated by your characters and their historical settings. I was a history major in college and now am a high school history teacher. Although I read widely (and dangerously) in college, I have honed my taste and choose to read mostly faith based literature. Like you, I’m thankful we can choose what we read in this great country of ours, especially after reading “The Collector of Burned Books,” and learning even more horrifying facts about the Nazi Regime. I frequently recommend your books to others and will continue to do so.
May God continue to abundantly bless you and your writing career. Your books certainly bless me!
Having true respect for other Christ-followers is, I think, a key aspect of the very heart of the Church. How are we to love our enemies if we cannot love our brothers? How are we to be like Christ if we so quickly condemn others who seek Him? So glad you’ve been enjoying my books, Lori! (And honing your taste after reading widely is a wonderful thing to do.)
It doesn’t matter what you write, there will still be those who complain. There are many Christian fiction books with negative reviews, due to the Christian content. I am non-denominational Christian. But I love your books and I don’t mind the characters being Catholic. It boils down to the person’s heart and their love for the Lord.
Exactly so. =) Most readers, I think, share your sentiments, and praise God for that. There will always be those, though, who disagree. Unavoidable, you’re quite right!
I am a reader who is so thankful for the way you’ve depicted theological concerns across all of your novels—and finding out upcoming characters are Lutheran (like me!!) makes me even more excited for what’s ahead. American Christianity has so frequently downplayed denominational differences, and many, many faithful Christians are poorly informed about what those differences really are and how they affect our practice and faith as the Church universal. Keep fighting the good fight, Roseanna!!
I hope you enjoy The Christmas Book Flood!! And yes, I personally love the beauty of our diverse faith backgrounds. When they all lead to Christ, isn’t that what matters most? <3 Thank you for your support!
Dear Roseanna,
Thank you, as much as you are able, for writing from an accurate historical point of view. I, personally, want to learn as I read, even reading fiction. Truly appreciate your faithfulness.
Lord bless,
Cindy
Reading fiction is one of my FAVORITE ways to learn, so I completely agree!
I’ve been reading your books for years and have loved them all. I am Catholic and have loved the faith of all your characters. I appreciate the struggles the characters have and how their faith brought them through the turmoil they faced in each book. Since I read a lot of Christian Historical Fiction, I am very used to reading books that are NOT about Catholics. However, the particular faith of the character was never an issue for me. I was pleased when some of your characters were Catholic and even more so that you “got it right”. I am thankful for your explanation today on the “whys” and “hows” of different religions in your books. I appreciate your attention to what would be historically accurate. My absolute favorite book is “The Number of Love”. This summer I listened to the Shadows over England and The Codebreaker Series. This my first time for listening. I’ve read each series more than once. Thanks, Roseanne, for your faith that you share with all of us!
I’ve also always been of the mind that as long as characters are earnest in their faith, I as a reader don’t really care about their particular affiliations–but I do want honest, authentic portrayals of it! I find SUCH beauty in those historical stories! And yeah, Margot is definitely special. =D
Well said!
Ha! I too was raised Methodist but attend now a Baptist Church.
I’ve read just about all your main stream books by which I mean the ones easy to locate at a bookstore or library (not yet the guidepost ones) … though I still need to read the newer Christmas one and I have in hand your most recent Sci Fi one in my TBR pile at home compliments of my public library — but have not started it yet. You are among my top fave Christian Historical Fiction authors and I recommend your books wholeheartedly to all.
I’ve never once felt any of your characters or books be or act contrary to my own faith and always appreciate your good writing, good story telling, authentic characters and the many things I learn about history through the stories you tell. In fact I more often than not find God speaking to my heart through one. Thank you.
Many people seek to be divisive without consideration or research. (Haters gonna hate).
Keep up the most excellent work you are doing.
I’ll continue being a faithful reader.
Thank you so much, Christina!!! That means the world to me. <3
Hi! Thank you so much for this heartfelt and genuine message of honesty and explanation for historical accuracy. I’ve always been drawn to your books, and now am even more so knowing the context behind your writing and personal faith decisions. I come out on the side of thanking you for including Catholicism- so thank you! Thank you! I do feel inspired and validated to see my faith represented in a community that can sometimes be overwhelming prejudiced. I’m sorry for any negative comments or reviews that have found you. Super glad your publishing company is supportive of historical accuracy as well!
Great article, Roseanna! As you know, my novels are written from a Catholic worldview. That doesn’t necessarily sit well with some readers. I had reached out to someone for a review of one of my books about two years ago. She got back to me after reading the book and said how good the book was, but that she wouldn’t review it because the main characters were Catholic. She then spouted all her misconceptions about Catholics and the Catholic Church. I wondered if she would’ve said the same thing had the characters been Jewish or some other religion. I’ll never know!
As we discussed at Montrose, our characters have to be true to their time and place, and that means true to the faith they would have in that location. Well spoken here, Roseanna. God bless!
Thank you so much for writing such incredible books! As a Christian, I find it hard sometimes to find clean books in the genres I love. But your books have yet to let me down!
And while I personally don’t agree with many of the Catholic beliefs, I respect your accuracy.
Also, your book, “The Collector of Burned Books” gave me a lot to think about. I actually had a nice conversation about it with my horseback riding teacher. Your books have been a blessing to me.
So, again, thank you. I pray that you will keep writing books that glorify God.
A good conversation is what I pray will come from my books, especially that one! And I endeavor to never let my readers down when it comes to books that glorify the Lord. <3
I’ve loved your representations of faith in all of your books. You’ve been my favorite author since I first read “A Name Unknown” many years ago (and I read a lot…). I am a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints and we have certain beliefs that differ from all other Christians denominations. I mostly read Christian fiction and I am just grateful, primarily, to have books with an emphasis on good character and, as an added bonus, to have the presence of religion, faith and God in the story, even if it’s small. I’ve loved Oliver in “The Nature of a Lady” and Brice in “The Reluctant Duchess” and their sensitivity to the Holy Spirit – it felt so similar to how I experience the Holy Spirit but also gave me the courage to be more receptive to the gentle guidance I receive. I’ve also been inspired by the slow, but mighty, change in Camden in “On Wings of Devotion,” and the process of forgiving himself.
Anyways, you’re the best and keep doing what you’re doing, inspiring us all and challenging the way we think by default, but in a non-condemning way!
Thank you for staunchly portaying our Catholic faith in your books, knowing you may be canceled.
I pray you keep making progress in your faith. I don’t agree with pushing Sarah Maas books on believers, nor do support banned books for children.
We have had an uphill battle in our library district to get rid of obscene books for minors. We feel so strongly about this that my husband ran for trustee to save children’s souls.
The battle we face today is one of Good vs Evil in all levels of government and society. Fight the Good Fight.
I don’t agree with pushing mainstream books on those who don’t want to read them. And DEFINITELY DO NOT recommend Maas’s books for minors! I do, however, believe adults can make decisions based on their own weaknesses and strengths. Many Christian authors read the mainstream bestsellers in the categories so that we know what is appealing to the masses and so we can prayerfully contemplate how we can deliver stories that glorify God yet meet the expectations of our readers and draw in new ones. I absolutely protected my kids from books that weren’t suitable when they were young too! =) I hope your family succeeds in getting books properly shelves in libraries.
When I read the Number of Love, I really appreciated the Catholic representation. I am not Catholic, and honestly I know little about it, but I don’t think Jesus is tied down to any specific denomination… He loves the people who choose Him and choose to follow Him. I loved seeing authentic faith expressed through some elements of Catholicism that I honestly had no idea existed. It taught me a lot, and I appreciated that.
I haven’t read any more of your books just yet, but I certainly wouldn’t dock stars for Catholic representation. It’s sad that we have such fault lines in our faith that we have to divide ourselves in such a way.
I so agree and love the way you put that–“fault lines in our faith.” What a perfect description for the state of things.
I am one of the many, many readers who are disappointed in this trajectory and stopped reading your books because of it. It’s sad now to see you laughing at the readers who raised concerns.
Heather, when I say I laugh, I do not mean that I laugh at people who hold these views. I mean that I laugh to keep myself from crying, that any Christian would dismiss another because of what church they attend. This is something that grieved me loooong before I looked into Catholicism for myself. Some of my best friends are Catholic, and we had many hours-long conversations over the years that helped me to see that much of what I’d been taught about Catholicism just wasn’t true. Some things are misunderstandings…some can only be termed lies that are taught to us to discredit the Catholic Church. Through my characters, I learned so much. And I never regret making a character true to their setting and authentic. I’m sorry you don’t feel you can read my books because some of them have characters who are Catholic. They don’t ALL–only where it’s authentic to time and place. Similarly, my theology has not just changed. But I absolutely respect your choice to read only what you feel edifies you. That’s the beauty of living where we do, and of a publishing world so overflowing with amazing and beautiful books!