A memoir of Faith by Barbara Brown Taylor
Barbara Brown Taylor is a beautiful writer. She has
clarity, simplicity, and depth. She is also a beautiful thinker. And that shows
in her writing as well. That's why I own every book she's ever written.
My reading has suffered since I began writing
seriously. I have less energy for reading, so I am careful with my choices. I’ve
been avoiding church books these days in favor of serious literature that feeds
the writer in me. But when I saw that Taylor’s memoir was out, I had to have it.
Behold, here is a Barbara Brown Taylor that is
new to me. She is very vulnerable in this book, confessing her motives and
insecurities and allowing us to walk with her as she tries to deal with them.
Her struggles are the classic struggles of every pastor. She worries about her
power and how she uses it; she worries about what people think of her; and
she worries about her church and its identity. Most of all, she wonders how to
maintain her own growing faith in the middle of working to support the faith of
others.
Some may wonder why a seasoned minister like
Taylor still struggles with these things. But I am an insecure minister myself.
And I know what it is like to write with some sophistication, but still worry
about what people think about you. I feel a kinship with her in this regard.
Ministers can feel dehumanized at times. This
happens in part because we court our righteous image and in part because the
people in the pews want to see nothing but our image. Taylor describes a church
party where people were pushing each other into a pool. No one would push the
minister in, of course, so there she stood watching everyone else in the water.
But then someone gave her a shove and she found herself in the water with all
the rest of us. I found myself struggling with tears as I thought about my own
life and how many times I have wished I could be “a regular person.”
Barbara Brown Taylor left church to find her
faith. Not THE Church, of course, but the little church, the shaky and wobbling
shadow of The Church that is every local congregation. She left the center of
religion and moved to the wilderness, and there she found the presence of God
had not left her after all.
I would say this to you. This is a book about
leaving church. And if you never find a way to leave church, you might have a
hard time finding God.
rlp
Note: Viva Books is offering this book at
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