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James Gerald McCarthy (born February 12, 1952) is the founder and director of Good News for Catholics, Inc. A former missionary to Ireland, Jim is producer/director of the video "Catholicism: Crisis of Faith" and author of "The Gospel According to Rome", "Conversations with Catholics", and "What You Need to Know About Roman Catholicism". (from the back cover of "What Every Catholic Should Ask")

Jim McCarthy lives in San Jose, California, with his wife, Jean. He has served with Christian ministries on five campuses, including the University of California, Berkeley, the setting of this book. "John Calvin Goes to Berkeley" is his fourth book and first novel. (from the back cover of "John Calvin Goes to Berkeley")

Born in San Francisco, California. Both parents grew up in Ireland. Jim's parents had 8 children. Jim was the 2nd oldest & oldest son. Raised Irish Catholic. Jim & Jean have three daughters -- Elizabeth, Faith, and Grace.

Jim got saved at age 23.

McCarthy says that "[The Bible] is where we as Christians must turn to tell us what is true and false, what is right and wrong, to answer our questions, to settle our disputes, and to judge us when we are in sin."

In 1981, McCarthy founded Good News for Catholics.

Theologian R. K. McGregor Wright, in a review of McCarthy's book The Gospel According to Rome, wrote "This is an unusually helpful and accurate book, and anyone who simply reads it through will get an education in the differences between the biblical Gospel and the 'gospel according to Rome.'"

Peter J. H. Barratt refers to The Gospel According to Rome as "a more 'respectable' anti-Catholic book, which does not deal in the sensationalism of a Dave Hunt (though less 'scholarly' than [William] Webster or [James R.] White)".

McCarthy created the website "Good News for Catholics" containing booklets, articles, excerpts from books, and links to resource materials.

Steve W. Lemke, in his review of McCarthy's novel John Calvin Goes to Berkeley, touts it as ... a creative approach to the Reformed-Arminian debate, which has evoked many one-sided theological treatises but little meaningful dialogue. We often learn more from dialogue than from a monologue, more from a story than a lecture, more from a novel than from a theological treatise. The format of a novel allows us to overhear the debate over Reformed theology as a bystander without feeling pressed by a one-sided author to affirm that position. Overhearing the debate provides the readers with a balanced presentation of multiple sides of the issue, and allows the readers to think through their own positions without feeling defensive.

According to Allan Ruhl, McCarthy wrote John Calvin Goes to Berkeley to attack Calvinism.

In an essay Ephesians 2:8-9 : Is Saving Faith a Gift from God?, McCarthy gives his non-Calvinist explanation of Ephesians 2:8.

Works