“Plague Wars”, by Tom Mangold and Jeff Goldberg, Macmillan, £18-99p. When reports appeared of an outbreak of a mysterious brain virus which claimed the lives of five people in New York, the City’s then mayor, Rudolph Giuliani, gave orders for the spraying of...
Loss and Gain by John Henry Newman
In 1848 John Henry Newman published his novel “Loss and Gain: The Story of a Convert.” Recently re-published in paperback by the Echo Library, its beautiful prose and moving narrative is well worth reading – especially as we reflect on Newman’s beatification. It was...
Apocalypse, Revelation, Lord of the World, Lord of the Rings, and Fr.Elijah.
I have written previously about Michael O’Brien’s novel, "Father Elijah" (see below). He has just published a sequel – “Elijah in Jerusalem” – which sees the central character, a Jewish Catholic priest, and survivor of the Warsaw Ghetto – continue to challenge...
When China Rules the World…
“When China Rules the World: The End of the Western World and the Birth of a New Global Order” (out in paperback next January) is the provocative the title of Martin Jacques’ assessment of China’s future role as the dominant global power. For more than a...
Please Look After Mother – A Korean Perspective On Dementia
In September the universal Church commemorates the feast of the Korean martyrs. The one time Anglican bishop of Korea, noted scholar and, later, Catholic priest, Monsignor Richard Rutt, who died in July, put their number at between 8,000 and 10,000. Mainly lay...
The Great Partnership, God, Science and The Search For Meaning by Jonathan Sacks
When Jonathan Sacks, the Chief Rabbi, made his Maiden Speech in the House of Lords he recounted that at the burning bush an overwhelmed Moses told God he could not speak because he was "not a man of words". “Mind you”, continued Lord Sacks, “that did not stop him...
Ethnic Cleansing in Southern Kordofan: When the Stars Fall To Earth http://starsfalltoearth.com/
On July 9th the world’s newest nation was born. Under the presidential leadership of Salva Kiir Southern Sudan’s 10 million people finally broke free from the grip of Khartoum. It is twelve years since I first entered Southern Sudan, travelling in with the Sudan...
To Seek A Newer World – Robert Kennedy
To Seek A Newer World - written in 1967 by Robert Kennedy. by David Alton on Sunday, June 6, 2010 at 11:38pm In 1967, a year before he was assassinated, Senator Robert Kennedy published “To Seek A Newer World.” It grew out of his speeches, out of his travel...
Harry Patch, Michael Murpurgo and War Horse
Harry Patch and War Horse It's just two years since the death, at 111 years of age, of Harry Patch – often called "the Last Fighting Tommy." He was the last surviving soldier to have fought in the trenches of the First World War. In August 2009, on the day of his...
The Jeweller
As a boy, growing up in Wadowice, Blessed John Paul II – Karol Wojtyla – wanted to be an actor and, as a teenager, he participated in the school theatre. In 1938 on enrolling at Krakow’s Jagiellonian University he was able to study drama until the Nazis ended classes...
For 18 years David Alton was a Member of the House of Commons and today he is an Independent Crossbench Life Peer in the UK House of Lords.
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In advance of my oral question, scheduled to be asked in the House of Lords on April 17th,3 Parliamentary Replies on Putin’s War in Ukraine – bringing to justice those responsible for the Crime of Aggression and Reparations – including £2.5 billion from the sale of Chelsea FC.
Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon, the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, has provided the following answer to your written parliamentary question (HL3194): Question:To ask His Majesty's Government, following the decision of the General Assembly of the United Nations...
Forget Me Not – – The United Kingdom All-Party Parliamentary Group on North Korea stands in solidarity with the Government of Korea in remembering the South Korean abductees, detained, and prisoners of war in North Korean gulags. Letter from Minister Kim Jung HO, Unification Minister, Seoul.
Lord (David) Alton, Fiona Bruce MP, Sir Geoffrey Clifton-Brown MP (chairs and former Chair of APPG on North Korea) Lord (Sonny) Leong - Vice Chair with Catherine West MP, APPG on North Korea Forget-Me-Not Please Remember Me The United Kingdom All-Party Parliamentary...
Cyber-Security and UK Democracy. Lord Alton tells Parliament that U.K. must reduce dependency on the Chinese CCP and develop greater resilience in British manufacturing.
Following a statement made in the House of Commons by the Deputy Prime Minister, Lord Alton told Parliament that U.K. must urgently reduce its dependency on the Chinese CCP regime and develop greater resilience in British manufacturing, and also name the CCP for the...