This well-researched PhD study traces the reaction of the Catholic Church to the evolving conflict in Northern Ireland from its beginnings to the mid-nineties. It highlights the conservative nature of the Irish Catholic Church and the difficulties it encountered with its flock many of whom at least passively supported the violence of the IRA. Furthermore, there were disagreements within the Church, both at episcopal and lower clergy level. The Church found itself caught between recognising discrimination and injustices against the Catholic population, which fed support for violent republicanism, and the need to condemn such violence. The author shows how different bishops took different lines and used different approaches. The episcopate overall, however, very rarely, and then cautiously, pronounced officially on the conflict, not least for fear of a Unionist backlash. Its social and theological conservatism did not allow for any form of ecumenism, any secularisation of education, divorce, contraception or to abandon Ne Temere, nor was the excommunication of IRA members ever contemplated. While a more liberal theology might have eased tensions between Unionists and nationalists, historically religion and politics were insolvably entwined and it was the political issues that mattered and the Church had at best only rhetorical answers to these. Many individual priests, in particular in Belfast and Derry, tended to be more radical and outspoken in their defence of Catholics' rights against the forces of the state and a few even condoned the violence. Even those, however, were mostly socially conservative. The author concludes that the Church retained its historical pastoral attitude: the salvation of souls had priority over politics. It was thus unwilling to change its attitude towards social issues. It did not offer a political analysis of the political problems of Northern Ireland nor any answers to it. It saw violence and injustice entirely as moral problems. If by the nineties, following the unfortunate revelations about the Church south of the border, the Church felt insecure and defensive, this had a very limited impact on the Church in the north. Büchele accuses it of many economic, social and political sins of omission. Only individuals from within it, not the Church as a whole, were in any way politically actively involved. The literature on the Northern Ireland conflict is by now enormous and by having to narrate the events as well as the Church's reactions the author has to cover a great deal of ground. So it is not surprising that there are some mistakes and misunderstandings. These are few, however. Büchele had difficulties in finding relevant sources as far as the Church is concerned and thus relies perhaps a little too much on contemporary newspapers and priests' reports. Overall there is very little new in this book, but it does for the first time bring together individual clergy's contributions, both priests and members of the hierarchy. A pity then that there is no index to search for these churchmen in the text.