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THE BEAUTY AND THE HORROR
Written by: Richard Harries
Published by: SPCK
Price: £19.99
The former bishop of Oxford turns his attention to everyday Christianity amid the horror of daily life – and the disasters and tragedy featuring in daily news bulletins.
He does not seek to show that the awful reality of disaster is the hand of God at work, but rather seeks to show how this can be reconciled with a just and loving God and demonstrates that beauty can be found amid horror.
He argues that science cannot answer the fundamental questions of being relating to our existence, but rather that belief in the resurrection of Christ (and its message of hope amid the darkest moments) can hold the key.
The clarity of the work will also appeal: the book is not written in heavy theological language, but rather a popular style that will appeal to those interested in a deeper knowledge of being.
Endorsing the book, the former Principal of the University of Edinburgh (and noted religious philosopher), Baron Sutherland of Houndwood writes: “What has the Bishop to say to Ivan Karamazov or Albert Camus? They posed the most formidable cases against belief in God in the past 150 years. But is there Beauty as well as Horror? Richard Harries offers us the fruit of a lifetime’s deep reflection in this question in a book that will help many, both believer and non-believer, to reach beyond the shallow assumptions of atheistic rationalism.”
This article appears in the January 2017 Issue of Life and Work
If you would like to view other issues of Life and Work, you can see the full archive
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This article appears in the January 2017 Issue of Life and Work