‘Suspended God: Music and a theology of doubt’ by Maeve Louise Heaney (2022)

This book opened by eyes to the usefulness of music to fill the void that doubt plays in the minds and hearts of us who are craving the spiritual. It discusses a number of important voices in the church like Karl Rahner and St Teresa of Avila. I haven’t finished it yet but it’s actively causing my mind to crave its discussions within its pages.

&Juliet

Great musical theatre, about Juliet not fretting when Romeo apparently dies but buoyed up by her friends and nurse’s goading she gains confidence, dates and a new lease on life! Well a happy ending after about 30 pop songs sung thanks to ‘Anne & William Shakespeare’.

Showing at Lyric theatre now for a short time.

https://www.sydneylyric.com.au/and-juliet/

Emily (2023)

In 2023 I watched the movie Emily, about Romantic period author Emily Brontë (1840s) who wrote the novel Wuthering Heights. The movie was awesome. I liked how Emily and brother Branwell yelled out on the Moors “Freedom of Thought”! This reminded me of John Henry Newman’s book (1852) The Idea of a University.

I also liked how she spoke French at home and spoke her mind with her sister when using it ( it sounded so delicate in the French tongue) and I liked how there was a twist in the tale at the end. The movie brought tears to my eyes, even in the nonchalant parts, I suppose as a precursor, i could sense the movie’s building of heaviness and the sense of gloom near the end. I like Emily’s sense of adventure and the theme of “ the greatest joy in life is love and be loved”.

What I loved about the movie was the fact that the father (the mother had died) and sisters and brother encouraged eachother to best their best person and to write! What a roller coaster ride of emotions in this movie! Worth seeing.