This
book is not what I was expecting. It originated in England, where
Christianity is sometimes practiced a bit differently than in the
U.S., and I think American evangelical Christians will not appreciate
some of the book's content.
The
short stories revolve around an elderly English couple married for
eight years. Both have been married and divorced before and both have
left the churches of their youth. Sid, the husband, is now Quaker.
Rosie, well, Rosie goes to a church here and there from time to time.
The stories contain their dialog about or thoughts on spiritual
things, including the liturgical year, climate change, and more.
There
is an acceptance of other religions that may make American
evangelicals terribly uncomfortable. In the very first reading,
Eckhart Tolle is quoted. There is an odd discussion that indicates
Matthew found nothing wrong with the Zoroastrian way, as long as it
was going toward Jesus. (42) “[Sid] believes that every religion
has its insights and contributions to make – its offerings for the
altar of the one, true, living God.” (47) In one conversation,
Rosie says it doesn't make sense to her “that Gandhi and the Dalai
Lama will go to hell because they weren't Christians...” (120) She
also says, “If people call God Allah or Shiva or Vishnu, why would
he mind?” (120) In another story she quotes from a Zen master.
(139) She also quotes from Taoism a few times. She thinks the Rapture
has begun because animals are going extinct, going back home, passing
into the mystery. “Isn't that the Rapture?”, she asks. (151)
Rosie says of angels in the Bible, “...they got there from the
Zoroastrian influences, didn't they?” (220)
And
then there is the reference to Masaru Emoto, said to have discovered
that writing a positive phrase on a water jar's label changed the
molecular structure of the water inside. Sid relates this
pseudoscience to the Eucharist. (178) That is just strange.
Yet
there are times when the readings are distinctly what I would
identify as evangelically Christian. One example is Rosie's short
talk on John 15. She reflects on being able to do nothing unless
abiding in Him, “...now that I can certainly believe!” (143) She
also talks about the words of Jesus working powerfully within her and
that her body is a temple of the Holy Spirit. There is a discussion
of light with insights about God unfolding fractally that was
amazing. The concept of God being like a hologram, where each part is
the whole, is thought provoking.
Readers
will learn much about the saint's days and feast days in the
liturgical year. We read how the (pagan) Celts wove Christianity into
their ancient rhythm of fire festivals. Since Sid is a Quaker, we
learn quite a bit about that spirituality too. Wilcock includes a few
questions for discussion and a prayer at the end of each reading.
I
am puzzled by this book. There are times when it reflects biblical
truth well and Sid and Rosie sound like what I would call truly
Christian. There are other times when I think their ideas and beliefs
have wandered very far from Christian faith as I understand it.
I
would use discretion in reading this book. I can't recommend it for
general devotional use. If one wanted to learn about the origin of
the special days in the liturgical year, I think there are much
better resources than this book.
My
rating: 2/5 stars.
Penelope Wilcock is the author of The Hawk and the Dove novels and many
other books. She has years of experience as a Methodist minister and
has worked as a hospice and school chaplain. She has five adult
daughters and lives in Hastings, East Sussex.
Monarch
Books, distributed in the U.S. By Kregel, 258 pages.
I
received a complimentary copy of this book from Kregel for the
purpose of an independent and honest review.
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