The Promise of Paradox: A Celebration of Contradictions in the Christian Life - Hardcover

Palmer, Parker J.

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0787996963 ISBN 13: 9780787996963

Publisher: Jossey Bass, 2008

Synopsis

First published in 1980―and reissued here with a feisty new introductory essay―The Promise of Paradox launched Parker J. Palmer’s career as an author and his ongoing exploration of the contradictions that vex and enrich our lives. In this probing and heartfelt book, the distinguished writer, teacher, and activist examines some of the challenging questions at the core of Christian spirituality. How do we live with the apparent opposition between good and evil, scarcity and abundance, individuality and community, death and new life? We can hold them as paradoxes, not “either/ors,” allowing them to open our minds and hearts to new ways of seeing and being.

About this title

About the Author

The Author

PARKER J. PALMER, a highly respected writer, teacher, and activist, is founder and senior partner of the Center for Courage & Renewal. His work speaks deeply to people in many walks of life, including education, medicine, religion, law, philanthropy, politics, and social change. Author of seven books, including the bestsellers The Courage to Teach (now in its tenth anniversary edition), Let Your Life Speak, and A Hidden Wholeness, his writing has been recognized with ten honorary doctorates and a number of national awards. Named one of the "most influential senior leaders" in higher education, he holds a Ph.D. from the University of California at Berkeley.

From the Back Cover

ON LIVING THE PARADOXES OF CHRISTIAN LIFE . . . .

"It is a real joy for me to introduce this first book by Parker Palmer. It is the joy that grows from friendship. I met Parker for the first time only five years ago and today I can hardly think of my life and work apart from the crucial role that Parker has played in them.

"The issues that Parker discusses are basic: solitude, community, social action, political responsibility, prayer, and contemplation. They are raised in the context of the words of William Johnston: 'Faith is the breakthrough into that deep realm of the soul which accepts paradox . . . with humility.' Accepting paradox with humility is the spirit that binds the quite diverse pieces of this book together. And it is the spirit that makes this book worth reading.

"I hope and pray that those who read these essays will sense the spirit in which they were written and thus be challenged as I have been to break out of illusions and compulsions and seek a new freedom."
—From the 1980 introduction by HENRI NOUWEN author of The Wounded Healer, The Way of the Heart, and other classic works of Christian spirituality

From the Inside Flap

THE PROMISE OF Paradox

First published in 1980—and reissued here with a feisty new introductory essay—The Promise of Paradox launched Parker J. Palmer's career as an author and his ongoing exploration of the contradictions that vex and enrich our lives. In this probing and heartfelt book, the distinguished writer, teacher, and activist examines some of the challenging questions at the core of Christian spirituality. How do we live with the apparent opposition between good and evil, scarcity and abundance, individuality and community, death and new life? We can hold them as paradoxes, not "either/ors," allowing them to open our minds and hearts to new ways of seeing and being.

Animated by the insights of the Trappist monk Thomas Merton, The Promise of Paradox explores spiritual questions in the open and generous spirit of Christian mysticism, challenging forms of Christianity that are closed and even cruel. There are no easy answers to these questions, and there may be no answers at all. But with the poet Rainer Maria Rilke, Palmer advocates the rich possibilities that emerge when we learn to "live the questions."

As the late Henri Nouwen said in his 1980 introduction, Parker Palmer "has challenged me . . . to keep moving to unknown fields without apprehension or fear. He has taught me to live boldly and freely."

Edition details

• Publisher: Jossey Bass
• Publication date: 2008
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0787996963
• ISBN 13: 9780787996963
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 192