About Unafraid
What if you could look into the hearts and minds of listeners in the congregation during sermons? What is happening in their lives? What does the gospel or sermon, these “life lessons” really mean to them—or not mean?
In UNAFRAID, selections from 30 years of straightforward sermons are grouped according to the church year (Advent, Christmas, Epiphany, Lent, Easter, Pentecost) beginning with Christmas 1939. Reconstructed from Harald Ibsen’s sermon notes by his daughter Joy, each candid sermon is followed by a listener’s story (some autobiographical, some fictional) showing the relationship of the message to that person’s life.
To experience “The Living Word” between pew and pulpit creates a new awareness of the exciting dynamic between pastor and parishioner, teacher and student, author and reader.
Ibsen’s timeless sermons and the stories that follow address such questions as: What is the truth about our lives? What is the main task of parents? How does one respond to evil? Why do we keep having war? Did God want Jesus (and now us) to suffer? How do we know when the Holy Spirit is present? What is the downfall of official religion?
Harald Ibsen began his pastoral career by hopping a freight train during the depression and traveling with hoboes to his first parish. The book recounts this unusual journey, then fast forwards to a “conversation” between daughter and father after his death, forty years later.
The sermons and listeners’ stories, beginning when his daughter, Joy, a “replacement child,” was is in her mother’s womb and extend to fictional accounts of church members confronting huge personal issues: career choice, marriage difficulties, child-rearing problems, addiction, financial crises, war, grief, pride, jealousy, regret, loss of faith, terminal illness and death.
Thoughtful, honest interpretation of scripture as it relates to everyday life is essential if we are to live “unafraid" enjoying “a simple life, a merry heart.” What could be richer? At a time when church membership is dwindling and ethnic identity alternately wanes and flourishes, UNAFRAID makes a strong case for the significance of the Church in people’s lives.
Methodology
The sermons have been reconstructed from actual original notes. The autobiographical stories are creative nonfiction while the stories of the parishioners are fiction. Each section cycles through a series of many years. Sermons, given at a particular time and place, are organized in sections according to the church year. This gives both a linear construct—a sense of living history—within the framework of cyclical time. An extensive appendix is included, primarily Biblical references.
Intended Readership:
A "must read" for clergy and seminarians plus all current, former, or “wannabe” Christians who hunger for a religion that helps them live freer, happier lives. The book is an especially helpful read for clergy and students of religion. It will provide clergy and professors with increased awareness and insight into what is happening in the thoughts and actions of their listeners! UNAFRAID serves very well in book groups and discussion classes of various venues.