Reallivepreacher.com

Rating:
Summary: Striking honesty about faith
Review: "If the wafers are going stale for you, be the bread yourself. Break yourself open and nourish the world..."

Two years ago a pastor of a small church in San Antonio, Texas, signed onto the web at Salon.com and began a journey. This dangerous expedition was an odyssey to plumb the depths of his core in order to share his own fears, doubts and desires. And, in the daring process of baring his soul before faceless millions, his weblog, RealLivePreacher.com, grew into one of the most widely read blogs in the world.

This collection of some of "The Preacher's" finest essays is a fascinating study into belief as experienced by an all-too-human man of the cloth. Atkinson is a no-holds-barred type of blogger. He makes no attempt to beautify the ugly realities of dealing with faith. He struggles in the dirt with it; he uses the f-word when appropriate; he takes no prisoners and leaves no stones unturned. And, when he occasionally loses his belief in God, he freely admits it. For example, when he can't deal with the glossiness of the modern-day, super-organized church versus the simple loving communion that Christ and his followers shared, he doesn't rein in his aversion.

Both new and veteran readers of RealLivePreacher.com will adore the characters who have helped Atkinson trek the dusty roads of his faith walk. There's big Earl the Gravedigger, friend and atheist. There's George the Deacon, dying of AIDS who enjoys a hit on his bong while partaking of his last communion. There's tiny Everett, born too soon, who dies before he can take his first breath but somehow manages to testify that hope can be born of sorrow. And then there's precious Elliot, a long-awaited child whose parents demonstrate the true meaning of forgiveness when a newcomer in Sunday school brutally bites him.

All in all, the most fascinating aspect of RealLivePreacher.com is its striking honesty. The Preacher shows us how God works faith in each and every one of us, no matter how broken, lost or thoroughly screwed up we are. This is Good News indeed. -- Cindy Appel for the FEARLESS REVIEWS

Rating:
Summary: Finding God in surprising places.
Review: As a liberal Jew, I never would have expected to find genuine connection with God in the writings of a Baptist preacher from my birthplace, San Antonio. Good thing I didn't let that prejudice keep me from visiting RLP's blog, because the moment I did, I realized he was far more interesting than the label "southern Baptist preacher" implies. His faith is strong; so are his doubts. He lives fully in this world. He's interested in living righteously in a way that's aligned with his understanding of God. He repudiates fundamentalism. He understands the power of a good story.

This book holds the best essays from his blog, plus several new essays he crafted particularly for the collection, and it's just excellent. His stories are funny and poignant and humble. He's a hoot. He's a kick. He's genuine. He is a real live preacher, and whatever preconceptions you may have about that term, rest assured that he's going to blow them out of the water. Reading this book really moved me, and I recommend it highly.

Rating:
Summary: Reading in the Driveway
Review: Call me a disciple, if you will. Someone linked to someone who linked to ... through a myriad of weblog links I found myself at RealLivePreacher.com and became hooked with the first sentence.

My copy of Preacher's book came in the mail today and my own muse hit with a fury after I dipped into it.

"It arrived in a plain bubble wrap envelope and was sitting in the mailbox at home. As soon as I saw it, I knew what it was. Something I was anxious to read. I plucked it out of the box, hoping the rain hadn't damaged the book inside. Nervously, I opened the envelope full of hope and pulled the book out; no damage. As I squeezed between the recycle bin and the shed to put the envelope in the trash can, my hands shook as I opened it.

What would the inscription say? Did they even remember to send it to the author for signature? He doesn't know me from anyone. Well, maybe as that woman who has sent him more than a couple of emails basically saying, 'your blog piece on this really touched me.' He also knows me as that woman who asked him to read a story of hers. Gracious man that he is, he read it and replied. I held my breath and found it, 'Hi Stephanie, peace!' Cool.

As I squeezed back out to the driveway, I completely forgot about the groceries in Car's backseat. Randomly flipping pages, I stopped on a two page piece and started reading. The words sucked me in, I was completely transfixed. It was like jumping into a really comfortable swimming pool and staying under for the sheer joy of it.

I forced myself to go back and read the parts I skimmed over because I was so anxious to read it. The topic was fundamentalism. As I read, I wondered how one of the people I work with would feel were she to read these words. That thought lasted a femto-second as I kept reading. At the end of the piece, I breathed and came out of the book. There, in the cool air that promised more rain, I had lost track. I stood in my driveway, looked at the cover and blinked. Darn, now I have to put the groceries away.

The book is RealLivePreacher.com and all I have to say is, 'Thanks, Preacher and peace to you too.'"

Read Preacher's book and you'll understand why his readers are so devoted.

Rating:
Summary: Praying for Hermit Crabs
Review: For the last several nights, I have been tucking myself into bed and reading an entry from the book RealLivePreacher.com, which is from the website bearing the same name. I happened to come across the site by accident when I was designing my blog. When I saw the words "RealLivePreacher.com" I thought, "Oh, great... some ultra conservative fundamentalist Christian is spreading fire and damnation online." Despite this initial knee-jerk reaction, I felt compelled to click on the link to see just what kind of fruitcake was at the other end of the internet.

The rabbit hole I stumbled down led me into the world of Gordon Atkinson, who really is a real, live, preacher with a blog. He was doing an online booksigning for his newly published compilation of weblogs, and was sitting at a desk in a bookstore in Texas with what looked like can of beer sitting in front of him. (Maybe it was sarsparilla, the resolution was bad.. it was hard to tell.)

I thought, "Hmmm, well that's rather odd and oxymoronic ... who IS this guy?"

What I found as I navigated through the site were entries with titles like "Apparantly I Might Be A False Prophet", and "What's In the Preacher's Pants?" I don't think I have to explain the immediate liking I took to the preacher's blog.

Gordon has an easy way of writing, weaving a tapestry of words from the heart. It's an honest and sometimes blunt look at life and faith from a man who readily admits he doesn't have all of the answers. You won't find any prehistoric brimstone here. What you WILL find is a creative, funny, surprisingly real man who not only shoots straight from hip - he's shooting straight from the heart.

Gives a whole new meaning to Don't Mess With Texas.

My favorite entry, which can be found in his book is titled, "Something About Prayer" - a tender story about a little girl fervently asking the congregation to pray for her ailing hermit crab. What happened in the preacher's heart in response to this request brought tears to my eyes. No request is too small, and no question is too big to ponder. Real Live Goodness awaits you inside this wonderful little book.

Rating:
Summary: This is the real thing
Review: This is a great book, collecting dozens of rlp's greatest essays from the blog that can be found at (where else?) www.reallivepreacher.com. For most of two years this blog was anonymously written, giving thousands of readers a glimpse inside the heart of a wonderful preacher, devoted father and very earthly man. Atkinson is a Texas Baptist minister who doesn't check his brain at the door. He is willing to share his own doubts, discuss crises of faith, and celebrate the real difficulties of life.