Religion & Philosophy

70 DAYS FOR 70 YEARS: REMEMBER THE PAST TO BUILD THE FUTURE

by Naomi Cowan & Aubrey Hersh, Andrew Shaw

read by Derina Dinkin

running time 11hrs 30mins

A specially published book of 70 inspirational essays written by internationally renowned educator, historians and scholars marking the 70th anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz - to be read one a day.

ABIDING

by Ben Quash

read by Alan Bowen

running time 6hrs

Abiding is not a word we have much use for in everyday conversation. Yet Ben Quash shows that this one concept is central to the Christian life. Quash skilfully and creatively explores the implications that 'abiding' has for our bodies and minds, our relationships and communities, and our spiritual lives.

BAGELS & BACON: THE POST WAR EAST END

by Jeff Rozelaar

read by Paul Moriarty

running time 5hrs

A rites-of-passage story that attempts to shed a largely humorous, but sometime serious light, on the relations between an ethnic minority and the wider community. The work is also a nostalgic record of growing up in a Jewish community in the East End during the postwar period.

THE CASE AGAINST GOD

by Gerald Priestland

read by David Barlow

running time 9hrs

The late Gerald Priestland, broadcaster and writer, plays the devil's advocate and presses the case against the existence of God.

DISCOURSE ON METHOD AND THE MEDITATIONS

by René Descartes

read by Rory Alexander

running time 5hrs 47mins

René Descartes was a central figure in the scientific revolution of the seventeenth century. In his Discourse on Method he outlined the contrast between mathematics and experimental sciences, and the extent to which each one can achieve certainty. Drawing on his own work in geometry, optics, astronomy and physiology, Descartes developed the hypothetical method that characterizes modern science, and this soon came to replace the traditional techniques derived from Aristotle. Many of Descartes' most radical ideas - such as the disparity between our perceptions and the realities that cause them - have been highly influential in the development of modern philosophy.

EFFORTLESS

by Greg McKeown

read by Greg McKeown

running time 6hrs 2mins

The intricacy of modern life has created a false dichotomy between things that are 'hard and important,' and those that are 'easy and trivial.' Everything has become so much harder than it ought to be. But, Greg McKeown, bestselling author of Essentialism, says, there is a third alternative. In Effortless, he offers practical strategies for making the most vital tasks the easiest ones. Honed over the better part of a decade, these strategies include: Asking 'What Step Can I Remove?' (accomplish more, in fewer steps). Having the Courage to Be Rubbish (prioritize progress over perfection). Deciding What 'Done' Looks Like (don't keep running after you pass the finish line). McKeown's philosophy of essentialism has helped thousands to eliminate nonessential activities and focus on the few that really matter. Working out what is essential is the first step - making these tasks effortless is the next. Effortless will show you how.

FATHOMLESS RICHES: A MEMOIR

by Richard Coles

read by Richard Coles

running time 10hrs

A parish priest in Northamptonshire; a former rock-star with The Communards; the regular host of BBC Radio 4's 'Saturday Live' - these three people are not usually embodied in one person. The Reverend Richard Coles' memoir offers his rich and personal insights into one of the most diverse of lives, encompassed with the wit and humour he brings to his popular radio show.

GAY THE PRAY AWAY

by Erika Allison

read by Erika Allison

running time 6hrs

If you are an LGBTQIA+ person who has experienced rejection, conversion therapy, or religious harm due to your sexual identity, you may be carrying around residual wounds that are sabotaging your happiness... and your relationships. It’s time to get your gay back! Don’t wait another minute to reclaim your joy. Find true, fulfilling love, and shine your beautiful rainbow light in the world.

HANDBOOK FOR HARD TIMES: A MONK'S GUIDE TO FEARLESS LIVING

by Gelong Thubten

read by Gelong Thubten

running time 7hrs 10mins

We all go through hard times. We can experience moments when life feels like an uphill struggle, leading to unhappiness and stress. Perhaps we are feeling sad, anxious, or struggling to deal with something bigger, such as a bereavement, a loss, a painful ending or a broken heart. It is during these challenging times that we could do with some help with our thoughts and feelings. In Handbook for Hard Times the Sunday Times bestseller Gelong Thubten will guide us to understand that happiness, kindness and resilience can be cultivated through embracing life's difficulties as opportunities for transformation. Meditation and mindfulness practices help us to access deep reserves of inner strength as we learn how to 'lean into' our suffering. Thubten suggests how we can find meaning in pain and discomfort, transforming deeply ingrained patterns of fear and resistance. As we discover how hard times can enhance the development of mindfulness, compassion and forgiveness, we can develop a fearless outlook on life and lasting, unshakeable happiness. This approachable and practical audiobook is designed for modern times, and will be a valuable resource to anyone during times of struggle, but also during all times to encourage and build resilience and help us find inner contentment and peace.

IMAGES FROM WITHIN

by Jane Dyson

read by Tony Reavill

running time 1hr

A collection of spiritual and moral poems.

JACOB'S GIFT

by Jonathan Freedland

read by Jim Swingler

running time 17hrs 20mins

Jonathan Freedland looks on as his eight-day-old son is about to be circumcised and admitted into the 'Covenant of Abraham'. What gift or burden has he given his son by enlisting him into the Jewish people? Freedland digs deep into his past to find answers to a quintessentially modern dilemma: how to live as a minority in the modern world.

THE KING AND THE CATHOLICS

by Antonia Fraser

read by Steven Crossley

running time 11hrs 30mins

The story of Catholic Emancipation begins with the Anti-Catholic Gordon Riots in 1780. Fifty years later, the passing of the Emancipation Bill was hailed as a 'bloodless revolution'. Yet, had the Irish Catholics been a 'millstone' or were they the prime movers? Antonia Fraser brings colour and humour to this vivid drama, reflecting the political issues arising from religious intolerance.

THE LAST DAYS OF SOCRATES

by Plato

read by Laurence Dobiesz

running time 6hrs 35mins

Plato's account of Socrates' trial and death (399 BC) is a significant moment in Classical literature and the life of Classical Athens. In these four dialogues, Plato develops the Socratic belief in responsibility for one's self and shows Socrates living and dying under his philosophy. In Euthyphro, Socrates debates goodness outside the courthouse; Apology sees him in court, rebutting all charges of impiety; in Crito, he refuses an entreaty to escape from prison; and in Phaedo, Socrates faces his impending death with calmness and skilful discussion of immortality. Christopher Rowe's introduction to his powerful new translation examines the book's themes of identity and confrontation, and explores how its content is less historical fact than a promotion of Plato's Socratic philosophy.

MACHIAVELLI: PHILOSOPHY IN AN HOUR

by Paul Strathern

read by Jonathan Keeble

running time 1hr 45mins

Niccolò Machiavelli’s work remains misunderstood – synonymous with wicked scheming and underhand politics – nearly 350 years after his death. His advice is as relevant to modern politics as it was during the Renaissance – and reflects many profound and disturbing truths about the human condition.

THE NANTEOS GRAIL: THE EVOLUTION OF A HOLY RELIC

by Ian Pegler & John Matthews

read by David Hobbs

running time 9hrs

The theft of the Nanteos Cup from a private home in Wales in 2015 – and its even more remarkable recovery two years later – made the headlines in most major newspapers and featured on BBC Crimewatch. People who had never heard of the cup began asking what it is – a question that has occupied people for the past three hundred years, since word of this mysterious vessel first began to filter out to the world. Though unremarkable to look at, stories of the cup’s powers and of the miraculous cures experienced by those who drank from it have been in circulation for years. The Nanteos Grail collects together for the first time records of the history of the vessel from its first appearance in the Middle Ages to the present. It will appeal to all those interested in historical mysteries and to seekers of the spiritual history of the Grail.

OBERAMMERGAU

by James Shapiro

read by John Hunter

running time 9hrs

A fascinating portrait of a German village and its controversial Passion Play, which has been held every ten years since the seventeenth century.

THE PATH TO CALVARY

by Frances Makower

read by Cecilia Laughton

running time 45mins

Since the fifth century the Way of the Cross has been a popular way for Roman Catholics to reflect on the final suffering of Our Lord. This book provides thought provoking reflections for each of the Stations of the Cross.

RABBLE-ROUSER FOR PEACE

by John Allen

read by Bob Rollett

running time 19hrs 50mins

In this authorised biography of Archbishop Desmond Tutu, outspoken advocate of human rights, Chair of the South African Truth and Reconciliation Commission and recipient of the Nobel Peace Prize, the author examines how a poor child from the black townships became one of the world’s great moral leaders.

SACKCLOTH AND ASHES

by Ann Widdecombe

read by Clare Francis

running time 4hrs

What is our modern concept of penance? Is it giving up chocolates for Lent or is it a lasting state of the awareness of sin? Penance in art, penance in literature, penance in history, penance in the Bible are all examined in an important and thoughtful meditation on the concept of penance in the 21st Century.

TAKE IT IN: DO THE INNER WORK. CREATE YOUR BEST DAMN LIFE

by Giselle La Pompe-Moore

read by Giselle La Pompe-Moore

running time 8hrs 30mins

Daily life can be rough, and we can often feel disconnected from who we really are. The solution? Everyday spirituality. In this empowering book, spiritual guide and teacher Giselle La Pompe-Moore reveals how doing the inner work and being spirit-informed will help you create the life you never thought possible. With personal anecdotes, practical exercises and no-nonsense advice, Take It In will help you move through the self-criticism, fears and doubts that get in the way of you seeing your greater purpose, power and potential. Do the inner work and create your best damn life.

UNAPOLOGETIC

by Francis Spufford

read by Francis Spufford

running time 7hrs

A book for believers who are fed up with being patronised, for non-believers curious about how faith can possibly work in the twenty-first century, and for anyone who feels there is something indefinably wrong, literalistic, anti-imaginative and intolerant about the way the atheist case is now being made.

VET IN THE VESTRY

by Alexander Cameron

read by Sandy Morison

running time 10hrs 30mins

An amusing account of the author's career as a vet and later a minister in the Church of Scotland. The author found that whether caring for animals or his human flock the two jobs were not as unalike as first appeared!

WAITING FOR THE LAST BUS

by Richard Holloway

read by Richard Holloway

running time 5hrs 15mins

Where do we go when we die? Is death something we can do or is it just something that happens to us? Former Bishop of Edinburgh Richard Holloway has spent a lifetime at the bedsides of the dying, guiding countless men and women towards peaceful deaths. Here he presents a positive, meditative and profound exploration of the lessons we can learn from death by reflecting on our failings and forgiving ourselves and others.

ZEN AND THE ART OF SAVING THE PLANET

by Thich Nhat Hanh

read by John Sackville

running time 8hrs 30mins

In these troubling times we all yearn for a better world. But many of us feel powerless and uncertain what we can do. Thich Nhat Hanh (Thay) is blazingly clear: there's one thing that we have the power to change-and which can make all the difference: our mind. Filled with powerful examples of engaged action he himself has undertaken, inspiring Buddhist parables, and accessible daily meditations, this powerful spiritual guide offers us a path forward, opening us to the possibilities of change and how we can contribute to the collective awakening and environmental revolution our fractured world so desperately needs.