Book Recommendations

Hello everybody. 

Today I wanted to write about something a bit more possitive. This blog often revolves around negative commentary; There is nothing wrong with that but today it will be different. 

I have always been a bit of a bookworm. I like reading, whether it is from a book I can hold or a digital text. I have read multiple books through my life, so I wanted to recommend some of my favorite Catholic books. Today, after you are done with reading The Pasture of Knowledge, you will have a few extra book recommendations for the rest of the year.

History of the Heresies 

I read "History of the Heresies" by St. Alphonsus back in 2020, and to date it's one of my favorite theology books. 

It is an educational, enthralling reading - even the theologically complex parts are interesting to read. I like the way in which St. Alphonsus lists the errors of each group, because it's very straightforward and allows you to understand what kind of sect you are dealing with. 

The book is mostly about the history of how the heresies appeared and the reaction of the Church - the refutation comes at the end. Those interested in the history of the Catholic religion or history in general will enjoy this read for sure. 

I also liked how the personalities of each heresiarch were depicted. You can find cruel despots, neurotic cult leaders, stiff clerics and even devout souls. Readers who pay attention will be able to see the heretics as fellow human beings - this is important because it proves everyone can do theological errors. 

If you want to read this book, however, I would like you to take a deep breath and avoid pushing yourself with the more complicated heresies (those about the Trinity and the Incarnation). I think this parts are difficult for theology beginners. Its alright if you don't understand, it's not alright if you merely think you understood.

You can find History of the heresies at the following links: 

Archive.org (Volume 1) 1847 

Archive org  1857

A Tour of the Summa by Paul J Glenn 

I read this book last year, and while it is less captivating than History of the Heresies, It's definitely worth reading. 

This book is intended to explore in an easier way some of the points of the Summa Theologica. It's a good read for those who would like to study the work of St Thomas but struggle to understand it or are not very strong with philosophy. 

Furthermore, this will be a useful manual for those who have already learned their catechism and want to move further. 

The initial part, dealing about the nature of God, is really difficult because it deals with very abstract ideas. As the book progresses it gets easier to understand but it still provides insightful information. 

Overall it is a very educational read everyone should check out at least once. 

You can find A Tour of the Summa at the following link: 

WM Review

The Doctrine of Modernism and It's Refutation 

There are many people on the trad spheres who throw the word "modernist" around without even understanding what it means. This small manual should prove a perfect antidote for this type of ignorance. 

"Modernism and It's Refutation" allows the reader to understand the reasoning behind this doctrines. It goes beyond what you will find in amateur podcasts and YouTube shows like Return to Tradition or Avoiding Babylon, whose understanding of modernism is fairly superficial. If you want to go beyond toxic comment sections and ignorant rants on Twitter, this book is for you. 

The books can get quite challenging at times but it's way easier than A Tour of the Summa and History if the Heresies. 

It's also easier to understand than "A Catechism on Modernism" by Fr. Lemius and the encyclical Pascendi. It is therefore a good primer for those who want to understand this works. 

You can find The Doctrine of Modernism in the following links: 

Archive.org 1903

Moral Theology by McHugh and Callan 

During late 2019 I wanted to learn the principles of moral theology. I got into the Spanish-language book "Teología Moral para Seglares". 

Even though this book is written in my native language, I found it harder to understand than it should have been. Most troublesome however, was that the writers often used examples from human reproduction to explain their points. For some of us this is extremely jarring and very uncomfortable. I grew tired and gave up. 

One day I was exploring Project Gutenberg, a website full of public domain books, and found Moral Theology by McHugh and Callan.

I started reading and  it was an instant hit.

It was easier to understand, and the topics were well organized, which is something important for large books. 

The content of this book is extremely informative. Here you can find a bountiful of information about the rules of Catholicism, the Ten Commandments, the Virtues, and the Sacraments. It is also really nice to keep around as a reference work anytime you have a question about this topics. 

My only caveat is that perhaps some anxious people could stress under the content of this book. The solution is to read the book calmly and piece-meal so that the mind can receive information, not overstimulation. 

Overall this is one of my favorite theology books - and it doesn't have references to reproduction with every example. 

You can find Moral Theology in the following links: 

Archive.org (Part One) 1958 

Archive.org (Part Two) 1958

The Animal Farm Movie (Part 2)

It's finally here: the dreaded adaptation of Animal Farm by Andy Serkis and Seth Rogen has finally breached the cinemas. A military of hatred has raised on the internet, uniting everyone against this offensive film. 

As for myself, I can see that my predictions for the movie were correct. Animal Farm 2026 is indeed a vacuous criticism of capitalism made by capitalist Hollywood. The main problem for the animals is not the pigs becoming corrupted, but the pigs selling out the farm to sex swapped Elon Musk. Eventually, the pigs get defeated and everyone restores Animal Farm into its former socialist glory. 

While I have found the discourse around this movie to be boring, I was still able to pick up a few things that were worth commenting. So today, in the Pasture of knowledge, I will provide you with some commentary about this film adaptation. 

The Commentary of the Slop Right

I have seen many of the Slop Right masses repeat the "Orwell Hated Socialism" mantra; as if it wasn't publicly available knowledge that the guy was a Democratic socialist.

In fact, for every comment that says "Orwell Hated Socialism", there is a nerd saying that *actually* Orwell was a socialist. This are probably followed by comments discussing whether socialism and communism can be said to be the same movement. 

In reality and as I said before, Animal Farm is not a condemnation of the revolution: it is the condemnation of those who make the revolution about getting power. Stalin bad, Trotsky good. 

The fact that so many people are unaware of this fact is quite amusing. How many are loosing their minds over the disrespect of the book, and yet they don't know that they themselves are disrespecting it? 

Moses the Crow 

One of the Characters who is missing in this adaptation is Moses, the crow. This omission is quite telling and is significantly important.  

In the original book, Moses plays the role of the Orthodox Church. Moses preaches to other animals that they will go to "Sugarcandy Mountain", a Heaven for all suffering beasts.

Moses is fed beer and crumbs by Mr. Jones, his master and commander. He leaves the farm after the revolution but returns and accepts Napoleon as his new master and commander. 

This represents that the Mordorox Church worked with the Czar, long before Stalin was a thing. This represents that the Mordorox Churcsh sold out to Stalin and is now infiltrated with former KGB agents. This also represents that Orwell, being a *true* socialist, didn't like organized religion. 

The reason I called this omission "quite telling". can be found on the cover for this post. Angel Studios is owned by Mormons, and the Mormons share many similarities work Moses the crow. 

Mormons are a subsidiary of the Freemasons. Mormons are a cult which means their coercion style is more abrasive than that of other religions. Mormons are one of those "christian" churches that beg for money so much that they create more disbelief than belief. 

Mormons even believe that everyone can eventually enter heaven. It's the same doctrine as Moses's SugarCandy Mountain were all animals go to heaven and no specific moral code is ever given. 

Mormon studios like Angel are subsidiaries of the establishment, just like Moses the Crow. Mormons used to beg the crumbs and the beer of the american christian masses, back when they were conservative. Now the winds have shifted, and Mormons beg for the crumbs and the beer of the judeocentric establishment. Angel Studios is just a symptom of the sickness in the LDS church. 

Angel is (Unsurprisingly) Selling Out to Hollywood 

Speaking of subsidiaries to the state, I have noticed that Angel is (unsurprisingly) selling out to Hollywood. 

The reason I call this unsurprising is that even when their one and only success was The Chosen they acted in this way. Writing Jesus into telling fart jokes is not a sign of genuine respect for Christianity but a sign that they were always grifters. 

While the 2023 film Sound of Freedom offended Hollywood, that was because the film was perceived as coming from the Qanon Trumpite Cult which has never been popular among the stars. It represented the rise of a rival studio during a year were many films flopped. 

Since then, Angel Studios has invited multiple big names into their films. To Booth: 

John Lithgow in Cabrini (2024) 

Mark Hamill, Pierce Brosnan, Uma Thurman, Oscar Isaac, Ben Kingsley, Kenneth Branagh, in King of Kings (2025) 

Seth Rogen, Steve Buscemi, Kathleen Turner, Iman Vellani, Laverne Cox, Woody Harrelson for Animal Farm. 

So whoever thought that Angel would save us from evil Hollywood was greatly deceived.

The "Sound of Freedom" Reference

During a particularly repulsive scene, the Seth Rogen pig farts for an uncomfortably long moment and then says triumphantly. "This is the sound of freedom." 

This is an obvious reference to the aforementioned 2023 film "Sound of Freedom". Let me add a little bit of a retrospective as to why this "joke" is actually abominable. 

Back in summer 2023, the release of Sound of Freedom was met with huge controversy. The mainstream left gave it a blanket rejection; not necessarily because they opposed the message against trafficking but because they believed it's story was based on falsehood and Trumpism. 

The mainstream right on the other hand received it with standing applause. I got the impression that some would accuse you of being an abuser if you dared to say anything negative about it. 

Angel Studios made big money from a movie whose main theme can't be described with words. Angel Studios and it's supporters sold the film as a bold statement against both the traffickers and Hollywood, who is full of evil people. A movie so virtuous you had to see it, and so serious that it would change the world.

Skip to 3 years later and now Sound of Freedom is the punchline of yet another fart joke. 

This just proves what I have said about the studio before. They are so desperate to become a big studio like Fox or Disney that they are willing to submit to Hollywood's opinions about their most successful movie. 

Angel Studios is led by a people so unserious that Jesus Christ, political novels for adults and even Child Trafficking itself can be subjected to flatulence jokes and it's okay because we're the largest christian movie studio ever. 

The Animal Farm Movie

The Mormon company Angel Studios set the world on fire with their attempted adaptation of George Orwell's classical novel Animal Farm.

Directed by Andy Serkis, this adaptation has been attacked for ignoring the serious subject matter of the book for the sake of turning the story into a childish comedy. 

To be fair, Angel Studios has NEVER been known for treating serious topics with maturity. One only needs to remember this was the studio that wrote Jesus Christ (yes, Jesus Christ) into making farting noises TWICE!. 

So forgive me for not being shocked that Angel Studios would treat this book without respect. However, what could the message of this parody of itself be? Today, in the Pasture of Knowledge, I will offer my opinion on this upcoming movie. 

The Message of the Original Book

Some people work under the misconception that George Orwell was a fanatical anti-communist. This however couldn't be further from the truth. Orwell was a socialist who went to fight against Franco in Spain. The reason Orwell wrote Animal Farm was to attack the Soviet Union, because he believed their  communism was authoritarian and abusive. In other words, we only need to remember the mantra of western socialism: Stalin bad, Trotsky good. 

In Animal Farm we have a group of domestic critters who rebel against their owner (Mr. Jones) after an elderly pig calls for rebellion against mankind. The initial revolution is successful and the animals are happy to be free from their abusive master. However, two of the pigs start competing against each other for supremacy: Napoleon and Snowball.

Napoleon has a down to earth, dry approach to things, while Snowball is more idealistic and wants to modernize the farm with technology. Since Napoleon exiles his rival and erects an authoritarian farm were he kills rebels, everyone who knows a little bit of history identifies Napoleon as Stalin pig and Snowball as Trotsky pig. 

Through the book the revolution that the farm animals make against their owners is never explicitly condemned, and is actually portrayed positively in some instances. After all, the oppression of the pigs did not start as soon as Jones was expelled; this is the story of a revolution that degraded itself, not a revolution that was corrupt from the very beginning. While the novel is written in such a way that even the strongest anti-communist can relate to it, only those whose knowledge of the story is minimal would say that it was written by an enemy of communism. 

The reality is that Orwell isn't as subversive as many seem to believe. Stalin Bad, Trotsky Good isn't that offensive because the western establishment wanted people, at least for a while, to hate Stalin. 

If his writings are useful, we can study them, but we shouldn't lionize Orwell for something he was not. There is a reason why this books are mandatory reading in some High School programs. 

What do the Mormons want to Tell Us? 

It is very important to consider that remakes and reboots are often used to promote new messages by movie makers. For example, in an attempt to make the film more feminist, Aladdin 2019 had a musical number about Princess Jasmine empowering herself 

It is also very important to consider that Angel Studios is selling the movie to anti-communist evangelicals. The tagline of the movie is "A Cautionary Tail", suggesting to the audiences that a communist nation that "works" (ie., that keeps it's inhabitants happier than those in regular countries) is an impossibility and will always end up worse than it's neighbors. 

However, a closer examination of the trailer reveals that this movie might not be as anti-communist as it's promoters would like us to believe. There are multiple signs that it will just be a generic critique of capital greed. Let me explain: 

In the book, the problem for the animals was not that the farm "sold out" to an abusive human master, but rather, that the pigs learned to be abusive, using politics and propaganda for their exclusive benefit. The humans were never a direct cause for this.

However, the trailer suggests the movie is about Napoleon trying to sell the farm to a corporate tech lady, a plot not much different from other family movies. 

This not only takes away the creativity of the novel but also turns the story into a vacuous critique of capitalism when the book focused on Stalinism. While some stones are thrown to the regular economic system, the intent of the book is not the outside treat of anti-communists but the possibility of communists becoming what they swore to destroy. 

This disloyalty becomes infuriating when we consider that Angel Studios goes out of their way to make their movies acceptable to all audiences in an attempt to make more money. 

Another reason this movie isn't going to be pure-bred anti-communist starts with a simple reason: the slaughter truck at the beginning of the trailer. All the farm animals are stuck in the lorry and realize they will be killed, after which they rebel and install their own farm. 

The purpose of the animals being treated violently and abusively in the novel was to show Orwell's conviction that socialism was based on genuine grievances. But if Angel Studios wanted to attack communism itself as an intrinsically corrupt system, why preserve the slaughter of the animals? Of course they are going to rebel if they are going to die! If the original purpose of the analogy has been misunderstood, how are we supposed to expect the criticism towards communists will remain? 

Conclusion:  

As of today, I can only predict that this film will be bad even if it turns out to be better than the trailer shows. It is a childish comedy adapted from a serious novel. It is a critique of authoritarianism made by a company whose owners belong to a cult. It condemns those who sell out to the greed of foreigners which is precisely what Angel Studios has done with Jesus Christ in other properties. 

Hopefully it will not be as bad as it looks, but let us meditate on the following for a moment: Is this the price we are willing to pay for high-budget "christian" movies?