Reach And Teach says:

We were honored and blessed to be friends of Robert McAfee Brown and his amazing wife, Sydney. Bob died just a few days before September 11th 2001 and we are convinced that, had he lived to see that horrible day and its aftermath, he would have rallied to the cause of peace and social justice. But Bob Brown was NOT silent in the aftermath of September 11th. His prophetic voice and spiritual guidance carried many of us, who picked up the torch he had helped light. We were bolstered in our work through these many years of war and suffering, our voices ever stronger because of his teaching, our resolve ever more firm because of his example, and our conviction always tempered with humility, because of who he was.

In this powerful collection of Bob's writing, those who knew Bob, through his teaching, his many books, his preaching, and his half-century of side-by-side solidarity work for peace, equality, social justice, and protecting our planet, will feel Bob standing with them, learn new things about his remarkable career, and find new tools for doing the work that continues to need to be done. For those who never knew Bob, this book presents an amazing introduction to peacemaking and social justice through the biblical lens of one of the greatest theologians of the 20th century. Popes, politicians, and pundits sought his wisdom and other Popes, politicians, and pundits scorned him. Some who saw no value to religion were brought into the liberation theology fold through his teaching and preaching.

As we look through this book we can hear Bob's voice and that voice gives us hope for a future where the prophetic voices of Micah, Isaiah, Ezekial, Jeremiah, Jesus, Martin Luther King, Elie Wiesel, and Oscar Romero continue to cry out and are heard. And, most importantly, those voices and the biblical/spiritual messages are applied to today's real-world situations. Bob was all about the study of religion having relevance to today. Bob carried generations of Americans through WWII, the Korean War, Vietnam, Central America, and the first Gulf War, through the civil rights movements for African-Americans, women, GLBTQ people, and the struggles between Israelis and Palestinians. His voice was always strong for those who were voiceless or marginalized. Yet despite worldwide recognition for the importance of his work, Bob remained the most humble of men whose humility and wit are evident and shown in abundance in this wonderful book. Judith Dunbar (a professor at Santa Clara University and longtime friend and colleague of Bob's), who wrote the forword for the book, also helps to show the many sides of Robert McAfee Brown, including his love for and talent in playing music. I miss the Christmas caroling nights when Bob was part of the ABCs (Abernethy, Brown and Charlie), the unpaid and anything-but-pious musical accompanyists for the annual gathering of trouble-makers, misfits, and ne'er do wells (and doctors and professors and ministers and shopkeepers and tinkers and tailors and thieves). Oh holy night indeed!

Thank God for Robert McAfee Brown and thank you to Paul Crowley for putting together this critically important collection of his writing.

About the Book:

Robert McAfee Brown (1920-2001), an American Presbyterian, was a master theologian, a spiritual guide, and an engaged activist, whose long career reflected many of the critical movements and concerns of the twentieth century. As an official Protestant observer at the Second Vatican Council, he was an influential figure in the ecumenical movement. But his concerns ranged widely over the intersection between faith and the issues of his time: the Holocaust and Jewish-Christian relations; the Civil Rights movement and race relations; the emergence of Latin American liberation theology; the Vietnam War and the struggle for peace in Central America; and the changing shape of global theology. Overall, his work represented a prophetic style of public theology in which faith and practice, prayer and action, words and deeds, and religion and politics came full circle.

Drawing on previously uncollected material and with a helpful introduction this volume presents an essential guide to Brown's work and a message that remains as timely and challenging as ever.

About Paul Crowley:

Paul Crowley is a Jesuit priest and professor of religious studies at Santa Clara University. His books include Unwanted Wisdom: Suffering, the Cross, and Hope (Continuum, 2005). 

Book Details:

• Collected and Introduction by Paul Crowley
• Foreword by Judith Dunbar
• Preface by Robert Benedetto
• Format: Paperback
• Number of Pages: 224
• Publisher: Orbis Books
• Publication Date: February 2013
• Dimensions: 8.25 X 5.38 (inches)
• ISBN: 1626980075
• ISBN-13: 9781626980075
• Subjects: Religion, Theology, Activism