A SPIRITED BOOK CLUB DISCUSSion of ‘Caring for Words in a Culture of Lies’ by Marilyn Mcentyre
Second edition, 2021
Caring for language is a moral issue. Caring for one another is not entirely separable from caring for words. Words are entrusted to us as equipment for our life together, to help us survive, guide, and nourish one another. If language is to retain its power to nourish and sustain our common life, we have to care for it in something like the way good farmers care for the life of the soil.
Book Overview
With the pervasiveness of vitriol and dishonesty today, language needs to be revived and restored. In Caring for Words in a Culture of Lies, Marilyn McEntyre exposes the commercial and political forces that affect public discourse in American culture and counters with twelve constructive “strategies of stewardship”—such as challenging lies (including widely tolerated forms of deception and spin), fostering the art of conversation, and encouraging playfulness and prayerfulness in writing and speaking.
Pairs well with the ELCA Conference of Bishops Statement on the Need to Speak the Truth, October 1, 2024
The second edition of this timely and timeless book includes updated cultural references and questions for reflection and discussion at the end, allowing a new generation of readers to apply McEntyre’s wisdom in a world that struggles with truth and graceful language more than ever before.
Note: One Amazon reviewer wrote, “It’s incredible, but it takes time to read.” Give yourself a chance to really get into it, maybe 20 pages a day with a cup of coffee.
Reviews for Caring for Words in a culture of lies
“Caring for Words in a Culture of Lies, Marilyn Chandler McEntyre’s book on the stewardship of language, is a wonderfully composed treatise. . . If you wonder whether caring for words is worth the effort, consider McEntye’s reasoning to a young student: ‘Language is the basic tool for preserving civilization. It seems useful to understand as much as we can about how it works since it’s arguably one of the most potent forms of power that society has produced — that and the atom-splitter.’” —Christian Century
“This book promises to be a major contribution to the postliberal tradition of homiletics that it summarizes, expands, nuances, and strives to correct.” —Interpretation
“The author shows us the importance of exchanging words to cherish and steward the gift of language.” —Reviews in Religion and Theology
CLUB DISCUSSION dates
BOOK CLUB meets Thursdays, January 9 & 23 @ 3:00 – 4:00 pm AZ (MST)
- January 9: Chapters 1-6 and the six strategies of Love Words, Tell the Truth, Don’t Tolerate Lies, Read Well, Stay in Conversation, and Share Stories.
- January 23: Chapters 7-12 and the six strategies of Love the Long Sentence, Practice Poetry, Attend to Translation, Play, Pray, and Cherish Silence.
++Book discussion facilitated by Sheri Brown
About the author
Marilyn McEntyre is the award-winning author of several books on language and faith, including Where the Eye Alights, Caring for Words in a Culture of Lies, Speaking Peace in a Climate of Conflict, When Poets Pray, Make a List, Word by Word, and What’s in a Phrase? Pausing Where Scripture Gives You Pause, winner of the 2015 Christianity Today book award in spirituality.
0 Comments