Dappled Beauty Through Lent with Gerard Manley Hopkins | Carys Walsh

Gerard Manley Hopkins is one of English literature’s most celebrated religious poets and a powerful companion through the Lenten season. In this beautifully crafted devotional, Carys Walsh invites readers on a journey of reflection and renewal, guided by Hopkins’ vivid imagery, inventive language and deep theological insight.

As Lent draws us towards the cross and the hope of Easter, these meditations offer a fresh way to deepen reflection, devotion and spiritual discovery. Whether you are new to Hopkins or a long-time admirer, Dappled Beauty opens a poetic and prayerful path through the season, from Ash Wednesday to Easter Day.

Carys Walsh has been involved in discernment and formation for Anglican ministry for many years, and writes about poetry and spirituality. She is a priest in South London, and the author of Frequencies of God.

The Very Rev’d Dr Mark Oakley is Dean of Southwark. Formerly Dean of St John’s College, Cambridge, and Chancellor of St Paul’s Cathedral, he is an author of several books on poetry and theology. He was awarded the international Michael Ramsey Prize for theological writing for his book The Splash of Words: Believing in Poetry, and the Lanfranc Award by the Archbishop of Canterbury for education and scholarship. He has worked at the Actors’ Church in Covent Garden as Rector and has a strong interest in theatre. He is also Patron of Tell MAMA, monitoring Islamophobic hate crime, and Ambassador for Stop Hate UK. In 2025 he was appointed Whitelands Professorial Fellow in Christian Theology and Contemporary Issues by Roehampton University.

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Host or Publisher Southwark Cathedral