Reviews for To Have and to Hold: The Marriage Covenant and the Discipline of Divorce

The average rating for To Have and to Hold: The Marriage Covenant and the Discipline of Divorce based on 2 reviews is 4 stars.

Review # 1 was written on 2015-09-14 00:00:00 Troy Lane Hesselrode A powerful book. Muggeridge writes with tremendous passion and lucidity. This is an inspiring book because Muggeridge makes faith in Jesus so tangible and compelling. He is cynical and witty at times, but he is also extraordinarily faithful to his Lord and even to his Church. Muggeridge was a convert to Christianity, having been a communist earlier in his life. The illustrations in the book are nice, if haphazard, but they do form a suitable complement to the text. You cannot finish this work without feeling some reverence, especially if you are a believer. To compare this book to something like W. F. Buckley, Jr's., Nearer My God is to see the difference that substance and tone make. Buckley is a faithful believer in Christianity and Catholicism, but his work is so distant, so reserved that the reader doesn't get a sense of his devout faith. On the other hand, Muggeridge's enthusiasm for Jesus is evident on every page. He is a dazzling stylist, but doesn't allow this to overpower his narrative. I suppose Thomas Howard, another convert and an Anglophile, is comparable, but Howard's style can distract from what he is saying. He's like Updike, the writing and cadences are impeccable, but what is beneath the surface isn't always as impressive. Howard doesn't seem to know when to stop dazzling, but Muggeridge's grace can be disarmingly sparse.

Review # 2 was written on 2016-02-04 00:00:00 Karen Monegatto Though I have read much of Muggeridge, this work may well be his best. Because books too often go out of print, I fear that many today may never know this remarkable intellect, lover of the Lord Jesus, and consummate wordsmith.