Posts By Date - Catholic Herald

September 01, 2023

Catholic Good Schools Guide 2023: A-Z of Independent Schools

September 01, 2023

Alton School Hampshire Headmaster: Andrew Reeve Takes: boys and girls, aged 1-18 Alton School is a day school in an old manor house on a 19-acre site on the outskirts of Alton. It was established in 1938 by the Sisters of Our Lady of Providence. Parents note how well pupils were looked after when schools

‘The Subtle Art of Not Giving A F**k’ is nihilistic

September 01, 2023

Mark Manson is not a philosopher, nor is he a psychologist, but you may still have heard of him. If not, you are certainly likely to have heard of his book, the crudely titled The Subtle Art of Not Giving A F**k. There was a time when I saw it everywhere in bookstores. Those days

Catholic Good Schools Guide 2023: Top ten senior independent schools

September 01, 2023

Ampleforth College North Yorks Headmaster: Peter Roberts Takes: boys and girls, aged 13-18 Originally founded for 70 boys by the Benedictine monks at Ampleforth Abbey in 1802, Ampleforth has around 500 pupils today, of whom 70 per cent are Catholic. Pupils come from all over the UK, some from as far as Dundee and Plymouth.

‘Some Thoughts on Love and Food’: A Table Full of Love, by Skye McAlpine

September 01, 2023

A Table Full of Love Skye McAlpine Bloomsbury, £25, 319 pages At first glance, I thought that Skye McAlpine’s A Table Full of Love might be some kind of theological work on the Eucharist – or at least a supplementary document to the Synod on Synodality – but then I caught sight of the longer

Catholic Good Schools Guide 2023: Top five prep schools

September 01, 2023

All Hallows East Cranmore, Somerset Headmaster: Trevor Richards Takes: boys and girls, aged 3-13 Home to 400 pupils, All Hallows has good academic results and impressive art and music departments. Individual interests are nurtured and children are encouraged to enjoy every aspect of school life, including the faith element, with Holy Communion preparation timetabled for

The Chemist of Catania, by Alexander Lucie-Smith

September 01, 2023

The Chemist of Catania Alexander Lucie-Smith Self-published, £5, 235 pages Not since Ann Radcliffe has a British author published a more sombre portrayal of Southern Italy. While written entirely in English, Fr Alexander Lucie-Smith’s new novel somehow achieves the rhythm of Italian prose. Unlike many recently celebrated sensations-in-translation (namely the anonymous Elena Ferrante), Lucie-Smith’s third-person

Traditionalism: Timely history of trendy movement

September 01, 2023

Traditionalism: The Radical Project for Restoring Sacred Order by Mark Sedgwick Pelican, £25, 432 pages Traditionalism has lately been used, confusingly, to label phenomena as diverse as the geopolitics of (alleged) Putin guru Aleksandr Dugin, the psychology of Jordan Peterson and King Charles III’s views on architecture and the environment. Mark Sedgwick’s new book does

By stacking the odds in his favour, does Pope Francis risk splitting the vote at the next conclave?

September 01, 2023

Almost 300 years ago, a minor French playwright by the cumbersome name of Léonor-Jean-Christine Soulas d’Allainval – he mockingly referred to himself as the “Abbé d’Allainval”, which one historian described as a “proto-punk poke in the eye of the Catholic Church” – debuted a work titled L’Embarras des richesses, which, fairly obviously, translates into English

‘Move on’: Pope’s advice to U.S. conservative Catholics ‘mad’ at ideology slurs

September 01, 2023

ABOARD THE PAPAL PLANE – Pope Francis has told infuriated conservative American Catholics to “move on” after he accused them of putting ideology before their faith. His comments came aboard the flight to Mongolia where he is undertaking a four-day official visit. Asked by a member of the press corps if he found diplomacy difficult,

The transcendental character of an ancient abbey

September 01, 2023

In the forests of the Thar valley, in the shadow of Mont St Michel, lies the Abbaye de la Sainte-Trinité de La Lucerne D’Outremer. Built originally in the 11th century (in the Premonstatensian style) it has flourished, collapsed and been rebuilt over the centuries. During the French revolution it was supressed and turned into a cotton mill.

Kidnapped Nigerian priest and seminarian released by captors

September 01, 2023

A priest and a seminarian kidnapped in Nigeria’s Middle Belt have been released after three weeks in captivity. Fr Paul Sanogo and Brother Melchior Mahinini, of the Missionaries of Africa (also known as the White Fathers), were abducted from their parish residence by criminals on August 2 in Minna diocese, Niger state, and were released