Lower than the Angels: A History of Sex and Christianity, by Diarmaid MacCulloch (Allen Lane, £41.96 / €42.99 ) Robert Marshall Diarmaid MacCulloch is emeritus Professor of the History of the Church at Oxford University. He has written extensively on the history of the Church and its Reformations. Lower than the Angels, running to…
I always love hearing about green shoots when it comes to religion, and especially in relation to young people. On The Hard Shoulder (Newstalk, Wednesday) there was a discussion on the matter with Wendy Grace of Spirit Radio and singer-songwriter Ciara Lawless. This was on foot or a survey from the UK that showed Gen…
Journey Without Maps, a travel book by Graham Greene (Vintage Classics. £14.99) At the end of January President Trump issued a proclamation on Black History Month promoting to all officials and members of the public that it might concern, naming as he did so a short roster of notable Black Americans. But it is…
The 11th Veronica Dunne International Singing Competition took place at the National Concert Hall at the end of last month following auditions held in several European centres as well as in New York. The triennial competition, set up by the redoubtable Ronnie, who died in 2021 and to whom there was a repeated and fitting…
Hope: the Autobiography by Pope Francis, with Carlo Musso, translated by Richard Owen (Penguin / Viking, £18.99 / €23.00) I want You to Be Happy, by Pope Francis (Hodder & Stoughton, £16.99 / €20.50 ) Pope Francis, it must be always kept in mind, even by his critics, is a unique figure. For the…
Gutenberg’s Cradle : Incunables at Marsh’s Library, Dublin, a catalogue compiled by Sara D’Amico (Marsh’s Library with the support of the Consortium European Research Libraries and the Department of Tourism, Culture, Arts, Gaeltacht, Sport and Media, €20.00; can be ordered directly from information@marshlibrary.ie) We are continually told that living as we do in an era…
All Time Belongs to Him: Seasons and Feasts of the Lord, by Hugh Gilbert OSB (Gracewing, £20.00 / £23.99) This book is quite a contrast to the spiritual adventures of Ben Harrison. The author Hugh Gilbert OSB has been a Benedictine monk of Pluscarden Abbey near Elgin, in Moray in northern Scotland. This is,…
Self-consciously smart commentators can sometimes sneer at moral panics, and some people are truly prone to over catastrophising, but I fear that in relation to children’s access to all sorts of depravity online, the worriers may be justified. The issue was raised on Mornings with Wendy (Spirit Radio, Friday) when Wendy Grace spoke to Alex…
A Song for the Way, by Ben Harrison (Dominican Publications, €12.00 / £10.00) Over the years parts of this book have appeared as articles in journals, but being brought together here they provide readers new to the author’s work with a very vivid reading experience. In a strange way it recollects the Beat Generation…
We’re an hour into Mike Leigh’s Hard Truths (12A) before a character says to Pansy (Marianne Jean-Baptiste), “Why are you so angry?” It’s a question you’re entitled to be asking yourself from the first minute of the film. Leigh doesn’t spoon-feed us with answers to it. Hurt people hurt people. There’s a suggestion she may…
Peter Costello
Brendan O’Regan
Aubrey Malone