YEARS AGO I SAW A NEWS REPORT about the growth of Pentecostalism in Latin America. One fiery pastor had a pamphlet at the back of his church entitled, “Twenty-five reasons why you are no longer Catholic.” I became upset when I saw this and wanted to produce my own response. Naturally, I wanted this response to be both comprehensive and overwhelming—hence the thought of collecting and publishing 1001 reasons why it’s great to be Catholic! More than most, non-Catholics should find this book of great interest. This book does not want to hide the bad things that have happened in the Catholic Church; rather, it simply wants to proclaim to the world some of the great things about her. In the age of the “new evangelization” we should no longer simply cower under the relentless attacks against our Church and Faith, but be willing and able to stand confidently and proclaim loudly why it’s great to be Catholic. It’s not about triumphalism; it’s about truth, and it’s always a great time to proclaim the truth! — ROBERT M. HADDAD