Where Is God?

Starred review from January 27, 2020
In this thought-provoking exploration of how one lives a Christian faith in an increasingly secular age, Carron (Disarming Beauty), a Spanish Roman Catholic priest and leader of the ecclesial movement Communion and Liberation, engages in a scintillating theological conversation with Italian journalist Andrea Tornielli. Positing that the challenges facing contemporary Christians mirror those of the early church, Carron and Tornielli present their conversation as an attempt to rediscover the essence of Christianity and inquire how the faith can be testified to today. Carron decries the prevalent “reduction of Christianity to ethics and moralism” and emphasizes the need for a “lived Christianity” in which people experiencing Christ’s forgiving presence respond to others with mercy and face evil without despair. Regarding the question of how to share Christianity with others, Carron emphasizes that faith cannot be forced on anyone, and should be spread through attraction, not proselytization. While the bulk of the conversation applies to Christians broadly, the discussion also touches on the Catholic Church’s progressive changes since the Second Vatican Council, Pope Francis’s ability to communicate the heart of Christianity, and Carron’s leadership of and experience with Italy-based missionary movement Communion and Liberation. Catholics and Christians of many denominations will find both encouragement and wisdom in these challenging, insightful reflections.