Rating: 
Summary: An Angel Amongst Men
Review: Bill Moyers was absolutely correct in stating with regard to William Sloane Coffin: "The voice of a prophet and wisdom for the ages". If anything, reading Credo has inspired me to want to be a better human being and stand up for those things I know point to a higher purpose. Credo is a compilation of memorable excerpts from, I believe, sermons delivered by Mr. Coffin. Whether you are a Christian or a secular humanist, there is something here to inspire you to a higher standard of global ethics. Most importantly, Credo delivers a message that Love is supreme and without it we are doomed. If all of us thought like Mr. Coffin what a wonderful world it would be.
Rating:
Summary: An Angel Amongst Men
Review: Bill Moyers was absolutely correct in stating with regard to William Sloane Coffin: "The voice of a prophet and wisdom for the ages". If anything, reading Credo has inspired me to want to be a better human being and stand up for those things I know point to a higher purpose. Credo is a compilation of memorable excerpts from, I believe, sermons delivered by Mr. Coffin. Whether you are a Christian or a secular humanist, there is something here to inspire you to a higher standard of global ethics. Most importantly, Credo delivers a message that Love is supreme and without it we are doomed. If all of us thought like Mr. Coffin what a wonderful world it would be.
Rating:
Summary: An Angel Amongst Men
Review: Bill Moyers was absolutely correct in stating with regard to William Sloane Coffin: "The voice of a prophet and wisdom for the ages". If anything, reading Credo has inspired me to want to be a better human being and stand up for those things I know point to a higher purpose. Credo is a compilation of memorable excerpts from, I believe, sermons delivered by Mr. Coffin. Whether you are a Christian or a secular humanist, there is something here to inspire you to a higher standard of global ethics. Most importantly, Credo delivers a message that Love is supreme and without it we are doomed. If all of us thought like Mr. Coffin what a wonderful world it would be.
Rating:
Summary: Each pondering deftly wrought
Review: Credo is an inspirational treasury of thoughts, musings, hard-learned lessons, and much more from William Sloane Coffin, whose remarkable activist life has included service as chaplain of Yale University and Williams College, publicly opposing the Vietnam war, being jailed as a civil rights "Freedom Rider", and earning the immortal caricature of Rev. Sloan in the Doonesbury comic strip. His uplifting wisdom in matters both spiritual and mundane is presented in bite-sized pieces, each pondering deftly wrought and worthy of extended contemplation. "A central message of Christian life is this: ask Jesus for but a thimbleful of help and you get an oceanful in return."
Rating: 
Summary: Not Worth It
Review: Credo, by William Sloane Coffin, 2004.Bland, shallow liberalism. A grandfather telling tales of the glory days (struggling to remember names), back when, in his youth, in the 60's, he stuck it to the man and gave the powers that be the what for. The complete lack of content is thinly veiled by an occasionally clever turn-of-phrase, but, in the end, the book itself wasn't worth writing. It could be introduced, "Here are some cute things I said in the last 20 years of sermons. I didn't know what else to say." It's not even a book; it's journal clippings that should have been passed down to a niece rather than to the book-buying public. It's not a strong enough work even to serve as the credo for the liberals who would agree with him. It is clear, through his highly predictable values ((...)no-nukes, Democratic, pro-affirmative action, kowtowing to feminism, self-effacing, anti-Bush, doubtful on miracles), that Coffin never actually knew any poor people. His thought life is driven by inane stereotypes common to the ivory tower ideology evangelists-the sad poor are oppressed by an opulent, governmentally protected middle class. Certainly greed is restricted to people with money. And no (...)person ever struggled with any psychiatric problems. Those people are INNOCENT. This is fortunate, because in Coffin's religious world there would be no atonement for them otherwise. The only redeeming value of the book is the few one-liners that are just sly. He challenges people who lean on the Bible like a drunk leans on a lamppost, for support but not illumination. He tells us that the goal in life is to die young as late as possible. However, these are just too few and far between to comprise a book. Journal musings should be left in your desk drawer.
Rating:
Summary: Not Worth It
Review: Credo, by William Sloane Coffin, 2004. Bland, shallow liberalism. A grandfather telling tales of the glory days (struggling to remember names), back when, in his youth, in the 60's, he stuck it to the man and gave the powers that be the what for. The complete lack of content is thinly veiled by an occasionally clever turn-of-phrase, but, in the end, the book itself wasn't worth writing. It could be introduced, "Here are some cute things I said in the last 20 years of sermons. I didn't know what else to say." It's not even a book; it's journal clippings that should have been passed down to a niece rather than to the book-buying public. It's not a strong enough work even to serve as the credo for the liberals who would agree with him. It is clear, through his highly predictable values ((...)no-nukes, Democratic, pro-affirmative action, kowtowing to feminism, self-effacing, anti-Bush, doubtful on miracles), that Coffin never actually knew any poor people. His thought life is driven by inane stereotypes common to the ivory tower ideology evangelists-the sad poor are oppressed by an opulent, governmentally protected middle class. Certainly greed is restricted to people with money. And no (...)person ever struggled with any psychiatric problems. Those people are INNOCENT. This is fortunate, because in Coffin's religious world there would be no atonement for them otherwise. The only redeeming value of the book is the few one-liners that are just sly. He challenges people who lean on the Bible like a drunk leans on a lamppost, for support but not illumination. He tells us that the goal in life is to die young as late as possible. However, these are just too few and far between to comprise a book. Journal musings should be left in your desk drawer.
Rating:
Summary: This book indicts us to be compassionate and merciful
Review: I am a Lutheran Church librarian who bought this book for our church library. The beauty of this book is that the reader can turn to any chapter or page and just begin reading. Many of my parishioners are not big readers and only have high school educations, so this book is more attractive to them than a tome with chapter after chapter of dry theology. This book stresses how to turn faith into activism to change the world for the better. It is inspirational and thought-provoking.
Coffin is no light-weight as one hysterical right-wing reviewer suggests. He has been Yale University's chaplain, minister of Riverside church in Manhattan, and is now working for nuclear disarmament. I believe he was also active in the civil rights movement if I remember correctly. Yes, he is liberal and thank God for that! Once CAN be religious and liberal at the same time! The two go hand in hand. It is refreshing to hear a minister, a person of faith, INDICT us to truly love our neighbor even if we perceive him to be "different" from us; to remember the poor and work to help them; to protest when our nation goes in the wrong direction. This is an excellent book for those who are sick and tired of George Bush's brand of "compassionate conservatism" in which he tries to relegate gays to second-class citizenship, believes that wholesale murder of innocent Iraqis will lead to a democratic peace in that nation, and who puts our nation in jeopardy through corrupt and wasteful stewardship of our national finances and the environment, etc. There is a lot here to think about and work toward.
Rating:
Summary: Words that will likely stay in one's Mind & Heart!
Review: I noted no reviews gave credit to the origin of these words as collected by Editor Stephanie Egnotovich and Publisher Davis Perkins of John Knox Press. When I began to masticate upon the outline, quotes & thots therein, I was convinced it is a book I cannot be without! Emphasis upon Dr Coffin's outline of Faith, Hope/Love; Social Justice...Patriotism, War/Peace, Plus Nature...All take me back to hear him one great week of Montreat Music & Worship Conference. His preaching was complimented by his day by day-living as I sat next to him in the Bass section of Prof Elaine Brown's fabulous Choir. Not only did he use great richness of tone in his singing, but also in his profound statements. My memory will hold his deeply rich voice alongside his quotes of Walter Brueggemann: "Justice is to sort out what belongs to whom and return it to them!"
Parker Palmer: "Relationships-not facts and reason-are the key to reality." Huston Smith: "The larger the island of knowledge--The greater the shoreline of wonder!" These are sufficient to see him as the Master of metaphor in writing, preaching and conversation! Amen for this wondrously inspired collection from Bill Coffin's Wisdom treaure-chest!
Retired Chap Fred W Hood
Rating:
Summary: Words that will likely stay in one's mind & heart!
Review: I noted that no reviews gave credit to the origin of these words as collected by Editor Stephanie Egnotovich and Publisher Davis Perkins of John Knox Press. When I began to meditate upon this neat outline, quotations, and thots, I was convinced it is a book I cannot be without! Emphasis upon Dr. Coffin's outline of Faith, Hope/Love; Social Justice; Patriotism, War/Peace; Plus Nature, All take me back to hear him one week of Montreat Music & Worship Conference. His preaching was complimented by his day by day-living. Mostly because I sat beside him in Bass Section of Prof Elaine Brown's fabulous Choir.
Not only did he sing with great richness of tone but also in his profound statements. My memory will hold his deeply rich voice alongside his quotations of Walter Brueggemann: "Justice is to sort out what belongs to whom and return it to them!"
Another quotation of Parker Palmer: "Relationships-not facts and reason-are the key to reality." Huston Smith: "The larger the island of knowledge--The greater the shoreline of wonder!" More than sufficient to see & hear him as the master of metaphor in writing, preaching, and conversation! Amen for this wondrously inspired collection from Bill Coffin's Wisdom treaure-chest!
Retired Chap Fred W Hood
Rating:
Summary: Shallow
Review: I was hoping this would be a collection of profound aphorisms. Instead, I found it shallow religiosity from someone who seems like he gave up his faith a long time ago. This book isn't worth reading.
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