Who was William Stringfellow? Like most prophets, he was brilliant. But he was also, like most prophets, difficult, irascible, suspicious, contentious–and full of courage. He was a lawyer, a social activist, and a dedicated communicant of the Episcopal Church. He graduated from Harvard Law School in the 1950s but put aside the promise of a lucrative career and went to work in East Harlem, one of New York City’s poorest neighborhoods. At the height of the Vietnam War, he took the Reverend Daniel Berrigan into his home and was indicted for harboring a fugitive. In the 1970s, while the Episcopal Church was struggling with such issues as the ordination of women and the funding of programs for minorities, he accused the ecclesiastical hierarchy of arrogance, duplicity, and lack of leadership.
Everything William Stringfellow said and did was grounded in his profound belief in the Incarnation and the Eschaton. He knew Jesus Christ to be the Word of God, who is in all things and who challenges the powers and principalities of this world, calling people and institutions to repentance and newness of life.
In Prophet of Justice, Prophet of Life editor Robert Boak Slocum has gathered a diverse group of clergy, legal scholars, and seminary faculty to produce this stimulating and provocative series of essays on the life and work of William Stringfellow.
A propos de l’auteur
Robert Boak Slocum is the author, editor, or co-editor of fourteen books, including Fearful Times; Living Faith (ed. with Martyn Percy); The Anglican Imagination; Light in a Burning-Glass: A Systematic Presentation of Austin Farrer’s Theology; Seeing & Believing: Reflections for Faith; A Heart for the Future: Writings on the Christian Hope (ed.); and The Theology of William Porcher Du Bose: Life, Movement, and Being. He taught theology courses at Marquette University on Christ and culture, explorations in Christian theology, and quests for God. He later served at St. Catharine College in Kentucky as Dean of the School of Arts & Sciences and taught courses in religious studies and applied ethics. He was the President of the Society of Anglican and Lutheran Theologians, and Co-Convenor of the Society for the Study of Anglicanism. He served on the board of the Anglican Theological Review. He was the clergy in charge of congregations in the dioceses of Louisiana, Milwaukee, and Lexington. He was ecumenical officer of the Diocese of Lexington. He currently serves as the Narrative Medicine Program Coordinator at University of Kentucky Health Care, where he teaches an elective rotation for senior medical students on the narrative basis for patient care and resilient practice. He serves on the Hospital Ethics Committee. He lives in Danville, Kentucky, with his wife, Victoria. He has three grown children, Claire, Rebecca, and Jacob.