A church remade in the midst of modernity

by Kevin Spinale April 29, 2019

The Catholic Book Club’s new selection studies the Catholic Church’s ecclesial response to modernity over the last century.

Arts & Culture, Catholic Book Club

The Old Testament clarity of Andre Dubus

by Kevin Spinale January 3, 2019

The stories of Andre Dubus delve into loneliness, the ferocity of parental love, adultery, retribution and sex that is a stay against loneliness.

Arts & Culture, Catholic Book Club

A Catholic Book Club milestone (and more)

by James T. Keane October 24, 2018

The Catholic Book Club continues to flourish, approaching 2,000 members.

Arts & Culture, Catholic Book Club

The Burden of Suffering, the Weightiness of Love: Kate Bowler and Theodicy

by Kevin Spinale October 2, 2018

Kate Bowler’s memoir is an elegant theodicy exactly because it is not an explanation. It is a story of human suffering. It is the account of a human person who believes and struggles in her belief as she tries to appropriate the depths of suffering in the midst of an illness that may end her life.

Arts & Culture, Catholic Book Club

A leader of ‘needed strength’: Archbishop John Hughes

by Kevin Spinale July 11, 2018

An interpretive essay and some questions for reflection on the Catholic Book Club’s new selection, “Dagger John” by John Loughery.

Arts & Culture, Catholic Book Club

Who was Jesus? Gerhard Lohfink on the Messiah

by Kevin Spinale April 4, 2018

Totality occurred on Aug. 21, 2017, when the first total solar eclipse in the United States in 38 years swathed the country from Oregon to South Carolina. It was reported on by a media hungry for distractions. The event was rare and cosmic: Eyewitnesses described waves of light that mirrored the shape of the sun’s […]

Arts & Culture, Catholic Book Club

The rhythm of the hours: Alice McDermott’s new novel, ‘The Ninth Hour’

by Kevin Spinale January 5, 2018

Alice McDermott’s new novel will provoke contemplation and prayer. It is a Catholic book, and it will seep into you like indigo into a clean, pure bolt of cloth.