In one way or another, the poetry collections discussed here grapple with, revel in or simply bear witness to that which all great art wrestles with: What is going on, and (explicitly or not) what does God have to do with what is going on? Eleven different collections reviewed by four
America editors are a sample of the God-haunted and the God-hunted literary artists who work out their spiritual, intellectual and emotional conundrums through lyrical compositions that both reveal and obscure, offer insight and challenge commonplaces.
Pilgrimages
, by Andrew J. Calis
Each of the five parts of this debut book tackles a different sort of pilgrimage, and each becomes more specific and more granular as it goes on. The first section begins with the highest of highs, speaking abstractly of God and the universe, combining scientific terminology with biblical imagery. Subsequent parts tackle the author’s family history and well-worn memories of self, taking the reader everywhere from Je
(CNS photo/Adrees Latif, Reuters)
The last year has been one of loss. We have lost jobs and school and money. We have gone without hugs and handshakes, grandparents and parties. Most tragically, we have lost hundreds of thousands of lives many of us have lost some of our closest and most beloved companions on life’s journey all without access to the traditional rituals of mourning.
The season of Lent gives us space to reflect in a new way on the suffering that has resulted from the Covid-19 pandemic. The traditions of prayer and fasting and almsgiving help us to unite our own suffering with the suffering of Christ. But after a year in which we have already given up so much, one could be forgiven for asking: Do we really need to give up chocolate, too?