At the synod on the family in the Vatican last month, with the eyes of the world on him, Pope Francis more than once reached for the image of a God of surprises as he tried, unsuccessfully, to persuade his fellow bishops towards a modest relaxation in Catholicisms doctrinal rules. It is a phrase that will always be associated in the English-speaking world with the Scottish Jesuit Gerard Hughes, who has died aged 90.
Gerry, as he was known, was that rare thing in the modern secular age: a genuinely popular spiritual writer. His book God of Surprises (1985) sold nearly 250,000 copies and was translated into more than 20 languages. For many readers, the book became a spiritual lifeline that kept them within the church at a time when they were thinking of leaving.
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