Resurrecting Grace

by Marilyn Sewell (Editor)

Resurrecting Grace is a wildly entertaining collection of memoir about the often painful and humorous experience of growing up in the one true faith. This small confessional of personal pieces from women and men about the Church, the saints, the nuns, hidden desires, and overt transgressions--and of course the guilt, the guilt, the guilt--is one for proud Catholics, former and recovering Catholics, and Catholics by association. Editor Marilyn Sewell, a Unitarian minister who was raised in the Catholic faith, approaches her subject with a kind of reverent humor. The book is arranged thematically, around topics like "The Sins of the Flesh," "Sister, May I?," and "Suffering and Sacrifice," and includes pieces by Rosemary Bray, Roberto Rodriguez, Mary Gordon, Esmeralda Santiago, Tobias Wolff, and many others.
Rich in the images and experiences that can only be the result of a Catholic upbringing, these stories prove the promise of a community founded on faith and sustained with hope.

314 pages, Hardcover

First published August 1, 2001

About the author

Marilyn Sewell has 10 books in print, including the ground-breaking anthology of women's spiritual poetry, "Cries of the Spirit." Marilyn writes for the spirituality section of Huffington Post. She on the adjunct faculty at Attic Institute, a resource center for writers in Portland, OR, and also teaches at Maitripa, a Buddhist college in Portland. She is the subject of a prize-winning documentary film, "Raw Faith." Her newest book is a memoir, "Raw Faith: Following the Thread," which gives the back story to the film. Marilyn is the Minister Emerita of the First Unitarian Church of Portland, OR, where she served for 17 years as Senior Minister. She lives on the Willamette River with her husband and her cat Molly.

Reviews

[Gail Jeidy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Finally getting to this book I've had for over a decade. A collection of essays from many well-known writers on the topic of growing up Catholic. Compiled by our former Unitarian Minister in Portland, Marilyn Sewell, who is a gifted speaker and writer. This book triggers lots of memories. Good read.

[Maureen · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is subtitled "Remembering Catholic Childhoods". Our UU Book Clab had seen a video about the author, Marilyn Sewell, a UU minister as our December "selection". I was so impressed by this person in the video, Raw Faith, that I checked to see which of her books are available through our library system. This is the one that grabbed me, and was the right choice. What I got from the book was an affirmation that Catholic childhoods, while different one from the other, share common experiences of the ways in which the child's mind takes on the Catholic Church. I felt both affirmed and stretched by the reading. The one fault of the book, I think, is that it doesn't have short bios of the authors. There are several I'd like to pursue!

[Grace · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'm not sure how I feel about the overall tone of the book. From the title I thought it would be more hopeful, but the majority of the admittedly well written and engaging essays seemed to prefer to focus on the borderline traumatic aspects of a Catholic childhood. Still an interesting read.