Former Bishop of Edinburgh Richard Holloway, whose complex relationship with his own Christian tradition has made him perhaps the quintessential sceptical Scot, widens his focus to the world’s religions in a new book exploring the history of faith.A Little History of Religion follows in the footsteps of Karen Armstrong’s A History of God and Huston Smith’s The World’s … [Read more...] about Discerning the light: a sceptic explores the history of religion
Reviews
Roch Winds and the illusions of Civic Nationalism
Of the many new voices that emerged during the independence referendum one of the most compelling was the Mair Noch A Roch Wind blog run by three young Labour and trade union activists.The blog takes its name from the gale blowing through Hamish Henderson's Freedom Come-All-Ye signifying the radical possibilities that open only at times of political crisis.For the … [Read more...] about Roch Winds and the illusions of Civic Nationalism
‘The idea of Europe’
If Britain does indeed vote 'Leave', and the gradual disintegration of the European Union were to gather pace, what would be left of 'the idea of Europe'? What sense of collective identity and purpose, if any, predated the EU, and would it be strong enough to survive its breakup?The extraordinary complexity of European history and its multidimensional culture makes the … [Read more...] about ‘The idea of Europe’
The meaning of Jeremy Corbyn
Richard Seymour's Corbyn: The Strange Rebirth of Radical Politics is the first serious study of the unexpected insurgency that has taken hold of the Labour Party.In Seymour, a Marxist writer whose work is characterised by both an uncompromising radicalism and an unsentimental recognition of how hard progressive change is to achieve, the Corbyn phenomenon has perhaps found … [Read more...] about The meaning of Jeremy Corbyn
The ‘Scottification’ of literature: now and then
What does literature say about nations and nationality?Given recent comments by writer and academic Kirsty Gunn that Scottish literature is in peril from ‘Scottification,’ it would seem a pressing issue. However in reality, this is a question Scottish literature has had to grapple with for a very long time.Gunn would probably have a thing or two to take from that very … [Read more...] about The ‘Scottification’ of literature: now and then