Various

Love and Salt: A Spiritual Friendship Shared in Letters by amy andrews and jessica mesman griffith loyola, 324 pages, $14.95Over the course of three years, Amy Andrews and Jessica Mesman Griffith wrote each other what were, for a while, daily letters. This regular exchange began as a Lenten . . . . Continue Reading »

PhariseesIn “Marriage Matters” (“Public Square,” November), R. R. Reno wondered how such a display of “public” immorality—same-sex marriage—could be greeted without comment. He worried that, in the presence of a gay married couple, acting as if . . . . Continue Reading »

Work–Life Imbalance I agree with Elizabeth Corey (“No Happy Harmony,” October) that there will always be conflict between motherhood and career, but I don’t agree with her reasons. She contrasts the leisure needed for love of children with the self-culture needed for the pursuit . . . . Continue Reading »

Contemplative Provocations: Brief, Concentrated Observations on Aspects of a Life with God by fr. donald haggerty ignatius, 200 pages, $16.95 This book of spiritual guidance is concerned with the way in which the spiritual life is “a path of paradox,” a deepening yearning for a God who . . . . Continue Reading »

Coolidge There has been a rush to resurrect Calvin Coolidge as the antithesis of Obama, but one should be a bit careful what one wishes for. Ted V. McAllister’s review of Amity Shlaes’ Coolidge (“A Rooted Man,” August/September) pointed out that there were indeed positive . . . . Continue Reading »

The Common Mind: Politics, Society and Christian Humanism from Thomas More to Russell Kirk ? by andré gushurst-moore ?angelico, 264 pages, $24.95 An ambitious attempt to survey five hundred years of Christian cultural criticism, The Common Mind traces the efforts of twelve Britons and . . . . Continue Reading »

Being Together R. R. Reno writes in “Solidarity” (June/July) that “solidarity involves sharing social space and a living culture, not just bloodless financial resources.” One hundred years ago, when the great majority of Americans lived in small towns or on farms, solidarity was . . . . Continue Reading »

Suicide Wesley J. Smith gives no reasons for his lamentations concerning the increasing frequency of euthanasia and assisted suicide (“Medicinal Murder,” May). Catholics realize that the suffering we endure should be offered with Christ’s in atonement for our sins and the sins of others. We, . . . . Continue Reading »

The Promise of Christian Humanism: Thomas Aquinas on Hope by Dominic F. Doyle Crossroad, 248 pages, $34.95 Dominic F. Doyle offers a creative defense of the Christian humanism of Gaudium et Spes , which seeks to blend two ideas that critics such as the liberal theologian Gordon Kaufman have not . . . . Continue Reading »

Auctoritas Patrum?: The Reception of the Church Fathers in Puritanism by Ann-Stephane Schäfer Peter Lang, 449 pages, $109.95 It is well known that the New England Puritan divines took great pride in their libraries. John Winthrop was reported to have one thousand volumes, and the Mather . . . . Continue Reading »