After War, Is Faith Possible?: The Life and Message of Geoffrey 'Woodbine Willie' Studdert Kennedy

by Geoffrey A. Studdert Kennedy

"There are no words foul and filthy enough to describe war." So declared Geoffrey "Woodbine Willie" Studdert Kennedy (1883-1929), a decorated frontline chaplain whose battlefield experiences in World War I transformed him into his generation's most eloquent defender of Christian pacificism. Studdert Kennedy was also a tireless champion of the social gospel who wrote a dozen books, scores of articles, hundreds of poems, and preached countless sermons in both the UK and the US promoting economic justice. Studdert Kennedy's writing and preaching influenced an entire generation. William Temple, Archbishop of Canterbury, described him as a "true prophet." Even though he's fallen into obscurity with the passage of years, Studdert Kennedy's message still inspires the likes of Desmond Tutu and Jurgen Moltmann. This collection of Studdert Kennedy's work, the first in sixty years, seeks to introduce this most relevant of thinkers to our troubled times. The book pulls together Studdert Kennedy's most important writings on war and peace, poverty, the problem of evil, the church's role in the world, sin and atonement, the suffering God, love versus force as world powers, and the beloved community. Editor Kerry Walters introduces the texts with a biographical and thematic essay.

Genres: Nonfiction

238 pages, Paperback

First published May 1, 2008

About the author

Geoffrey Anketell Studdert Kennedy, MC (27 June 1883 – 8 March 1929), was an Anglican priest and poet. He was nicknamed 'Woodbine Willie' during World War I for giving Woodbine cigarettes along with spiritual aid to injured and dying soldiers.

On the outbreak of World War I, Studdert Kennedy volunteered as a chaplain to the army on the Western Front, where he gained the nickname 'Woodbine Willie'. In 1917, he was awarded the Military Cross at Messines Ridge after running into no man's land to help the wounded during an attack on the German frontline.

He wrote a number of poems about his experiences, and these appeared in the books Rough Rhymes of a Padre (1918), and More Rough Rhymes (1919).

During the war he supported the British military effort with enthusiasm. Attached to a bayonet-training service he toured with boxers and wrestlers to give morale-boosting speeches about the usefulness of the bayonet.

After the war, Studdert Kennedy was given charge of St Edmund, King and Martyr in Lombard Street, London. Having been converted to Christian socialism and pacifism during the war, he wrote Lies (1919), Democracy and the Dog-Collar (1921) (featuring such chapters as "The Church Is Not a Movement but a Mob," "Capitalism is Nothing But Greed, Grab, and Profit-Mongering," and "So-Called Religious Education Worse than Useless"), Food for the Fed Up (1921), The Wicket Gate (1923), and The Word and the Work (1925). He moved to work for the Industrial Christian Fellowship, for whom he went on speaking tours of Britain. It was on one of these tours that he was taken ill, and died in Liverpool.

Reviews

[Peter Michell · Rating 4 out of 5]

This volume has been a joy to read. The thirty page introduction is very helpful in giving the personal background for appreciation of Studdert Kennedy's work. Then the main sections of the book provide the opportunity to dip into a wide range of his writings. Certainly having long been familiar with his 'rhymes', it was wonderful to discover other material, articles and essays.

[Paul Prins · Rating 3 out of 5]

The author was a Church of England minister writing after the first world war. The anthology is well organized and structured to help you follow the thoughts and internal wrestlings of Kennedy over a number of years. While I didn't find his ideas novel or all that insightful, the presence + continuity of conversations a hundred years later brought me a sense of companionship.