Many fictional accounts have been written about the persecution of Christians, and I avoid almost all of them. I read the Left Behind series, but it felt like a fairy tale to me. Would Jesus really want to spare his church the pain of persecution? What about when Jesus said, "Take up your cross and follow me"?
In a time of political correctness when the government would like to dictate our morality, Catacombs feels eerily realistic. Unlike many other books about persecution, this one doesn't try to place any timeframe around its events. There are no allusions to prophecy or end times. This is simply a picture of a place where Christianity is outlawed.
If you are like me and enjoy happy endings, you may choose to avoid this book - and I wouldn't blame you. Personally, I had a very difficult time getting into it and then staying with it. I noticed myself thinking, okay, it's going to get better now; something good is going to happen. But that's not the point of the book. It's sad, but then again so is the whole subject of persecution.
Still Catacombs is so good that it merits the journey. It's a kind of sweet sadness to see how faith might play out under extreme circumstances. The government in this book resorts to electric shock, torture, and even death in its attempt to stamp out Christianity from the world. As a result, people learn what they are really made of, and we get a glimpse of what Jesus meant when he said:
Anyone who loves their father or mother more than me is not worthy of me; anyone who loves a son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me. Whoever does not take up their cross and follow me is not worthy of me. Whoever finds their life will lose it, and whoever loses their life for my sake will find it. - Matthew 10:37-39
People in this book are forced to make choices. They must decide whether following Jesus is worth their lives. Catacombs has really challenged me to examine my faith. Would I stay true to Jesus in such a situation? I think so, but it would have to be a supernatural work of God.
I recently read Brother Yun's non-fiction account of persecution in China. Here in McCusker's book - as in real life - we see that God gives grace to his people to stand up under whatever evils man can throw their way. In one of the sweetest, most heart-rending scenes of the book, a number of Christians are able to face their own deaths with peace because of God's presence.
Would I recommend this book? Absolutely. But be warned: you may feel as though you have been through an emotional 'wringer' when you're through.
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