Men Pray: Voices of Strength, Faith, Healing, Hope and Courage collected by the editors of SkyLight Paths, with foreword by Brian McLaren. SkyLight Paths, Woodstock, Vt. 168 pages
Men are largely absent from the church; yet men still lead the majority of congregations. It’s a pattern than began many years ago and has only increased. This pattern of absence from a spiritual community, one might conclude, has led to the kinds of destructive moral behavior that occurs with greater frequency in men. Some have said semiseriously that we ought to replace all the men in leadership with women. Yet, neither that solution nor the pattern reveal the deep spiritual hunger that abides for men who are showing up in worshipping communities.
This collection of prayers, readings and meditations is intended to provide sustenance for the hunger in men’s hearts that is often unspoken. It won’t replace a community, but it does give particular guidance for men who are seeking deeper spiritual lives. This is not a Christian book alone; it contains reflections from many traditions, all aimed at speak- ing to men. Contributors include Walter Bruggemann, Daniel Berrigan, C.S. Lewis, Robert Frost, D.L. Moody, Ted Loder, Chief Yellow Lark and, of course, Rumi. Brian McLaren in the foreword asks, “If men don’t pray, what will men become, and what will become of our world and our future?” I think the answer is abun- dantly clear right now.
That’s why this book is restorative.
ROY W. HOWARD is the Outlook book editor.
