Three Books Launched by St Mary’s Lecturers

Academics in the School of Education, Theology and Leadership at St Mary’s University, Twickenham launched three new books during an event on Monday 3^rd March. The event, which was organised by St Mary’s Centre for Initiatives in Spirituality and Reconciliation (InSpiRe) saw the Centre’s Director Dr Peter Tyler’s book Teresa of Avila: Doctor of the Soul released alongside Dr Stephen Bullivant’s collaboration with Prof Michael Ruse, entitled The Oxford Handbook of Atheism. Visiting Lecturer in Pastoral Theology, Bridie Stringer also launched her book Baptising Babies and Clearing Gutters: A Fresh Appraisal of the Permanent Diaconate. Dr Tyler is Reader in Pastoral Theology and Spirituality at St Mary’s. His book precedes an international conference on Teresa of Avila that will be taking place from 18^th – 20^th June 2015, led by InSpiRe, to celebrate the quincentenary of the Saint’s birth. Teresa of Avila: Doctor of the Soul consists of three parts, which in turn explore the context of Saint Teresa’s life, her writings during the early 16^th Century, and her relevance and influence on theology and prayer today. Dr Bullivant, Senior Lecturer in Theology and Ethics and Programme Director of the St Mary’s MA in Theology, is also heavily involved with InSpiRe. His book The Oxford Handbook of Atheism, co-edited with Prof Ruse of Florida State University, brings together an international team of over 50 scholars to deeply explore historical and contemporary perspectives of atheism. He commented, “I am delighted to see the Handbook in print. Michael and I have been working on it for four years, as have the team of experts who have contributed, and we hope that it will be of service to students and researchers of atheism for a long time to come.” The final book released during the event was Bridie Stringer’s much-anticipated Baptising Babies and Clearing Gutters: A Fresh Appraisal of the Permanent Diaconate, which discusses the role of the deacon in today’s world, offering questions for personal reflection and group discussions in parishes and suggestions for how it could develop for the benefit of the Catholic Church.