Doyle (1981), Sir Arthur Conan, and Christopher Morley (Preface), The Penguin Complete Sherlock Holmes, Book Club Associates 1981 Morley: "The whole Sherlock Holmes saga is a triumphant illustration of art's supremacy over life. Perhaps no fiction character ever created has become so charmingly rel to his readers. It is not that we taske our blessed Sherlock too seriously; if we really wand the painful oddities of criminlogy let us to to Bataille or Roughhead. But Holmes is pure anaesthesia. We read the stroies again and again; perhaos most of all for thr little introductory interiors which give us a glimpse of 221B Baker Street.' 
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Lonergan (1992), Bernard J F, Insight: A Study of Human Understanding (Collected Works of Bernard Lonergan : Volume 3), University of Toronto Press 1992 '. . . Bernard Lonergan's masterwork. Its aim is nothing less than insight into insight itself, an understanding of understanding' 
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Agence France Presse, Dozens of Iran protesters facing charges punishable by death – rights group, ' At least 100 Iranians arrested over more than 100 days of nationwide protests face charges punishable by death, Oslo-based group Iran Human Rights (IHR) has said. Protests have gripped Iran since September after an Iranian-Kurdish woman, Mahsa Amini, died in custody following her arrest in Tehran for an alleged breach of the country’s strict dress code for women. Earlier this month, Iran executed two men in connection with the protests, an escalation in the authorities’ crackdown that activists say is meant to instil public fear. . . . According to Amnesty International, Iran is second only to China in its use of the death penalty, with at least 314 people executed in 2021.' back

Anshel Pfeffer, Netanyahu’s New Ministers Have Very Strict Ideas About Who Is a Jew, ' According to the agreement signed by Mr. Maoz's Noam and by Mr. Netanyahu’s Likud, Mr. Maoz is now in charge of a new authority for national Jewish identity, with a budget of a quarter of a billion shekels (about $70 million) over the next two years, and will gain control of the Education Ministry’s department for external educational programs. In an interview this month with Olam Katan (Small World), a far-right weekly, Mr. Maoz explained why he is so interested in the department. “There are currently about 3,000 curriculums written by progressive, radical-left nongovernmental organizations funded by foreign organizations and the European Union,” he said. “Are they there to strengthen the Jewish state? Of course not. They want to make Israel a state like all the states. Who will make sure that they write programs for Jewish identity instead of plans for a state for all its citizens? That’s my job".' back

Catechism of the Catholic Church, IV Hell: 1035-1036, ' 1035 The teaching of the Church affirms the existence of hell and its eternity. Immediately after death the souls of those who die in a state of mortal sin descend into hell, where they suffer the punishments of hell, "eternal fire." The chief punishment of hell is eternal separation from God, in whom alone man can possess the life and happiness for which he was created and for which he longs. 1036 The affirmations of Sacred Scripture and the teachings of the Church on the subject of hell are a call to the responsibility incumbent upon man to make use of his freedom in view of his eternal destiny. They are at the same time an urgent call to conversion: "Enter by the narrow gate; for the gate is wide and the way is easy, that leads to destruction, and those who enter by it are many. For the gate is narrow and the way is hard, that leads to life, and those who find it are few." ' back

Jeffrey Nicholls (1967), How universal is the universe?, ' 61 The future is beyond our comprehension, but we can get an idea of it and speed its coming by studying what we already have. Contemplating the size and wonder of the universe as it stands in the light of its openness to the future must surely be a powerful incentive to men to love God. We have come a long way since the little world of St Thomas. Ours is open to all things, even participating in god. This is what I mean by universal. ' back

Jeffrey Nicholls (1987), A theory of Peace, ' The argument: I began to think about peace in a very practical way during the Viet Nam war. I was the right age to be called up. I was exempted because I was a clergyman, but despite the terrors that war held for me, I think I might have gone. It was my first whiff of the force of patriotism. To my amazement, it was strong enough to make even me face death.
In the Church, I became embroiled in a deeper war. Not a war between goodies and baddies, but the war between good and evil that lies at the heart of all human consciousness. Existence is a struggle. We need all the help we can get. Religion is part of that help and theology is the scientific foundation of religion.' back

Magdalene Abraha, Think the war in Ukraine is the world’s deadliest conflict? Think again, ' On 4 November 2020, when Ethiopia’s prime minister, Abiy Ahmed, a Nobel Peace prize winner, announced a military offensive in the disputed territory of Tigray, it was difficult to imagine how catastrophic it would become. A population of more than 6 million people, under a government blockade, has been pushed towards mass starvation – with young children dying of acute malnutrition. Tigray has become a centre of weaponised rape and an internet blackout that has added to the psychological torture faced by victims, and by families such as mine desperate to hear from our loved ones. . . . It’s a tragedy that Tigray has become a forgotten catastrophe. As I write this, much of Tigray is still inaccessible or uncontactable, civilians are unable to access their money, they are starving, the health crisis is immense and they are still being terrorised by militia and soldiers. The question remains, how did the international community ignore hundreds of thousands of people dying? And what does it mean that such abuses of justice are allowed to occur? When all is said and done, our global consciences must reckon with the fact that, while this human bloodbath happened, we chose not to watch.' back

Nick Riggle, How Henri Matisse (and I) Got a ‘Beautiful Body’, ' But there is a limit to the happiness we can find in maintaining what is generally accepted as a healthy or beautiful body: If you are fortunate enough to live a long life, your body will break down. And it is not only age that can have its way with our bodies. Illness, accident or disability can quickly put an end to that bodily source of happiness. What then? . . . At that time — long before progressive ideas about disability were widely accepted — Matisse might have been expected to see his new condition as a sort of tragedy, a reason to give up. He didn’t. Instead his loss was transformative: “My terrible operation has completely rejuvenated and made a philosopher of me. I had so completely prepared for my exit from life that it seems to me that I am in a second life".' back

Travis Farr, What Ukraine can learn from the Khmer Rouge trial, ' On September 23, the Khmer Rouge tribunal in Phnom Penh orally affirmed the convictions against Khieu Samphan, Cambodia’s former head of state, for genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes. It also confirmed his life sentence, and followed up with a written verdict on December 23. That decision has ended the tribunal’s judicial work. Now, as it winds down after spending 16 years investigating and prosecuting the senior leaders of the Khmer Rouge, its experiences offer valuable lessons on how best to secure justice in the current conflict that . . . Experts estimate that as many as 1.5 million Cambodians lost their lives during this period, almost a quarter of the population. . . . Having court proceedings where crimes occurred is good for accountability. Over the course of 16 years, more than 240,000 Cambodians attended the Khmer Rouge trials in person. The access also meant that the trials were covered extensively by the local media.. . . The pursuit of justice for Ukraine won’t be easy. But the Khmer Rouge tribunal’s work shows that much can be achieved, even against the odds, and that even criminal heads of state can be punished.' back