The Struggle to Believe: Poems That Wrestle with Christian Truth

By S T Kimbrough Jr. and William B. Lawrence

Many people of faith struggle with aspects of their beliefs. These poems do not seek to propose resolutions to all faith struggles. They do seek to help one toward self-examination, to be honest about these struggles, and to know that to confront them does not mean loss of faith. The study of the biblical languages of Hebrew, Greek, and Aramaic makes clear that there are not always simple solutions to many difficult linguistic problems in the Bible.

Is faith our last resort when all else seems lost? What of helplessness and hopelessness? Can they open a window to faith understanding? Can we believe for the wrong reasons? What are some of the questions we should ask about the meaning of grace, forgiveness, and destiny, subjects with which many people struggle every day?

How shall we understand the incarnation of Jesus, his ministry, the events of the Passion Week, and his resurrection? How shall we understand the holy days that celebrate these events and others in the life of the Jesus? And especially, what is the meaning of Holy Communion in the life of the church? And how shall we understand the church itself? If the poetry in these pages provides the opportunity for others to share in these struggles openly and honestly, then the words will have been wisely spent.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Resource Publications
• Release date: Jan 6, 2022
• ISBN: 9781666727432

S T Kimbrough Jr.

S T Kimbrough, Jr. is a Research Fellow of the Center for Studies in the Wesleyan Tradition of the Divinity School of Duke University and founder of The Charles Wesley Society. He is editor of its journal Proceedings of The Charles Wesley Society and author/editor of several books on Charles Wesley including: The Unpublished Poetry of Charles Wesley, 3 vols., and The Manuscript Journal of the Reverend Charles Wesley, M.A., 2 vols.

Book preview

The Struggle to Believe

Poems That Wrestle with Christian Truth

S T Kimbrough, Jr.

Foreword by William B. Lawrence

The Struggle to believe

Poems That Wrestle with Christian Truth

Copyright ©

2022

S T Kimbrough, Jr. All rights reserved. Except for brief quotations in critical publications or reviews, no part of this book may be reproduced in any manner without prior written permission from the publisher. Write: Permissions, Wipf and Stock Publishers,

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paperback isbn: 978-1-6667-3310-5

hardcover isbn: 978-1-6667-2742-5

ebook isbn: 978-1-6667-2743-2

January 7, 2022 8:33 AM

Table of Contents

Title Page

Foreword

Introduction

Chapter 1: The Struggle to Believe

Wrong-headed Faith

Faith? or Faith!

The Need of Grace

Grace

Forgiveness

Destiny

Pray?

Humility, Love, and Grace

Chapter 2: The Struggle to Believe the Scriptures

Owe Nothing but Love

No Partiality

Nothing New Under the Sun?

Shadrach, Meshach, Abednego

Poor Man Lazarus

Transformed Hearts of Stone

Weak and/or Strong

Life by Stealth

Christ Brings Peace?

What Did Jesus Say?

Chapter 3: The Struggle to Believe in the Incarnation

Incarnation

A Refugee Savior

A Gift at Christmas?

A Holiday Spirit?

As Jesus Grew from Boyhood

Chapter 4: The Struggle to Believe in Christ’s Passion and Resurrection

Christ’s Passion

If

Lent

A Lenten Prayer

A Fast

Sacrifice

Dying Grace

Trials and Conflicts

Palm Sunday

Good Friday

Easter Faith

Chapter 5: The Struggle to Believe in the Mystery

At the Table

The Mystery of Bread and Wine

To Dine with Christ

Holy Sacrament and Word

O Holy Sacrament Divine

Word and Sacrament

Remember Me

Chapter 6: The Struggle to Believe in the Church

Your Church? My Church? God’s Church?

The Church?

The Church Is God’s?

The Church without Walls?

Humility in the Church

A Church, A Mosque, A Synagogue

Unity—Disunity

S T Kimbrough’s poems create a vision of our world that is captivating. Some poems help all of us to develop ‘the poetic imagination’ that is the goal of all erudition.

—James H. Charlesworth,

President, Foundation on Judaism and Christian Origins

For decades, S T Kimbrough has been teaching us that much of the Christian faith is better sung than said, relished rather than reasoned. In this fine collection of his poems, S T shows us the beauty in believing as well as the faith that admits to doubts and tensions within our faith. Wise, cheerful, hopeful, and full of delight, S T’s poems are a gift to any of us who believe but need help to persist in our believing.

—Will Willimon,

Duke Divinity School

"S T Kimbrough brings his truly diverse talents and interests into poems which probe our daily concerns, worries, and doubts and provide us with psalm-like redemptive verse. His and William Lawrence’s introductions