Burned: The inside story of the ‘cash for ash’ scandal and Northern Ireland’s secretive new elite by Sam McBride (Merrion Press, €19.95) The scandal of Northern Ireland’s Renewable Heat Incentive (RHI) is one of bureaucratic failure, sloppy political oversight, and culpable procrastination, all leading to a colossal waste of public money. This book will…
Has Science Killed God? Faraday Papers on Science and Religion edited by Denis Alexander (SPCK, £19.99) Christopher Moriarty This is a truly amazing book. Written by a team of eminent scientists, who are also believers in the reality of the spiritual, it provides a great deal of comfort to people of faith who…
As we ease into the early days of 2020, with threats of global conflict and environmental disaster prominent in news and current affairs coverage so far, anything that gives us well-grounded hope is welcome. But good news doesn’t tend to get much prominence. The dilemmas and paradoxes surrounding these issues were aired in a leisurely…
Cinemas usually experience the celluloid equivalent of haemophilia at this time of year, either due to ritualistic hibernation, post-festive lethargy and/or the sedentary hangover of a Yuletide addiction to television. To draw patrons away from the sofas to which they seem to become almost surgically attached over the 12 days of Christmas – if not…
Dorothy Macardle by Leeann Lane (University College Dublin Press, €25.00) In this study the author sets out to explore Dorothy Macardle’s writings to reveal the development of her political thought and feminism. In so doing she has provided an excellent biography of her subject. Dorothy was born on March 7, 1889 in Dundalk, Co.…
Philosopher of the Heart: The Restless Life of Søren Kierkegaard by Clare Carlisle (Allen Lane, £25.00) Patrick Claffey This exploration of the tortured mind and faith of Kierkegaard is a challenging title with which to begin a fresh year of reading. Clare Carlisle opens her preface to this book on the philosopher with a reference…
Mainly About Books by the books editor Recently we reviewed Elizabeth Mac Donald’s novel A Matter of Interpretation about Michael Scot and his lifelong interaction with the Holy Roman Emperor, Frederick II of Hohenstaufen (1195-1250), the Norman who ruled Sicily and Southern Italy, and was one of the leading figures in the political and…
Personal Struggle: Oppression, healing and liberation by Dr Seán Ruth (Atrium / Cork University Press, €14.95) The title may, for some, carry echoes of the 1970s. But in a sense the problems identified then by theologians and social activists have not gone away. They have got worse in many respects (especially in Latin American). Worse the…
A happy and celebratory New Year as we remember Beethoven’s 250th anniversary. Born in Bonn in December 1770, he was the second son of court musician Johann and his wife Maria Magdalena. Somewhat harsh and severe, Johann was Ludwig’s first teacher. The composer’s mother was a quiet and serious person and Beethoven was very fond…
At Christmas there’s usually great stuff on TV and radio, much of it repeats, but with seasonal and family activities it can be hard to make time for more than a select few. Last Sunday morning’s Life and Soul (RTÉ1) was the fourth episode in this occasional series and it continues to be an excellent…
Brendan O’Regan
Aubrey Malone
Peter Costello