Peter CostelloIrish Episcopal Conference, (Veritas, €24/£19.99)
This is perhaps the most important book of Catholic interest to be published this summer.
While such a book, which runs to some 700 pages, may seem inappropriate summer reading, it ought to be borne in mind that an extended holiday period may in fact be the very best time for some busy people to come to terms with the book, its purpose and its content. There is also available an Irish Catholic Catechism for Adults Study Guide (Veritas, €9.99/£8.49) which many will find a useful aid in their reading of the full catechism.
Many people tend to think, and argue, that a catechism is an instrument for teaching children. The dependence of many adult Irish Catholics on vaguely recollected passages from the old green catechism is hardly sufficient to inform and shape the faith of the mature Christian today.
This book, while aspects of its presentation will seem new to many, has been tailored specifically for the adult Irish situation. It is worth recalling here the appropriate words of the famous Dutch Catechism, one of the first of these modern expositions of the Faith for adults, not just to repeat their faith but to renew it daily.