International Writers Inspiring Change feature book review: FAITH, by Mary Ellen Humphrey

Realistic and telling

Faith, by Mary Ellen Humphrey, is a story surrounding a few young girls, coming of age, who seek out a better life by joining a church and submitting themselves completely to its vows, beliefs, and lifestyle. It’s a telling story, revealing the all-too-often sordid  world of organized religions and cults, hidden behind a veil of sanctity, which demand ultimate faith and devotion, unquestioning allegiance, and acceptance of the utterances of its ecclesiastical hierarchy all at the expense of one’s personal certainty and self-esteem; and the slippery slope that such unchallengeable devotion can end one in a depressive state of entrapment. While this story by no means represents the totality of organized religion, one must remember that religion, by definition comes from Latin, religio – meaning supernatural constraint, sanction, religious practice, and perhaps going back to the word, religare, meaning, to restrain, tie back. This is not a fast-paced read or thriller, it is, however, pastorally brutal, because it shows the rather gruesome reality of life within the inner circles of a tight-fisted religious belief system. The story, when compared to countless narratives by apostates, those excommunicated by churches/cults, or those who simply left, is less fiction than fact.

Review by International Writers Inspiring Change

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With a masters in education, and a specialty to teach writing, I’ve worked for many years on my various books. Some are fiction, and some nonfiction. For me, as an author, I have to see the story, the completed book, in my mind’s eye before I can actually sit down and compose it. Drafts are written and rewritten and reviewed and revised, until it feels done.  Stories are everywhere. I started writing when I first learned how to form letters and words. For the last fifteen years I’ve used the exercise of NANOWRIMO to experiment with new writing projects. Several of my books are the results of this effort.  In addition, my passion is helping others with their writing projects, and have sponsored student publishing workshops for middle and high schoolers to write, revise, edit, design the book content and cover, and produce an anthology. It inspires youngsters to love reading and writing, and all without pressure or criticism. Website