I OPENED this book on the day that Hamas broke out of Gaza, killing Israelis and taking others hostage. It felt more appropriate to be reading a previous Companion volume, on “religion and violence” (Books, 18 October 2011). We can, therefore, speak of religion as peacemaking only with a profound sense, if not of irony, at least of confession and commitment to doing better. It would appear that every world religion, however much each may have played a very different part historically, has a strand within that has a commitment to peace and reconciliation. The Wiley Blackwell Companion to Religion and PeaceJolyon Mitchell, Suzanna R. Millar, Francesca Po, and Martyn Percy, editorsWiley Blackwell £135(978-1-119-42434-5)Church Times Bookshop £121.50

Source: The Times November 10, 2023 01:01 UTC