"As the longtime archivist for the then Indiana Province of Holy Cross, and a well-published American Church historian, Father Jim Connelly is eminently qualified to write this long-overdue book. —Fr. Richard Gribble, CSC, author of Father of the Fatherless
"I want to celebrate and applaud the publication of Father Jim Connelly's The History of the Congregation of Holy Cross. Father Connelly's book is the first to retell this great story. For this, we can all be forever grateful." —Edward A. Malloy, C.S.C., president emeritus, University of Notre Dame
“This is an important contribution to the history of the order from its early days in Le Mans, France, to its international institutional footprint at the end of the twentieth century. James Connelly has produced an important, incredibly well-researched volume.” —William B. Kurtz, co-editor of Soldiers of the Cross, the Authoritative Text
"Without doubt, Fr. Jim Connelly is the foremost expert on the worldwide history of the Congregation of Holy Cross. This book is most welcome, especially with its critical and scholarly, yet highly readable, approach." —Rev. Arthur Wheeler, C.S.C., University of Portland
"Connelly, the congregation's archivist, is understandably able to go much deeper into the spirit of hope that not only brought the order into existence in post-Revolutionary France but defines its ministries to this day. . . . [He] details how the congregation cultivated charisms or spiritual gifts for parish ministry, education and missions. " —The Journal Gazette
"This book offers the first complete history of the Congregation, covering nearly two centuries from 1820 to 2018. James T. Connelly, C.S.C., focuses on the ministry of the Congregation rather than on its ministers in this book that will interest historians of Catholicism." —American Catholic Studies Newsletter
"A religious order of priests, brothers, and at one time sisters, the Congregation of the Holy Cross is best known as the founder of St. Joseph’s Oratory in Montreal and of the University of Notre Dame. . . . Connelly traces the community and its work in France, Algeria, the US, Canada, Rome, Bengal, Chile, Peru, Ghana, Uganda, Haiti, Brazil, Bangladesh, and Mexico." —Choice
"Connelly's book is thoroughly researched, and his subject is rich in human drama. Religious orders have helped to build the education, health, and social service infrastructures of many nations and account for nearly all of the experiments in communal living to survive long-term. These are achievements worth our attention." —Church History
"This book represents . . . the first 'general' history of the congregation of Holy Cross, from its origins in France in the 1820s and 1830s to nearly the present day. . . . [Connelly's] thorough work supports the hope that God may not be done with the congregation yet." —American Catholic Studies
