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Easter 2022: A Roman Pilgrimage
This Easter, my wife and I headed to Rome. What follows is a simple journal that records some of the things that we did, with a selection of photographs from each day.
Terrence Malick’s A Hidden Life: Telling the Story of Saints
In ‘A Hidden Life: Telling the Story of Saints’, Mark Cooprider offers an accessible analysis of Terrence Malick’s 2019 biopic of the Austrian conscientious objector Franz Jägerstätter—executed in 1943 for his refusal to swear allegiance to National Socialism. Cooprider explores how Malick’s poetic narrative encompasses conventions of history, biography, myth, and legend, in ways akin…
“When you seek from almost nothing”: Arvo Pärt’s Musical Diaries
In a 30-minute documentary produced in collaboration with the Arvo Pärt Centre, the composer discusses the significance of his personal diaries to the formation and development of his music.
Ignatius Loyola: A Saint Reads the Saints
31 July marks the feast day of Saint Ignatius Loyola (b.1491), the founder of the Society of Jesus (more commonly known as the Jesuits). In a breviary, I come across a passage from the Acts of Saint Ignatius taken down by Luis Gonzalez, which describes the growing influence of religious reading on the young saint…
The Life of Saint Pambo
Reading Butler’s Lives of the Saints, I come across a passage on St Pambo, an Egyptian monk (c.390) thought to be a disciple of St Antony. I was struck by the following passage…
The Letters of Thomas Merton
I have recently finished re-reading Merton’s The Seven Storey Mountain, one of my favourite books. Now, I am dipping into the multi-volume edition of his letters…
A New Role at St David’s Catholic College, Cardiff
I have just started a new role as a pastoral tutor at St David’s Catholic College in Cardiff. Over the last two years I have been looking for a secure full-time job that would allow me to draw on my teaching skills and experience, while also offering an opportunity to serve my local community in…
Notes on Blindness
Set in the summer of 1983, Notes on Blindness is a beautiful 2016 docudrama that explores the life of writer and theologian John M. Hull.
Radio On: An Existential Road Movie for Our Troubled Times
As we enter a new phase of social, political and economic uncertainty, Christopher Petit’s 1979 film Radio On has a new relevance.
Into the Wild
Just read Jon Krakauer’s Into the Wild. A compelling account of the tragic story of Chris McCandless and his idealistic trek into the Alaskan wilderness. At the same time, the book offers a cultural history of the fascination wild spaces hold in the modern imagination.
Visiting the John Muir family home
This week, it was my great privilege to visit the John Muir National Historic Site in Martinez, California. The beautiful Muir family home was restored from dereliction by the National Park Service, and pays tribute to the father of modern environmental conservation.
Michael Chabon’s Bookends: Collected Intros and Outros
A collection that reveals a lifelong emotional engagement with the possibilities of art
What Makes When Harry Met Sally… A Classic?
Tamar Jeffers McDonald discusses one of the most innovative romantic comedies ever made
RhysTranter.com 