Book rec: UNAPOLOGETIC by Francis Spufford

 

Subtitle:  Why, despite everything, Christianity can still make surprising emotional sense.

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Unapologetic-everything-Christianity-surprising-emotional/dp/0571225217/ref=pd_sim_b_6

. . . Oh, God, she’s recommending a book on CHRISTIANITY.

Well, yes.  And I’ll probably do it again.*  And it seems like an apposite thing to do on the day that the new Archbishop of Canterbury is sworn in.** However, we’re starting with the shallow end here.  UNAPOLOGETIC is for the general reader, although perhaps especially a few subgroups of The General Reader.  Group A:  Those who wonder what is the matter with Richard Dawkins.  Is his underwear too tight?  Is that why he’s in such a vicious mood all the time?  There are lots of mild-mannered unbelievers out there—I’m married to one.  If someone gets in my face to scream about their innocence, I look around for the smoking gun.  Group B:  Fans of Francis Spufford.  That would be me.  I loooved I MAY BE SOME TIME*** and while I threw THE CHILD THAT BOOKS BUILT across the room kind of a lot in this case that’s a compliment.†  I loved the writing and the premise, I just didn’t agree with a lot of his choices. ††

Group C:  people who would be interested in an intelligent, thoughtful person, and this one happens to be an award-winning professional nonfiction writer at that, writing about being a Christian, including how cranky Richard Dawkins makes him.  The GUARDIAN published an extract from the beginning when the book first came out:

http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2012/aug/31/trouble-with-athiests-defence-of-faith

. . . which I will risk saying is not my favourite part of the book:  it’s a bit too Richard Dawkins-y.  But it does give you a flavour of the sharp, focussed, this-world way he writes, and that being a Christian hasn’t made him pudding-brained.

I liked the book a lot.  Peter’s brother-the-priest sent it to me, but it was already on my radar.  And I’m not sorry either.†††

 * * *

* I’m blazing—well, no, make that fumbling—my way through books on the contemplative/mystical end of this religion I got hoicked into six months ago, with occasional forays into books about St Benedict and St Francis and the orders they founded, not forgetting the Poor Clares and St Scholastica.  All the best people are nuts, including the religious.

** Who is on record all over the shop for being against open homosexuality.  Apparently you can love your gay friends just so long as they stay in the closet where they belong.  ARRRRRRRRRGH.  I may have to found my own Jesus cult.  We’re inclusionary and all our bishops are women.^

^ Biased and unjust?  Yup.  The minute the CofE gets its head out of its fundament about a few of these basic little issues we’ll renegotiate.

*** http://www.amazon.co.uk/May-Be-Some-Time-Imagination/dp/0571218652/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1363910782&sr=1-1

† It isn’t usually.

††  Hmm.  That would make a good blog post.  Some night I’m feeling fiery and hyperbolic.

††† You have to read either the article or the back of the book.