January 7, 2011

A number of the American Founding Fathers came from colonies developed in response to religious oppression. Thomas Jefferson wisely thought that the separation of Church and State would be advantageous to the young nation. For several hundred years, this idea has been a basic tenet of American society.

Recent court decisions in the United States have challenged Jefferson’s sage understanding. When the civil society begins to force believers to accept certain moral and religious dictates, a persecution begins. Usually the State attacks the Church to compel the faithful to follow certain secular ideas. Normally these persecutions attack the Church’s religious beliefs and punish anyone refusing compliance with the State’s convoluted principles.

While savage attacks on the Church happened during Roman times, a particularly vicious attack on the Catholic Church occurred during the reign of the English queen, Elizabeth I. In this masterful book, Msgr. Robert Hugh Benson recounts the dreadful persecutions of the Elizabethan period, and the heroic resistance of the English martyrs.

Robin Audrey, a young English nobleman, rides through a meadow thinking of a beautiful young woman named Margorie Manners. The day is scenic and his heart burns with affection for the charming Miss Manners. When they meet it is evident that Margorie is equally in love with the young nobleman. Soon they begin talking about marriage. Robin then reveals to the young woman that his father has decided to become a Protestant to escape paying the dreadful fines the Crown has imposed on Catholics. Sir Audrey has no interest in Anglicanism but fears that Queen Elizabeth will bankrupt him with fines and take over his estates.

This places his son in a terrible dilemma. If he obeys his heart he cannot become a Protestant, but if he remains a Catholic he will have to disobey his father. Robin’s devotion to Catholicism is evident to Margorie as she watches him struggle with this painful decision. Robin’s love of the Faith is so strong that Margorie begins to wonder if he has a vocation to the priesthood. The young woman finally asks Robin if he is being called to the priesthood. Looking deep into his heart, Robin realizes that he is being called to Holy Orders. In a heartbreaking scene, both he and Margorie accept his decision to enter the seminary. Since all English priests and seminarians are subject to execution, Robin must flee England as well. With a heart that has just been broken and is being healed, Robin escapes to France to begin his priestly studies.

Years later he returns to England as a Catholic priest. Soon Queen Elizabeth’s priest-catchers and torturers are chasing him down. As he desperately evades them, he turns to faithful Catholics to shelter him. In an act of heroic love, Marjorie hides the hunted cleric as her house is searched by Elizabeth’s malevolent henchman.

What happens to Robin? Is he caught and tortured? Is Marjorie’s love for the Faith and for Robin the cause of her arrest? Would you shelter a hunted priest? What gives anyone the strength to persevere in the face of such evil? To find out, read this excellent book, "Come Rack! Come Rope! by Msgr. Robert Hugh Benson."

Msgr. Benson is an outstanding writer and clearly understands the religious revolutions of Henry VIII and Elizabeth I. This is a moving love story of two dedicated young people surrendering their lives to Our Lord. The novel has been reprinted many times and is easily available through the Internet or at Catholic bookstores. I hope you get the opportunity to read this superb story of human love, the transforming qualities of sacrificial grace, and the cost of discipleship.