Wherever You Are, You Are On The Journey - Print.

Wherever You Are, You Are On The Journey: Conversations in a Coffee Shop Book 1

By Susan Jones

Publishing:  15 December 2021
Language: English
Words: 43,130
B/W text, 134 pp, 6″ x 9″
Soft cover
ISBN: 9781988572826

[30 in stock 21 Nov 2024]

Click for eBooks  

Description

Have you been religiously inclined for a while, but feel that there is more to Christian faith than is told on Sundays? Perhaps your current ideas about God, about Jesus and about what it means to live well, no longer satisfy you? Maybe you are questioning whether the firmly held beliefs you grew up with are going to be useful in the next stage of your life?

Don’t panic! You have simply reached a transition point in your faith journey. It’s time for a change and it will be unsettling.

Through the medium of weekly conversations in a local café Susan Jones creatively explores what it’s like to live through this threshold of faith, by telling us the story of Hope, a young woman who has followed the religious rules all her life but is ready to move on. What will Hope do next?

As Susan says in her introduction, “In this novel you have come across part of Hope’s journey. Not all of it may suit you right now. Here, though, are ideas and metaphors which may help with the questions buzzing round your head. These conversations seek to support re-enchantment of your journey. To help you move into post-critical thinking. I hope the book helps you understand the reasons for the changes in your thinking, and in other people’s. I hope too that you will learn how important it is that we do change.”

Praise for Wherever You Are, You Are On The Journey
 
“I love this book. It’s a very easy read. And it underscores the point that while interest in churchgoing Christianity is at an all-time low, spiritual curiosity is burgeoning in the 21st century. Pulpit monologues are done and dusted, but genuine, open-ended conversations over a decent cup of coffee – that’s a different thing! Faith must be democratised – rescued from religion and explored with the honesty and humanity found in this book.” Dave Tomlinson, author of ‘Black Sheep and Prodigals’ and host of The Holy Shed YouTube channel.
 
"Susan Jones offers an oasis for those parched by long treks through dry lands. In conversational form she gently removes boundaries, encouraging people who may have found the whole issue of religion too difficult to navigate. What better setting than a coffee shop for renewing the search for faith in times when the quest for meaning seems to have become not only unfashionable but reactionary. Offering breadcrumbs of hope along the way, Jones informs, encourages, imagines, and enchants. She has faced the difficulties of authenticity herself and discovered a way to live redemptively in a complex world. A book of possibilities, and a conversation of genuine encounter. Buy one for yourself, and one to give away.” Mike Riddell, author

"… This subtle unpacking of myth makes good reading for anyone re-thinking their life and what has shaped their thinking. It is an imaginary set of conversations and not a heavy theological treatise, that draws on psychology and philosophy to aid the process of thinking about the big topics of sin, evil, baptism, communion and scripture. Recommended reading for personal reflection on one’s own journey." Paul Inglis Open Discussion on Progressive Christianity, Australia. Nov 2022

Contents

Personal Introduction — Welcome!

1 — Faith is a series of stages, not a destination

2 — Don’t look now, but you’re surrounded

3 — What have we been worshipping all these centuries?

4 — If the Christian project is dying, what do I do now?

5 — The emperor’s clothing is seductive: can I let it go?

6 — The Big Story behind the little old stories

7 — Who or what is God in the world of myth and mystery?

8 — Being in church as a re-enchanted person

9 — Where do the sacraments fit now?

10 — Communicating about Communion

11 — Myth in scripture and our daily lives

12 — Can psychology or philosophy help with the journey?

13 — Who are the priests and prophets of the journey?

14 — Leading the way to re-enchantment

Appendix — 1 Creeds

Creed for an Easter People

Creed About Love

A South Canterbury Creed

Appendix — 2  Affirmations

Affirmation of Faith

Affirmation of Wilderness

Affirming the Waste of Perfume

Appendix — 3  Great Prayer of Thanksgiving

Great Prayer of Thanksgiving

Appendix — 4  Hope and Charlie’s Experimental Liturgy

Endnotes

Copyright

Forthcoming books by Susan Jones to be published by Philip Garside Publishing Ltd

  
About the author

Susan is no stranger to the pain of being other, as she’s navigated faith and gender issues. Her writing has been honed as a teacher, spiritual director, supervisor and minister. She’s completed a doctorate in theology too.

Susan’s agile, spacious mind engages respectfully with diverse beliefs and opinions; distilling complex ideas, making change accessible. Life feels possible, hopeful after conversations illustrated with her serviette graffiti. She brings a gentle, quirky sense of humour to her writing.

Susan’s coffee shop conversations trilogy integrates years of church, study, scholarly observation, struggle and no small measure of pain, undergirded by authenticity, deep faith, and a sense of the numinous.