Silence: A Christian History - Hardcover

9781846144264: Silence: A Christian History
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Diarmaid MacCulloch, acknowledged master of the big picture in Christian history, unravels a polyphony of silences from the history of Christianity and beyond. He considers the surprisingly mixed attitudes of Judaism to silence, Jewish and Christian borrowings from Greek explorations of the divine, and the silences which were a feature of Jesus's brief ministry and witness. Besides prayer and mystical contemplation, there are shame and evasion; careless and purposeful forgetting.
Many deliberate silences are revealed: the forgetting of histories which were not useful to later Church authorities (such as the leadership roles of women among the first Christians), or the constant problems which Christianity has faced in dealing honestly with sexuality. Behind all this is the silence of God; and in a deeply personal final chapter, MacCulloch brings a message of optimism for those who still seek God beyond the clamorous noise of over-confident certainties.

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Review:
Praise for "Silence"
""Silence" has all the spark of "Christianity." . . . In MacCulloch's hands, reading about Christianity often feels as soulful, as silently consuming, as prayer itself."
--Tom Bissell, "Harper's Magazine"
""Silence" is excellent: a beautifully written, factually dense, intellectually sophisticated look at the theological uses and abuses of silence, from the spirituality of quiet to the Catholic Church's horrifying reticence about child abuse and the Holocaust."
--Kathryn Schulz, "New York Magazine"
"A stimulating and sweeping overview."
--"Publishers Weekly" (starred review)
"Enjoyable and intelligent . . . MacCulloch is a gifted scholar and his ideas are always worth hearing."
"--The Economist"
"In the first part of his compelling new book, Diarmaid MacCulloch explores the use of silence in spiritual practice, but it is in the second part that he constructs his main challenge. Here he speaks not of the lovely silence of that which cannot be spoken, but of the ugly silence that cloaks evil. . . . MacCulloch's account is peppered with the kind of delicious asides that make him such a compulsively readable historian."
"--The Times, " Book of the Week
""Silence" is intellectually robust, and without the prevarications and self-qualifications that sometimes stymie academic prose. . . . MacCulloch is by turns precise, poetic and righteously indignant."
"--The Guardian"
"MacCulloch is a superb raconteur, full of imagination, wit, irony and fun, who entertains, challenges, enlightens and occasionally enrages his readers. But beyond mere storytelling and the skilful display of his strength of learning, he also takes a strong ethical stance in telling the truth and revealing some of the darker sides of Christian history."
"--The Times Higher Education"
"Unfailingly interesting and readable. . . . MacCulloch the sleuth historian enjoys nothing more than digging beneath this silence to reveal the smothered stories of variously disreputable Christian heroes."
"--The Times Literary Supplement"
"This is a specialist book for non-specialist readers--by which I mean that it is made highly accessible to anyone seriously interested by excellent and lively writing . . . It is great fun . . . a rich engaging book. Read it."
"--The Spectator"
Praise for "Silence"
""Silence" has all the spark of "Christianity." . . . In MacCulloch's hands, reading about Christianity often feels as soulful, as silently consuming, as prayer itself."
--Tom Bissell, "Harper's Magazine"
""Silence" is excellent: a beautifully written, factually dense, intellectually sophisticated look at the theological uses and abuses of silence, from the spirituality of quiet to the Catholic Church's horrifying reticence about child abuse and the Holocaust."
--Kathryn Schulz, "New York Magazine"
"A stimulating and sweeping overview."
--"Publishers Weekly" (starred review)
"Enjoyable and intelligent . . . MacCulloch is a gifted scholar and his ideas are always worth hearing."
"--The Economist"
"In the first part of his compelling new book, Diarmaid MacCulloch explores the use of silence in spiritual practice, but it is in the second part that he constructs his main challenge. Here he speaks not of the lovely silence of that which cannot be spoken, but of the ugly silence that cloaks evil. . . . MacCulloch's account is peppered with the kind of delicious asides that make him such a compulsively readable historian."
"--The Times, " Book of the Week
""Silence" is intellectually robust, and without the prevarications and self-qualifications that sometimes stymie academic prose. . . . MacCulloch is by turns precise, poetic and righteously indignant."
"--The Guardian"
"MacCulloch is a superb raconteur, full of imagination, wit, irony and fun, who entertains, challenges, enlightens and occasionally enrages his readers. But beyond mere storytelling and the skilful display of his strength of learning, he also takes a strong ethical stance in telling the truth and revealing some of the darker sides of Christian history."
"--The Times Higher Education"
"Unfailingly interesting and readable. . . . MacCulloch the sleuth historian enjoys nothing more than digging beneath this silence to reveal the smothered stories of variously disreputable Christian heroes."
"--The Times Literary Supplement"
"This is a specialist book for non-specialist readers--by which I mean that it is made highly accessible to anyone seriously interested by excellent and lively writing . . . It is great fun . . . a rich engaging book. Read it."
"--The Spectator"
Praise for "Silence"
"Silence" has all the spark of "Christianity." . . . In MacCulloch s hands, reading about Christianity often feels as soulful, as silently consuming, as prayer itself.
Tom Bissell, "Harper s Magazine"
"Silence" is excellent: a beautifully written, factually dense, intellectually sophisticated look at the theological uses and abuses of silence, from the spirituality of quiet to the Catholic Church s horrifying reticence about child abuse and the Holocaust.
Kathryn Schulz, "New York Magazine"
A stimulating and sweeping overview.
"Publishers Weekly" (starred review)
Enjoyable and intelligent . . . MacCulloch is a gifted scholar and his ideas are always worth hearing.
" The Economist"
In the first part of his compelling new book, Diarmaid MacCulloch explores the use of silence in spiritual practice, but it is in the second part that he constructs his main challenge. Here he speaks not of the lovely silence of that which cannot be spoken, but of the ugly silence that cloaks evil. . . . MacCulloch s account is peppered with the kind of delicious asides that make him such a compulsively readable historian.
" The Times, " Book of the Week
"Silence" is intellectually robust, and without the prevarications and self-qualifications that sometimes stymie academic prose. . . . MacCulloch is by turns precise, poetic and righteously indignant.
" The Guardian"
MacCulloch is a superb raconteur, full of imagination, wit, irony and fun, who entertains, challenges, enlightens and occasionally enrages his readers. But beyond mere storytelling and the skilful display of his strength of learning, he also takes a strong ethical stance in telling the truth and revealing some of the darker sides of Christian history.
" The Times Higher Education"
Unfailingly interesting and readable. . . . MacCulloch the sleuth historian enjoys nothing more than digging beneath this silence to reveal the smothered stories of variously disreputable Christian heroes.
" The Times Literary Supplement"
This is a specialist book for non-specialist readers by which I mean that it is made highly accessible to anyone seriously interested by excellent and lively writing . . . It is great fun . . . a rich engaging book. Read it.
" The Spectator"
"

Praise for Silence
Silence has all the spark of Christianity. . . . In MacCulloch s hands, reading about Christianity often feels as soulful, as silently consuming, as prayer itself.
Tom Bissell, Harper s Magazine
Silence is excellent: a beautifully written, factually dense, intellectually sophisticated look at the theological uses and abuses of silence, from the spirituality of quiet to the Catholic Church s horrifying reticence about child abuse and the Holocaust.
Kathryn Schulz, New York Magazine
A stimulating and sweeping overview.
Publishers Weekly (starred review)
Enjoyable and intelligent . . . MacCulloch is a gifted scholar and his ideas are always worth hearing.
The Economist
In the first part of his compelling new book, Diarmaid MacCulloch explores the use of silence in spiritual practice, but it is in the second part that he constructs his main challenge. Here he speaks not of the lovely silence of that which cannot be spoken, but of the ugly silence that cloaks evil. . . . MacCulloch s account is peppered with the kind of delicious asides that make him such a compulsively readable historian.
The Times, Book of the Week
Silence is intellectually robust, and without the prevarications and self-qualifications that sometimes stymie academic prose. . . . MacCulloch is by turns precise, poetic and righteously indignant.
The Guardian
MacCulloch is a superb raconteur, full of imagination, wit, irony and fun, who entertains, challenges, enlightens and occasionally enrages his readers. But beyond mere storytelling and the skilful display of his strength of learning, he also takes a strong ethical stance in telling the truth and revealing some of the darker sides of Christian history.
The Times Higher Education
Unfailingly interesting and readable. . . . MacCulloch the sleuth historian enjoys nothing more than digging beneath this silence to reveal the smothered stories of variously disreputable Christian heroes.
The Times Literary Supplement
This is a specialist book for non-specialist readers by which I mean that it is made highly accessible to anyone seriously interested by excellent and lively writing . . . It is great fun . . . a rich engaging book. Read it.
The Spectator
"

Praise for Silence

"Silence has all the spark of Christianity. . . . In MacCulloch's hands, reading about Christianity often feels as soulful, as silently consuming, as prayer itself."
--Tom Bissell, Harper's Magazine

"Silence is excellent: a beautifully written, factually dense, intellectually sophisticated look at the theological uses and abuses of silence, from the spirituality of quiet to the Catholic Church's horrifying reticence about child abuse and the Holocaust."
--Kathryn Schulz, New York Magazine

"A stimulating and sweeping overview."
--Publishers Weekly (starred review)

"Enjoyable and intelligent . . . MacCulloch is a gifted scholar and his ideas are always worth hearing."
--The Economist

"In the first part of his compelling new book, Diarmaid MacCulloch explores the use of silence in spiritual practice, but it is in the second part that he constructs his main challenge. Here he speaks not of the lovely silence of that which cannot be spoken, but of the ugly silence that cloaks evil. . . . MacCulloch's account is peppered with the kind of delicious asides that make him such a compulsively readable historian."
--The Times, Book of the Week

"Silence is intellectually robust, and without the prevarications and self-qualifications that sometimes stymie academic prose. . . . MacCulloch is by turns precise, poetic and righteously indignant."
--The Guardian

"MacCulloch is a superb raconteur, full of imagination, wit, irony and fun, who entertains, challenges, enlightens and occasionally enrages his readers. But beyond mere storytelling and the skilful display of his strength of learning, he also takes a strong ethical stance in telling the truth and revealing some of the darker sides of Christian history."
--The Times Higher Education

"Unfailingly interesting and readable. . . . MacCulloch the sleuth historian enjoys nothing more than digging beneath this silence to reveal the smothered stories of variously disreputable Christian heroes."
--The Times Literary Supplement

"This is a specialist book for non-specialist readers--by which I mean that it is made highly accessible to anyone seriously interested by excellent and lively writing . . . It is great fun . . . a rich engaging book. Read it."
--The Spectator

About the Author:
Diarmaid MacCulloch is Professor of the History of the Church at Oxford University. His Thomas Cranmer (1996) won the Whitbread Biography Prize, the James Tait Black Prize and the Duff Cooper Prize; Reformation: Europe's House Divided 1490-1700 (2004) won the Wolfson Prize and the British Academy Prize. A History of Christianity (2010), which was adapted into a six-part BBC television series, was awarded the Cundill and Hessel-Tiltman Prizes. His Gifford Lectures at the University of Edinburgh were published in 2013 as Silence: A Christian History. His most recent television series (2015) was Sex and the Church. He was knighted in 2012.

"About this title" may belong to another edition of this title.

  • PublisherAllen Lane
  • Publication date2013
  • ISBN 10 1846144264
  • ISBN 13 9781846144264
  • BindingHardcover
  • Edition number1
  • Number of pages352
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