Lessons from a Girl's Best Friend: What My Dogs Taught Me About Life, Love, and God Book

Recommended by several learned Catholic friends, this might be the single most historically eye-opening book that I've ever read, especially in combination with reading more on Luther and the history of the Reformation from other sources. It's remarkable just how different scholastic and historic opinion of "the great reformer" is from mainstream modern Protestant perception.

"The Facts About Luther" is admittedly written by a Catholic scholar - Monsignor Patrick O'Hare, and admittedly, it reveals considerable Catholic bias when O'Hare writes in his own words. However, the vast majority of compelling evidence comes from citations of Luther's work itself or from writings of Protestant historians or contemporaries of Luther. I, personally, am not a historian, and while I note that the book lacks a robust citation system, O'Hare is rarely vague, quite consistent, and repeatedly enforces that his goal is not to attach or slander Luther personally, but rather call into question the authenticity of the man as a reformer - and I believe that he does this well. Additionally, at no point to date have I noticed serious discrepancy between what O'Hare quotes and states and what information I have found elsewhere - pro- or anti-Luther in nature.

Matters of secular scholasticism aside, O'Hare presents a bevy of subjects and cases which, spiritually and rationally, are very concerning from any angle. Additionally, O'Hare presents a window into the (all too frequently glossed over) Catholic side of the Reformation, as well as Catholic responses to Luther's (sometimes ridiculous) 95 theses and following works.

This was sort of a cohesive baseline for me to understand Luther from a Catholic point of view, and I fully intend to take it further. I would rate this more highly if some of O'Hare's sources were more easily attainable in English or at all.