Hollow Be Thy Name

The once dark shadowy corner of the author's heart is finally flickering to life. For years it was a place of spiritual turmoil and inconsistency concerning complex matters of faith. As an impressionable child Tom Reilly fell for the God story. As a free-spirited teenager he was a devoted Catholic. As a rationally minded adult he is a devout atheist. A life long inner search for a genuine God failed miserably. He is now embarrassed that he ever believed at all. He sees God as possibly the greatest sham ever. Only now does his world make any sense. Ireland is a country where, for years, religion did not unite - it divided. Having emerged virtually unscathed from centuries of oppression, today the Catholic Church, not just in Ireland but also worldwide, faces its greatest crisis ever. No longer under threat from the penal laws and such, these days the Church is persecuted by abuse scandals from forces within. Its long-term survival is no longer as inevitable as it once seemed. A born again skeptic, Reilly has already succeeded in challenging one of Ireland's sacred cows; Oliver Cromwell's war crimes, once the popular verdict of history. At a time when many of Ireland's Catholics are wondering if, to question might actually be the answer, the author's fall (jump) from grace is a challenge to believers everywhere.