A Canadian Family

“How the Irish Saved Civilization” by Thomas Cahill

If you’re not well acquainted with Ireland – I’d like you to try a little experiment.

Close your eyes for a moment.          Think about Ireland and the Irish.          What comes to mind?

Till recently, I would see shamrocks and leprauchans – St. Patrick’s Day in Montreal – terrorist explosions on nightly newscasts during the 60s/70s – the Book of Kells – the Potato famine – Lord of the Dance – the White House Kennedys. Well, this summer I brought this little history volume along on my canoe/fishing trip and it’s definitely expanded my views of Ireland and the Irish.

How the Irish Saved Civilization is the first in a series of books organized around Thomas Cahill’s notion of Hinges of History. He invites us to shift our focus away from wars and “narratives of human pain” and focus instead on the “moments when someone did something for someone else, saved a life, bestowed a gift, gave something beyond what was required by circumstance”.

This book really tells three stories. The first is the birth and spread of Western civilization from its Judeo-Christian and Greco-Roman roots. The second  is about pre- and post-Christian Ireland and some core Irish beliefs and aesthetics that run through both cultures. And finally, the third is the story of how Read more »

August 20, 2009 Posted by Evelyn Yvonne Theriault | . | blog carnival, book review, Thomas Cahill | 3 Comments