A few hints for those interested in theology and/or spirituality. Reading tips for those for whom church is not just a word of contention and transcendence is not a foreign word.
There are quite a few for whom a summer without a holiday is just as unimaginable as a holiday without books. And like a holiday without discovering other worlds. This can be done simply by leaving home. Sometimes it is enough to let yourself be seduced into unfamiliar territory while reading.
In the area that is aimed at those interested in the church and those who are spiritually curious, there is a wide range of new and fairly recent book publications: First of all, the ex-president of Catholic Action Austria, Gerda Schaffelhofer (Throw off the shackles!VGN). She calls for a radical (the word has seldom fitted) new thinking in the Church, does not stop at trifles such as the abolition of celibacy, but wants the smashing of the clerical system, as she calls it. (What exactly is to take their place is left open).
There, at the other end of the scale, is a richly illustrated book by a monk from Heiligenkreuz Abbey, by Father Johannes Paul Chavanne (How heaven sounds; Styria). There is so little to read about crises, problems and structures of the Catholic Church. But a lot about the beauty and power of Gregorian chant, which was cultivated by the Cistercians in the Vienna Woods, and about everyday life in the monastery. If you have your smartphone with you on holiday (who doesn’t?), you can even use a QR code to hear the monks sing. pure contemplation.
To be located between these poles is a self-defined inventory of the field of tension between church and society, published by Ute and Friedemann Derschmidt and Karin Schneider (ambivalences; Anton Pustet). It may sound less exciting and more cumbersome than the synopsis of topics ranging from anti-Semitism to politics and the church to the church’s assets. Bishops (Benno Elbs, Alois Schwarz), theologians (Regina Polak, Paul M. Zulehner) have their say in contributions, and the tireless bestselling author David Steindl-Rast is also included.
Which in turn is represented in the book trade with a new publication that has only just become available (The power of wonder; Styria). David Steindl-Rast expresses blessings 99 times, “blessing whatever came to mind spontaneously, from insects to the Internet, from colors to friendship,” as he explains. Even old fences are worth a mention to him. A book for real fans and probably not for everyone. But for diving into a completely different world, a world of gratitude in any case. Who wants to be satisfied with the one that surrounds us every day?
(“Die Presse”, print edition, 07.08.2022)
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