This collection has its roots in the second biennial Early Modern British and Irish Catholicism conference, jointly organized by Durham University and the University of Notre Dame. The conference theme was âEarly Modern Catholics in the British Isles and Europe: Integration or Separation?â and the support offered by Durham Universityâs Center for Catholic Studies, the University of Bergen, the European Network on the Instruments of Devotion, the St. Cuthbertâs Society of Ushaw, and the Catholic Record Society is gratefully acknowledged.
We wish to thank all the contributors for their essays, and for their continued support and cooperation throughout the process. Equally, we are grateful to Robert Maryks and the editorial board of the Jesuit Studies: Modernity through the Prism of Jesuit History series for supporting this publication, as well as all those at Brill, who have never ceased to be helpful and enthusiastic throughout. We also wish to thank the following for their advice at various stages: Paul Arblaster, Caroline Bowden, Mary Brooks, Liam Chambers, Martin Dodwell, Earle Havens, Peter Leech, Thomas McCoog, Robert Maryks, John Morrill, Thomas OâConnor, Tadhg à hAnnracháin, Michael Questier, Robert Scully, and Bill Sheils.
We are very grateful for the support of the Canonesses of the Holy Sepulchre, the St. Cuthbertâs Society of Ushaw, the Congregation of Jesus, and Sir Christian Sweeting during work on this project. Finally, we wish to acknowledge the role played by our colleagues at Durham University, particularly those in the Center for Catholic Studies, Paul Murray, Tim Guinan, and Andrew Harston.