An exercise we were often given in school was to compare and contrast two pieces of writing. Why not try this yourself with these two accounts of the forthcoming visit of the relics of Saint Thérèse of Lisieux to Her Majesty’s Prison, Wormwood Scrubs. For inmates at London’s Wormwood Scrubs prison praying for redemption, help may soon be at hand from “the greatest saint of modern times”, writes Caroline Davies in The Guardian (of all places), while John Walsh comments in The Independent: To find, in 2009, that a casket of relics from a long-dead saint can warrant its own multi-venue rock tour of western Europe, with an entourage of stage managers and roadies, thousands of adoring zealots and (okay, I’m guessing) special tour merchandise (“£15 for the Little Flower T-shirt: roll up!”) is more than laughable; it’s positively alarming.
(Interestingly, John is the author of The Fallen Angels, described as A work of autobiography dominated by a single theme — the author’s love-hate relationship with his Irish-Catholic heritage.)
You can find more information on the Visit of the Relics of Saint Thérèse to England and Wales here.
