THE well-known spiritual writer Ronald Rolheiser OMI, based in Texas, draws on more than 40 years of study and reflection in The Passion and the Cross (Hodder & Stoughton, £9.99 (£9); 978-1-473-62668-3). His text is in 40 sections, the last 11 on the resurrection.
Before that, he looks at the Passion and Gethsemane; and the Cross as a moral revolution, as the deepest revelation of God, and as salvation ("Being washed in the blood of the Lamb").
He is Roman Catholic, and his discussion of the atonement recalls the custom of "offering up" personal sacrifices on others’ behalf. But other passages may resonate with Christians of a different outlook: "God spills his own blood to try to get to us. . . We are not meant to live in fear of God," he writes.