Customer Reviews

Credo

5 star:		(13)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(7)

 

 

Bill Moyers was absolutely correct in stating with regard to William Sloane Coffin: "The voice of a prophet and wisdom for the ages". If anything, reading Credo has inspired me to want to be a better human being and stand up for those things I know point to a higher purpose. Credo is a compilation of memorable excerpts from, I believe, sermons delivered by Mr. Coffin. Whether you are a Christian or a secular humanist, there is something here to inspire you to a higher standard of global ethics. Most importantly, Credo delivers a message that Love is supreme and without it we are doomed. If all of us thought like Mr. Coffin what a wonderful world it would be.

I am a Lutheran Church librarian who bought this book for our church library. The beauty of this book is that the reader can turn to any chapter or page and just begin reading. Many of my parishioners are not big readers and only have high school educations, so this book is more attractive to them than a tome with chapter after chapter of dry theology. This book stresses how to turn faith into activism to change the world for the better. It is inspirational and thought-provoking.

Coffin is no light-weight as one hysterical right-wing reviewer suggests. He has been Yale University's chaplain, minister of Riverside church in Manhattan, and is now working for nuclear disarmament. I believe he was also active in the civil rights movement if I remember correctly. Yes, he is liberal and thank God for that! Once CAN be religious and liberal at the same time! The two go hand in hand. It is refreshing to hear a minister, a person of faith, INDICT us to truly love our neighbor even if we perceive him to be "different" from us; to remember the poor and work to help them; to protest when our nation goes in the wrong direction. This is an excellent book for those who are sick and tired of George Bush's brand of "compassionate conservatism" in which he tries to relegate gays to second-class citizenship, believes that wholesale murder of innocent Iraqis will lead to a democratic peace in that nation, and who puts our nation in jeopardy through corrupt and wasteful stewardship of our national finances and the environment, etc. There is a lot here to think about and work toward.

This is one of those books that you never want to be without. When life gets the best of you, you want to grab it and read Coffin's words of wisdom. His clarity of life and focus is so refreshing and inspiring. He truly is an american hero who has impacted my life by just learning about his book and enjoying every word. He is a remarkable man who put justice and humanity above everything else. James Carroll's foreword is like chocolate, it just melts in my mind and makes me want more.

William Sloane Coffin is the real deal. He calls for social justice, not despite religious faith, but due to it. His message is rare because it has become fresher and more relvant as time goes on. He is warm, witty and insigtful and this is a good omnibus of his lifes thoughts. "Letters to a Young Doubter" is another fine book. And to those that accuse him of relativism; that is precisely false. He absolutely and with conviction speaks truth to power and represents the Lord with integrity.

I noted that no reviews gave credit to the origin of these words as collected by Editor Stephanie Egnotovich and Publisher Davis Perkins of John Knox Press. When I began to meditate upon this neat outline, quotations, and thots, I was convinced it is a book I cannot be without! Emphasis upon Dr. Coffin's outline of Faith, Hope/Love; Social Justice; Patriotism, War/Peace; Plus Nature, All take me back to hear him one week of Montreat Music & Worship Conference. His preaching was complimented by his day by day-living. Mostly because I sat beside him in Bass Section of Prof Elaine Brown's fabulous Choir.

Not only did he sing with great richness of tone but also in his profound statements. My memory will hold his deeply rich voice alongside his quotations of Walter Brueggemann: "Justice is to sort out what belongs to whom and return it to them!"

Another quotation of Parker Palmer: "Relationships-not facts and reason-are the key to reality." Huston Smith: "The larger the island of knowledge--The greater the shoreline of wonder!" More than sufficient to see & hear him as the master of metaphor in writing, preaching, and conversation! Amen for this wondrously inspired collection from Bill Coffin's Wisdom treaure-chest!
Retired Chap Fred W Hood

Credo is an inspirational treasury of thoughts, musings, hard-learned lessons, and much more from William Sloane Coffin, whose remarkable activist life has included service as chaplain of Yale University and Williams College, publicly opposing the Vietnam war, being jailed as a civil rights "Freedom Rider", and earning the immortal caricature of Rev. Sloan in the Doonesbury comic strip. His uplifting wisdom in matters both spiritual and mundane is presented in bite-sized pieces, each pondering deftly wrought and worthy of extended contemplation. "A central message of Christian life is this: ask Jesus for but a thimbleful of help and you get an oceanful in return."

"CREDO" is a goldmine of common sense for uncovering the core truths of Christianity. The late Bill Coffin was a thoughtful, compassionate, proactive clergyman who could distinguish the Bible's spiritual truths from historical truths. He saw no conflict between scientific discovery and faith. Following the example of Christ, he was a champion of the poor and oppressed, always placing compassion above church doctrine. I find Coffin's words liberating to my mind and refreshing to my soul, thought-provoking, yet easy to read. It is not a one-time read, rather a resource for spiritual renewal. I am sharing this book with all my family and friends and reading his other books as well.

I am stunned at some of the reviews. If there ever was a man who got it(faith, the GOSPEL as in good news ) it was Coffin.As he stated,(to paraphrase) I love creeds and doctrines but they must be only seen as signposts. The hitching post is Christ's love.

Evidently some of the reviewers did not actually read the book.

This is a great book! I read it a month ago and now I'm reading it again...
I agree with almost everything Slone Coffin says, he clearly seems my type of person, huge in kindness and compassion, surely in the best prophetic tradition and in the likeness of Christ.
He addresses all of the important spiritual issues of the day, and does it with honesty, without omitting controversial issues.
I would say Sloan Coffin Seems to me like a spiritual giant!!

This book by Coffin is a fascinating, compelling book. It looks at life, at the Christian life, at what we do and should or should not do. A very deep look at living the life of a Christian today. Well done.

J. Robert Ewbank author "John Wesley, Natural Man, and the 'Isms'"