By Mr. William Stringfellow - A Keeper of the Word: Selected Writings of William Stringfellow (1996-05-17) [Paperback]

by William Stringfellow

"Until his death in 1985, William Stringfellow was a Christian social activist in the mold of Daniel Berrigan, Thomas Merton and William Sloan Coffin. As a lawyer in East Harlem, he saw the social injustice; and, in his writings as well as his activism, he tried to indicate the ways Christianity could respond to those injustices. Stringfellow's writings are deeply scriptural, and this collection, drawn from his 16 books and numerous articles, nicely demonstrates the wide range of his thoughts and passions. The first section focuses on his autobiographical writings; the second collects his words on the vocation of the church; and a third is devoted to his central theological concern, the conflict of principalities and powers. The final section collects writings devoted to the art of living humanely. We can be in Kellerman's debt, for this long overdue collection reacquaints us with a man who was indeed a keeper and doer of the Word." - Publisher's Weekly

Genres: Theology

Paperback

First published September 1, 1994

About the author

Frank William Stringfellow (April 26, 1928 – March 2, 1985) was an American lay theologian. He was active mostly during the 1960s and 1970s.

Reviews

[J. Scott · Rating 5 out of 5]

This anthology, incisively and lovingly edited by Bill Wylie-Kellermann, is simply the best introduction and guide, to date, to the quirky and compelling life and thought of the Episcopal lawyer, activist, social critic, and "lay" theologian who once stunned Karl Barth and later "harbored" a fugitive Daniel Berrigan. (The second book is like unto it -- the shorter anthology published by Orbis, also edited by Wylie-Kellermann). A generous overview and sampling of Stringfellow's major preoccupations, passions, and perceptions is all here, along with extensive passages that explore his ruminations on biblical theology, religion and race, church and society, and principalities and powers. What the work accomplishes, as a whole, is a theologically dialectical, socially critical, and politically engaged meditation on the ethics of living humanly, by the power of the resurrected Word of God, in the face of the power of death regnant in all levels of human experience. The anthology samples all of Stringfellow's books (including the ones he co-authored with Anthony Towne), except for *Instead of Death* -- a curious omission that Wylie-Kellermann rectifies in his later anthology. Very helpfully, this volume also collates excerpts from numerous occasional articles and unpublished manuscripts to help fill out the breadth of Stringfellows ideas and engagements, within the context of his provocation and often tumultuous life and vocation.

[LVD · Rating 5 out of 5]

his few pages on discernment are very meaningful. also: advent as an intrinsically political event? I like it.