The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry follows Harold, a recent retiree for whom life has become routine, through his unexpected decision to walk 600 miles across the English countryside. Convinced a long lost friend in hospice will stay alive as long as he walks, he encounters a cast of characters who unlock his spirit and renew his sense of purpose in life. This inspiring novel prompts reevaluation of our own mundane routines and spurs us on towards change where it is needed most.
In Proof of Heaven: A Neurosurgeon’s Journey Into the Afterlife, Dr. Eben Alexander experiences heaven as a shocking and unexpected reality that flies in the face of his scientific training. What might it mean to balance belief in God and eternity with a fundamental understanding of logic and science?
------
Stay tuned to this space for more as we read, discuss, and journey together! Both selections are available for purchase at The Bookshop @ St. Stephen's, open whenever the parish house is open.
6 comments:
"True Journey" - I like the title that staff people chose for this book club blog. My experience is that a good book can invite me deeper into my own story and experience. It can help me learn more about myself and see aspects of my life (and of God at work in my life) that I might otherwise overlook. Harold Fry and Eben Alexander both did that for me, and I expect that other readers' comments on this blog will open my eyes even more...I can't wait.
"True Journey" reminds me of a little book written in the 1960's by an Anglican priest and dean at Cambridge University named Harry Williams. He had suffered a breakdown and undergone extensive therapy. When he emerged from this trying time, he wrote a book entitled "True Wilderness" in which he vowed that he would no longer write or preach about stuff he didn't know from his own personal experience. He had to know the truth of something from his own life and experience, or he wouldn't preach or write about it. No more abstract doctrine or academic theology or thoughts about stuff you are supposed to believe as a Christian...just the real deal that he knew from his own, real life:
"I resolved that I would not preach about any aspect of Christian belief unless it had become part of my own life-blood… I found it became impossible to propound an official point of view like a political speaker taking a party line… All I could speak of were those things which I had proved true in my own experience by living them and thus knowing them first hand." (H. A. Williams, True Wilderness)
So, here's to the real journey - Harold Fry's, Eben Alexander's, yours and mine. I look forward to hearing about other people's journeys and perspectives, and I look forward to sharing mine. Gary Jones
I bought Dr. Alexander's Proof of Heaven yesterday after the noon Ash Wednesday service and finished it this morning. It was one of the most momentous books I have ever read. It was stunning for two reasons to me. First, because of the deep description of the journey and the scientific "buoy" of explanation behind the medical impossibility of his experience being a dream state. And second, because it was one of those books that as you read it, it connected with a soul-sense of recognition -- as if I already knew in some way what he was talking about. Of course, I've never had an experience remotely like Dr. Alexander's. But I definitely identified with the themes -- that unconditional Love, compassion, and as Alexander said "true thought" are at the core of everything that we are, and that there are individual experiences that show how those qualities are beyond the human.
I will likely be dissecting my thoughts about this book – and the enormous inspiration that has flowed from it for me – for years. But in the immediate, this book gave me incredible peace. It was a further confirmation for what I believe surrounds us, and protects us, here on earth today and for all time – an all-encompassing, loving God. But it also gave me additional peace about the beyond in a tangible way. The moment I finished it, I called my mom, who lost her husband of over 40 years and my dad, a few months ago, and suggested she go out and buy the book. In addition to occasionally shouting, “Yes! That’s it!” while reading this book, I also smiled so much in confirmation of its words, and a few times, I cried.
I’m in awe of God’s wisdom in tapping such a person to write Proof of Heaven. And I’m humbled and grateful that it came my way on the first day of Lent, the first Lent I’ve ever celebrated. – Jen Thompson
Jen, thank you for sharing your experience with Proof of Heaven-- what a deeply moving testimony. Your phrase "soul-sense of recognition" really resonates. Have a blessed Lent, and we look forward to hearing more of your thoughts when we discuss Proof of Heaven on the blog!
If ever you wondered what religious words such as 'Transformation" or "Redemption" means, then look no further than
"The Unlikely Pilgrimage Of Harold Fry". Both Harold and Maureen are wonderful examples of this spiritual reality. They
both are discovering what it means to be human. That's what this splendid novel is all about. It can provide a mirror to all of our lives.
Tom Smith
Tom, hear hear! Love that idea of the book holding up a mirror, and that Harold and Maureen are discovering their humanity.
Here they were... in their own small world trapped in past events that kept them bad places. For whatever reason, Harold was drawn into a journey that got him out of himself, showed him a world of love and caring and by example drew his wife out on a similar, but different journey of her own.
There is no greater joy than to share a smile with a stranger on the street, a kind word with a grocery cashier, give empathy and understanding to your spouse, and perhaps most importantly give someone the chance [and gift] to do something kind for you.
I wish when we passed the peace, we said "share your burden and feel the peace."
We just have to decide to take that first step and let subsequent steps keep coming.
Post a Comment