46 pages • 1 hour read
Mitch AlbomHave a Little Faith: A True Story
Nonfiction | Biography | Adult | Published in 2009A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more.
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Authorial Context: Mitch Albom
Mitch Albom is an American journalist, author, and philanthropist. His best-known work is Tuesdays with Morrie, a 1997 memoir that recalls a series of conversations Albom shared with his former professor, Morrie Schwartz, as the latter was dying of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). Other notable works include The Five People You Meet in Heaven, a 2003 novel following the life—and afterlife—of an amusement park mechanic, and For One More Day, a 2006 novel telling the story of a discouraged man who receives a visit from his deceased mother. In 2019, Albom returned to writing nonfiction with the publication of Finding Chika, which relays the story of a young Haitian orphan diagnosed with a brain tumor. Taken together, these books reveal several hallmarks of Albom’s work, including his interest in questions related to mortality and morality, both of which feature prominently in Have a Little Faith.
In addition to his efforts as a writer, Albom is involved in various charitable causes, including scholarship programs, a program that funds shelters for people without homes in the Detroit metro area, and an orphanage in Port-au-Prince, Haiti. Particularly relevant to this text is his A Hole in the Roof Foundation, which helps faith groups that offer services to people without homes repair their buildings; Albom was inspired to establish the foundation as a direct result of the experiences he describes in Have a Little Faith. Overall, the text fits neatly into Albom’s broader exploration of faith and community.
Ideological Context: Judaism and Christianity
The events described in Have a Little Faith take place within certain religious and cultural contexts. Specifically, the text recounts Albom’s experiences as a man who was raised in Judaism as he reconnects with his own faith and begins to explore other faith traditions, including the Christianity of Pastor Henry Covington. Much of Albom’s development centers on his perception of the tensions between these two major faith systems, which share a complicated history.
Judaism and Christianity are, along with Islam, Abrahamic religions. This means that certain teachings and concepts are shared, even though there are significant distinctions as well. Central to Judaism is the belief that Abraham and his posterity, the Israelites, enjoy a special covenant relationship with God, which requires them to obey certain laws revealed to Moses, a prophetic figure. Sacred texts include the Torah, which contains the law of Moses, as well as the Tanakh, which contains the writings of later prophets. Appended to these are various rabbinic commentaries, such as those contained in the authoritative Talmud. While Christians accept many of the holy books of Judaism as scriptural as well, often grouping them into a compendium referred to as the Old Testament, many view these texts as mere preludes to the teachings of Jesus Christ and his apostles, as collected in a volume known as the New Testament.
Within both faith systems there exists a large number of subsets and variations, making it difficult to generalize the two. It is not necessary to understand either or both in depth to follow Albom’s book, but it is important to note that prejudice has sometimes strained relations between the two faiths.
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By Mitch Albom
