COLUMN

7 CL I F FORD LONGLEY

‘There is less cement holding the cells of society together’

1 5 CHRISTOPHER HOWSE’S

PRESSWATCH ‘I’d find it disappointing to be offered a squashed-fly biscuit by a friend’

1 9 THE TABLET POEM 2 2 PARISH PRACTICE 2 3 NOTEBOOK 2 4 L ETTERS 2 5 THE L I V I NG S P I R I T 2 6 PUZZLES

BOOKS

2 7 H I LMAR PABEL

Vatican II: the battle for meaning Massimo Faggioli

LUCY POPESCU The Brothers Asko Sahlberg, translated by Fleur and Emily Jeremiah

JAMES F ERGUSON Europe in the Looking Glass Robert Byron

ARTS

3 1 F EATURE

Rick Jones Hildegard of Bingen

THEATRE Mark Lawson The Duchess of Malfi

OPERA Robert Thicknesse Acante et Céphise

T E L EV I S I ON John Morrish Crucifixion

C I NEMA Francine Stock The Gospel of Us

CONTENTS

7 APRIL 2 0 1 2

F EATURES

COVER STORY 4 Towards the shining city Tina Beattie

The image of the garden is central to the Bible stories of Creation and the Resurrection, but the city is also a potent symbol 4 A visit to the Holy Land Alban McCoy

A first-time pilgrim discovers that after a trip to the sites where Christ walked, he will never read Scripture the same way again 8 After Shenouda: challenges for the Copts

Anthony O’Mahony As the Coptic Church prepares to elect a new patriarch, a specialist on the region reflects on his long reign and what lies ahead 1 0 Poetry, please Daniel O’Leary

Words have the power equally to bring Christ’s healing presence to the Christian soul or to dull the spirit

1 2 Softly, softly in Havana Robert Mickens

The Pope’s failure to address the issue of human rights on his recent trip to Cuba might be part of a longer game the Vatican is playing 1 4 Have faith in doubt Madeleine Bunting

Far from being the sin it was once thought to be, uncertainty in belief can be a useful spur to humility 1 6 From the font to freedom Timothy Radcliffe

Baptism, which has been traditionally celebrated at Easter, is a reminder that the Church is a body of all Christians, not just the clergy 1 8 Worthy is the lamb Brian Morton

Christ is often referred to as the Lamb of God – an apt image, says one writer, who relates how they are both vulnerable and strong 2 0 It all began with a candle David Prescott

How a visit to Ennis Cathedral started a journey to Catholicism 2 1 Homage to the body Sally Read

The last in our series of reflections for Lent continues with a meditation for Easter Sunday

3 5 THE CHURCH I N THE WORLD

Castro agrees to make Good Friday a public holiday 3 9 NEWS FROM BRITAIN AND I RELAND

Cameron endorses Christian fightback in secular Britain

COVER: NOLI ME TANGERE FRA ANGELICO (C. 1395-1455). PHOTO: BRIDGEMAN ART LIBRARY

7 April 2012 | THE TABLET | 3